ADAMS
Assessment of key minor species Detections in the Atmosphere of MarS measured by NOMAD/TGO

• Budget: 263.561 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Loïc Trompet (BIRA-IASB)
• BELSPO programme manager: Corinne Lejour

Description

Mars’ atmosphere is composed of 95% carbon dioxide and around 4% molecular nitrogen and argon. However, many trace gases that have an important impact on the atmosphere’s chemistry are still to be assessed. We can now enter the details and quantify the trace species down to the part per billion, thanks to the NOMAD instrument, the BIRA-IASB suite of spectrometers on board ESA’s Trace Gas Orbiter. The high spectral resolution of NOMAD and its various viewing geometries enable us to capture the distribution of trace species better. The NOMAD instrument can measure, among other phenomena, atmospheric absorption via solar occultation. Those measurements provide an unrivalled method for inferring the presence of trace gases, owing to the high intensity of the solar signal and the rapid acquisition of measurements by NOMAD, which yields a very fine vertical resolution. Many key species in the Martian atmosphere exhibit infrared absorption features. In this project, we will target molecules predicted by chemical models to be present in the Martian atmosphere but not regularly observed.

The first goal of this project is to develop an upper-detection scheme to be integrated into the NOMAD science pipeline recently initiated by the Planetary Atmospheres group. We need to define the optimal spectral ranges for studying each molecular species. This first part is critical and timely, as we now have a better understanding of the instrument's function and measurement uncertainties. This work will confirm their accuracy and, if necessary, adjust them, thereby providing essential feedback. We will need to best fit the carbon dioxide and water spectral structures across the full spectral range of NOMAD-SO. These have a signal that is several times larger than that of the targeted species. The retrievals will be automated, and reliable criteria for upper-limit calculations will be established. The second goal is to develop a new method for inferring spectral signatures using unsupervised machine learning tools. Machine learning has made significant advances in the last decade, and well-established methods are now easy to implement thanks to their widespread documentation and availability of algorithms. Many interesting methods can be investigated to infer the tiny presence of spectral features in data. The third goal is to provide a consistent set of upper limits or quantification of the amount of the targeted species and to examine how these results constrain the main chemical cycles.

Documentation

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AIRCo
Artificial Intelligence for Research Collections

• Budget: 99.870 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Larissa Smimova (KMMA-MRAC)
• National partner: Luc De Raedt (KU Leuven)
• BELSPO programme manager: Chloë Rogiers

Description

Museum Collection Management (CM) is a complex task. The variety of sources, from field notes to digital files, presents challenges in establishing relationships between sub-collections, provenance research, and ensuring data integrity. To facilitate to overcome these challenges the project AIRCO will explore two key applications of AI:

• AI for CM: automating the identification of links, detecting inconsistencies, and enhancing data quality across collections
  and databases.
• AI for Storytelling: investigating the potential for AI-driven storytelling to enhance engagement with museum collections.

The first part of the project will focus on developing and fine-tuning AI tools for CM. This will help address issues such as automating the reading of historical handwritten labels to fill gaps and improve the accuracy of collection records.
The second part will focus on two Congolese collectors, Ngwe and N’Kele. These skilled naturalists were recruited by former RMCA director Schouteden during one of his early expeditions to the Belgian Congo. Over several decades (1920–1970), Ngwe and N’Kele collected thousands of specimens, some of which led to the description of new species. Despite their contributions, their names remain largely unknown.
We want to explore how narratives unearthed by AI can increase the visibility of lesser known topics, objects, events or personas, creating new ways to engage audiences through museum exhibitions, websites, and social media. To support this, a hackathon involving different groups of public will be organized to co-develop innovative storytelling approaches using AI-assisted tools.
Finally the results will be published on online repositories for outreach to the source communities, researchers and the general public.
By applying AI to collection management, this project will provide a robust solution for improving data quality and accuracy in museum records. Storytelling through AI will also complement current curatorial practices by unlocking alternative ways to valorise key collections.

Documentation

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AMNOXYKO
As darkness sets in: Ammonoid diversity, Mass Mortality, and a Novel deOXYgenation proxy throughout the onset of the Kellwasser Crises at LOmpret Quarry

• Budget: 451.000 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Stijn Goolaerts (KBIN-IRSNB)
• BELSPO programme manager: Corinne Lejour

Description

Fossil-rich sedimentary sequences record past environmental crises, preserving evidence of ancient ecosystem dynamics. The Kellwasser Crises 372 million years ago at the end of the Frasnian (Upper Devonian), caused coral reef collapse, widespread hypoxia to euxinia, and a 1st order mass extinction—one of the Big Five— and has the highly diverse iconic Gephuroceratin ammonoid cephalopods, such as Manticoceras, among its famous victims. However, the onset of Kellwasser Crises and the ecological transformations it drove in the final stages of the Frasnian remain poorly understood. How did declining oxygen levels shape marine communities struggling for survival at the very end of the Frasnian?
Over the past 12 years, as part of the monitoring of high-potential fossil localities, RBINS staff collaborating with citizen scientists discovered an exceptionally expanded fossil-rich section in the Lompret Quarry (Chimay, Belgium), dating to the Kellwasser onset within the (historical) type area of the Frasnian Stage. This site surpasses many of the renowned Kellwasser sections in the world in stratigraphic thickness, fossil abundance, and preservation quality. Key finds include exquisitely preserved ammonoids, from embryonic shells up to giant >40 cm diameter specimens, a set of mass-mortality beds, a new giant predator fish Dunkleosteus, and Belgium’s largest Kellwasser invertebrate macrofossil collection.
The AMNOXYKO project will leverage this unique addition to the federal collection to investigate ammonoid (Gephuroceratina, Tornoceratina) and other cephalopods (Bactritida, Orthocerida, Oncocerida) diversity resolving long-standing issues on their diversity in the Frasnian type area, using both conventional and novel techniques like micro-CT, and making digital models of all encountered species openly accessible on the RBINS Virtual Collections Platform. It will also examine, at unprecedented resolution, the abundance, distribution, composition, and interrelationships between nektonic (Cephalopoda) and (opportunistic) benthic macroinvertebrates with high preservation potential (bivalves, gastropods, brachiopods), assessing how the Frasnian ecosystem adapted to declining oxygen levels amid an impending mass extinction.
By integrating macroinvertebrate data from normal and mass-mortality beds with sedimentological and geochemical deoxygenation proxies (microfacies in thin sections, clay mineralogy, AI-driven pyrite framboid analyses, δ13C and redox sensitive metals), this research will develop a novel calibrated high-resolution faunal deoxygenation proxy, complementing traditional proxies but pivotal to an unprecedented detailed understanding of the Kellwasser crises. Additionally, it will yield new insights into ammonoid paleobiology and environmental partitioning, potentially revealing life-cycle-based ecological differentiation. δ13C chemostratigraphy will support ammonoid and conodont biostratigraphy to place findings from Lompret Quarry within the most refined global temporal context possible.
By combining multiple lines of evidence and uniting expertise across federal, regional, and international levels, this study will establish Lompret Quarry as a new Devonian deoxygenation reference section, further developing Belgian geoheritage and its value for society. Providing a detailed case study of ecosystem responses to extreme stress, these findings will contribute to broader discussions on oceanic anoxia’s long-term impacts, drawing parallels with modern deoxygenation trends. With the rapid spread of hypoxic death zones and coral reef collapse as two important tipping points in present-day climate change, this work—while primarily a Belgian heritage project built on the federal collection and in close collaboration with citizen-scientists—will enhance our understanding of past extinctions and offer critical insights into marine ecosystem resilience under present and future climate scenarios using novel methodologies.

Documentation

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ATLAS 2.0
Analyzing The Landscape by turning Atlases into linked data Sources

• Budget: 333.676 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Iason Jongepier (ARA-AGR)
• National partners: Tim Soens (UAntwerpen), Christophe Verbruggen (UGent)
• BELSPO programme manager: Chloë Rogiers

Description

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Documentation

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B-DOCK
Belgian Data Oceanographic & Collection Knowledgebase

• Budget: 424.821 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2029
• Coordinator: Hong Minh Le (KBIN-IRSNB)
• Partners: Gontran Sonet  (KBIN-IRSNB), Maarten Van Steenberge (KBIN-IRSNB)
• BELSPO programme manager: Koen Lefever

Description

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Documentation

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be.Prepared
An harmonized One Health approach via cross-sectoral Data collections and cartographic Displays

• Budget: 539.083 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Heleen Masset (Sciensano)
• BELSPO programme manager: Emma Moerman

Description

During the COVID-19 crisis, information from clinical and epidemiological data, as well as from microbial genomic analyses, were combined in order to inform policy and the public. The integration of data from different sources is thus crucial for proposing and evaluating public health responses. However, no robust architecture has been created to enable integrated surveillance beyond the pandemic. Rigorous observations from both genomics and cross-sectoral data are needed, following a One Health perspective; integrating human, animal, and environmental health. Current infectious disease surveillance in Belgium is sectoral, and the exchange of data is slow and cumbersome. For example, an outbreak of Salmonella-contaminated chocolate products produced in Belgium was noticed with delay by our own systems after other countries had already noticed. To avoid such occurrences in the future, Sciensano has developed an innovative Belgian Preparedness Architecture for Infectious Diseases (be.Prepared) that aims precisely to ensure the integration and coupling of pathogen and health data. This national framework can support infectious disease investigations both in routine and in crisis situations, where scaling up data collection systems and linking data to a unique national identification number will be crucial. In addition to make observations, it is necessary to share data on routine surveillance and emerging threats with regional, community and federal (health) authorities, the scientific community and citizens. This was also demonstrated during the 2020-2021 SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, when dashboards were made accessible via a single website. More recently, during the avian influenza epidemic (2021-2023), Sciensano took the initiative of implementing a dashboard to geographically represent avian influenza outbreaks across Belgian territory. In the be.Prepared AHEADD ¹ project, we will use be.Prepared as a novel methodology for cross-sectoral outbreaks, with two applications presenting a One Health perspective: (i) identification of foodborne outbreaks (i.e. human Salmonella- and Listeria isolates from food samples) and (ii) identification of zoonotic influenza events (i.e. human cases of avian influenza complemented with environmental data and risk estimates). Specifically, the National Reference Laboratory for Foodborne Pathogens will analyse samples from controls by the FAVV-AFSCA, thereby building a genomic indicator database for foodborne pathogens with automated genomic cluster detection among human and food isolates. A public cross-sectoral visualisation for avian influenza on a genomic-epidemiological level will be implemented as a collaboration of multiple services within Sciensano and the service of Atmospheric Composition, Measurements and Modelling within the Royal Meteorological Institute as a partner. Upon expert analysis, a set of relevant metadata on risk estimates on introduction and spread of a pathogen will be collected. The inclusion of these metadata into a public cartographic display will be evaluated. During the process, quantitative indicators will be used to map the progress and outcome of the implementations, e.g. number of isolates, number of links, number of prevented outbreaks, explicit phylogeographic reconstruction, etc. The be.Prepared AHEADD initiative will, in an interdisciplinary One-Health collaboration, facilitate the rapid cross-sectoral detection of outbreaks. Additionally, it will support the identification of antimicrobial resistance patterns coming from genomic data, the intuitive geographic visualisation of the epidemiological situation in Belgium and the risk assessment of zoonotic events in the framework of genomic-epidemiological surveillance.

¹ An harmonized One Health approach via cross-sectoral Data collections and cartographic Displays

Documentation

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BEHRA
Belgian High-resolution ReAnalysis

• Budget: 283.698 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Piet Termonia (KMI-IRM)
• BELSPO programme manager: Bernard Delhausse

Description

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Documentation

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BELAMAR
The Belgian labour market in the Second World War through the lens of unemployment

• Budget: 235.175 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Dirk Luyten (ARA-AGR)
• BELSPO programme manager: Bernard Delhausse

Description

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Documentation

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BIBLION
Breaking Into Bindings through Lens Investigation and Observation using Noninvasive technology

• Budget: 711.401 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Christophe Maggi (KIK-IRPA)
• Partners: Nicolas Michel (KBR), Patrice Gautier (KMKG-MRAH)
• BELSPO programme manager: Helena Calvo del Castillo

Description

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Documentation

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CAFEINE
CArbon Fate and Export In the North sEa

• Budget: 368.794 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/09/2028
• Coordinator: Nathan Terseleer (KBIN-IRSNB)
• BELSPO programme manager: Koen Lefever

Description

Coastal environments are shaped by complex organo-mineral flocculation processes in which biologically produced marine gels, particularly transparent exopolymer particles (TEP), play a crucial role in controlling seasonal biogeochemical cycles. These interactions govern suspended particulate matter (SPM) concentration, light penetration, and phytoplankton phenology. TEP composition varies seasonally and across the cross-shore gradient: fresh TEP drives the formation of larger, faster-sinking flocs, while mineral-associated TEP contributes little to flocculation. This variability structures the cross-shore transport of suspended particles, including particulate organic carbon. Concurrently, the proliferation of man-made structures (MMS) such as offshore wind farms and aquaculture facilities introduces artificial hard substrates rapidly colonised by dense assemblages of suspension feeders, predominantly blue mussels. These organisms filter substantial volumes of seawater, consuming phytoplankton and organic matter while producing fast-sinking biodeposits and releasing marine gels. This feedback may redirect energy flow from pelagic food webs to benthic pathways, altering sediment biogeochemistry and carbon transport. Yet the extent to which suspension feeding around MMS affects water column organo-mineral flocculation across different SPM regimes remains largely unknown, hampering prediction of ecosystem-scale consequences of coastal development.
CAFEINE addresses this knowledge gap with a numerical modelling framework integrating biogeochemical processes, mineral flocculation dynamics, and suspension feeder ecology. It will quantify water column-hard substrate feedbacks and clarify how MMS reshape carbon cycling and redirect primary production pathways across coastal-offshore gradients.
To achieve this, CAFEINE employs a hierarchical experimental-modelling approach. Laboratory experiments will first characterise the seasonal interactions between blue mussels and seawater content, providing essential parameters for model development. An existing biogeochemical–flocculation model will then be enhanced to incorporate attached phytoplankton and TEP dynamics alongside suspension feeder interactions, and implemented as an open-source, plug-and-play module within a standardised framework for broad transferability. The model will be progressively extended from 0D through 1D-vertical applications, resolving local-scale particle dynamics and biogeochemical transformations in contrasting environments influenced by MMS, to a full 3D regional implementation in the Southern Bight of the North Sea, enabling basin-scale impact assessments of current and future infrastructure scenarios.
The project exploits observational datasets from renewable energy and particle monitoring programmes in contrasting environments: offshore areas with lower mineral content and higher organic fraction (where most current infrastructure is located), and nearshore areas with high mineral content and complex bio-mineral interactions (targeted by planned future developments). Existing satellite SPM products will further support model validation and provide climatological context.
CAFEINE will deliver mechanistic understanding of how MMS alter carbon and energy pathways in coastal systems, quantifying the share of primary production directed toward benthic versus higher trophic levels. Key outputs include estimates of organic matter fluxes to sediments (both quantitatively and qualitatively), spatial maps of deposition patterns around infrastructure, and assessments of carbon accumulation versus mineralisation with and without MMS. The project will also produce open-source modelling tools, validated 3D scenario assessments, and evidence-based recommendations for sustainable marine spatial planning. It lays essential foundations for future studies on carbon cycling, sediment biogeochemistry, altered trophic pathways, and fisheries productivity in human-modified coastal seas.

Documentation

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CARVES
Context And Reuse – the Valued Experience of Sustainability

• Budget: 69.341 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/09/2028
• Coordinator: Louise Decq  (KIK-IRPA)
• BELSPO programme manager: Helena Calvo del Castillo

Description

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Documentation

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CONTEXT
CONnecting the Troposphere to EXobase on the red planeT

• Budget: 363.069 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Lori Neary (BIRA-IASB)
• BELSPO programme manager: Koen Lefever

Description

Motivation
The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter’s NOMAD instrument has provided a wealth of information on the thermal structure and composition of the Martian atmosphere, as well as insights into transport processes driven by dust storms. Key questions remain about how lower-atmosphere phenomena, such as dust storms, thermal tides, and gravity waves, impact the upper atmosphere. We can use General Circulation Models (GCMs) to better understand these interactions, with NOMAD temperature, density, and composition measurements as a guide.

Objectives
This project aims to investigate the coupling of the upper and lower atmosphere of Mars through modelling and observations, using and improving the tools developed in the Planetary Atmospheres group at IASB.
The three main objectives of the project are to 1) Improve our understanding of the heating and cooling mechanisms in the upper atmosphere and the connections to the lower atmosphere; 2) Study the dynamic wave-driven coupling between the lower and upper atmosphere through GCM modelling and observations; 3) Enable the further investigation of atmospheric escape and airglow in the Martian atmosphere by bringing together lower and upper atmospheric chemistry.

Methods
We will use and improve the GEM-Mars GCM, which simulates the thermal structure, circulation, and composition of the Martian atmosphere, together with enhanced NOMAD retrievals of temperature, density, and composition.
Objective 1: Improve our retrieval of temperatures from NOMAD observations and our radiative transfer modelling of the upper atmosphere in the GCM, allowing joint analysis of model and data to build a better picture of upper-atmosphere thermal structure and its coupling to lower levels.
Objective 2: Refine how the model treats dust and other particles and use new data and analysis methods to spot patterns such as waves and unusual temperature structures that reveal how different atmospheric layers interact.
Objective 3: Extend our GCM chemical scheme for the upper atmosphere and use GCM output with NOMAD observations of airglow and trace gases to link lower-atmosphere composition and processes with those in the upper atmosphere.

Together, these objectives enhance our modelling, retrieval, and analysis tools, enabling a more complete understanding of connections across the Martian atmosphere.

Documentation

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CRISP
Cryosphere River Inputs: Seismic and geochemical Profiling

• Budget: 445.000 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2029
• Coordinator: Koen Van Noten (KSB-ORB)
• BELSPO programme manager: Koen Lefever

Description

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Documentation

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DeCoDE
Decolonizing Collection management and Digital Ecosystem: Towards OAIS-compliant digital preservation and decolonial heritage management at KBR

• Budget: 456.660 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Isabelle Gribomont (KBR)
• National partner: Bérengère Piret (UCLouvain)
• BELSPO programme manager: Bernard Delhausse

Description

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Documentation

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DELFTPAINT
DELFTPAINT Craft vs Art. Dutch earthenware paintings from the 17th to the 19th century in the collections of the Royal Museums of Art and History

• Budget: 327.723 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Valérie Montens (KMKG-MRAH)
• BELSPO programme manager: Bernard Delhausse

Description

Context
So called Delft tin‑glazed earthenware plaques, which emerged around 1640 in the Dutch Republic, represent a distinctive form of production at the intersection of art and craft. Made during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries by faience manufactories mostly located in and around Delft, they consist of a fine earthenware body coated with a white tin glaze, imitating porcelain imported from Asia, and decorated either in cobalt‑blue monochrome or in polychromy. Unlike the better‑known tile panels, these plaques are formed from a single slab and conceived as true pictures. When framed, they adorned interiors much like paintings on canvas or wooden panel. They developed during the Dutch Golden Age, marked by the flourishing of painting, drawing, and printmaking, as well as by the influence of trade with Asia through the Dutch East India Company. Their iconography is varied—landscapes, portraits, interior scenes, religious subjects, and the fashionable Asian motifs of the period. Despite their technical and artistic interest, these objects remain relatively understudied as a distinct corpus. The Royal Museums of Art and History (RMAH) hold an exceptional collection of Dutch tin‑glazed earthenware—largely made up of pieces from the Albert Evenepoel bequest of 1911—which serves as an invaluable resource for the study of these ‘porcelain paintings’.

Objectives

Building on the collection of the Royal Museums of Art and History, the DELFTPAINT project undertakes a scientific study of Dutch tin‑glazed earthenware plaques produced between 1640 and 1800, situating them within a broader network of European museum collections. It seeks to fill a research gap, as these objects are often overlooked despite their significance for the history of visual culture and the decorative arts.
Conducted in partnership with the Museum Prinsenhof Delft, the project focuses on understanding manufacturing techniques, materials, and production contexts; on distinguishing between workshops and individual practices; and on adopting a diachronic and geographic approach across Dutch production centres, notably Delft. It also foresees the development of a typology integrating materiality, iconography and function, while identifying—where possible—centres of production, workshops, and individual makers.
DELFTPAINT further aims to situate these plaques within a wider artistic and cultural framework by examining their interactions with other visual forms—painting, drawing, and printmaking—as well as their role in decorative practices and European exchange. Finally, the project investigates the reception and market for these plaques over the long term—from their manufacture to their present status as collectors’ objects—while enhancing the national and international visibility of this still under‑researched corpus.

Methodology

DELFTPAINT aims to conduct an interdisciplinary study of Dutch tin‑glazed earthenware plaques, combining art history, the history of techniques, materials analysis, and cultural history. It focuses particularly on the objects held by the Royal Museums of Art and History, set in dialogue with examples from other European collections in order to recontextualise them within broader networks of production, circulation, and use.
The programme encompasses morphometric and technical description of the plaques; assessment of their condition; microscopic examination of manufacturing marks and decoration; and the acquisition of high‑resolution images and 3D models to document the shaping processes. The characterisation of ceramic pastes, glazes, and pigments will rely on non‑invasive methods (micro‑XRF/μXRF, LA‑ICP‑MS, Raman spectroscopy, isotopic analysis) to identify recipes, raw materials, and their chronological and geographic variation.
The project will also leverage written and visual sources to identify workshops, artisans, patterns of circulation, markets, and reception of these plaques, as well as to analyze their relationship with other artistic forms. All technical and historical data will be structured in a normalised database to enable comparative and quantitative analyses. This methodology will support the development of a rigorous typology, the identification of production groups, and the integration of these objects into the broader framework of European material and visual culture of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Impact & Dissemination

The project’s transdisciplinary approach will generate new knowledge about the plaques in the collection of the Royal Museums of Art and History and recontextualise them within Dutch production of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. It will provide data on manufacturing and decorative techniques, materials, workshops and artisans, as well as on the use, circulation, and reception of the plaques up to the present day. Material and stylistic analyses will make it possible to establish a typology, identify production groups, and define appropriate conservation strategies.
The dissemination of results will target scholars and heritage professionals through a study day and scientific publications; students and emerging artists through pedagogical and practice‑based collaborations; and the wider public through an exhibition, its catalogue, and an online presentation of the collection. These actions will enhance the visibility, understanding, and scientific and heritage impact of the collection at national and international levels.

Documentation

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EX-FUNUS
Ceramic Assemblages from the Haspengouw tumuli in the Royal Museums of Art and History Collection - A crossroad of traditions

• Budget: 126.959 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2027
• Coordinator: Sonja Willems (KMKG-MRAH)
• BELSPO programme manager: Bernard Delhausse

Description

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Documentation

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FADAmol
Linking taxonomic and molecular databases: a pilot study by the Freshwater Animal Diversity Assessment (FADA) for Catalogue of Life (CoL)

• Budget: 359.996 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Isabelle Schön (KBIN-IRSNB)
• BELSPO programme manager: Corinne Lejour

Description

Freshwater ecosystems host an extraordinary diversity of life but are among the most threatened ecosystems on Earth. Despite their importance, freshwater biodiversity remains underrepresented in research and conservation, partly due to fragmented taxonomic information. Reliable taxonomic backbones are therefore essential for biodiversity databases and monitoring efforts.
The Freshwater Animal Diversity Assessment (FADA) is a global online database compiling taxonomic information on freshwater animals. It currently includes more than 125,000 formally described species. Since 2023, the infraFADA project has been upgrading the database to serve as a taxonomic backbone for international infrastructures such as GBIF and the Catalogue of Life.
FADAmol will further develop this research infrastructure by integrating freshwater parasitic animal species, linking parasites with their host species, and incorporating molecular data. To achieve the latter, DNA sequence data of genetic repositories such as GenBank and BOLD will be linked to species names, and cryptic species.
By improving the quality and accessibility of freshwater biodiversity data at different levels, FADAmol will support biodiversity monitoring, ecological research, and conservation policies. The project also strongly contributes to international biodiversity initiatives and supports the One Health approach by improving knowledge of parasite diversity and host–parasite interactions. The incorporation of DNA sequence data will also be the first step to prepare FADAmol for future developments in biodiversity research such as eDNA and molecular taxonomy.

Documentation

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FashionNil
Late Antique and Early Islamic Textiles in the Royal Museums of Art and History

• Budget: 325.150 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Julie Marchand (KMKG-MRAH)
• BELSPO programme manager: Bernard Delhausse

Description

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Documentation

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FLARE
Flanders in Regional Territories (12th - 18th C.)

• Budget: 479.550 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2029
• Coordinator: Joke Verfaillie (ARA-AGR)
• National partner: Thijs Lambrecht (UGent)
• BELSPO programme manager: Chloë Rogiers

Description

For the State Archives in Flanders, archives of castellanies are counted among the last uncharted great ancien régime archival collections. Especially during the 16th-18th C., this rural administrative and judicial intermediary level - topical again in 21st C.-Flanders! - created vast archives (3 km in total), of which only a few are easily accessible in full (f.e. Aalst, Dendermonde), or partially (f.e. Waas).

To complicate things further, castellanies varied in composition, organisation and competence. Explaining to an archive user what exactly a castellany did, and whether one should start looking for a particular topic there or at another level of government, is by no means easy and requires an answer with many contextual, regional and even local nuances. That answer is currently lacking. On the one hand, because archives of castellanies - with a few exceptions - are poorly catalogued; on the other hand, because there is virtually no recent research available.

FLARE aims to make a significant contribution to this. A research assistant will be assigned within the State Archives to compile a modern overview of all the Flemish castellanies and their archives. Inspired by the ICA ISDF standard, the initial focus will be on both place and time-related fluctuations in competences, so that archive users can be directed to the correct administrative level or archive collection for content-related queries in each region. A second focus, namely a macro-inventory of the most important castellany series, ties in with this and paves the way for a possible future digitisation of core series. Finally, he/she will also investigate funding opportunities for the further cataloguing of castellany archives and draw up a strategic plan to this end. In doing so, experiences can be exchanged with the supervisor, who has undertaken to tackle the inventory of the Oudburg castellany.

A postdoctoral researcher at Ghent University will be appointed for 1 year to compile and analyse a dataset of 12th-16th C. castellany regulations, laws and privileges. These sources predate the homologation of the customs and date from a period in which the various castellany functions were not yet reflected in the (later) archival records. In other words, the resulting archive guide will form one of the pillars on which the project assistant at the State Archives will continue to build. At the same time, this postdoc fits perfectly within Ghent University’s current research priorities, and this collaboration opens the door to exchange with a broad group of researchers working on medieval and early modern state formation at various levels of government.

Finally, the project partners will work together to engage with a diverse target audience through a combination of workshops, news updates, a small in-house exhibition and a closing conference.

Documentation

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ForeBAt
Flanders in Regional Territories (12th - 18th C.)

• Budget: 574.296 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Bert Van Schaeybroeck (KMI-IRM)
• BELSPO programme manager: Emma Moerman

Description

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Documentation

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Gaia-BRASS
The Gaia Data Revolution and the Belgian Repository of Stellar Spectra

• Budget: 358.554 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2029
• Coordinator: Axel Lobel (KSB-ORB)
• BELSPO programme manager: Koen Lefever

Description

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Documentation

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HARMONIE
Harmignies Research on Early Medieval Origins of Networks, Interaction and Economy

• Budget: 330.000 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2029
• Coordinator: Britt Claes (KMKG-MRAH)
• BELSPO programme manager: Bernard Delhausse

Description

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Documentation

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ISOCOM
ISOtopes on a COMet

• Budget: 387.518 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2029
• Coordinator: Frederik Dhooghe (BIRA-IASB)
• BELSPO programme manager: Koen Lefever

Description

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Documentation

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JAPORISK
Monitoring of Aedes japonicus in Belgium and assessment of its vector competence for West Nile, Usutu and Japanese encephalitis virus to evaluate the potential risk for human health

• Budget: 319.933 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Javiera Rebolledo Romero (Sciensano)
• BELSPO programme manager: Chloë Rogiers

Description

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Documentation

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KG4J
Knowledge Graphs for Justice

• Budget: 392.799 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2029
• Coordinator: Patrick Jeuniaux (NICC-INCC)
• BELSPO programme managers: Aziz Naji & Emmanuèle Bourgeois

Description

The National Institute of Criminalistics and Criminology (NICC) plays a scientific role in Belgium’s criminal justice system. First, it offers forensic expertise in domains such as DNA, toxicology and drugs. Second, it engages in criminological research. For instance, it studies recidivism and criminal careers. In doing so, it deals with a wealth of data. Yet a lot of this data is fragmented or underused. Valuable insights remain hidden.

Proposal
The Knowledge Graphs for Justice (KG4J) project aims to address this. How? By building and exploiting data analysis systems using Graph Theory, Knowledge Graphs and Artificial Intelligence (AI) such as Large Language Models. And by defining a policy of data and AI governance.

What is Graph Theory?
Graphs are a natural way to represent connected data. Entities become nodes connected by relationships. Think of a metro map. Each station is a node, each track a relationship. What’s the shortest ride between two stations? What is the most connected station? Graph Theory (GT) answers such questions.

What is a Knowledge Graph?
Adding semantic information — definitions of meaning — turns graphs into Knowledge Graphs (KGs). They are machine readable, interpretable and queryable. And modern AI systems can leverage them to answer questions.

What is a Large Language Model?
A LLM is the engine behind modern conversational AI agents. LLMs have been trained at predicting human discourse based on large quantities of texts. They can talk with us and help perform other tasks. Like programming.

What we will do using this technology
The KG4J project will apply GT, KGs and LLMs to selected use cases. Unlocking the data that is already there, providing new capabilities and results.

Criminological research
The NICC already used a graph to examine recidivism and criminal careers through data sources that were disconnected. The goal is to process the graph to discover new patterns. And evolve it into a KG backed by AI. This allows advanced queries, and easier exploration of criminal trajectories.

Forensic expertise
The NICC usually processes forensic data in a tactical way. With no follow-up analytics to connect the dots. For instance, the DNA databanks match DNA profiles from criminal cases to the ones they hold. And stop there. Turn that data into a graph, and you can reveal co-offending patterns and uncover criminal networks. Connecting evidence supports both ongoing investigations and long-term policy making.

Unstructured data
Transcripts of interviews, expert notes, recordings, the amount of unstructured data is endless. Converting this into a KG is possible through AI. And has become much easier with LLMs. That KG can then answer questions about the interviews, notes, recordings, etc.

Objectives

1. Build a Knowledge Graph Infrastructure (KGI) with both criminological and forensic science data. Convert a graph into a full KG, running on a server. Queryable with an intuitive interface.
2. Prove use cases of the KGI. Apply the KGI to compute statistics on recidivism and criminal careers. Use GT to discover novel patterns. Discover usages in forensic domains.
3. Develop and apply methods to process unstructured data. Build pipelines to extract KGs from text. Perform discourse analysis of interview transcripts or reconstruct criminal trajectories from public records. Equip the KGs systems with LLM’s talkative abilities.
4. Define a model of data and AI governance. What did we learn? How can the NICC adopt AI in a legal and ethical way aligned with its institutional values? Define principles and rules for data and AI governance.

Conclusion
The KG4J project enables the NICC to deliver stronger forensic and criminological intelligence. It connects the fragmented data. It leverages underused data available today. It builds capacity in new areas through GT, KGs, LLMs. It also develops trustworthy data and AI practices in the service of justice.

Documentation

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MACH-PP
MACHine Learning development of statistical PostProcessing for RMIB forecasts

• Budget: 623.990 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Jonathan Demaeyer (KMI-IRM)
• BELSPO programme manager: Emma Moerman

Description

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Documentation

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MAESTRO
Mass-distribution Assessment from Exploitation of Small-bodies’ Tides, Rotation and KSBits

• Budget: 219.031 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Sebastien Le Maistre (KSB-ORB)
• BELSPO programme manager: Koen Lefever

Description

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Documentation

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MOSAIC
Material Outcomes of Sorption Analysis in Interdisciplinary Conservation

• Budget: 147.805 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Sebastiaan Godts (KIK-IRPA)
• BELSPO programme manager: Helena Calvo del Castillo

Description

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Documentation

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OZOMATIC
OZone Observations and Model Assessments focusing on Trends and Influential Constituents

• Budget: 525.090 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Corinne Vigouroux (BIRA-IASB)
• BELSPO programme manager: David Cox

Description

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Documentation

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PASTFORWARD.AI
Moving forward while keeping the past alive using AI

• Budget: 162.941 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Edwin De Roock (KIK-IRPA)
• BELSPO programme manager: Emma Moerman

Description

PASTFORWARD.AI is a KIK-IRPA research initiative that strategically integrates open-source artificial intelligence into the cultural heritage sector. Rather than developing new AI systems from scratch or relying on large commercial platforms, both of which come with high costs, significant skill requirements, and data privacy concerns, the project focuses on identifying, evaluating, and applying readily available, adaptable open-source models to enhance KIK-IRPA's capabilities and services.

The initiative targets five concrete application areas across the institution's three core departments: advanced reverse image search for visual similarity, Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) for intuitive document querying, metadata enrichment through image recognition, automatic translation for multilingual access, and advanced optical character recognition for digitised texts. Together, these tools aim to significantly improve the findability, accessibility, interoperability, and reusability of KIK-IRPA's collections, particularly through its BALaT platform, while automating routine tasks and strengthening research data management.

The project unfolds in three phases. It begins by establishing governance structures, data and ethical frameworks, and a global survey of relevant open-source AI models. This foundation leads into an experimentation phase, where suitable models are selected through departmental consultation and tested via iterative proofs-of-concept built on KIK-IRPA's own data. The project concludes by evaluating these pilots, consolidating lessons learned, and translating findings into a strategic AI integration roadmap for the institution.

Responsible deployment is central to the project's identity. An internal AI Ethics Assessment Framework and clear usage policies are developed as core deliverables rather than as an afterthought, ensuring that every application of AI is transparent and institution-wide. Staff workshops on AI literacy and change readiness support this commitment from the inside.

Externally, PASTFORWARD.AI actively engages communities such as AI4LAM, sharing progress, gathering feedback, and aligning with emerging best practices. All code and findings will be published openly via a project website and public repositories. The expected outcomes, including a long-term AI roadmap, enhanced institutional knowledge, and a suite of tested and scalable proofs-of-concept, are designed to demonstrate how responsibly applied open-source AI can preserve, analyse, enrich, and disseminate cultural heritage, in direct support of KIK-IRPA's ambition as a digital hub.

Documentation

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PenAnt
Penitentiary anthropology in Belgium during the interwar period

• Budget: 362.825 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2029
• Coordinator: Paul Drossens (ARA-AGR)
• BELSPO programme manager: Corinne Lejour

Description

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Documentation

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POLARIS
Polar Linked Analytical Research and Information System

• Budget: 585.005 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Anton Van De Putte (KBIN-IRSNB)
• National partner: Jan Aerts (KU Leuven)
• BELSPO programme manager: David Cox

Description

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Documentation

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PRALINE
PolaR imaging of the Sun At high Latitude IN Euv

• Budget: 519.915 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: David Berghmans (KSB-ORB)
• BELSPO programme manager: Koen Lefever

Description

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Documentation

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PRISM
Preservation & Research through Innovative Sample Management

• Budget: 416.191 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Wim Fremout (KIK-IRPA)
• BELSPO programme manager: Bernard Delhausse

Description

The PRISM project focuses on the systematic inventory, documentation, and digital valorisation of irreplaceable heritage sample collections. These materials are vital resources for research and conservation, providing physical evidence of objects that may otherwise be lost or altered. By promoting ethical research and minimising destructive sampling, these collections serve as a cornerstone for both scientific inquiry and practical preservation. To address fragmented documentation and limited accessibility, the project implements a strategy to manage and digitise these assets according to international FAIR principles, ensuring they are findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable. This includes a detailed framework applied to major pilot collections of paint and stone-like materials, involving enhanced physical archiving and a new online discovery tool with advanced search and geolocation functionalities. A multi-faceted dissemination plan ensures that project outcomes reach the scientific community, heritage professionals, and policy makers through workshops and digital resources. By establishing sustainable workflows and fostering collaboration, the project supports advanced research and ensures the long-term viability of these unique materials for future generations of practitioners.

Documentation

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REDCAPOS
Belgian 'Red kapos': A Political History of 'Antifascism'

• Budget: 239.775 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Widukind De Ridder (ARA-AGR)
• BELSPO programme manager: Bernard Delhausse

Description

The project examines the impact of political dynamics in German concentration camps and during the Cold War in Belgium. Its scope aligns with the renewed interest in the WWII resistance and the Cold War in Belgium. Research on Belgian political prisoners dates back several decades. Often, the focus has been on personal memories, leaving little room for systematic archival research. Institutional aspects, such as postwar recognition statutes, have been studied more broadly, but without making systematic use of individual recognition files.
This is particularly true of what is described in the international literature as the “red kapos,” prisoner functionaries who could occupy key positions in concentration camps. These roles inevitably placed them in a “grey zone” between perpetrator and victim. Within the camp hierarchy, such positions gradually came into the hands of political prisoners. They could use them to give a more structural character to informal forms of mutual solidarity and acts of sabotage. In the context of the Cold War, however, communist “kapos” were accused of allowing party-political considerations to influence their actions.
Meanwhile, French and German historical research has shown that communist prisoners did indeed maintain links with party leadership from within captivity and clandestinity. This raises a series of questions about the preparations that may have been made in the camps for the postwar period. Across Europe, communist participation in government was often framed through ideological references to pre-war antifascism (Front Populaire) as well as to shared experiences in the camps. Remarkably, however, no Belgian research has addressed this issue. Yet between 1944 and 1947 Belgian communists participated in rapidly changing postwar governments. In 1947, the communist Minister of Reconstruction also outlined the recognition statute of “Political Prisoner.” In doing so, he relied, among others, on the National Confederation of Political Prisoners, founded at his initiative.
This brings us to another blind spot in Belgian historiography: the functioning of the various Belgian concentration camp committees of former political prisoners within the context of the Cold War. Many of these circles were founded and led by prominent communist cadres. Over time, they came to head similar international umbrella organizations. From the 1950s onward, this enabled them to actively shape the culture of remembrance surrounding the German camps. At their instigation, for example, several former camps were transformed into memorial sites (Gedenkstätten).
This research project consists of two parts. The first is a systematic analysis of the recognition files of “Political Prisoners” preserved in the archives of the War Victims Archive Service. The focus is on communist militants and cadres, whose data can be derived from the archives of the so-called “Political Control Commission” of the PCB, an internal body of party discipline that submitted questionnaires to returning members and cadres, explicitly assessing, among other things, their “attitudes in captivity.” This shows that the party, referring to its antifascist legacy, carefully guarded its reputation as the “party of the executed.” Information from both archival series will be cross-referenced with the recently inventoried “Diaries and Manuscripts” collection of CEGESOMA and with existing interviews with former political prisoners.
The second part of the research focuses on the aforementioned concentration camp committees as international political actors and meeting places during the Cold War that actively shaped a culture of remembrance.

Documentation

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RESIST
Expansion and consolidation of a European resistance history network

• Budget: 160.188 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Nico Wouters (ARA-AGR)
• BELSPO programme manager: Corinne Lejour

Description

This project offers network financing to support the further development of the Belgian Network of Resistance History), which currently brings together ca. 25 Belgian academics, including scientific staff from the State Archives and scholars from various Belgian universities. With dedicated network funding, we aim to:

1. Reinforce an international Resistance History Network, potentially laying the groundwork for a European project consortium;
2. Organize (at least) one annual international scholarly network conference. This should showcase recent Belgian research, highlight key academic debates, feature international keynote speakers, and possibly award a prize for the best recent master’s thesis on resistance;
3. Strengthen data and contributions to the ‘Resistance in Belgium’ database) by integrating new data, enabling innovative research and teaching tools (e.g., interactive maps), and linking to thematic content on the platform www.belgiumwwii.be;
4. Support the publication of at least two peer-reviewed articles by network members in leading academic journals, preferably based on the National Resistance Database;
5. Coordinate and communicate the existing or future public outreach initiatives of network members.

Over a period of two years, the part-time (50%) collaborator will support the management of the network’s operations, oversee the implementation of activities, implement data control, interactive database tool development, and a research model for the National Resistance Database, and facilitate outreach. Operational funding will primarily support the organization of international conferences, support of the national database on the resistance, public outreach efforts, and copy-editing of English-language publications by network members. Expected outcomes by the end of the funding period include:

• At least two scholarly publications submitted for peer review;
• (At least) one international conference;
• New data and an outline for new outreach functionalities on the ‘Resistance in Belgium’ database;
• An outline for a future European research consortium;
• An expanded ‘Resistance’ section on BelgiumWWII.be;
• Multiple public outreach initiatives;
• Increased visibility and social media engagement for the Network.

This initiative aligns closely with the mission of the Study Centre for War and Contemporary Society within the State Archives in Belgium. The internationalization of the Resistance History Network is expected to contribute to the broader international networking efforts of OD4/CegeSoma and the State Archives as a whole.

Documentation

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SAFE-CH
Strategic Emergency Storage for Cultural Heritage

• Budget: 380.000 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Laure Marique (KIK-IRPA)
• BELSPO programme manager: Bernard Delhausse

Description

Cultural Heritage Institutions (CHIs) are highly vulnerable to crises such as armed conflict, fires, and floods, which can inflict irreversible damage on collections. Recent events – including the 2021 Belgian floods – have revealed a critical gap in disaster preparedness: the lack of accessible, properly equipped emergency storage facilities to temporarily house evacuated or at-risk heritage objects. This gap leads to delays, secondary damage (mould, salt formation, looting), and increased pressure on crisis teams.

SAFE-CH, the Strategic Emergency storage for Cultural Heritage project, aims to address this urgent need by developing a structured and adaptable methodology for planning, selecting, and managing emergency storage facilities dedicated to cultural heritage protection. Building on the Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage’s (KIK-IRPA) extensive research in disaster risk management (CHrisis, FEDERESCUE, Rampenstrategie, Athena) and its studies on climate management and microclimates (Climate2Preserv, REFRESH), the project aligns with national and European priorities for safeguarding heritage in times of crisis.

Over two years, SAFE-CH pursues five main objectives:

1. Developing a scenario-based decision-making methodology to guide CHIs in choosing appropriate emergency response strategies tailored to different disaster types and scales.
2. Creating practical tools to help CHIs identify, select, and adapt emergency storage locations and organise the evacuation of movable heritage.
3. Testing and validating these tools at three case-study institutions.
4. Engaging professionals and non-specialists through a communication strategy that strengthens community involvement in heritage protection.
5. Ensuring long-term implementation through dissemination to Federal Scientific Institutions (FSIs), authorities, and international heritage and emergency management stakeholders.

Expected outcomes include:

• an emergency storage methodology;
• reflex sheets for object evacuation;
• a training module to test draft methods;
• tabletop exercises based on disaster scenarios;
• a community communication kit.

The project will culminate in a concise Emergency Storage Guide offering practical, action-oriented guidance to CHIs and first responders.

SAFE-CH will strengthen emergency preparedness across Belgian CHIs and FSIs, improve advisory services at KIK-IRPA, and contribute to national and international disaster management frameworks. It will also support compliance with international conventions such as the 1954 Hague Convention and national heritage risk management legislation.

Documentation

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SENSES
Strategies for Engagement through New Sensory Environments in Museums

• Budget: 458.869 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Ulrike Müller (KMSKB-MRBAB)
• National partner: Hélène Verreyke (UAntwerpen)
• BELSPO programme manager: Helena Calvo del Castillo

Description

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Documentation

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SEQUOIAS
Sequestration and Economic Control: Opening the Institutional Archives of the Sequestration office (1944-1960)

• Budget: 273.700 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Jan Naert (ARA-AGR)
• BELSPO programme manager: Bernard Delhausse

Description

This research project investigates the sequestration measures (“dwangbeheer”) of enemy property (predominantly German) carried out by the Belgian state between October 1944 and 1960. By managing, preserving, and later liquidating these assets, the Belgian state - like the Netherlands and France - hoped to secure reparations in the years following World War II. In implementing this policy, the Belgian government drew on experience from the post-World War I sequestration practices. As early as 1945, the scope of the competent Office of Sequestration (Ministry of Finance) was significantly expanded. From that point on, assets involved in cases of people suspected of crimes against the external security of the state (commonly referred to as ‘incivism’ or ‘collaboration’) also fell under sequestration. The annual reports of the Sequestration Office and budget allocations reveal not only the immense workload but also the considerable economic significance of the Sequestration Office. Nevertheless, operations proceeded with difficulty, partly due to an inadequate legal framework. In 1951, the matter even led to a parliamentary inquiry commission in the Senate.
The goal of this two year interdisciplinary research project is to shed light - for the first time since the events - on this “Vae victis-operation” of the Belgian state. Central to this effort is the opening up and analysis of the exceptionally rich and historically underexplored archives of the Sequestration Office. These hold great promise for advancing new scholarship from both a legal-historical and political-economy perspective on this remarkable chapter of Belgium’s postwar history.

Documentation

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SpIDAI
Design of an intelligent tool for semantic segmentation and sketch-photo matching of spider genitalia to aid taxonomic identification

• Budget: 480.900 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Arnaud Henrard (KMMA-MRAC)
• National partner: Stéphane Dupont (UMONS)
• BELSPO programme manager: Corinne Lejour

Description

Biodiversity loss is occurring at an unprecedented rate, making it urgent to improve species identification and data retrieval from institutional collections. Spiders, key bioindicators of ecosystem health, present significant taxonomic challenges due to their reliance on complex genital morphology, traditionally documented through 2D hand-sketches that are difficult for non-experts to interpret. While museums house essential historical and contemporary collections, maintaining databases with up-to-date taxonomy is hindered by a shortage of specialized expertise and the time-consuming nature of manual verification.

To address these bottlenecks, this project propose to develop an AI-driven tool for the morphological analysis and identification of spiders, bridging the gap between natural history collections and cutting-edge technology. Focusing on ecologically significant African taxa as a case study, the project will generate thousands of high-resolution, focus-stacked composite images using specialized motorized microscopy and an ad-hoc hardware tool designed to standardize specimen and genitalia positioning.

The success of this ambitious program is anchored in a robust and highly complementary partnership between the Royal Museum for Central Africa (MRAC) and the University of Mons (UMONS). This consortium forms a cohesive team where domain expertise in spider taxonomy and collection management flows seamlessly into high-level technical innovation. The latest advances in computer vision will be leveraged to develop 2D and 3D semantic segmentation models using state-of-the-art architectures such as Convolutional Neural Networks, Vision Transformers, and U-Net models. This approach enables a "query-by-example" paradigm, using machine learning to match specimen photographs with vast archives of taxonomic literature. To overcome specific optical challenges like semitransparency in microphotographs, the project employs extensive data augmentation and photorealistic image synthesis. The partnership brings together specialized skills ranging from spider taxonomy and imaging to AI model development, 3D data processing, and digital tool deployment. This interdependency ensures that outputs from the MRAC (specimen imaging) flow directly into the technical work packages at UMONS (AI training).

By streamlining identification workflows, this collaboration not only enhances museum digitization but also empowers taxonomic revisions and conservation efforts. The resulting database of high-resolution images and metadata will support the global arachnological community, offering a methodology that can be extended to other arthropod groups and elevating the precision of natural history collections worldwide.  

Documentation

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TETELA
Re-imagining colonial Tetela archives for the sustainable restitution of Tetela intangible cultural heritage

• Budget: 193.958 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2028
• Coordinator: Maud Devos (KMMA-MRAC)
• National partner: Inge Brinkman (UGent)
• BELSPO programme manager: Bernard Delhausse

Description

In the 1950s, John Jacobs, a Belgian philologist, was employed by the colonial research institute IRSAC to carry out linguistic research in the Sankuru region (DRC). With the help of a team of Tetela experts he recorded a vast quantity of oral traditions (vocabularies, riddles, proverbs, epics) in Tetela varieties and related languages, as well as gathering material culture objects. Whereas Jacobs research served a colonial agenda aspiring language unification within a larger scramble for scientific ‘discoveries’, today these collections from 75 years ago, constitute a huge wealth of cultural heritage.
The historical collections are, however, scattered across different places and institutions:

1. the RMCA hosting some 150 cultural objects;
2. the UGent archives containing fieldnotes on oral traditions, multilingual vocabularies, multilingual descriptions of the museum objects, and correspondence between Jacobs and his team;
3. the private collections of Jacobs’ heirs including audiovisual materials from the 1950s.

Most of this ‘sleeping’ material is multilingual (Tetela and related languages, French, Dutch), has not been digitized, and is inaccessible to the larger (Tetela speaking) public. So far, only researchers have had some access to Jacobs’ publications. Tetela scholars are keen to access the full collections, while the larger non-specialist public wishes to actively engage with cultural memory.
TETELA, a collaboration between the RMCA, the UGent and the Université Notre Dame de Tshumbe re-imagines these colonial collections to achieve a sustainable, multifaceted restitution of Tetela intangible cultural heritage. The project’s first aim is thus is the creation of a multilingual co-owned and web-based database to make the heritage available to scholars and lay audiences from the region. The second objective of the project is then to organize events in Belgium and the DRC that will make the content of the archives available to the public by creating a space for people to (re)connect with the recorded heritage.

Documentation

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TIMBIR
Timber Identification using Machine learning, Biochemistry and Image Recognition

• Budget: 379.500 €
• Period: 15/12/2025 - 15/03/2030
• Coordinator: Wannes Hubau (KMMA-MRAC)
• BELSPO programme manager: Chloë Rogiers

Description

As wood species misdeclarations violate environmental laws, enforcement officials need scientific tools to verify species claims. The implementation of the European Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) will substantially increase control quotas, requiring faster identification methods. However, current approaches are time-consuming and rely on highly trained personnel. Wood identification is also critical for the international transport, conservation, and restoration of cultural heritage objects (e.g. the RMCA’s vast African cultural heritage collection), which often cannot be destructively sampled due to their high value.

Therefore, TIMBIR aims to innovate the RMCA’s wood identification protocols by improving speed and accuracy, enabling multi-modal and multi-resolution input, and incorporating non-destructive X-Ray-μCT imaging.

We will build a comprehensive wood image database using the RMCA, Yangambi, and World Forest ID wood collections. In the previous SmartWoodID project, we developed a semi-robotic sample preparation pipeline and created an open-access database of >3700 flatbed scans representing >1000 species. TIMBIR will extend this with images from six different imaging techniques: low-resolution flatbed scanning, medium-resolution photography, high-resolution digital light microscopy, conventional light microscopy of thin sections, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-Ray-μCT scanning. We will apply all imaging techniques on polished surfaces of ~800 samples of 200 species commonly traded in Europe or commonly occurring in the RMCA’s African cultural heritage collection. Additionally, we will compile a database of biochemical fingerprints using mass spectrometry (DART-TOFMS), a promising yet underutilized tool for species-level wood identification.

Next, we will develop AI algorithms capable of simultaneously analysing anatomical images and chemical fingerprints. Images will be converted into vector embeddings to combine with DART-TOFMS data in a multi-modal AI framework. Building on our success with CNNs trained on flatbed scans in SmartWoodID, TIMBIR will expand input variability (e.g. SEM, X-Ray-μCT), resolution variability, and predictive performance. The techniques we propose are complementary: surface imaging retains natural colour and texture; thin sections enable precise measurement of internal features like cell wall thickness; SEM offers ultra-high-resolution greyscale detail; X-Ray-μCT provides non-destructive 3D visualization. These techniques are all available at the RMCA or partner institutes where they are used for wood anatomical studies. Combining all of them in a single multi-modal AI framework will allow flexibility in the choice of the technique used for visualization of wood structure, which highly depends on the object that needs identification (e.g. X-Ray-μCT for art objects, flatbed scans for objects where sanding is allowed, thin sections or SEM when cutting is allowed). A user-friendly interface (e.g. Python-based Streamlit app) will be developed to enable practical use of the databases and AI models.

The system will be applied and validated in collaboration with the RMCA’s ENFORCE wood forensic centre (https://enforce.africamuseum.be/en), which handles over 200 identification requests annually from government agencies (e.g. customs at the port of Antwerp), companies, and art galleries. We will compare traditional and AI-based methods for accuracy and speed. The tool will also be tested on the RMCA’s African Cultural Heritage collection, focusing on X-ray-µCT imagery for non-destructive identification.
Once developed, the AI-based approach will significantly enhance RMCA’s wood identification capacity and enable non-destructive identification within the museum’s heritage collections. This supports object mobility, conservation, and contextual understanding. TIMBIR fully aligns with the P4S research priorities, RMCA’s strategic plan, and the FED-tWIN profile CONGOFORCE.

Documentation

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BE COOL
BalchenfjElla blue ice areas quest for the reCOvery of the OLdest ice

• Budget: 623.000 €
• Period: 01/09/2025 - 01/12/2029
• Coordinator: Harry Zekollary (VUB)
• Partner: François Fripiat (ULB)
• BELSPO programme manager: David Cox

Description

BE COOL is a Belgian Antarctic research project that aims to recover and analyse some of the oldest ice on Earth. Ancient ice preserves direct evidence of past climate conditions and atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations, providing essential information to better understand the mechanisms driving future climate change. The project focuses on blue ice areas near the Princess Elisabeth Antarctica Station. In these unique environments, very old ice is naturally exposed near the surface, offering access to ancient climate archives without the need for deep and logistically heavy drilling. By combining field observations with advanced ice-flow modelling, BE COOL will identify the most promising drilling site and recover an ice core of approximately 200 meters. Analyses of this ice core will generate new greenhouse gas and Antarctic climate records, contributing to a better understanding of the role of the carbon cycle under warm climate conditions comparable to those projected for the end of the century.

Documentation

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BERYL
Blue ice and mEteorites Recovered from the Yamato (Queen FabioLa) Mountains

• Budget: 632.000 €
• Period: 01/09/2025 - 01/12/2029
• Coordinator Steven Goderis (VUB)
• Partners: Vinciane Debaille (ULB), Sophie Decrée (KBIN-IRSNB)
• BELSPO programme manager: David Cox

Description

For more than a decade, the VUB-ULB-RBINS consortium, in collaboration with the Japanese National Institute of Polar Research (NIPR), has conducted interdisciplinary research on Antarctic meteorites, micrometeorites, and blue ice fields near the Belgian Princess Elisabeth Station. These efforts have resulted in the recovery of more than 1,450 meteorites and approximately 100,000 microscopic extraterrestrial particles, providing key insights into the evolution of the Solar System, Antarctic glacial dynamics, and past climatic conditions.

Building on recent successes in the Sør Rondane and Belgica Mountains, the BERYL project aims to extend Belgian-led Antarctic research to the Yamato Mountains, one of the most important meteorite accumulation regions in Antarctica. The project will systematically expand and compare East Antarctic meteorite collections, document extraterrestrial material preserved in blue ice fields, and reconstruct ice exposure histories using stable isotope analyses and cosmic-ray exposure ages of meteorites. These data will constrain temporal variations in the extraterrestrial flux, advance fundamental questions in meteoritics, and refine glaciological and paleoenvironmental reconstructions.

In addition, BERYL will explore interactions between rocks, ice, and microbial life, opening new perspectives for Antarctic astrobiology. The project strengthens Belgium’s international leadership in planetary and polar sciences, enhances the scientific value of the national collections at the RBINS, and integrates dedicated outreach activities to engage the public with Antarctic research and space science.

Documentation

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MOAT
Melting ice shelves Of AnTarctica

• Budget: 636.000 €
• Period: 01/09/2025 - 01/12/2029
• Coordinator Frank Pattyn (ULB)
• Partners: Stef Lhermitte (KU Leuven), Christoph Kittel (VUB)
• BELSPO programme manager: David Cox

Description

Antarctic ice shelves are key to controlling global sea-level rise. Since 1992, global sea level has risen by around 10 cm, and future rise will increasingly depend on how the Antarctic ice sheet responds to climate change. This response is highly uncertain, largely because it depends on how heat from the ocean and atmosphere reaches Antarctica and weakens the ice shelves that surround most of its coastline.

Recent Antarctic ice loss is mainly driven by thinning of ice shelves caused by warm ocean waters flowing beneath them, combined with surface melting and fracturing linked to extreme weather and ocean conditions. However, the processes that govern ice shelf weakening and collapse are still poorly quantified, leading current climate and ice sheet models to potentially underestimate Antarctic mass loss.

The MOAT consortium (ULB, KU Leuven, and VUB) addresses this gap by directly measuring basal melting, surface melting, and ice shelf strength using advanced ground-based sensors, long-term field observations, airborne surveys, and satellite data on the Roi Baudouin Ice Shelf, Antarctica. These observations are used to improve climate and ice sheet models, reducing uncertainty in projections of Antarctica’s contribution to future sea-level rise and supporting international efforts to better understand ice sheet stability in a warming world.

Documentation

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MonASPA
A multidisciplinary environmental monitoring program for ASPA 179 in the Western Sør Rondane Mountains

• Budget: 636.000 €
• Period: 01/09/2025 - 01/12/2029
• Coordinator: Elie Verleyen (UGent)
• Partners: Anne Willems (UGent), Annick Wilmotte (ULiège), Quinten Vanhellemont (KBIN-IRSNB), Isabelle Schön (KBIN-IRSNB)
• BELSPO programme manager: David Cox

Description

During the ATCM XLV - CEP XXV meeting in 2023, seven ice-free sites in the Western Sør Rondane Mountains were designated as part of an Antarctic Specially Protected Area (ASPA) in order to protect their unique environmental, scientific, aesthetic and wilderness values (Measure 18). The biological communities inhabiting this multi-site ASPA 179 are dominated by microorganisms and are vulnerable to anthropogenic disturbances, including trampling and oversampling, the introduction of non-native taxa, and other global and local environmental changes. Therefore, Belgium has taken the initiative to propose this additional environmental protection for the seven sites and compiled a Management Plan that was approved by the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS). To assess whether the rules of this Management Plan are effective or if improvements will have to be proposed at the time of the 5 year-review in 2028 as requested by the Protocol on Environmental Protection (CEP), an environmental monitoring plan needs to be developed, allowing to detect potential impacts on the protected values, such as environmental changes and anthropogenic impacts.

The objectives of MonASPA are to design and establish a multidisciplinary and systematic monitoring plan for ASPA 179 in support of Belgium’s role in Antarctic policy, and to communicate information regarding this ASPA to all relevant stakeholders. The specific aims are to (i) analyse the biodiversity of bacteria, micro-eukaryotes and micro-invertebrates and compare these results with those obtained from samples taken prior to the designation of the ASPA, (ii) assess the use of remote sensing tools to monitor particular habitats in the ASPA and to minimize impact during monitoring, (iii) install an ANTOS Tier 1 monitoring tower to identify and track environmental change at biologically relevant scales, (iv) generate Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) documenting the protocols for monitoring to ensure robustness and consistency in future reporting cycles as well as FAIR data analysis pipelines and storage to enable re-analyses when new techniques will become available in the future, (v) produce an information paper (IP) for the CEP and a summary for the Antarctic Environments Portal (https://environments.aq/) about the biodiversity of terrestrial and aquatic habitats in inland Antarctic polar deserts, and (vi) inform the personnel of the Princess Elisabeth Antarctica station (PEA) and scientists planning to work in the ASPA sites about the values that need protection, and provide support for completing permit applications. To achieve this, MonASPA will analyse the biodiversity of soil communities by combining amplicon sequencing of taxonomic marker genes and shotgun metagenomics sequencing of samples taken from permanent monitoring plots in the ASPA sites. The processing pipelines will be integrated into a GEN-ERA toolbox using Nextflow workflows and Apptainer containers to stabilize them, ensuring the long-term bioinformatics reproducibility and interoperability. In parallel, comparative genomics will be used to assess the genetic potential of previously identified keystone taxa and to compare their specific adaptations with those in non-polar, yet related taxa. Newly and previously isolated bacteria, cyanobacteria and microalgae will be deposited in a special ‘Sør Rondane Mountains’ subcollection of the BCCM/LMG, ULC and DCG collections. These strains will be characterized and the genetic data will be stored in GBIF and analysed using the GEN-ERA tool for comparative genomics. Baseline information on habitat types and the biomass of algal mats will be obtained using drones equipped with multispectral cameras, in combination with satellite (Landsat 8 and 9 TIRS) and in situ temperature measurements, as well as an irradiance model coupled with terrain shadow castings based on a high resolution terrain model. Additionally, optical decametre scale satellite imagery (Landsat and Sentinel-2) archives will be collected to assess seasonal snow cover variability. Metre-scale satellite image acquisitions will be programmed during field campaigns and their use in long-term monitoring will be explored. Passive air samplers will be used to collect air-borne propagules, which will be analysed using molecular markers to assess transportation of (viable) biota via air currents to and between the sites. An ANTOS Tier 1 monitoring tower equipped with multiple sensors measuring biological relevant parameters such as photosynthetically active radiation, snow depth and soil moisture will be installed to provide a comprehensive baseline understanding of natural variability and rates of change in the habitats. The project results will be deposited in GBIF following the FAIR principle and communicated through various initiatives and documents. All data will be fully integrated in ongoing and planned SCAR action and expert groups, including ANTOS, Ant-ICON and C-CAGE, and will provide scientific information for the meetings of the ATCM and CEP.

Documentation

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ROMA
Reference Ozone Measurements in Antarctica

• Budget: 473.000 €
• Period: 17/07/2025 - 01/12/2028
• Coordinator: Alexis Merlaud (BIRA-IASB)
• Partner: Alexander Mangold (KMI-IRM)
• BELSPO programme manager: David Cox

Description

For a century, the total ozone column (TOC) has been measured using ground-based instruments, by Dobson and Brewer spectrophotometers. These instruments are now the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) standards for ozone monitoring. Dobson and Brewer measurements had a tremendous role in our understanding of stratospheric chemistry, e.g. for the discovery of the ozone hole over Antarctica and for the validation of atmospheric satellite data. The future evolution of stratospheric ozone remains uncertain and ground-based ozone reference measurements will continue to be essential for evaluating the impacts of the Montreal Protocol, climate change, and related shifts in atmospheric chemistry, such as those caused by major wildfires. However, the Dobson instrument is no longer produced and the manufacturer of the Brewer instrument announced in October 2024 the stop of production and servicing of the instrument. Therefore, the ozone community needs to find new reference instruments for the TOC ground-based measurements.

The new TOC reference instruments must match the precision of the Brewer and Dobson, achieving the WMO target accuracy of 1%. These instruments should also offer long-term stability and be robust enough to withstand varying environmental conditions across the globe. Currently, two candidates are being evaluated by the scientific community: Pandora and BTS. To finalize the selection of a suitable successor to the Brewer, the ozone community requires dedicated intercomparison campaigns in polar regions, as well as further investigations into the long-term stability of the new instruments. The Brewer, BTS and Pandora instrments have not yet been intercompared all three together in Antarctica. The Belgian Princess Elisabeth Station (PES) therefore provides an ideally suited platform for operating and comparing these instruments.

The specific objectives of the ROMA project are as follows:

• Operate a RMI Brewer ozone spectrophotometer, which is already installed at PES, year-round. Until now, the Brewer has only been operated during austral summer when the station was inhabited.
• Move a BIRA-IASB Pandora instrument (previously sited in Uccle, BE) at PES, for year-round ozone monitoring after appropriate instrumental adaptation. In addition to ozone, the Pandora will measure a set of key ozone-related chemical species (NO₂, OClO, BrO, and NO₃).
• Acquire on project costs a BTS spectrometer and operate it at PES year-round.
• Evaluate whether Pandora and BTS systems fulfill requirements to serve as the future WMO total ozone column (TOC) standard. This activity will use both historic data at Uccle and those acquired during the project at PES.
• Perform systematic comparisons between our ground-based TOC measurements and data from existing (TROPOMI, GOME2) and future satellite sensors to be launched during the project (S5, Altius). In addition, the acquired TOC data set will be compared to existing reanalysis data sets.
• Assess whether NO₂, OClO, and BrO column measurements derived from Pandora data can further contribute to satellite validation in Antarctica

Documentation

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REFRESH
WateR cyclE For RESilient Heritage

• Budget: 250.000 €
• Period: 01/06/2024 - 01/09/2027
• Partner: Julie Désarnaud (KIK-IRPA)
• BELSPO programme manager: Helena Calvo del Castillo

Description

In the context of collections in museum and built environment, cultural heritage represent a unique resource in socio-cultural and economic terms. The climate in Europe is changing more rapidly than in other regions, and goes hand-in-hand with extreme weather events leading to droughts and floods, severe storms as well as extensive heat waves, often triggering destructive wildfires. While the impact of climate change on society and ecosystems has garnered significant attention, the consequences for cultural heritage have largely been overlooked.
The key factor of the Climate Change’s strong impact on heritage sites (heritage buildings hosting collections, surrounded by natural environment ) is the water (in excess or under stress) and its transfer. In this context the project aims to understand the role of water cycle on the cultural heritage site conservation with an holistic approach considering the water transport within three scales :

• The liquid water in the natural environmental (soil  and vegetations in gardens and parks)
• The liquid to vapor water transfer within the architectural building envelope (monument)
• The vapor to liquid water in interior and collections (indoor climate and condensation phenomena)

Our objective is to identify levers, on the water cycle at heritage site scale for optimal conservation of cultural heritage sites while improving water management and reduce the energy consumption. The correlation of water transfers within these three scales will be studied with respect to climate data (past current and future) on for case studies: Louvre Palace, Gruuthusmeseum, Blenheim Palace, Doge’s Palace. They are representative of  different types of climate and context (urban and rural).
Using these adaptative measures, the project will establish how the nature-culture relationship (soil-vegetation-monument- collections) could be the source for cultural heritage resilience and climate mitigation.

Documentation

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