This month, good news just keeps coming! We are very pleased to announce that Jaak Pärtel received the 2nd prize at the natural sciences field for his bachelor’s thesis “Global Distribution and Abundance of Mycorrhizal Fungi” at the 2025 national student research paper competition. Jaak’s bachelor’s thesis was based on DNA samples isolated from soil […]

We are proud to announce that our institute’s director and professor of molecular ecology, Maarja Öpik, has been elected as an academician in the field of soil science by the General Assembly of the Estonian Academy of Sciences. As an academician, Maarja aims to strengthen dialogue between science, society, and policymakers, advocate for better research […]

On December 4, the Estonian Research Council organized the national science forum “TeadusEST 2025: Competition at the top of Estonian Science is Fierce”, which focused on Estonian centres of excellence and the evaluation of science. At the event, Inga Hiiesalu-Vahter introduced the centre of excellence AgroCropFuture, “Agroecology and new crops in the future climates”, where […]

On November 28, 2025, a career day was held at Viimsi Gymnasium, where, among other organizations, the Mobile Biology Class of the University of Tartu was invited. They conducted a workshop on cutting bacterial DNA with enzymes. During the workshop, students were able to learn about the latest bioscience methods and hear about various applications […]

Tanel gave a talk at the annual conference of the Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences „Green Transition and Smart Solutions: Science for a Sustainable Future“, which took place on November 28th, 2025 in Oecologicum. He explained the suitability and importance of natural experiments and introduced several studies he has conducted in the past years. […]

We are excited to announce that Tanel has started a postdoctoral fellowship funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie program at the University of Helsinki, where he works in the Spatial Foodweb Ecology group led by Professor Tomas Roslin. His postdoctoral fellowship will last from 2025 to 2027. Tanel’s research in Helsinki focuses on how past land […]

From 9–12 October, the seminar “Weaving the Northern Web: Integrating Soils, Plants, Insects, and Ecosystem Dynamics” took place on Saaremaa. The event brought together researchers and students from universities in Sweden, Finland, and Estonia to discuss the intricate connections that shape ecosystems — from the biodiversity networks hidden in the soil to the plants and insects above. […]

Last weekend (26–28 September 2025), members of the Estonian Mycological Society and invited participants gathered for the annual autumn fungal foray, exploring diverse landscapes in Lääne-Viru County (Virumaa). The program began Friday at Pajuveski village, with visits to the Vainupea coastal dunes and Eisma pine forest, followed by an evening mushroom quiz. Saturday featured excursions […]

Soil Ecology Work Group sociology partners participated in ESA RN12 ‘Environment and Society’ mid-term and Energy and Society Network 7th international joint conference “Societal Responses to Environmental Crises and Energy Transitions” in lovely Kaunas, Lithuania 24-25 September, 2025.   Eveli Neemre and Maie Kiisel spoke about how agricultural land users respond to polycrisis and the corresponding […]

The new school year has kicked off with great energy and enthusiasm for the Soil Ecology Working Group! Alongside our ongoing research initiatives, we are proud to celebrate the academic progression of three of our dedicated team members at the University of Tartu. We are incredibly proud of their achievements and excited to see how […]

From September 5-10, 2025, Prof Maarja Öpik, Tanel Vahter, and Inga Hiiesalu-Vahter joined plant ecology colleagues on a scientific expedition to Northern Finland and Norway to deepen their understanding of subarctic ecosystems. The team visited the University of Turku’s Kevo Research Station, where some previous mycorrhizal studies took place, and examined vegetation type changes along […]

From July 8–10, 2025, more than 120 researchers gathered in Tartu for the symposium “Microbes as Hidden or Prominent Players in Plant Life.” Participants came from every continent, and their talks and posters explored the diverse ways in which microbes influence plants. Over the course of three days, the symposium highlighted New Phytologist’s scope as […]

The soil ecology working group had a successful academic year. Among other achievements, Roland and Jaak from our working group successfully defended their final theses and will continue their research in our working group. Roland Lehemets’ master’s thesis focused on the Impact of Regenerative Agriculture Practices on Soil Biodiversity and was supervised by Tanel Vahter, […]

The soil ecology team was strongly represented at the international conference Ecology of Soil Microorganisms 2025. Networking across scales held in Helsinki on 15.– 19. June 2025. The conference brought together nearly hundred researchers from all over the world. Prof Maarja Öpik gave an inspiring talk about biodiversity and functioning of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in […]

On 16 April 2025, the annual University of Tartu Spring Run took place. This time the soil ecology team was represented at the start – Ayesh, Miriam as runners, and Maarja, Eveli, Elis and Sirle as walkers – and all finished successfully despite the slightly wet weather. The course ran enjoyably along the banks of […]

We are so pleased to announce that Tanel Vahter, a member of the Soil Ecology team, has been awarded the President’s Young Environmental Scientist Award. The President’s Award is in recognition of Tanel’s work, which has created a first-of-its-kind capability to apply DNA-based and biochemical methods to the monitoring of field soil condition, and has […]

On 26 March, Tanel Vahter trained the Baltic Agro sales team on soil microbiology. During the day-long training, the participants were introduced to the factors affecting Estonian soils and to the problems and solutions concerning soil microbiota. The aim of the training was to increase the awareness of Baltic Agro staff and sales specialists about […]

The Soil Ecology Research Group participated in the latest EcoFair of the Botany Department on March 20. The Ecology Fair is a biannual event where bachelor’s and master’s students can learn about the activities of the department’s research groups, thesis topics, and internship opportunities. In addition to showcasing the work of the Soil Ecology Research […]

In March, PhD student Adam Ruka from the Czech Republic visited the Soil Ecology Group as part of the Estonian Academy of Sciences’ Estonian-Czech Mobility project. Adam’s research focuses on seasonal dynamics of microbial communities along elevational gradients in the Alps and Himalayas. During his visit, we had several insightful discussions, and he presented his […]

Workgroup’s bachelor’s student Jaak Pärtel participated in a Malaysia-themed article competition from November 9–10, where he, along with teammate Kaspar Sõukand, won the first place, earning the chance to travel to Malaysia and see the sources of their gathered information firsthand. During the competition, different Malaysian states were assigned to teams to write about in […]