The ECH's 2026 Seed Funding Projects

A collaboration between Valerie de Anda and Gerhard Herndl at the Department of Functional and Evolutionary Ecology, Valentin Göldner, group leader at the Division of Environmental Geosciences, and Marc Brooks at the Department of Musicology, this project aims to uncover the hidden “metabolic fingerprints” of marine sediments.

Marine sediments represent the largest reservoir of organic carbon on the planet and play a fundamental role in regulating Earth’s climate. Organic matter produced in the surface ocean eventually reaches the seafloor, where microbial communities transform, recycle, and preserve it over time. These microorganisms function as dynamic “archives” of biological production, and environmental change, recording and shaping key processes linked to carbon storage, nutrient cycling, and ocean chemistry. Yet despite their importance, the microbial processes and key molecules produced in marine sediments remain poorly understood and are still largely absent from conservation policies and climate discussions.

By analyzing the small molecules associated with microbial activity across environmental gradients, the “Decoding the Deep-sea Archive” project seeks to better understand how seafloor microorganisms process carbon and respond to changing ocean conditions. ​

This interdisciplinary project also addresses a broader challenge: microorganisms are central to every ecosystem on Earth, but they remain largely absent from climate communication, conservation strategies, and environmental decision-making. Through a public outreach initiative in collaboration with Haus des Meeres, the project will translate invisible microbial processes into accessible scientific storytelling, helping connect ocean microbiology, climate resilience, and public awareness​

ECH members Daria Shipilina at the Department of Botany and Biodiversity Research and Arne Langlet at the Department of Political Science are working together with Botany and Biodiversity researcher Norman Wickett in this project to not only understand the genome of endangered species better, but also to translate their findings into policy-relevant outpots to improve Austria's CBD/KMGBF reporting and conservation practice.

Genetic diversity is one of the three foundational pillars of biodiversity, alongside species and ecosystems, as it provides the raw material species need to adapt to environmental change. The 196 parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, Austria included, formally committed to safeguarding it under the 2022 Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Yet in practice, genetic diversity remains the neglected pillar: data are scarce for most endangered species, and national reporting relies on indirect proxies such as population counts rather than direct DNA-based measures. As a result, a population can appear healthy while quietly accumulating inbreeding and harmful mutations that erode its long-term viability.​​

This is especially pressing in Austria, where nearly 37% of plant species are threatened with extinction and whole-genome data are missing for the majority of them. Our project closes this gap by combining cutting-edge population genomics with political science expertise on biodiversity policy, in partnership with Krissa Skogen and Barbara Knickmann at the Botanical Garden of the University of Vienna. The aim is to generate both accurate genomic assessments for an endangered Austrian species serving as a case study and actionable insights that feed directly into national conservation decisions and international reporting.

Selma Korlat at the Department of Psychology and Erich Striessnig at the Department of Demography work together to examine differences in baseline eco-generativity among grandparents, older parents, and childless older adults, and test whether priming eco-generative legacy motives can increase individual and collective pro-environmental behaviour.

Combining developmental psychology and demographic perspectives, the project examines whether eco-generativity is primarily rooted in kinship ties or whether it represents a broader motivational resource that extends beyond biological lineage.​

Using an experimental design, the project will test how different forms of eco-generative messaging - focused on family legacy, future generations more broadly, or protection of the natural world - influence pro-environmental behavior and collective climate engagement in later life. The findings will contribute to psychological and demographic research on aging, generativity, and environmental engagement, while also informing communication strategies aimed at mobilizing older adults as active contributors to climate change mitigation and long-term societal sustainability.​

This Project by Vinicius Verri and Benedikt Warth at the Department of Food Chemistry and Toxicology, as well as Valentin Göldner, group leader at the Division of Environmental Geosciences, is trying to bridge environmental and human biomonitoring. It does so by screening NIST Standard Reference Materials (serum, plasma, urine, breast milk) for environmental transformation products (ETPs) using LC–HRMS/MS, leveraging a curated spectral library for suspect screening and subsequent chemical characterization to increase annotation confidence (including isomer specificity).

Chemical exposure is an increasing burden on environmental and human health, accelerated by climate change and an unprecedented industrial capacity for synthesizing new chemicals. Once released into the environment, organic chemicals may undergo abiotic or biotic transformation and the resulting transformation products additionally contribute to the overall chemical exposure. Yet, analytical limitations impede adequate representation of transformation products in human chemical exposure assessment.​

This project aims to close this gap by employing electrochemical redox reactions to simulate environmental transformation processes. The resulting reference data will support suspect screening analysis of transformation products in human biofluids and prioritize compounds for further investigation. Linking environmental and human health components will provide insight into the relevance of exposure to transformation products. Potential societal implications of these findings will be explored in a final workshop, fostering interdisciplinary exchange beyond the natural sciences and paving the way for follow-up projects.