Z5: Public relations (PR)

Project leaders: PD Dr. Franziska Tanneberger (University of Greifswald), Prof. Dr. Gerald Jurasinski (University of Greifswald)

Our main research topic - rewetted fen peatlands in their landscape setting - is not only of scientific interest, but also of high societal and political relevance. In an interdisciplinary and large project like WETSCAPES2.0 effective Public Relations (PR) is vital to ensure that the newest results are presented appropriately and immediately to a variety of audiences at the local, regional, national, and international level. The objectives of the project PR are

  • to translate a broad range of different research activities and results into clear messages and knowledge for stakeholders and the general public;

  • to transfer the outcome of the project to the target audiences at the local, regional, national, and international level using both ‚classic‘ science-PR measures and a bi-directional, dialogue-oriented approach;

  • to employ innovative, collaborative measures on (1) past, current and future perceptions of peatlands in landscapes (wetscapes) and (2) on land use and livelihoods in/with wet peatlands (in collaboration with the DFG excellence cluster Matters of Activitiy).

Together with all consortium partners and the PR units of the applicant universities, we are developing our communication strategy, building on the experience from previous projects and identification of key target groups and objectives. This communication strategy will be a dynamic document and take up outcomes and feedback gathered from dialogue with stakeholders. Main target groups are 1) the general public, 2) the scientific community, and 3) key peatland-related stakeholders at the regional MV, national, EU, and global level.

An exemplary list of selected topics, working methods, results or findings from WETSCAPES2.0 we deem suitable to be put into the centre of communication includes,

  • Plant-microbe interactions in the rhizosphere using meta-omics and CARD-FISH ( A3) —> Visualizes how plants and microbes interact in the hidden world of peat, showcases the interdependencies between these partners;

  • UAS based Eddy Covariance measurements to explore the spatial aspect of heat and carbon fluxes (B2) —> Visualize „hotspots of success“ (e.g. particularly strong CO2 uptake), pin-points spots with room for improvement, shows effects of rewetting in the larger landscape context;

  • Process-based model simulations to visualize dynamics of water stores and fluxes at different spatial and temporal scales (C1) —> Visualizes and animates water dynamics for stakeholder communication and engagement.

The ‚classic‘ PR measures will be implemented in coordination with the PR units of the two applicant universities UG and UR (through quaterly strategic meetings and rapid exchange in everyday work). The measures will be outlined in the communication strategy and include, e.g., supporting the set-up of a dedicated WETSCAPES2.0 website; creating a corporate design, templates and an editorial plan for social media channels; creating printed products such as flyers; sending out media information (frequency depends on project outcomes, minimum one per year) and integrating the new results on the knowledge platform www.moorWissen.de; supporting WETSCAPES2.0 researchers in presenting their results to the media, e.g. through media training as part of WETSKILLS; developing three short video courses (one each for project area A, B and C) in year 2; supporting researchers in the preparation of policy briefs (one per year); organising a journalist in residence grant (one for a German language media outlet in year 3 and one for an international media outlet in year 4) of 2 months length; contributing to the regular ‚peatland jour fixe‘ of GMC and the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment MV; and organising a Parliamentary Evening at the federal level in the representation of the state of MV in Berlin in year 3.

The transformative collaborative activity 1) looks at past, current, and future appearances of peatlands in landscapes, i.e. wetscapes. It revolves around the question „What do we see and how do we feel in wetscapes?“ and uses artistic interpretation to stimulate and capture emotions and to raise awareness. In 2026-2027, we will run a twinning programme of artists and scientists, bringing together 10 WETSCAPES2.0-scientists with 10 artists interested in peatlands. The results will feed into an art competition „Wetscapes 2.0“. The transformative collaborative activity 2) will address land use in wet peatlands and, thus, builds a bridge towards further works of the WETSCAPES2.0 consortium towards various aspects of paludiculture. It will revolve around the question „How can we live well in wetscapes?“ and is planned in collaboration with Prof. Dr. Lucy Norris and colleagues of the DFG excellence cluster Matters of Activitiy (HU Berlin).