TREC partner snapshot: Tallinn University of Technology
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Estonian partner provides opportunities for collaborative research and outreach, while also attracting the attention of the country’s president
Estonia may be one of EMBL’s newest member states, but thanks to the Tallinn University of Technology, the Traversing European Coastlines (TREC) project relished not just field sampling and outreach opportunities but also attracted the attention of one of the highest-ranking officials to visit TREC during its sampling phase.
The power of partnership
After collecting ~70,000 samples of water, soil, sediment, aerosols, and select species, the EMBL Traversing European Coastlines (TREC) project ended its field sampling phase. However, none of that work – as well as the work to come – would be possible without a wide variety of partners.
“TREC is pan-European. It is multidisciplinary. And it has been one of the most collaborative expeditions and scientific projects aimed at studying coastal ecosystems across scales with a holistic approach at an unprecedented scale,” said Paola Bertucci, EMBL’s Head of Scientific Expeditions. “No institution can do this alone; project success relies on a shared vision, motivation, and extraordinary knowledge from TREC partners who share our commitment to excellence. Together, we ensure that TREC is carried out at the highest standards, creating an impact that resonates across Europe’s scientific landscape.”
Thus far, more than 90 institutions have joined the TREC mission, lending their expertise, while also reaping benefits from EMBL’s experts and unique technological tools. As scientists pore through the massive amount of data they now have, scrutinising materials with cutting-edge technology and tools, we present a series of short articles reflecting on the collaborative work the project cultivated.
Estonia’s President Alar Karis visited EMBL’s temporary TREC outpost at Tallinn University of Technology during the project’s field and outreach activities, where he shared support for the ambitious project and EMBL. Estonia became an EMBL member state in 2023, and its scientists have increasingly found ways to collaborate and take advantage of EMBL’s training and service offerings.
While this high-level attention recognised TREC’s value, the sampling itself resulted in an impressive collection of air, soil, sediment, and water samples. Additionally, the public benefited from a variety of activities, workshops, seminars, and other opportunities to interact with scientists, raising awareness of the importance of marine and coastal ecosystems and how they support society.
Sirje Sildever, Assistant Professor in the Department of Marine Systems at Tallinn University of Technology, has been a devoted collaborator in the TREC partner network and was key to the successes achieved in Estonia. We reached out to her for her thoughts on TREC and its impacts.
What are some of your highlights from TREC?
I was positively surprised and delighted during the TREC conference that many presenters found something interesting in the samples they collected in Tallinn. For my team and me, it was our first time supporting such a wide-scale science project. I am very thankful to all of my colleagues and very proud that we could do this together. For the organisation, it was great publicity: interviews for TV and radio, popular science articles, and the honour of welcoming the Estonian President to our department.
What do you most look forward to now with respect to TREC?
I’m looking forward to more interesting results from the samples collected from Tallinn and further joint projects. Some joint projects are already ongoing: with Flora Vincent’s team, there is another round of sampling in June 2025 to detect symbiosis between microscopic algae and tiny animals. We are also actively collaborating with the paleocore group led by Raffaele Siano and with some other local hosts of the TREC sampling campaign, like Conny Sjöqvist in Finland.
What’s one of your best memories from your TREC experiences?
It was very interesting to contact different organisations that have high-rise buildings in Tallinn and ask if it would be okay to set up air sampling on top of their buildings. Many people were surprised, but they were very accommodating, and it was heartwarming to hear that the sampling team was very happy with the support they got from the Estonian Public Broadcasting staff when they sampled on the roof of the broadcasting building.
Why is a project like TREC important?
I think it’s a great way to popularise and introduce science to society, and at the same time do high-profile research. Although setting up, leading, and managing such a project is very hard work, it sets a great example of how to collaborate between different disciplines and generate synergy. Paola Bertucci and her team did a fantastic job with this project.
How has TREC partnering affected your work?
It has broadened the scale on which it is possible to do experiments and also expanded my professional network.