Understanding life in its environmental context is crucial for finding solutions to maintain and improve our planet’s health. The TRaversing European Coastlines (TREC) expedition aimed to reach a new and comprehensive understanding of ecosystems and their responses to changing environments. This unparalleled scientific endeavour, which was led by EMBL in collaboration with partner institutes from across Europe, set out to study the interaction between coastal and inland ecosystems and their organisms using, among others, molecular biology approaches.

As part of the mission, the TREC Science Education and Public Engagement programme offered activities for European citizens of any age and background along the TREC route as well as for those living elsewhere in Europe.

The TREC education activities aimed to inspire the next generation of citizens with cutting-edge research and support the teaching of topics related to ecology and molecular biology in schools and informal learning environments. The programme covered workshops for young learners along the TREC route, virtual and in-person professional development training for teachers, and brand-new teaching and learning material.