Our research group has a longstanding experience in soil science, specifically in the dynamics of the plant-microbe interaction. We also investigate the effect on soil biodiversity - using Environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding and metagenomic approaches - of heavy metal contamination in agricultural soils (i.e., orchards and vineyards) and other contaminants such as pesticides and nano/microplastics.

The Free University of Bolzano (UNIBZ), established in 1997, is one of Italy's youngest and most dynamic universities with a strong research activity on agricultural, ecological, and environmental sciences, emphasizing the sustainability of energy production and utilization. The research at the Faculty of Science and Technology, established just 10 years ago, is characterized by an inter- to trans-disciplinary spectrum of topics, focusing on natural (e.g. forests, grasslands, rivers, high mountain environments) and anthropogenic environments (e.g. urban-industrial spaces, agricultural land, and orchards) and related patterns and processes.