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TETTRIX, a new €12 million EU project, aims to connect Europe’s taxonomic data, expertise and training to support biodiversity research and conservation. The four-year Horizon Europe project, coordinated by the Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities (CETAF), held its kick-off meeting in Brussels, Belgium, on 7-9 October 2026.
According to the 2019 global assessment by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), around one million animal and plant species are threatened with extinction worldwide. Taxonomy – the science of naming, identifying and classifying species – provides the reliable identities and reference knowledge needed to recognise species, track changes in biodiversity, and inform conservation and environmental policy.
Structured around four complementary pillars – Integrate, Transform, Upskill and Demonstrate – the project will support innovation and collaboration across the European taxonomic community while expanding opportunities for external organisations to contribute to its objectives.
Pensoft’s role
Pensoft holds a keen interest in taxonomy and its role in biodiversity conservation. We have been collaborating with the taxonomic community for a long time now, and back in 2021, CETAF, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and Pensoft worked together on the Red List of Insect Taxonomists project – a European Commission-funded initiative, which aimed to assess the available taxonomic expertise on insects across Europe and help identify insect taxa that are threatened by extinction.
Expanding from this interest and our extensive research in the field, in TETTRIX, Pensoft will help map the European taxonomic landscape using publication data and dynamic visualisations, and support the curation of expertise for the TETTRIX Marketplace, while advising on its functionality.
At Pensoft, we believe science has the greatest impact when it is accessible, shared and connected to the people who can use it. That’s why we’re excited to be part of TETTRIX and to help bring the project’s work to a wider audience, connect people and knowledge, and make sure the results don’t just stay within the project, but are shared, used, and built on by the wider community.
– Prof. Dr. Lyubomir Penev, CEO and Founder of Pensoft
In addition to our scientific work, Pensoft will also take part in the publicity and communication side of the TETTRIX project. As a coordinator of Pillar 3: Capacity building & knowledge transfer and a lead of WP9: Outreach and Knowledge Transfer, Pensoft will contribute to enhancing TETTRIX’s visibility, stakeholder engagement, and long-term impact by connecting taxonomic knowledge and project results with researchers, policymakers, stakeholders, and wider society.
This will include developing the project’s visual identity and website, producing promotional materials, and engaging audiences through social media, newsletters, and press releases. Pensoft will also communicate the outcomes of the Satellite projects – third-party initiatives, funded by TETTRIX, which will help research and respond to present-day issues in biodiversity – through targeted content and communication campaigns.
Throughout the project, Pensoft will upkeep the TETTRIs legacy of promoting Taxonomy Recognition Day, celebrated every year on 23 May, and continue developing the #NameItToSaveIt campaign for taxonomic action.
The TETTRIX consortium
Coordinated by CETAF (Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities), TETTRIX brings together 19 partnering organisations from 12 countries to help Europe better understand, protect, and sustainably manage nature.
- Consortium of European Taxonomic Facilities (CETAF) – Belgium
- Natural History Museum Vienna (NHMW) – Austria
- National Museum of Natural History (MNHN) – France
- Free University of Berlin (FUB) – Germany
- Senckenberg Nature Research (SENCKENBERG) – Germany
- Meise Botanic Garden (MeiseBG) – Belgium
- Naturalis Biodiversity Center (NATURALIS) – Netherlands
- University of Crete (UoC) – Greece
- KPMG International (KPMG) – Netherlands
- University of Lisbon (ULISBOA) – Portugal
- Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) – Germany
- Pensoft Publishers (PENSOFT) – Bulgaria
- Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) – Norway
- University of Helsinki (LUOMUS) – Finland
- State Museum of Natural History Stuttgart (SMNS) – Germany
- Royal Botanic Gardens Kew (RBGK) – UK
- Institute of Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences (IBOT-CAS) – Czech Republic
- Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) – UK
- Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS) – Belgium
For more information:
Visit the TETTRIX project website at tettrix.eu, and make sure to follow the project’s progress via our social media channels on Bluesky, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook.