As environmental pollution and ecosystem restoration become increasingly urgent global priorities, BioRemid 2026 aims to bring together scientists, industry leaders, policymakers, and young researchers to explore the future of bioremediation.

In this exclusive interview, the BioRemid2026 conference organizer and MIBIREM researcher Simona Di Gregorio discusses how the event has evolved into a major European platform connecting science with real-world environmental solutions.

From microbiome-based technologies to large-scale European collaboration through the ALL4BIOREM cluster, Di Gregorio shares how projects like MIBIREM are helping transform advanced laboratory research into practical tools for restoring contaminated soils, groundwater, and marine environments.

Bioremid 2026

What is the primary goal of BioRemid 2026, and how has the conference evolved this year compared to previous editions?

The main goal of BioRemid 2026 is to bring together the international community working on bioremediation and environmental restoration. It is a place where scientists, practitioners, companies, institutions and decision-makers can exchange the latest research, share practical solutions, and discuss how to respond to today’s environmental challenges.

The 2026 edition in Florence is the fourth BioRemid conference, and it clearly shows how much the event has grown over the years. We started with around 120 participants in Granada in 2017, then 140 in Porto in 2019, and about 250 in Basel in 2023. Today, BioRemid has become a larger and more interdisciplinary meeting, with a stronger connection between science, technology, policy and real-world applications.

This year, there is also a clear focus on implementation. The programme is built around two main tracks: one dedicated to soils, health and full-scale applications, and another focused on biotechnology for emerging contaminants. So BioRemid 2026 is not only about understanding new mechanisms in the lab. It is also about asking how we can turn bioremediation into practical, scalable and policy-relevant solutions.

BioRemid for Next Generation

What unique opportunities does BioRemid offer young scientists, and why is the field of bioremediation such a compelling career path for them today?

BioRemid offers young scientists a great opportunity to present their work in front of a very diverse audience. They are not speaking only to other researchers, but also to industrial operators, remediation professionals, public institutions and decision-makers. This makes the conference a valuable space to receive feedback, build connections and understand how their research can have an impact beyond academia.

For MSc and PhD students, BioRemid is also an accessible way to enter the international bioremediation community. Dedicated student fees, plenary talks, EU project sessions and applied case studies all help young researchers see both the scientific and practical sides of the field.

Bioremediation is especially attractive today because it brings together many different disciplines: microbiology, biotechnology, environmental engineering, data science, regulation and sustainability. Young scientists entering this field are not just studying pollution. They are helping develop the tools we need to restore contaminated soils, aquifers, sediments and marine environments.

Bioremediation: Societal Impact & Outreach

Beyond the lab, why is it critical for the general public to understand your work, and what is your core message to the stakeholders supporting these initiatives?

It is important for the public to understand bioremediation because pollution is not something distant or abstract. Contaminated soils, groundwater and seawater can affect our health, our food systems, ecosystems, land use and the safety of local communities.

The key message is that bioremediation is no longer just a promising research topic. It is becoming a practical, evidence-based and sustainable part of environmental restoration. By supporting these initiatives, stakeholders are investing in solutions that can reduce contamination, improve how we manage land and water, and contribute to wider European goals such as the Zero Pollution Strategy and the Clean Industrial Deal.

In simple terms, bioremediation helps us use natural and biological processes in a smarter way to clean up polluted environments. That is why it matters not only to scientists, but also to citizens, policymakers, industries and future generations.

BioRemid Strategic Collaborations — The ALL4BIOREM Cluster

With the ALL4BIOREM cluster returning for a third consecutive year, what new milestones can we expect from them, and what role does MIBIREM play in making this partnership so unique?

The return of ALL4BIOREM is an important step because the cluster has grown into a broader European alliance. For BioRemid 2026, ALL4BIOREM brings together 10 EU-funded bioremediation projects, creating a strong platform for sharing results, comparing approaches and building collaboration across Europe.

This year’s dedicated track will focus on the latest scientific outcomes, practical implementation of bioremediation technologies, project deliverables, and knowledge exchange between European initiatives. So the cluster is not only about presenting individual projects, but also about connecting them and making their results more visible and useful.

MIBIREM plays a special role in this partnership because it has been one of the driving forces behind the cluster since early 2023. It has helped bring together both completed and ongoing EU projects and supported the evolution of the cluster into ALL4BIOREM, with a stronger shared identity.

From a scientific point of view, MIBIREM adds a very concrete translational dimension. Its goal is to develop a microbiome-based toolbox for more efficient bioremediation, including molecular monitoring, microbiome isolation and cultivation, improvement of microbiome functions, prediction tools and field testing under real conditions.

This is what makes the partnership particularly valuable: ALL4BIOREM provides the European collaborative platform, while projects like MIBIREM help turn microbiome science into practical tools that can eventually be used by regulators, site managers, companies and communities in the field.

The MIBIREM Project — Scientist’s Core Focus

Bridging the Gap

As an active researcher within MIBIREM, how does this project bridge the gap between complex laboratory research and practical, “on-site” bioremediation?

MIBIREM was created exactly to connect these two worlds: what we study in the lab and what actually happens on contaminated sites.

In the lab, we can understand in detail how microorganisms work, how they interact with each other, and how they can break down certain pollutants. But the real challenge is making this work outside the lab, where conditions are much more complex and less predictable.

That is where MIBIREM really makes the difference. We do not stop at saying, “this microorganism works in the lab.” We also try to understand where it can work, under which conditions, and how we can monitor it in the field.

This means that MIBIREM brings together basic research, monitoring tools, predictive models and field testing. The goal is to turn advanced scientific knowledge into practical tools that can help environmental engineers, site managers and decision-makers choose the most suitable remediation strategy.

Microbiomes work as Communities

MIBIREM focuses on the power of microbiomes rather than single bacterial strains. Why is this “community approach” the key to tackling highly resilient pollutants?

The basic idea is quite simple: in nature, microorganisms almost never work alone. They work as communities.

When we deal with very persistent or difficult pollutants, one single bacterium is often not enough. We need different microorganisms working together, each with its own role. One may start breaking down a pollutant, another may transform the intermediate compounds, and others may help the whole community survive under stressful conditions.

It is a bit like teamwork. A microbiome is more flexible and more resilient than a single bacterial strain, because it can adapt better to the changing conditions of a contaminated site.

And that is what makes the MIBIREM approach so interesting and impactfull. Instead of looking for one “super-bug” that can do everything in complete solitude, we look at the strength of the whole microbial community. This brings us much closer to how natural ecosystems actually work.

The MIBIREM Toolbox

Could you tell us more about the MIBIREM Toolbox? How will these tools change the way environmental engineers decide which cleaning method to use on contaminated land?

The MIBIREM Toolbox is basically a practical “toolkit” for bioremediation.

The idea is to bring together different tools that help us understand what is happening in a contaminated site: which microorganisms are there, whether they have the potential to degrade the pollutants, how we can stimulate them, and how we can follow the progress of the remediation over time.

The toolbox includes molecular tools to monitor microbial communities, methods to isolate and cultivate useful microbiomes, strategies to improve their functions, predictive models, and field-testing approaches.

For environmental engineers, this can really change the way decisions are made. Today, the first question is often: “What contaminant is present?” With the toolbox, we can add other important questions: “Is there already a microbial community that can degrade it?” “Can we help it work better?” “Which strategy is most likely to work on this specific site?”

This means decisions can become more targeted, more data-based and less generic. In the end, this can lead to remediation strategies that are more sustainable, more effective and better adapted to each site.

Message to BioRemid Partners

What is your core message to the stakeholders and investors who are necessary to scale these technologies from the lab to the real world?

The main message is that microbiome-based bioremediation has huge potential, but bringing it into the real world requires collaboration.

Research is moving fast, but to make these technologies truly applicable we need pilot sites, field demonstrations, dialogue with regulators, involvement from companies, and targeted investment.

For stakeholders and investors, supporting these technologies means investing in solutions that can have a concrete impact: cleaner soils, safer water, recovered land and more sustainable environmental management.

It is not only about funding an innovative technology. It is about helping build a smarter and more natural way to deal with environmental contamination.

In short, MIBIREM provides the scientific basis. Partners, stakeholders and investors are essential to turn that basis into solutions that can actually be used in the field.

And this is exactly why BioRemid 2026 is such an important moment. It brings together the people who can make this transition happen: scientists, engineers, companies, institutions, policymakers and young researchers. The conference is not just a place to present results; it is a place to build confidence, create partnerships and turn good ideas into real solutions.

So my message is also an invitation: let’s use BioRemid 2026 as a space to be ambitious, practical and collaborative. The environmental challenges we face are complex, but we now have the knowledge, the tools and the community to address them. If we work together, projects like MIBIREM can move from promising research to technologies that genuinely improve contaminated sites and support healthier environments.

In short, MIBIREM provides the scientific basis. BioRemid 2026 provides the platform to connect that science with the people who can scale it. And partners, stakeholders and investors are essential to turn this shared effort into solutions that can actually be used in the field.

 

Author: Ana Babic- RTDS Communication Manager

 

Interviewee: Simona di Gregorio– Environmental Microbiologist at University of Pisa