Search Results

News 🌍 BGE+ started!! BGE+ is the next phase of Biodiversity Genomics Europe and will support the continued development of a coordinated European biodiversity genomics community. The project brings together iBOL Europe, ERGA, and CETAF to improve how genomic data are produced, connected, and used across DNA barcoding, reference genomes, taxonomy, collections, informatics, training, and policy-facing work. For ERGA, BGE+ will provide support for the reference genome community through network coordination, BioGenome Hubs, technical exchange, quality-control activities, training, and links to cascade-funded projects. The project will also help widen participation, support shared standards, improve data interoperability, and make outputs more reusable through open and FAIR practices. These activities will contribute to a more coherent European system for biodiversity genomics, while recognising the distributed expertise already present across ERGA members, committees, national nodes, and partner institutions. More information is available in here. 🪢 ERGA COST Action ERGA has been awarded a new COST Action to support the wider use of biodiversity genomics in research, conservation, management, and policy. The Action responds to a growing need for shared standards in how genome-wide data are generated, analysed, interpreted, and communicated. Although genomic methods are increasingly used to assess genetic diversity, harmful variation, and introgression, their uptake remains uneven because methods, terminology, metadata, and reporting practices often differ across studies and countries. This new network will bring together researchers, practitioners, policymakers, data specialists, and other stakeholders to co-develop practical guidance, training, and communication approaches. For the ERGA community, the Action offers a way to extend existing expertise in reference genomes towards broader applications of genome-wide data, while supporting inclusive participation and knowledge exchange across Europe. More information is available here. Join the ERGA Pangenomes Working Group! The ERGA Pangenomes Working Group has now started, following its first meeting on May 21st during the SAC regular meeting. We would like to thank the more than 100 people who have already expressed their interest in participating. This strong response shows the value of creating a shared space to discuss pangenomes within ERGA, from first steps to more advanced applications. Members who have not yet expressed an interest can still do so using the link below. The form will remain open for the coming months, so people can join as the group develops. SMBE 2026 - Let's connect! ERGA is proud to support SMBE 2026 as a sponsor. The ERGA Awards have already been granted, and we will soon share more about the winners. If you are joining the meeting, stop by the ERGA booth. We would love to meet you and connect in person!! Would you like to reserve a private meeting with an official ERGA representative? Write an email to ERGA Secretariat ⬇️ Events World Biodiversity Forum (WBF) 2026 14–19 June – Davos, Switzerland European Congress of Conservation Biology (ECCB) 2026 6–10 July – Leiden, The Netherlands European Conference on Computational Biology (ECCB 2026) 31 August - 3 September | Geneva, Switzerland 2nd Molluscan Genomics Workshop 30 August - 3 September | Frankfurt, Germany Biodiversity Information Standards (TDWG) Conference 2026 21-25 September | Oslo, Norway / Hybrid BioHackathon 2026 9-13 November | Barcelona, Spain Featured conferences with sessions organized by ERGA members: Are you attending events or organizing sessions/workshops not listed here? Let us know here, we can help you reach more attendees from the biodiversity genomics community! From the #ERGABlog: watch and explore 🦈 How can genomics help us understand the unique evolution of sharks, rays, and chimaeras? Watch Shigehiro Kuraku introduce Squalomix, a consortium studying cartilaginous fishes through genome sequencing, cytology, and experimental biology. The talk explores how this work is revealing distinctive features of their biology, from genome size variation and ancient vertebrate sex chromosomes to adaptations such as deep-sea vision in whale sharks. 🧬 How can we detect local adaptation when population structure shapes genomic variation? Watch Jérôme Goudet and Isabela do O discuss how demographic history, relatedness, and population structure can complicate the search for adaptive divergence. The seminar explores the classical QST–FST framework, its limits under complex population structure, and how approaches such as LogAV can help identify more robust signals of selection. Useful links HAVE ANYTHING TO SHARE? Click and Submit to ERGANews! Click here to become an ERGA Member Public EVENTS calendar here - add this to your Calendar or iCalendar! 💬 Follow us on social media! BlueSky LinkedIn YouTube

ERGA has been awarded a new COST Action focused on making biodiversity genomics easier to use, compare, and apply across Europe. Genomic data can provide detailed insight into genetic diversity, harmful variation, and introgression, but these data remain difficult to translate into shared practice. Here, the focus is not on reference genome production itself, but on the downstream use of genome-wide data, including WGS-based analyses, metadata, interpretation, reporting, and communication. Studies often differ in how samples are collected, how data are processed, how metadata are recorded, and how results are reported. This makes it harder for researchers, conservation practitioners, and policymakers to compare evidence across species, regions, and time. The new Action will address this gap through a pan-European network built around shared standards and practical exchange. Its working groups will focus on experimental design and genome-wide analysis, metadata, conservation applications, training, and communication. The aim is not to prescribe one rigid route for every project. It is to create a common language and a set of usable practices that can help different communities work together with greater clarity. This includes people already working in biodiversity genomics, as well as groups that need genomic evidence but may not yet have the same access to training, infrastructure, or specialist support. For ERGA, the COST Action is a natural extension of the community’s work on reference genomes. It moves from producing high-quality genomic resources towards helping those resources support biodiversity assessment, conservation planning, and policy-facing work. The Action will create opportunities for training, knowledge exchange, stakeholder engagement, and participation from countries and groups that have had fewer opportunities to contribute to this field. In this sense, it is both a scientific and a community effort: a way to make biodiversity genomics more consistent, more accessible, and more useful for the people who need to interpret and apply it. Stay tuned!!!!

BGE+ (Biodiversity Genomics Europe plus) is the next phase of the Biodiversity Genomics Europe initiative. It builds on previous community work to strengthen how genomic evidence is produced, shared, and applied across Europe. The project brings together iBOL Europe, ERGA, and CETAF, connecting communities working on DNA barcoding, reference genomes, taxonomy, natural history collections, informatics, training, and biodiversity policy. Its aim is to help make biodiversity genomics more coordinated, more interoperable, and more useful for research, monitoring, conservation, and policy. For ERGA, BGE+ provides dedicated support for the European reference genome community through a work package focused on network development, member engagement, BioGenome Hubs, training, and community-led activities. This work recognises the expertise already present across ERGA and aims to make it easier for members to share knowledge, develop projects, access guidance, and contribute to high-quality genome resources. It also creates space to support new groups, strengthen links between countries and institutions, and help reference genome work grow in a coordinated but distributed way. BGE+ will also support community projects through cascade grants and will contribute to broader efforts around standards, data reuse, and capacity building. For ERGA members, this offers both a practical opportunity and a longer-term one: support for genome-related activities now, and a chance to help shape how biodiversity genomics develops in Europe. Stay tuned!!!

The European Reference Genome Atlas (ERGA) initiative is a pan-European scientific response to current threats to biodiversity. Reference genomes provide the most complete insight into the genetic basis that forms each species and represent a powerful resource in understanding how biodiversity functions. With approxima HOME A GENOME ATLAS OF EUROPEAN BIODIVERSITY The European Reference Genome Atlas (ERGA) initiative is a pan-European scientific response to current threats to biodiversity. Reference genomes provide the most complete insight into the genetic basis that forms each species and represent a powerful resource in understanding how biodiversity functions. With approximately one fifth of the ~200,000 European species at risk of extinction, we need to act fast and together to generate high-quality complete genome resources in large scale. Science needs genomes to understand biodiversity, biodiversity needs to be understood to be protected. HIGHLIGHTS Connections Booklet: Discovering Biodiversity Genomics The Biodiversity Genomics alphabet 1: DNA ERGA News #35 - February 2026 EVENTS Conferences 2026 - Let's connect! ATLASea: progress on sequencing marine biodiversity Sampling for genomics studies across the tree of life Open to Collaborate ERGA is committed to the development of new modes of collaboration, engagement, and partnership with Indigenous peoples for the care and stewardship of past and future heritage collections. Calls OUR MISSION 1/3 1/3 1/3 1/3 WHAT WE DO Establishing high-quality reference genomes requires an interdisciplinary workflow From species to genomes … and beyond. From species selection to data analysis, the process of creating reference genomes for the entire biodiversity will involve a deep synergy among museums, research institutes, universities, sequencing centres, bioinformatics and computational groups. Citizens will also play an important role supporting the inclusion of all types of species. WHAT WE AIM FOR Creating and consolidating a collaborative and interdisciplinary network of scientists across Europe and associated countries Connecting relevant infrastructure across Europe following a distributed model that can dynamically increase Propagating guidelines for state-of-the-art genome establishment through training and knowledge transfer Next La comunidad ERGA tiene como objetivo optimizar la producción de genomas de referencia mediante el desarrollo y el intercambio de protocolos y flujos de trabajo, brindando acceso a recursos y apoyando el desarrollo de capacidades a través de la transferencia de conocimientos - para mejorar y ampliar el uso de datos genómicos para la protección y restauración de la biodiversidad Next OUR PROJECTS ERGA Pilot The Pilot Project was launched to demonstrate the feasibility of continent-wide collaboration. It was established, funded, and driven entirely by its members. Read more >> Biodiversity Genomics Europe ERGA has recently been funded as part of the Biodiversity Genomics Europe project through the European Union's Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Action. Read more ERGA Community Genomes Are you planning or developing a reference genome project of a European species? Join the growing family of ERGA Community G enomes! Read mo re “Species conservation is urgent and demands deep knowledge of the genetic features of their populations. A coordinated effort to generate complete reference genomes for all European biodiversity, such as what we are proposing with ERGA, can give us the whole picture about the adaptive differences and extent of a need for genetic rescue among populations and species.” Dr. Camila Mazzoni, Founding Chair, ERGA. Research Group Leader Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research Berlin, Germany

Executive Board Council of Countries Committees Our Partners Pilot Project Former Contributors top OUR COMMUNITY ERGA is an bottom-up initiative based on people, consisting of hundreds of scientists across the entire European continent and beyond. Research institutions, infrastructure facilities as well as partner genome projects will play an important role within ERGA. Finally, ERGA will have a focus on societal needs particularly related to Biodiversity conservation. For that purpose, ERGA will work engaging governmental and non-governmental entities and will closely involve citizens in different actions. Executive Board Executive Board executive-board@erga-biodiversity.eu Robert Waterhouse Chair Ann Mc Cartney Vice Chair Olga Vinnere Pettersson Vice Chair Tyler Alioto Scientific Officer Kay Lucek Partnership Officer Stefaniya Kamenova Dissemination Officer Lada Lukić Bilela Social Integration Officer Camila Mazzoni Funding Opportunities Officer Jaakko Pohjoismäki Genomic Outreach Officer List of Former Executive Board Members > Council of Country Representatives Contact the national representatives for more information on the ERGA community in your country! Andorra Andorra@erga-biodiversity.eu Manel Niell List of Former Council Members > Council of Countries Committees SSP - Sampling & Sample Processing samples@erga-biodiversity.eu More > DAC - Data Analysis Committee analysis@erga-biodiversity.eu More > Media & Communications media@erga-biodiversity.eu More > Social Justice Committee socialjustice@erga-biodiversity.eu More > SAC - Sequencing and Assembly Committee assembly@erga-biodiversity.eu More > ITIC - IT & Infrastructure Committee itinfra@erga-biodiversity.eu More > CS - Citizen Science citizenscience@erga-biodiversity.eu More > Annotation Committee annotation@erga-biodiversity.eu More > ELSI - Ethical, Legal, and Social Issues elsi@erga-biodiversity.eu More > TKT - Training and Knowledge Transfer training@erga-biodiversity.eu More > Committees Our Partners Our Partners ERGA is the pan-European partner of the Earth Biogenome Project (EBP) Affiliated Initiatives Associated Partners Pilot Project Pilot Project Committee Coordinators pilot@erga-biodiversity.eu Giulio Formenti Alice Mouton Ann Mc Cartney Learn more about the Pilot Project Former Contributors SSP - Sampling & Sample Processing Committee Filter by Type Astrid Böhne (Former Committee Chair) Former Contributors

Committees SSP - Sampling & Sample Processing samples@erga-biodiversity.eu More > DAC - Data Analysis Committee analysis@erga-biodiversity.eu More > Media & Communications media@erga-biodiversity.eu More > Social Justice Committee socialjustice@erga-biodiversity.eu More > SAC - Sequencing and Assembly Committee assembly@erga-biodiversity.eu More > ITIC - IT & Infrastructure Committee itinfra@erga-biodiversity.eu More > CS - Citizen Science citizenscience@erga-biodiversity.eu More > Annotation Committee annotation@erga-biodiversity.eu More > ELSI - Ethical, Legal, and Social Issues elsi@erga-biodiversity.eu More > TKT - Training and Knowledge Transfer training@erga-biodiversity.eu More >