HORIZON Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions MSCA Doctoral Networks 2021 "ICEBIO: Center for Glacial Biome Doctoral Network"

ICEBIO's mission is to train  predoctoral researchers in glacier microbiology and biogeochemistry. Glaciers and ice sheets were long believed to be sterile environments, but just like other large ecosystems (e.g., tropical forests, tundra), they are now widely recognized as one of the Earth’s biomes, teeming with life. Active algae, fungi, bacteria and viruses dominate the glacial environment and they have the ability to change the physical and chemical characteristics of the ice and snow, with global effects. Despite their global influence, many of the microbiological processes within the cryosphere remain poorly quantified. A deeper understanding of such processes are relevant to researchers interested in the possibility of life on icy extraterrestrial bodies, the survival and proliferation of life forms on our early Earth, and the positive and negative feedbacks that the cryosphere may have on global warming. The microbial communities living in association with icy environments may also harbor unique metabolic pathways, providing novel opportunities in biotechnology.

The ICEBIO consortium comprises 6 leading research teams across Europe (Denmark, France, Germany, Norway, Austria and Switzerland) and two industrial stakeholders (Germany and France).

For more detailed information on the project, please see the official ICEBIO website.

Project period: 2022-2026

Funding: Horizon MSCA Doctoral Networks 2021 (Grant no. 101072761)

Link: ICEBIO on EU's CORDIS database