For the first time, we are bringing the network together in person: two half days, from lunch on 8 December to lunch on 9 December. We want to learn from each other, decide together where SMN should go next and get our hands on data. Please block the dates in your calendar – the full programme and registration will follow soon.

• Where should the network go next, and how can we work more efficiently together?
• Identify the most urgent needs of the community for infrastructure, tools, or information access
• Common challenges: markers, primers, protocols
• A possible joint outcome, such as a guidance document or a review paper
• Invited speaker from one of our sister networks abroad (to be confirmed)

We round off the first day with a dinner together – a chance to get to know each other beyond the meeting room.

• An end-to-end bioinformatics session, from raw reads to ASV tables
• A “bring your own data” workshop to work on your own datasets with support
• Using your own reference database with SBDI
• Overview of the support NBIS offers for metabarcoding data

The workshop is open-ended: if you want to stay on after lunch to finish processing your data, you are welcome to.

More info in our next email.

An introduction to the Swedish Metabarcoding Network and a live demo of how to mobilise eDNA-derived metabarcoding data on SBDI/GBIF as occurrence data, giving your data more visibility and reuse. We will also present free NBIS support for uploading eDNA data to ENA and GBIF and making it FAIR-compliant.

WHEN  Friday 23 October 2026, 15:00–16:00 (CEST)
WHERE  EBC, Uppsala University & online via Zoom

Add to calendar  |  All events

Thank you to everyone who answered our data-producer survey this spring! 17 research groups took part. Here is what we learned:

• Lots of data out there: 16 of 17 groups have already produced eDNA/metabarcoding data, mostly deposited as raw reads in ENA or NCBI SRA, some on Dryad, Figshare or Zenodo.
• Few datasets on the ASV Portal yet: only 3 groups have published data on the ASV Portal so far.
• Strong willingness to share: 14 of the 16 data-producing groups would like to upload their data to the ASV Portal, and the other two are considering it.
• Main roadblocks: lack of time; the extra effort of reformatting ASV tables and metadata into the required format; and uncertainty about the process, e.g. who creates the ASV table, or how to handle long-read data and OTU or species-level clusters.
• Help wanted: 13 of 17 groups would like, or would consider, help from a data steward.

The good news: that help is available now. NBIS offers free data support – data stewards advise you and answer your questions on preparing and submitting your data, so you are not left to figure out the process on your own. Want to see how it works first? Join our demo this Friday.

At BioSyst.EU 2026 (17–19 August, Uppsala), SMN ran two hands-on workshops on 18 August in collaboration with the Swedish Biodiversity Data Infrastructure (SBDI). If you missed them, both tutorials are available on our website, so you can work through them at your own pace:

• Exploring eDNA in SBDI – accessing, processing and exploring eDNA metabarcoding data with SBDI resources and R
• Get started with nf-core/ampliseq – DADA2 denoising and taxonomic annotation of amplicon reads

Tutorial: eDNA in SBDI with R  |  All tutorials

We also had an SMN info booth at the conference, with our poster introducing the network, the metabarcoding workflow and the ASV Portal.

Postdoc, University of Gothenburg – marine genetic data and monitoring, linking genetic monitoring data into SBDI and GBIF.
Deadline: 15 November 2026  ·  View the advert

GBIF call for contractors – molecular OTU clustering and target-gene classification services.
Deadline: 30 October 2026  ·  Read the announcement

SeDNAs connects researchers, practitioners, government, industry and communities across Australia and New Zealand to advance eDNA science and its practical use. It is a young society, growing from a grassroots network formed in 2019, with its inaugural conference in 2023.

• Conference: the 3rd Australia & New Zealand eDNA Conference, “Scaling eDNA: From Method to Mainstream”, takes place in Canberra, 16–19 February 2027. Registration is open, early-bird rates until 6 December 2026.
• Webinars: regular webinars sharing emerging research and practical applications. Next up, on 23 November: a conference preview session.
• Knowledge Hub: regional best-practice guidelines, technical resources and scientific literature.
• Responsible practice: a working group supporting ethical partnerships with Indigenous communities and respect for Indigenous knowledge, sovereignty and data governance, plus a High Seas Treaty position statement on marine genetic resource governance.

SeDNAs website  |  Conference 2027  |  Knowledge Hub

NeDNA-WG was formally launched on 6 July 2026 in Leiden, bringing together around 70 participants from research institutes, government organisations, consultancies, industry and other stakeholders working with environmental DNA. The network aims to accelerate the use of eDNA across sectors by creating a national community for sharing knowledge, experiences and best practices.

Alongside freshwater, marine, soil and airborne eDNA, the network is developing thematic groups on emerging applications in public health and security. Until the first General Assembly in April 2027, NeDNA-WG is guided by an interim chair (Kat Stewart), secretary (Henrik Cornelisson van de Ven) and a six-person steering committee. A website is expected in early 2027, and non-Dutch observational membership may be considered in the future.

Get in touch: nednawg@gmail.com

The Milan Statement was adopted and signed by many participants of the International Workshop on Environmental Genomics (IWEG) in Milan, 7–8 July 2026, and is now open for endorsement by the global eDNA community.

It recognises that eDNA-based tools have reached a level of maturity and reliability that supports their broader use in biodiversity monitoring, management, decision-making and regulation – and calls on industry, natural resource management, environmental policy and regulators to include eDNA methods in formal monitoring toolkits.

If you support the statement, add your name – and feel free to share it with colleagues.

After its first edition in Gothenburg in 2025, the interdisciplinary Swedish Biodiversity Symposium comes to Uppsala, with the theme “Science and Society for Local Solutions and Global Impact”. SMN has submitted two session proposals on eDNA and metabarcoding – we will let you know as soon as we hear back.

Symposium website