TETTRIX was officially launched during a three-day kick-off meeting held at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences in Brussels from 7 to 9 October 2026.
Coordinated by CETAF, the four-year project aims to bring together taxonomic expertise, collections, data, technologies, infrastructures and training to build a more connected European taxonomic system.
During the meeting, we spoke with Ana Casino, CEO of CETAF and TETTRIX Coordinator, about how the project builds on TETTRIs, the opportunities offered by new technologies, the role of the Taxonomy Cluster and what coordinating TETTRIX means for CETAF and its community.
What is TETTRIX, and how has it developed from its predecessor, TETTRIs?
TETTRIX is the project that we hope will allow us to consolidate the perspective and vision of the taxonomic community. We had a predecessor, TETTRIs, which gave us the opportunity to experiment, explore and pilot solutions to make our taxonomic community integrative and fully connected. But TETTRIX is the next step. It is the step we need to consolidate this process of creating a system for integrative taxonomy in Europe.
What do you hope TETTRIX will achieve during the next four years?
The main goal is to have that system in place, in which tools, services, data and, above all, experts from the taxonomic community can operate in a fully connected way. I think that is the ultimate goal.
During his session, Gilles Doignon described this as the perfect time to be a taxonomist and asked what Darwin could have achieved with today’s technologies. How are advances such as artificial intelligence transforming taxonomy and making it more relevant and accessible?
These advances provide fundamental tools for taxonomy. We cannot ignore these advances. On the contrary, we need to benefit from those technologies. They are transforming the work of the taxonomic community and changing the way we approach taxonomy.
That is why we call it integrative taxonomy, because many dimensions beyond morphological evidence need to come together. This is the beauty of having these advances and technological solutions: they allow us to scale up in terms of size and scope, increase the number of species we can discover and work more quickly.
But I want to make a point here because, of course, technologies support our work, but only experts can make the data produced through these new advances trustworthy. This is critical. Without the involvement of experts, data becomes just a set of information that cannot drive action. We need to interpret the data. We need to stir up the data, connect it and really put it into action so that it becomes actionable knowledge.
One of TETTRIX’s key initiatives is the Taxonomy Cluster, which aims to link and align European projects and strengthen the global visibility and advocacy of taxonomy. What is the Taxonomy Cluster, and how will it support the taxonomic community?
Every time we have a project or a new initiative, we experience how complex the biodiversity landscape is. It is populated by many initiatives, projects, actors and organisations, and not many know what the others are doing.
With the Taxonomy Cluster, we intend to avoid duplication of work. We try to align with our sister initiatives, organisations and projects that are doing similar things in the taxonomic field and the biodiversity realm, and to coordinate the processes in which we are involved.
The cluster means working together to produce joint results, achieve common objectives and develop a shared vision of what integrative taxonomy means for all of us.
What do you see as the biggest challenge for the Taxonomy Cluster?
The biggest challenge is the dispersion and fragmentation, as well as the fact that every project may have different aims. The challenge is to convey the message that doing things together is much more powerful than trying to achieve individual solutions.
Individual solutions do not work because, after a project ends or an organisation produces results, these may be lost in translation. They need to be connected and integrated at a higher level, where all the actors operating in the same field connect, integrate and collaborate.
If you had to describe the Taxonomy Cluster in one word, what would it be?
Connectivity. That is the main challenge and also the main measure of success. Having a shared vision at a higher level is what we aim to achieve.
Different projects such as BGE+, TETTRIX and THRIVE, as well as many other COST Actions that connect networks and scientific communities, will come together and deliver a common message.
One of the most successful initiatives developed under TETTRIs was Taxonomy Recognition Day. Why is this initiative important, and how will TETTRIX take it forward?
Taxonomy Recognition Day was essential because not many people understand what taxonomy is, what the taxonomic community’s work involves or what a taxonomist really does.
We wanted to raise awareness of their work and ensure that the value of taxonomy is widely recognised. So we said, “Okay, let’s have a Taxonomy Recognition Day,” and we decided to hold it on 23 May every year, which is the birthday of Linnaeus, the father of taxonomy.
It was a great success under TETTRIs. Our aspiration and ambition is that TETTRIX will consolidate this day within the CETAF community, but also much more broadly. We want to reach the general public, citizens who act as volunteers in the field to collect information about biodiversity and help preserve it, NGOs, policymakers and industrial actors.
It is about having every other player recognise taxonomic work.
Do you feel that Taxonomy Recognition Day is reaching society and helping people understand the importance of taxonomy?
I really think that the results are impressive. People are astonished by what it means to do taxonomy. They enjoy having the opportunity not only to see the biodiversity surrounding them, but also to identify it thanks to the work of taxonomy. I think these results are our main motivation to continue with Taxonomy Recognition Day.
It is not only about citizens and the general public. Other scientific communities are also starting to understand what data we provide, how they can interact with us and how they can use those data, systems and tools in their own fields of activity.
And, finally, there are policymakers. Policymakers need to understand and receive the right messages about how taxonomy acts as a foundational layer for biodiversity conservation.
This is something we have always stressed during Taxonomy Recognition Day: policymakers should come to us, understand our work and embed the concept of taxonomy into their policies, regulations and measures for biodiversity conservation and preservation.
What does TETTRIX mean for CETAF and its community, and how does coordinating the project support CETAF’s long-term vision for the future of taxonomy in Europe?
TETTRIX is a success for the CETAF community. We had TETTRIs, of course, and that was the first step. But with TETTRIX, we have doubled not only the budget, but also the challenges and, of course, the expected success.
For CETAF, as the coordinator of this ambitious project, we really think that it will support the beauty of our strategy and provide us with the tools to continue our work. It will enable us to tell the world that taxonomy is a foundational layer for biodiversity conservation.