eMBraCE investigated how microbe-host associations drive biogeochemical cycling in coastal benthic ecosystems. These interactions were poorly understood, and the effects of human pressures, such as ocean acidification (OA), remained largely unknown. The project explored whether microbe-host associations control carbon and nitrogen fluxes and how OA might alter these processes. eMBraCE measured fluxes at both the (meta)organism and ecosystem scale, combining microbial, host, and environmental data to better predict how coastal ecosystems respond to global change.