On behalf of the GCSAYN Board of Directors, it is with great enthusiasm that we confirm the designation of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana, as the GCSAYN West African Hub. The Hub will be co-led in partnership with Kaduna State University (Nigeria), University of The Gambia, and City of Mercy Christian Academy (Nigeria). These four institutions have been recognized as new *Centers of Excellence (CoEs)* and will play a pivotal role in ensuring the effective implementation of all GCSAYN programs and activities throughout West Africa. As autonomous entities, the CoEs will organize regional meetings, coordinate initiatives, and report directly to the Executive Office of the Executive Director (EOED).

Leadership Statements

Ambassador Dr. Hans Hoogeveen, Chair of the GCSAYN Board, stated: “This milestone reflects GCSAYN鈥檚 commitment to empowering young leaders and institutions across Africa to drive sustainable agricultural transformation. The selection of these distinguished institutions as Centers of Excellence ensures strong regional leadership and impactful implementation.”

GCSAYN Executive Director, Divine Ntiokam, added: “The establishment of the West African Hub is a strategic move to deepen our grassroots engagement and accelerate climate-smart agriculture solutions led by youth. We are confident in the capacity of these institutions to deliver meaningful change.”

Secretary General Anantdeep Dhillon commented: “Collaboration across borders is essential for addressing climate challenges. This Hub represents a powerful network of innovation, knowledge-sharing, and coordinated action across West Africa.”

Messages from the Centers of Excellence

A representative from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana, remarked: “We are honored to serve as the West African Hub for GCSAYN. This responsibility aligns with our mission to advance research, innovation, and youth empowerment in sustainable agriculture.”

Kaduna State University, Nigeria, shared: “As a co-lead institution, we are committed to fostering collaboration and supporting youth-driven agricultural transformation across the region.”

The University of The Gambia stated: “We look forward to contributing our expertise and strengthening regional partnerships to advance climate-smart agricultural practices.”

City of Mercy Christian Academy, Nigeria, added: “This opportunity enables us to expand our impact by equipping young people with the knowledge and tools needed to build resilient agricultural systems.”

About GCSAYN:

The Climate Smart Agriculture Youth Network Global (GCSAYN) is a global platform dedicated to empowering young people to lead and innovate in climate-smart agriculture. Through partnerships, capacity-building, and advocacy, GCSAYN supports sustainable agricultural development and climate resilience worldwide.

Media Contact:

Office of the Secretary General

Climate Smart Agriculture Youth

Network Global (GCSAYN)

secretariat@csaynglobal.org

+1 (250) 516 3913

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The IUSS Mission is to promote all branches of soil science and its applications, to promote contacts among scientists and other people engaged in the study and the application of soil science, to stimulate scientific research and to further the application of such research. With 60,000 soil scientists globally as its membership, the opportunities through the networks IUSS supports to educate, influence and engage on soils in the widest context are immense.

My aspiration for IUSS, building on all the work that IUSS has done over the last 100 years, is to ensure IUSS further enhances its clear focus on advancing the discipline of soil science and supporting the development of soil scientist across our community, alongside ensuring IUSS is known as the global champion for the recognition of soils, and the first point of contact for advice, guidance and support. With the World Congress of Soil Science happening in Nanjing in June this year there will be a lot of activity, and just as with the legacy BSSS and IUSS together delivered from the last Congress in Glasgow, we want to use the extra momentum the World Congress generates to focus attention on existing activities and kickstart new initiatives.

The theme for World Congress is Soil and the Shared Future for Humanity, and this links well to the聽IUSS 2025-2034 Decade of Soil Sciences for Sustainable Development 鈥� Healthy Soils for Humanity. As soils continue to move up the agenda, with these themes setting the framework for conversations and debate, and events such as the World Congress facilitating the sharing of science, the building of relationships and enabling collaboration, now really is a good time to be a soil scientist.聽

The opportunity for National Soil Science Societies to work together more to promote soil science globally and to share examples of best practice between peers, related scientific disciplines and society (including with policy makers) will play a large part in creating a framework for success in addressing the existential threats we face; for example, without healthy and secure soils we can鈥檛 achieve food security, social stability and resilience and a sustainable future. I look forward to discussing, collaborating and building relationships as part of my role, not least in person in Nanjing this year.

聽Soil Judging Competition

BSSS is proud to be supporting the next generation of soil scientists by sending a team to Nanjing to take part in the soil judging competition. This is a fantastic opportunity for participants to develop their practical skills, represent the UK on an international stage, and connect with peers from across the global soil science community.

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I was born in Delft in the Netherlands and studied Physical Geography as an undergraduate at the University of Amsterdam. From there, I completed a PhD in Soil Science at the University of Bangor in Wales, focusing on phenolic compounds in upland soils.

My early career included a postdoctoral position at the NERC Radiocarbon Laboratory in East Kilbride, where I worked on radiocarbon ¹⁴C dating of UK soils and their constituents. I then spent several years as a research scientist studying soil organic matter dynamics at IGER North Wyke, which later became Rothamsted North Wyke.

Since 2012, I have been based in Germany as Research Leader for soil organic matter dynamics and elemental cycles at Forschungszentrum J眉lich. Across these roles, my work has consistently focused on understanding soils as complex, dynamic systems.

________________________________________

Q: What are the main themes of your research today?

My research centers on biogeochemical processes at the soil鈥搘ater鈥揳ir interface, operating at both field and landscape scales in natural and agricultural ecosystems. A particular emphasis of my work is on the use of isotope signatures as tracers 鈥� for carbon, nutrients, other elements, and colloids 鈥� to better understand soil processes in the wider environment.

Over the years, I have co-authored more than 400 peer-reviewed papers and have supervised PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, and early career scientists across multiple countries. This international experience strongly informs me how I view both soil science and scientific publishing.

________________________________________

Q: Why is soil science 鈥� and publishing high-quality soil science 鈥� so important right now?

There is growing recognition of the critical role soils play in planetary health, food security, climate regulation, and ecosystem resilience. With that recognition comes responsibility.

Soil scientists must provide high-quality, coherent, and trustworthy knowledge to support efforts to address the multiple environmental challenges we face. Long-standing, excellence-driven journals like the European Journal of Soil Science (EJSS) play a vital role in ensuring that decision-makers and the scientific community have access to robust, well-reviewed research.

________________________________________

Q: How do you view the role of EJSS within the global soil science community?

At the heart of any successful journal is a strong covenant between authors, editors, and reviewers. All parties share responsibility for achieving the highest possible quality in the final published work.

EJSS is a society-based journal with a global outlook. That means we aim to publish soil science that is relevant to our society while also serving the wider international community. Equally important is ensuring the journal remains open and accessible to researchers worldwide who wish to contribute high-quality work, evaluated through a rigorous and fair peer review process.

________________________________________

Q: You became Editor-in-Chief in January 2026. What priorities have you set for the journal so far?

Since taking on the role of EiC, we have already begun several important initiatives. One key focus has been expanding the pool of Associate Editors to ensure broader global coverage and expertise across soil science disciplines.

We are also continuing to invest in the training of new reviewers, which is essential for maintaining review quality and supporting the next generation of soil scientists. In parallel, we are developing clear guidelines for the use of artificial intelligence in publishing, reflecting wider developments across academic journals.

________________________________________

Q: How is EJSS responding to emerging research needs and trends in soil science?

We have initiated new special issues in direct response to current needs identified by the soil science community. These special issues allow the journal to engage more actively with emerging themes while maintaining our core commitment to scientific quality.

While methods, tools, and topical priorities may evolve over time, the focus of EJSS will always remain soil science 鈥� in all its forms and applications.

________________________________________

Q: What does 鈥渜uality鈥� mean to you in the context of EJSS?

Quality is a shared responsibility. It involves authors presenting robust, clearly articulated research; reviewers offering constructive, expert feedback; and editors ensuring fairness, consistency, and scientific integrity throughout the process.

Beyond authors and reviewers, quality is also supported by the production and publishing teams who help bring each paper to its final form. EJSS succeeds because of the collective efforts of everyone involved.

________________________________________

Q: What are you most looking forward to as Editor-in-Chief?

I am very happy to be part of such a committed and experienced team and to contribute to the continued success of EJSS in my role as Editor-in-Chief.

Above all, I look forward to engaging with the many high-quality submissions that come to the journal and working with authors, editors, and reviewers to ensure EJSS continues to publish excellent soil science that meets the needs of both the scientific community and society at large.

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A quick look back at 2025

Last year saw membership rise again, now approaching 1000. We took part in events such as Rhizosphere6 and Eurosoil25, where we met many current and former members and spoke with people working across different areas of soil science. These meetings were useful for the Society and brought in around 70 new members.

We launched the Overseas Collaboration Award in honour of our former Patron, HRH the Duke of Gloucester. The aim is to support early career soil scientists from low and middle income countries by pairing them with BSSS mentors. We were also pleased that Kate Humble agreed to become the new Patron. Her involvement has already helped raise the visibility of soil science and she joined us on the Soil Matters podcast, which continues to grow in audience.

We kept a steady presence at familiar outreach events including Groundswell, the British Science Festival and Open Farm Sunday. Our Annual Conference in Manchester was the largest we have run, and the Early Careers Meeting beforehand showed that the future of soil science is in good hands.

The Year Ahead: 2026

State of Soil Science Report

A major piece of work for this year is the State of Soil Science report. It will set out where the discipline currently stands in the UK: the scale and aims of soil research, the level of funding available, the training routes that exist, the demand for skills and the areas where support is needed. A Steering Committee is being put together, but members across the Society will be invited to contribute.

The plan is to produce a clear document that draws together evidence rather than relying on scattered impressions. This will help us speak more confidently to government, funders and organisations who rely on soil science.

Education and Skills

Education is another priority. We will continue to broaden the Working with Soils courses, and we are exploring ways to link them to formal qualifications such as PG Certs or Apprenticeships.

We would also like to rebuild closer cooperation among soil science education institutions. There are not many of us teaching soil science and there is no benefit in working in isolation. With soil science often taught as a smaller part of wider degrees, students need good practical training that can be delivered consistently. The BSSS is well placed to help with this.

Preparing for the 80th Anniversary

Planning has begun for our 80th Anniversary in 2027. Part of this will be a focus on early women soil scientists whose work deserves to be more widely recognised. We are already collecting names and stories and welcome suggestions from members. I challenge you to find someone more inspiring than Frances Kay, the first female soil surveyor in the UK, who in the 1930s used to conduct surveys on a bicycle. Frances is the reason why soil maps are so beautifully coloured.

We will also form the scientific and local organising committees for Eurosoil2028. After the success of WCSS22 in Glasgow, we will reach a similar high bar in producing an exceptional international meeting.

Conferences and International Activities

The year started with the BSSS represented at the Oxford Farming Conference, where Ed Hinman and Khalid Mahmood spoke with delegates on soil policy and industry engagement. Internationally, Andy Morris and I plan to attend COP17 (UNCCD) in August and COP31 (Climate) in November to continue building our strong partnerships and ensure soil science remains part of wider environmental discussions.

Our regular external events will continue as usual. These include Open Farm Sunday and the Royal Highland Show in June, Groundswell in July, and the British Science Festival and Contamination Expo in September. These events remain important for speaking with farmers, students, teachers and the wider public.

The year will finish with the BSSS Annual Meeting in December in Aberdeen, run with the University of Aberdeen, the James Hutton Institute and SRUC. It should bring together a broad mix of soil specialists and a growing interest from allied disciplines, industry, and artists (yes, please come back 鈥� you were great last year).

Thanks

As always, the Society relies on its members. I want to thank everyone who contributes time to Council, Working with Soils courses and other activities. I am grateful to Past President Jack Hannam for her continued support, and to President鈥慐lect Lizzie Sagoo for stepping into her role with a huge amount of enthusiasm. I also want to thank Andy Morris and the Executive Team, whose work underpins much of what we do.

We have a full year ahead, and I look forward to seeing many of you at our events and meetings as we move through 2026.

2026 Highlights

• State of Soil Science report underway
• Expansion of Working with Soils courses and new training partnerships
• Planning begins for BSSS 80th Anniversary in 2027
• Early work on Eurosoil2028 committees
• Attendance planned for COP17 (UNCCD) and COP31 (Climate)
• Outreach at Open Farm Sunday, Royal Highland Show, Groundswell, British Science Festival and Contamination Expo
• BSSS Annual Meeting in December in Aberdeen

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The EC conference held during the first week of December 2025 was a mix of workshops and presentations, giving delegates the stage to showcase their projects. The theme was resilient soils for a sustainable future, inviting delegates to present work on soils for climate, people, water, life and advances for soil. With dedicated poster sessions and oral presentations, it gave delegates the chance to discuss their work with peers. Posters and presentations were judged with prizes awarded for best talk and poster. Many congratulations to Catherine Martinez for best oral presentation, Sara Trojahn for best poster and Abbie Rogers for delegates choice on best poster.

The conference started with a social bingo session, acting as an ice-breaker for the delegates to network. Further workshops focused on effective communication in a range of scenarios and audiences to equip delegates with tools to communicate both within and outside of academic audiences. A soils profile workshop aimed to demystify soil classification and allowed delegates to get their hands dirty by assessing multiple soil cores.

The following day, Past-President Prof. Jack Hannam gave an excellent keynote speech on her career journey, providing helpful tips and insights. This set the scene for a career session designed to showcase multiple pathways into soil science careers, with a great panel discussing among many items, the skills they found most useful in their disciplines.

At the end of the conference, the outgoing chair of the EC committee, Dr Dannielle Robb, was presented with the Outstanding Society Contribution Award. This was well deserved for her hard work on the committee to generate events and provide information useful for early career members, her efforts to get the first UK soil judging competition underway and her passionate dedication to soil science.

On a final note, it was very pleasing to hear from a delegate in the annual conference (that immediately followed the EC conference), was their observation that the EC members who had stayed on formed groups with each other. This showed that we had achieved our intention for the EC conference to provide a space for delegates to meet and connect with peers, connections that could last throughout their careers.

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Q: What does this 40-year milestone mean to you and the journal?

A: Reaching Soil Use and Management鈥檚 (SUM) 40th anniversary is a chance to reflect on how an idea in 1985 grew into a leading publication in applied soil science. Our founding Editor, Professor Alan Wild, challenged soil scientists to show that their research can be useful鈥攁 vision that still guides us. This milestone celebrates the readers and authors who have made SUM a leading journal in soil science, influencing practices and policy far beyond its initial scope.

Q: How has the journal evolved over the past four decades?

A: In the 1980s, SUM focused on issues like acidification, erosion, and fertilizer use. By the late 鈥�80s, our scope extended beyond Britain, with landmark studies such as soil erosion in China鈥檚 Loess Plateau. In the 1990s, we broadened our coverage to include soil survey, mapping, and land-use planning, and addressed global concerns like climate change and water quality. The 1997 special issue 鈥淪oils and the Greenhouse Effect鈥� was among the first to examine soils鈥� role in climate change.

The 2000s brought new emphasis, with SUM publishing research on sustainable land management and food security. We offered solutions for farmers, such as strategies to reduce water pollution and comparative studies on organic vs. conventional farming. SUM became truly international, publishing work from researchers in nearly 60 countries. In the 2010s, we embraced digital innovation, curated virtual special issues, and strengthened our role at the science-policy interface, notably with the 2015 鈥淪oil Sustainability & Policy鈥� supplement commissioned by the UK government. SUM also became a forum for debate, sparking conversations about defining and promoting 鈥渟oil health.鈥�

Q: What have been some of the most impactful papers or special issues?

A: Several contributions stand out:

• The 1989 study on China鈥檚 Loess Plateau brought global attention to soil erosion.
• The 1997 鈥淪oils and the Greenhouse Effect鈥� issue helped establish the importance of soil management in climate change.
• The 2000 nitrate leaching issue influenced farming practices and policy, contributing to measures like Europe鈥檚 nitrate vulnerable zones.
• The 2002 comparative analysis of organic vs. conventional farming bridged divides in agriculture.
• The 2015 鈥淪oil Sustainability & Policy鈥� supplement directly shaped UK environmental policy.
• The 2021 Soil Health Commentaries ignited dialogue about how to define and measure soil health.

These examples show SUM鈥檚 commitment to publishing work that advances knowledge and drives real-world impact.

Q: How has Soil Use and Management contributed to sustainable land management and environmental policy?

A: SUM has informed and shaped both practices and policies. Research has helped farmers adopt sustainable methods, such as improved crop rotations and erosion control. SUM articles have informed environmental regulations, including EU directives on nutrient management and guidelines for manure management. Our work on soil carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas emissions has fed into climate action plans. SUM has also bridged science and policy, providing policymakers with authoritative reviews and ongoing dialogue through editorials and commentaries. Internationally, concepts like 鈥渟oil quality鈥� and 鈥渟oil health鈥� promoted in SUM have influenced global frameworks such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Q: What are your hopes for the journal鈥檚 future?

A: I hope SUM continues to be a medium for tackling challenges like climate change, soil degradation, food security, and biodiversity loss. We aim to further broaden our reach, encourage submissions from underrepresented regions, and reflect diverse expertise. By championing 鈥渟oil stewardship,鈥� we hope to raise awareness that caring for soil is central to sustainable development. We intend to promote interdisciplinary dialogue, and remain a place where researchers, farmers, and policymakers find value. Ultimately, I hope SUM continues to drive progress toward healthier soils, sustainable land use, and informed policies that benefit people.

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by Leo Condron,聽Lisa Lobry de Bruyn,聽Fiona Nicholson,聽David O’Connor,聽Adrian Unc,聽J. Webb

Celebrating 40 Years of Soil Use and Management – 快猫短视频 hear more from Leo Condron

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Hear more from our apprentices below…

Ella Nash – Apprentice Marketing and Events

I started my journey at the 快猫短视频 in September 2025 as a Marketing and Events Apprentice. Although I had little experience in marketing, I knew it was a route I wanted to explore. Choosing an apprenticeship felt like the right step, as it allowed me to gain hands-on experience while gaining a qualification at the same time. As National Apprenticeship Week focuses on celebrating opportunities and raising awareness of apprenticeships, I felt it was important to share my experience and what I have gained so far.

Throughout my apprenticeship, I have had the opportunity to develop skills I already had as well as new ones. I have gained more confidence using software such as Canva and the Adobe Suite, this allowed me to develop my creativity. I have also gained experience by supporting marketing tasks, managing tasks, and working as part of a team.

During my time at BSSS, I have attended three events: a Working with Soils course, an ABPCO awards evening, and the Early Careers Conference. Attending these events has allowed me to improve my networking skills by speaking with professionals from across the sector. These experiences have helped me feel more confident in professional settings.

During the working weeks, Wednesday is dedicated to college, where we follow a curriculum that supports my apprenticeship. A major focus of this is portfolio work, which plays an important role in demonstrating the skills and knowledge I have developed. By the end of the apprenticeship, I will be assessed on my portfolio and the evidence included within it. Throughout this process, I get support from my college tutor and colleagues.

So far, my apprenticeship has provided valuable opportunities to develop my digital skill set, strengthen my networking abilities, and build confidence. It has reinforced my interest in marketing and has shown me how valuable apprenticeships can be in building a strong foundation for a future career.

Max Silver – Apprentice Membership Administration Officer

I began my journey with BSSS almost 2 years ago now, which feels almost ridiculous to say as it really does not feel like it has been that long. I am now coming to the end of my apprenticeship with BSSS, and at this point, I believe that I have developed massively, both as a person and in terms of my expertise. I no longer feel like an apprentice, instead feeling like I am a full member of the team and have been mostly independent in my work for some time now.

During this time with the Society, I have been the main point of contact for members and stakeholders due to me overseeing our Admin email and phone calls. I have also been present at some events, such as Groundswell, our Annual Conferences as well as our Early Career Conference 2025 in which I got to speak with a lot of members our members as well as our various stakeholders. The experience I gained from these was invaluable, and it felt amazing to be able to promote an organisation that I feel I have had a role in developing and changing.

Throughout my time working with the Society, I have been able to lead and participate in many projects that have helped to develop my skills. Some of these include our member segmentation project, in which I was responsible for gathering and presenting the data on our members to help further our goals towards Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI). I was also responsible for researching suggestions for our Society patron, for which I was pleased to see that Kate Humble was eventually chosen. Overall, I have found it incredibly rewarding to feel like a big part of something that is growing and that I feel I have had some ownership of.

Alongside my work day-to-day there has, of course been the learning element with Bedford College, through which I have had excellent support to help me get to the stage where I am now ready to become a fully qualified business administrator. As part of this college work, I have had to undertake a project of my choosing that I feel improves something in the Society. For my project, I chose to lead on creating a new webpage that provides a good overview for what soil is and why it is important. This project has now been completed, and I believe that this has helped to give an excellent overview for the public to understand why soil is important.

In summary, my experience with BSSS has been excellent. My work with the Society has developed my skills with software thanks to our frequent use of our CRM system, Microsoft office software and website building applications. My skills with balancing and organising my workload and ability to communicate with a team and stakeholders have been massively improved. I鈥檝e had a real sense of pride in my work and have felt like I have played my part in the Society鈥檚 continuing success.

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Realising the potential of soil carbon sequestration for atmospheric greenhouse gas removal

As Professor of Soils & Global Change at the University of Aberdeen, who better than Professor Pete Smith to give the conference a clear and concise breakdown of the current possibilities and limitations of soil carbon sequestration in reducing atmospheric greenhouse gases. His findings simplify messaging about its role in climate change mitigation. He provided that clear balance between tempering optimistic expectations and addressing the challenges from more sceptical voices, while clarifying the reasons to be hopeful.

Pete outlined at the very beginning that in theory soils could sequester up to around 10% of current global greenhouse gas emissions. However, critically the contribution is conditional, time-limited, and highly dependent on sustained land management.

鈥淔or people getting carried away saying soil carbon is the panacea and going to solve all of our problems, it鈥檚 not. It is time limited and is reversible鈥�

Soil carbon sequestration slows as soil approaches equilibrium, and any gains can be rapidly reversed if land management practices change, or soils become degraded. From a global GHG management perspective the message is clear: soil carbon sequestration cannot replace emissions reductions, but can be used alongside them, ideally to counter-balance any remaining emissions for the agricultural sector.

Measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) 鈥� the biggest barrier

A central focus of Pete鈥檚 presentation was measurement, reporting and verification (MRV), which emerged as the biggest barrier to scaling soil carbon sequestration. Pete explained that while direct soil measurements are accurate, they are also slow, destructive to soil structure, and expensive.

New measurement approaches including spectroscopy, gamma radiation, and satellite-based techniques, are under active development and show promise. However, they are not yet capable of reliably detecting small changes in soil carbon against large background stocks. So, claims that soil carbon can currently be measured accurately from space are simply not well supported by the evidence. These technologies may eventually reduce costs and improve coverage, but further development is needed.

The need for an integrated MRV framework

Throughout the presentation, Pete managed to weave in the limitations whilst simultaneously offering solutions. No single method, he argued, can provide a sufficient MRV system on its own. Instead, a robust and credible framework is needed, one that combines multiple sources of evidence and bring together:

• Long-term experiments that track soil carbon change over decades
• Short-term measurements that capture carbon and greenhouse gas fluxes
• Process-based soil and ecosystem models, calibrated with real data
• Spatial datasets on soils, land use, and climate
• Farm-level activity (management) data
• Remote sensing to verify practices and provide additional inputs
• Periodic soil resampling for independent validation

These elements already exist within the scientific community, but they are not yet fully integrated and are unevenly distributed globally. Significant data gaps remain, particularly in tropical and subtropical regions.

The Role and Limitations of Models and Farm Data

Pete emphasised the importance of models to project future soil carbon changes, so long as they are grounded in real-world observations and continuously validated.

Remote sensing, often used to validate management data and to provide inputs to soil carbon models can strengthen the overall MRV framework; however, Pete advised that it shouldn鈥檛 be used as a standalone solution. These tools can verify management practices and improve real-time model calibration, but it cannot directly measure soil carbon change.

One vast and underused source of direct soil carbon data lies at the farm level. As Pete explained, data already being collected by individual farms could be repurposed to inform soil carbon models without imposing additional administrative burdens on farmers. Provided it is used in a decentralised or anonymised system rather than a centralised public database, this resource could become one of the most valuable assets for improving soil carbon monitoring.

Scaling up and looking ahead

Rather than leaving the audience overwhelmed by the scale of the challenge, Pete highlighted international initiatives that show how these approaches can be implemented at scale.

The FAO鈥檚 RECSOIL programme, for example, illustrates how bottom-up, country-led systems can build capacity, integrate data and models, and support soil carbon accounting in both developed and developing regions. Together, these efforts suggest that wider implementation is achievable with relatively modest additional investment.

Furthermore, improving MRV through artificial intelligence, machine learning, robotics and advance data assimilation was presented as a significant opportunity to increase accuracy and efficiency if properly integrated.

Bringing these ideas together, Pete emphasised that soil carbon has the potential to act as a headline indicator of soil health, with strong links to productivity, resilience, ecosystem services, and broader sustainability goals. Yet this potential depends on robust, integrated, harmonised and credible MRV systems to track changes in soil carbon and meaningfully assess soil health. In this sense, soil carbon underpins soil health – but only careful measurement can unlock its full value.

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Attending the presentation by Dr. Nils Broothaerts and Dr. Panos Panagos from the European Commission gave us a clear and, at times, sobering overview of how central soil health has become to the European Union鈥檚 environmental, economic and climate agenda. What stood out immediately was how deliberately the presentation connected policy, science and on-the-ground action, framing soil not as a niche environmental issue, but as a foundation for many of the EU鈥檚 long-term goals.

One of the most striking takeaways was the sheer scale of soil degradation across Europe. The presentation highlighted evidence showing that more than 60% of EU soils are degraded, with the figure rising to around 90% for agricultural soils. Hearing this alongside the estimated annual cost of 鈧�41鈥�73 billion made the issue feel both urgent and tangible. Soil degradation was not presented as a single problem, but as the cumulative result of multiple processes- erosion by water and wind, tillage, harvesting and gullying – often acting together and compounding their impacts.

The presentation helped us understand how the EU is responding through a coherent policy framework. Central to this is the EU Soil Strategy for 2030, which sets the long-term ambition of achieving healthy soils across the EU by 2050. A major moment discussed by Panos was the approval of the Soil Monitoring and Resilience Directive, described as the first-ever EU-wide legislation dedicated specifically to soils. Its introduction of a harmonised definition of soil health and a coordinated monitoring framework across Member States felt like a turning point, signalling that soils are finally being treated with the same seriousness as air and water.

What we found particularly important was how Mission Soil was presented as a practical engine for change. With hundreds of millions of euros invested between 2021 and 2025 and dozens of projects already funded, the scale of commitment was clear. The concept of Living Labs was especially compelling – real-world sites where farmers, researchers, public bodies and citizens work together to test and co-create solutions. Learning that 45 Living Labs are already operating across more than 500 sites helped ground the policy discussion in concrete action.

It was also made clear how essential monitoring and data are to making all of this work. The role of the EU Soil Observatory emerged as a backbone of the entire system, providing consistent EU-wide data, long-term surveys such as LUCAS, and tools like the Soil Degradation Dashboard and the EU Soil Health Portal. It became evident that without this shared evidence base, neither legislation nor innovation could be effectively targeted or evaluated.

Another important insight was how soil policy is increasingly interconnected with other EU priorities. The presentation linked soil health to agriculture, biodiversity, climate mitigation, carbon farming, pollution reduction and the Sustainable Development Goals. Research findings on soil organic carbon, in particular, highlighted both the risks of continued degradation and the opportunities soils still offer for carbon storage and climate action.

Overall, the presentation delivered the conference with a strong sense that soil is no longer the 鈥渋nvisible鈥� resource it once was in policy debates. The message we took away from Nils and Panos was that restoring and protecting soils requires coordinated legislation, harmonised monitoring, sustained research investment and active participation from land managers and citizens alike. Mission Soil was presented not simply as a policy initiative, but as a collective effort to safeguard a resource that underpins food systems, ecosystems, climate resilience and long-term economic stability across Europe.

Further context can be found in the following publications in the European Journal of Soil Science 听补苍诲听.

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Karolina Trdlicova from the James Hutton Institute delivered a thought-provoking talk encouraging the conference to rethink how we communicate about soil health. Drawing on over three decades of climate change communication research, she argued that soil health and climate change are both 鈥渨icked problems鈥� – complex issues that cannot be solved once and for all, but must be continually addressed through ongoing social, scientific, and political engagement.

Language is like soil. However rich, it is subject to erosion, and its fertility is constantly threatened by uses that exhaust its vitality. It needs constant re-invigoration if it is not to become arid and sterile.

Elizabeth Drew, author, critic (1887鈥�1965)

The key message was that ineffective communication can undermine even the best science, while effective communication can foster trust, engagement, and meaningful action.

Here are the key learnings from her talk:

1) Fear alone does not motivate action

One of the central lessons was that communicating soil degradation purely in terms of crisis and catastrophe can be counterproductive. While it may raise awareness, it often leads to feelings of helplessness and disengagement rather than action.

Messages about the poor state of soils should always be accompanied by clear pathways for action, research efforts, and reasons for hope. Without this, communication risks producing despair instead of empowerment.

2) Artificial deadlines are ineffective

Karolina showed that dramatic deadlines, commonly used in climate communication, do not lead to sustained engagement. Instead, they confuse and create false urgency.

For soil communication, framing the issue around claims like 鈥渨e only have X years left鈥� is unlikely to motivate long-term behavioural change and may even discourage meaningful engagement.

3) Caring does not automatically lead to action

Another key insight was the existence of the value鈥揳ction gap. People can care deeply about an issue but still fail to change their behaviour.

Communication strategies must recognise that structural, social, and practical barriers often prevent people from acting, even when they value the issue – raising concern or awareness about soil health is not sufficient on its own.

4) The Knowledge-deficit model does not work

Karolina strongly challenged the assumption that public inaction is caused by a lack of knowledge. This so-called knowledge-deficit model assumes that if scientists explain their work more clearly or more simply, people will automatically agree and act.

This approach has been shown repeatedly to fail. People鈥檚 attitudes are shaped not just by information, but by trust, values, identities, and lived experience. Effective communication therefore requires dialogue, not just simply messaging.

5) Action can come before care

A particularly important takeaway was that engagement does not always start with awareness or concern.

Through examples such as citizen science and community projects where communication is focused on creating opportunities for participation, Karolina showed that involving people directly can build attachment, responsibility, and long-term commitment.

6) The messenger matters

Finally, Karolina emphasised that the credibility of the communicator is central to effective communication as people are more likely to trust and engage with messages when they believe the messenger embodies the values they promote.

Credibility is about consistency between what communicators say and how they live or act; and trust, authenticity, and social positioning all shape how messages are received.

To conclude, effective soil communication must be hopeful, participatory, and trust-based. It should avoid fear-driven narratives, simplistic messaging, and top-down approaches. Instead, it should:

• Recognise diverse publics rather than a single 鈥済eneral public鈥�
• Focus on building trust and credibility
• Encourage action and participation
• Combine scientific knowledge with social understanding

Communicating soil health is technical, social, and ethical task, requiring as much attention to people, values, and relationships as to data and evidence.

Follow the link to read more on this topic of research from Karolina and Roy Neilson (Trdlicova, Neilson, European Journal of Soil Science 2025):

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