This would entail the annual selection and celebration of a soil, proposed by a IUSS member and endorsed by a national Soil Society. The celebration of the WSY is an element of implementation of the IUSS Strategic Plan. There is the suggestion that the IUSS could consider the possibility of granting a monetary award to accompany this recognition. A dedicated task force has been set up to facilitate  the start of the process, which foresees the participation of IUSS members, working mainly as officers of Commissions and Working Groups of Division 1. This task force, open to other possible interested colleagues of all Divisions, is responsible for refining the procedure and initiating the process, as well as the possible creation of a dedicated Working Group.

We firmly believe that this endeavour has the potential to enhance soil literacy across numerous countries and on a global scale. It also lays the groundwork for compiling a registry of soil heritage, recognizing the inherent natural and cultural values of soils. Furthermore, this initiative could represent a pivotal initial step, opening doors for soil science to integrate with environmental protection activities and projects. The idea is to annually celebrate a specific soil to increase collective responsibility for soil resources and soil functions, and to increase actions on public soil awareness.

Edoardo A.C. Costantini (IUSS President ) and Richard Heck (Chair of Division 1)

The soil of the year has been selected and presented by the Steering committee Soil of the Year since 2005. With this action, soils and their ecosystem functions shall be made aware to as many people as possible in order to promote a responsible handling and hence protection of this essential resource. Criteria for selection und nomination:

The steering committee organizes the presentation of the soil of the year on the World Soil Day on December 5th. The soil of the year is presented to the public using posters, flyers, publications, webpages and numerous events in Germany.

 

The Steering committee Soil of the Year is a board of the German Soil Science Society (DBG), the German Soil Association (BVB) as well as the German Engineer Association for Management of Contaminated Soils and Land Recycling (ITVA). This action is funded by the German Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt, UBA) in Dessau, Germany.

„All human activities use soils in a direct or indirect way. Therefore, everybody is a “soil stakeholder” and has to bear responsibility for soil protection. However, conservation cannot be successful without an awareness of and knowledge about soil valuation. This insight, which means understanding soils and their problems, has to be developed through education and the transfer of knowledge.“ (Monika FRIELINGHAUS 2019)