World Soil Day 5 December
World Soil of the Year (© IUSS Bulletin 143)
The IUSS has launched an initiative for the annual celebration of a “World Soil of the Year” (WSY). We are currently witnessing remarkable success with activities centred around the celebration of the Soil of the Year at national level in several countries. Building on this momentum, the IUSS envisages the potential to elevate this initiative to a global scale.
Action Soil of the Year (Germany)
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:
Soil of the Year – selection and nomination
Action Soil of the Year in Germany – Lessons learned from 20 Years of experience
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)
Forest soil
Soil of the Year 2024
Downloads of short profiles Soil of the Year
Soil of the Year 2024 – Forest Soil
Soil of the Year_2023 – Arable Soil
Soil of the Year 2022 – Pelosol
Soil of the Year 2021 – Loess Soil
Poster_2021 en
Flyer_2021 en
Soil oft the Year 2020 – Intertidal Flat Soil (Wattboden)
Soil of ther Year 2019 – Mine Dump Soil (Dump Regosol)
Soil of the Year 2018 – Alpine Folic Histosol
Soil-of-the-Year_2017 – Hortic Anthrosol
Soil of the Year_2016 – Gleysol
Soil of the Year_2015 – Stagnosol / Planosol
Soil of the Year_2014 – Rigosol
Soil of the Year_2013 – Plaggic Anthrosol
Soil of the Year_2012 – Histosol
Soil of the Year_2011 – Fluvisol
Soil of the Year_2010 – Technosol
Soil of the Year_2009 – Gleyic Fluvisol (calcaric)
Soil of the Year_2008 – Cambisol / Arenosol
Soil of the Year_2007 – Podzol
Soil of the Year_2006 – Albic Luvisol
Soil of the Year_2005 – Chernozem