The Global Soil Partnership was launched in 2011 by FAO to improve global governance of soil resources and ensure healthy productive soils. Its vision is to guarantee soils support food security and ecosystem services amid increasing human demands. Key challenges include soil degradation and low awareness/investment. The partnership's pillars of action center on sustainable management, investment, research, data sharing, and guidelines. Regional partnerships in Asia, MENA, and Latin America are establishing networks and priorities. The partnership aims to place soils at the forefront of sustainable development discussions through events like the World Soil Day and Global Soil Week.

1. GLOBAL SOIL PARTNERSHIP
Sally Bunning and Ronald Vargas
Land and Water Division, FAO Rome

2. Outline
• Why are Soils so important?
• What are the Challenges: past, present and future?
• Global Soil Partnership
• Why?
• Vision and mission
• Pillars of action
• Governance
• Status of its establishment
• Regional Soil Partnerships
• How can EGU scientists/members contribute to the
GSP?

3. 1. Why are Soils so Important?

4. SOIL IS A LIMITED RESOURCE
“Because it is everywhere, we tend to overlook the fact that soil is a limited
natural resource”.
On top of that, the world’s limited area of fertile soils are increasingly under
pressure from competing land uses. Soil degradation threatens this vital
resource, weakening efforts to increase food production for a growing
population.
Poor soil
management,
could lead to
Degradation

5. Why Soils?
Soils are Finite on a Human Time Scale
• Worldwide soil is being eroded (carried away by wind and runoff) much faster than it is
being replenished. In Somalia: an average of 100 tons/ha of topsoil per year is lost
(SWALIM, 2009).
• However, natural soil formation from the mineralisation of rock and breakdown
of organic matter into stable humus is a very slow process - to form 2 - 2.5 cm of
soils, requires approx. 1000 years.

6. Why soils?
Soils provide multiple Ecosystem Services
Life support services Provision services Regulating services Cultural services
•The soil renewals, retains, •Soil is the basis for the •The soil plays a central role in •Soil provides support for
delivers nutrients and provides provision of food, fibre, fuel and buffering, filtering and urban settlement and
physical support for plants; medicinal products to sustain moderation of the hydrological infrastructure;
•It sustains biological activity, life; cycle; •In some cultures, soils may
diversity, and productivity; •It holds and releases water for •It regulates the carbon, oxygen also be of specific spiritual or
•The soil ecosystem provides plant growth and water supply. and plant nutrient cycles (such as heritage value.
habitat for seeds dispersion and N, P, K, Ca, Mg and S) affecting •Soils are the basis for
dissemination of the gene pool the climate and plant production; landscapes that provide
for continued evolution. •Soil biodiversity contributes to recreational value.
soil pest and disease regulation.
Soil micro-organisms process and
break-down wastes and dead
organic matter (such as manure,
remains of plants, fertilizers and
pesticides), preventing them from
building up to toxic levels, from
entering water supply and
becoming pollutants.

7. What are the Challenges for Soils:
Past, Present and Future?

8. Soil Productivity and Degradation
• Over some 50 years, world annual production of cereals coarse grains, roots and tubers,
pulses and oil crops has grown from 1.8 million tonnes to 4.6 billion tonnes.
• These huge gains in agricultural production and productivity were often accompanied by
negative effects on agriculture’s natural resource base (externalities)
• The land degradation effects are so serious that they jeopardize future productive
potential: soil degradation and loss of biodiversity, salinization of irrigated areas, over-
extraction of groundwater, build up of pollutants and pest resistance…..
• The declining quality of land and water resources available for food, feed, fibre, timber and
fuel production has major implications for future food security and sustainable livelihoods.
• Many of today’s soil and crop, livestock and forest management systems are unsustainable:
– extreme overuse of fertilizer in the EU  serious nitrate build up in water resources that
threatens vast areas.
– extreme under-use of organic and mineral fertilizer in most parts of sub-Saharan Africa 
soil nutrients exported with harvested crops are not being replenished, leading to soil
degradation and declining yields.

9. Soil degradation status and trends
(Global land degradation information system)
• Soils of varying degradation status (low to high) show increasing
degradation trends (GLADIS, 2011):
– Water and wind
erosion
– Nutrient and
SOM depletion
– Acidification
– Salinisation
– Compaction
– Contamination

10. CURRENT AND FUTURE CHALLENGES FOR
MANAGING SOILS
- In 50 years the world’s cultivated area has grown by 12%;
the irrigated area has doubled; agricultural production
has grown 2.5 to 3 times, B thanks to significant increase in
yield of major crops.
- But, global achievements in production in some regions
are associated with degradation of land and water
resources and deterioration of ecosystem goods and
services.
- Towards 2050, rising population and incomes are
expected to call for 70% more food production globally,
and up to 100% more in developing countries (relative to
2009). Yet, the distribution of land and water resources does
not favour countries that need to produce more in the future.
- The largest share of increased agricultural output will most
likely come from intensification of production on existing
agricultural land. This will require widespread adoption of

11. CHANGE IN CROPLAND 1961-2009
B

12. IN THE PAST 50 YEARS…….
Increments in the past 50 years +200%
Agricultural
production
+117%
Irrigated area
World’s
cultivated land
+12%

13. SYSTEMS AT RISK (SOLAW)
B
- A series of land and water systems now face the risk of
progressive breakdown of their productive capacity
(driven by demographic pressure and unsustainable
agricultural practices).

14. SYSTEMS AT RISK (SOLAW)
B

15. NEW FAO PARADIGM FOR AGRICULTURE
B

16. NEW FAO PARADIGM FOR AGRICULTURE
B

17. FUTURE CHALLENGES
Growing population demands:
•Healthy soils to increase food production and ensure food security (crop,
livestock, forest, fuel), support rural development & reduce poverty.
B
• Diverse farming systems to maintain supporting and regulating services
and to provide healthy diets & nutrition
• Actions to reduce post harvest losses and food waste.

18. FUTURE CHALLENGES
Growing Water scarcity:
Climate change scenarios predict reduction of
rainfall in some semi-arid regions and erratic,
unreliable rainfall in many areas.
Is much of the water lost as runoff and
evaporation (as above)?
Or is the soil ready to capture and retain
water ( as below)?
Soil and vegetation management practices are key to
efficient water use in crop, grazing and forest systems

19. FUTURE CHALLENGES
Climate change adaptation and mitigation:
• Under climate change scenarios, the provision of environmental systems
to meet demands of the growing population remains a challenge
• Soils play a key role in climate change adaptation (resilient, productive
farming systems, efficient use of water) and mitigation (C sequestration;
reduced GHG emissions)
(Fuente: Hiederer, R. ,2012)

20. SOILS ARE UNDER INCREASING PRESSURE

21. SOILS CANNOT BE POSTPONED!
Managing soils for climate change adaptation in Bolivia Picture taken in Somalia, where water is a pivotal resource
only if soil is available

22. 2. Global Soil Partnership

23. Soils situation today: Major concern
• Soil data - fragmented, partly outdated (fertility, SOC,…), heterogeneous-
difficult to compare, not easy accessible, not responding to users demands.
• Soil capacities - increasingly a scarce resource (loss of soil expertise & skills).
• Soil knowledge & research - fragmented (fertility, CC, ecology), domain of soil
scientists, not accessible for use by various disciplines/for decision making,
not tailored to address problems/development agendas of today.
• Awareness & investments in soil management - extremely low compared to
the needs that soil is a precious resources & requires special care from its users.
• Soil policy: Often perceived as a 2nd-tier priority; lack of international
governance body to support coordinated global action on their management.
Need for compatible and coordinated soil policies – A unified and authoritative
voice is needed to better coordinate efforts and pool limited resources (for
agriculture, forestry, food security, UNCCD, CBD, UNFCCC, disaster & drought
management, land competition, rural & urban land use planning & development).

24. WHY THOSE ANSWERS?
Soils are often perceived as a fifth-tier priority at the international decision
making process and also by the general public.
There is urgent need to raise awareness on the crucial role of soils for
responding to today’s global challenges of food security, poverty and climate
change.
Soils deserve much greater investment in all fields, including raising
awareness, developing and promoting sustainable soil management practices,
supporting technical cooperation, strengthening training of new soil scientists,
developing soil information and knowledge with an interdisciplinary
perspective capable of bringing the crosscutting issue of soils back into the
centre of agricultural and environmental development processes.

25. Why a Global Soil Partnership?
The GSP was launched by FAO, with the support of EC-JRC, in Sept. 2011 and its Terms
of reference are to be endorsed and guided by the Committee on Agriculture in May
2012 to:
• Improve global coordination /governance of
the world’s soil resources through an
intergovernmental mechanism;
• Put national and regional needs in the centre.
• Involve local institutions and communities to
create ownership.
• Catalyse effective and coordinated soils
200 participants; 100 countries
policies and investments to guarantee 120 organizations; (int./reg./
healthy productive soils for food security and national institutes; soil science
sustained ecosystem services. networks; NGOs; universities
research;farmers associations)

26. GSP Vision and Mission
• The Vision of the GSP is the improvement of the global governance of the
limited soil resources of the planet in order to guarantee healthy and productive
soils for a food secure world, as well as sustain other ecosystem services on
which our livelihoods and societies depend including water regulation and
supply, climate regulation, biodiversity conservation and other cultural services.
• The Mission of the GSP is to develop capacities,
build on best available science, and facilitate the
exchange of knowledge and technologies between
stakeholders, for sustainable management of soil
resources at all levels with a view to enhancing
food security, protecting ecosystem services, and
contributing to poverty alleviation in an era of
increasing human demands and climate change.

27. GSP Proposed Pillars of Action
1. Promote sustainable management of soil resources and improved global
governance for soil protection and sustainable productivity;
2. Encourage investment, technical cooperation, policy, education awareness
and extension in soils;
3. Promote targeted soil research and development focusing on identified gaps,
priorities and synergies among economic/productive, environmental and social
dimensions;
4. Enhance the quality and availability of soil
data and information: collection, analysis,
validation, reporting, monitoring, integration with
other disciplines;
5. Harmonize and establish voluntary
guidelines of methods, measurements and
indicators for soil protection and sustainable
management.

28. Proposed structure of the GSP

29. Progress in GSP establishment
• During the last COAG 23 Session,
the Committee (193 member
countries) endorsed the initiative
of the establishment of the Global
Soil Partnership, and welcomed
the update provided by the
Secretariat.
• The Terms of Reference are under
final review and adjustment by
countries.

30. Progress in GSP establishment
3. Networking and Actions to address soils issues in the field
FAO is funding LOAs with a leading institution in the regions to set up institutional
networks as basis of the Regional Soil Partnerships and start a process of
developing soil information systems in which capacity development is priority:
•Asia: coordinated by Soil Science institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences; 1st meeting -16
countries & many institutions  Nanjing Communiqué (11 Feb 2012)
• MENA: coordinated by the Ministry of Agriculture Jordan and ICARDA; 1st meeting early
April; in addition to an Amman communiqué agreed to develop an FAO TCP project
• Latin America: coordinated by EMBRAPA, Brazil, & Argentina; 1st meeting 16-20 April
2012;.
• Africa: to be developed in consultation with TSBF-CIAT, ICRAF , Afnet network and other
partners
The RSPs will prioritise and implement the GSP plans of actions, while
addressing local needs with local experts and fostering south-south
cooperation and collaboration (e.g. Globalsoilmap.net, Global soil forum etc.)

31. ASIAN SOIL PARTNERSHIP
Priorities for Asia (Nanjing, April 2012)
• to share and transfer knowledge & new
technology within and beyond the region
• to provide soil information to all those with
interest in sustainable use of soils and land
resources
• to build consistent and updated Asian soils
information systems and start to contribute
to global soil information through initiatives
such as GSM
• to train new generations of experts in soil
science and land management
Nanjing, China 8-11 February 2012

32. MENA Soil Partnership
Amman, Jordan 1-5 April 2012

33. LAC Soil Partnership
Mar del Plata, Argentina 16-20 April 2012

34. Progress in GSP establishment
4. GSP Workshop "Towards Global Soil Information: activities within the
GEO Task on Global Soil Data” 20-23 March 2012, FAO HQ Rome.
The workshop aim was to review the
state of the art of tools and techniques
for mapping soils at global and regional
scales as an input for defining future
activities for implementation under the
GSP. Soil data/information user demands
were also reviewed.

35. SOILS AND GSP IN Rio+20 AND BEYOND
Soils at Rio+20
- Position soils on the sustainable development goals.
- Soil Side events to raise awareness and promote the importance of soils for
sustainable development.
Beyond Rio+20
• Recognition by UN System of the World Soil Day (5th December) and first
celebration this year organizing a workshop ”Managing Living Soils”.
• Implementation of the first Global Soil Week 2012, November 18-22 2012.
• Recognition of the International Year of Soils 2015.
• Implementation of Plan of actions in the different pillars at field level.

36. JOIN THE GLOBAL SOIL PARTNERSHIP
THANYOU