The Global Soil Partnership (GSP) was launched in 2011 by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to develop awareness and promote sustainable soil management globally. It operates through 5 pillars of action focused on soil protection, investment, research, data collection, and standards harmonization. The GSP works with regional soil partnerships in 7 regions including North America. It brings together the Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils and Plenary Assembly to coordinate efforts and advance priorities like the World Soil Resources Report. The GSP aims to strengthen soil science dialogue and management to address issues like food security and climate change.

1. Global Soil Partnership
(GSP)
Jon Hempel & Thomas Reinsch
Soil Science Division
SWCS, July 2015

2. Background of GSP
• Sponsored by the Food and Agriculture
Organization (FAO)
• Initial support from European Union
(EU)
• Concept launched in September, 2011,
FAO Headquarters, Rome, Italy

3. GSP - Mission
– The GSP will develop awareness and
contribute to the development of
capacities, build on best available science,
and facilitate/contribute to the exchange of
knowledge and technologies among
stakeholders for the sustainable
management and use of soil resources.

4. GSP - Guiding principles
– Maintaining healthy soils required for feeding the
growing population of the world and meeting their
needs for biomass (energy), fiber, fodder, and other
products can only be ensured through a strong
partnership.
– Create a unified and recognized voice for soils and to
avoid fragmentation of efforts and wastage of
resources.
– Provide international governance body that advocates
for and coordinates initiatives to ensure that knowledge
and recognition of soils are appropriately represented
global dialogues and decision making processes

5. GSP 5 Pillars of Action
1- Promote sustainable management of soil resources
for soil protection, conservation and sustainable
productivity
2- Encourage investment, technical cooperation, policy,
education awareness and extension in soil
3- Promote targeted soil research and development
focusing on identified gaps and priorities and synergies
with related productive, environmental and social
development actions

6. GSP 5 Pillars of Action
4- Enhance the quantity and quality of soil data and
information: data collection (generation), analysis,
validation, reporting, monitoring and integration with
other disciplines
5- Harmonization of methods, measurements and
indicators for the sustainable management and
protection of soil resources

7. GSP - Working Structure

8. GSP - US Partners
• Catholic Relief Services
• Composting Council Research and
Education Foundation
• Cornell University
• Colorado State University
• International Plant Nutrition Institute (IPNI)
• Soil Science Society of America (SSSA)
• University of Florida
• Virtual Fertilizer Research Center (VFRC)
• World Soil Solutions
FOA member countries

9. Intergovernmental Technical
Panel on Soils (ITPS)
• Advise the GSP and FAO itself as well provide an
authoritative technical voice on global soil issues
• 27 reps from around the world
• NA Region Reps.
– Dan Pennock, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon,
Saskatchewan
– Gary Pierzynski, Kansas State University (replaced
Jon Hempel, USDA-NRCS-SSD National Soil Survey
Center)

10. ITPS Functions
• Provide scientific and technical advice on global soil
issues primarily to the GSP and in relation to specific
requests submitted by global or regional institutions.
• Advocate for the inclusion of sustainable soil
management into different development agendas.
• Review and follow up on the situation and issues
related to soils in the contexts of food security, use
and management of natural resources, ecosystem
services provision, climate change adaptation and
mitigation, and other relevant areas.

11. ITPS Functions
• Review and endorse from a technical viewpoint the
GSP Plans of Action.
• Follow up on the implementation of these Plans of
Action with due attention to their impact and
contributions to different global policies and initiatives
related to sustainable development, MDGs, food
security, climate change adaptation and other subject
matters.
• in exceptional cases, when complex technical
matters arise, request the Plenary Assembly and the
Secretariat to form technical committees aiming to
gather specific advice

12. ITPS Products
• Coordinate and approve Work Plans for
Pillars 1-5
• Coordinate World Soil Resources Report
• Develop World Soil Charter
• Develop a Sustainable Development Goal
for Soils
– all documents are available on the GSP
website to those that are interested

13. Global Soil Partnership
Secretariat
• The Global Soil Partnership Secretariat
will be the coordination and facilitation
body in charge of facilitating the
implementation of the GSP actions
through its regional partnerships and
networks. The GSP will be hosted by
FAO in view of its global mandate.
(led by Ronald Vargas, FAO)

14. Regional Soil Partnerships - 7

15. North America Regional Soil Partnership
Document – December 2014

16. North America Regional Soil
Partnership
• Composed of Canada and the US
• Led by the SSSA, SWCS and CSSS,
support from a cast of others (i.e. NRCS
and AAFC)
• Charles Rice, Gerald Miller, and Dan
Pennock, are the respective liaisons.
• Membership in the Intergovernmental
Technical Panel on Soils

17. Plenary Assembly
• The GSP Plenary Assembly is the main
yearly meeting of ITPS members, GSP
Executive Secretariat, representatives of the
different partners and members to FAO. This
assembly is in charge of reviewing and
prioritizing GSP actions, and facilitating a
balanced regional decision making process.

18. Opportunities
• Participate in global soil monitoring/reporting
working group to provide input to FAO’s
SoilSTAT.
• Participate in the International Network of Soil
Information Institutions (INSII).
• Contribute US soil data and information to
global data sets and products.

19. Benefits
• GSP vision and aims are aligned with USDA strategic plan
• Build capacity to understand approaches to provide
knowledge to support recipient led solutions.
• Promote global soil dialogue that has potential to
strengthen soil science.
• Improve global soil data and application to address societal
challenges such as climate change, food security, and
sustainable agriculture.
• Increase probability of meeting UN Millennium
Development Goals and Sustainable Development Goals

20. GSP Additional Information
• http://www.fao.org/globalsoilpartnership