The IUSS has successfully concluded the Decade of Soils 2015-2024, culminating in the celebration of its Centennial. This period has led to various initiatives and publications, including those made in collaboration with the FAO and other international organizations and societies. The primary objective of the decade was to increase awareness regarding the significant roles that soils play in addressing contemporary environmental, health, and social challenges faced by humanity. According to the United Nations and the Food and Agriculture Organization, the progress towards achieving most of the Sustainable Development Goals is lagging. One contributing factor is the lack of sufficient focus on sustainable soil management and protecting areas from sealing and other forms of destruction. Regenerative and sustainable soil management is essential for sustainable development. Without addressing the impact of human activities on soil health, achieving most of the targets set by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals is unfeasible. In consideration of the need to prioritize production, dissemination and use of actionable scientific knowledge to achieve the targets of the SDGs, the IUSS has launched the 2025-2034 Decade of Soil Sciences for Sustainable Development (DSSSD). The Research Forum of the IUSS, in collaboration with the Executive Committee and the Council, will play a crucial role in enabling activities during this period. The overall objectives of the decade are: ● Create a strong science-policy-society interface on soil health and protection for sustainability ● Advance practical understanding on soil sciences for sustainable development. ● Support scientific research and innovation in integrating sustainable soil management in all areas of social action. ● Promote initiatives which engage society with soil research, including citizen science, knowledge co-production, science communication, and soil in education. ● Foster meaningful cooperation between soil research and society to enhance trust in science ● Diversify and strengthen social, cultural, and artistic research on soils. ● Strengthen international collaborative and transdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research initiatives.
Among the planned specific activities during the decade there are: Working with UNESCO, FAO, ISC, and other organizations for the implementation of IDSSD initiatives at various levels, including national soil science societies; Collaborating with UNESCO’s initiatives focused on leveraging the organization’s designated sites as monitoring points for soil, water, landscape, and biodiversity impacts associated with climate change and land degradation; Proclamation of the World Soil of the Year (WSY).
A milestone of the DSSSD is the 23rd World Congress of Soil Sciences which will be held in Nanjing, China in June 2026. The general theme of the Congress is “Soil Health for Humanity”. Therefore, improving soil health for humanity is the first focus of the decade’s initiative. (https://www.23wcss.org.cn/)
To keep informed on the DSSSD initiative visit the IUSS website (https://www.iuss.org/) and the linked socials.
In recognition of the success of various national programs, the IUSS WSY program has been implemented to enhance soil literacy across numerous countries and on a global scale. Through the World Soil of the Year (WSY), the IUSS endeavors to celebrate a specific soil, on an annual basis, in recognition of our collective responsibility for sustaining soils and their functionality, as well as to promote public awareness of this crucial and increasingly threatened resource.
The “Gleysol,- Hydromorphic soil supporting forest growth in the steppe region from the Carpathian Basin”, has been officially named the World Soil of the Year 2025. This soil was proposed by the Hungarian Soil Science Society. It highlights the significance of these unique soils that have a large global coverage, occurring in nearly all climates.
The World Soil Day was first proposed by IUSS at our World Congress of Soil Sciences held in Bangkok in 2002. The 5th of December was chosen as World Soil Day because it is the birthday of the King of Thailand who has had a lifetime interest in promoting sustainable soil use. In 2012 IUSS presented the King with the IUSS Humanitarian Soil Scientist Medal in recognition of his excellent work in promoting sustainable soil use in Thailand and South east Asia. IUSS has promoted World Soil Day in conjunction with the Global Soil Partnership of FAO and UNESCO has officially endorsed it (https://www.un.org/en/observances/world-soil-day).
New series for the United Nations International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development (IDSSD)
