Soil Security

Soil degradation is a critical and growing global problem. As the world population increases, pressure on soil also increases and the natural and the natural capital of soil faces continuing decline, international policy makers have recognized this and a range of initiatives to address it have emerged over recent years. However, a gap remains between what the science tells us about soil and its role in underpinning ecological and human sustainable development, and existing policy instruments for sustainable development. Functioning soil is necessary for ecosystem service delivery, climate change abatement, food and fiber production and fresh water storage. Yet key policy instruments and initiatives for sustainable development have under-recognised the role of soil in addressing major challenges including food and water security, biodiversity loss, climate change and energy sustainability. Soil science has not been sufficiently translated to policy for sustainable development. Two underlying reasons for this are explored and the new concept of soil security is proposed to bridge the science policy divide. Soil security is explored as a conceptual framework that could be used as the basis for a soil policy framework with soil carbon as an exemplar.

Soil security is an emerging multidisciplinary concept that provides a framework with the potential to support the sustainability of the agri-food sector while simultaneously supporting the other functions that soil provides. This framework considers the biophysical, economic, and social dimensions that impact this multifunctional system. Particular attention is given to describing the impact of the recent development in assessing the soil’s capacity and how it affects its function, assessed through its capability and condition. Progress in placing value on the functions of soil is explored, and the opportunity to increase connectivity between soil and end users is developed through multidisciplinary educational strategies. The perspectives provided here lead to a set of recommendations that will guide the development of future strategies, the pressing need for a set of measurable indicators, and the development of incentive schemes to secure the soil’s ability to support agrifood s...

D. Field. 2020. Sustaining Agri-Food Systems Framed Using Soil Security and Education. Int. J. Agric. Nat. Resour. XX-XX. Soil security is an emerging multidisciplinary concept that provides a framework with the potential to support the sustainability of the agri-food sector while simultaneously supporting the other functions that soil provides. This framework considers the biophysical, economic, and social dimensions that impact this multifunctional system. Particular attention is given to describing the impact of the recent development in assessing the soil's capacity and how it affects its function, assessed through its capability and condition. Progress in placing value on the functions of soil is explored, and the opportunity to increase connectivity between soil and end users is developed through multidisciplinary educational strategies. The perspectives provided here lead to a set of recommendations that will guide the development of future strategies, the pressing need for a set of measurable indicators, and the development of incentive schemes to secure the soil's ability to support agri-food systems and its other ecosystem functions.

The soil science community needs to communicate about soils and the use of soil information to various audiences, especially to the general public and public authorities. In this global review article, we synthesis information pertaining to museums solely dedicated to soils or which contain a permanent exhibition on soils. We identified 38 soil museums specifically dedicated to soils, 34 permanent soil exhibitions, and 32 collections about soils that are accessible by appointment. We evaluate the growth of the number of museums since the early 1900s, their geographical distribution, their contents, and their attendance. The number of museums has been continuously growing since the early 1900s. A noticeable increase was observed from 2015 to 2019. Europe (in a geographical sense), Eastern and South-East Asia have the highest concentration of soil museums and permanent exhibitions related to soils. Most of the museums' attendance ranged from 1000 to 10,000 visitors per year. Russia has the largest number of soil monoliths exhibited across the world's museums, whereas the ISRIC-World Soil Museum has the richest and the most diverse collection of soil monoliths. Museums, collections, and exhibitions of soil play an important role in educating the population about this finite natural resource that maintains life on the planet, and for this reason, they must be increasingly supported, extended, and protected.</p

This chapter provides the reader with a general overview about the nexus between women, indigenous peoples' land tenure rights and land governance issues. In particular, in both African and Latin American countries, ensuring indigenous peoples' collective rights to lands, territories, and natural resources is critical not just for their well-being, but also for resolving some of the world's most serious global challenges and for achieving most of the Sustainable Development Goals. Besides that, this chapter explores the phenomenon of land grabbing, precisely its main structure, features, and wide-ranging implications on a global scale. In point of fact, at global level, the phenomenon of land grabbing makes the indigenous people more vulnerable because it leads to the lack of recognition of the traditional access to their own land and natural resources. Undeniably, a fair and just redistribution of land is crucial for the progressive realization of the right to adequate food and right to life as well as for keeping a higher level of international food security.

There is a nexus of seven inter-linked global existential challenges; Soil Security and Food Security are two of these. The established concept of Food Security is well defined and researched, whereas the emerging concept of Soil Security is building its currency globally. Addressing Soil Security provides the means to improve food, fibre and water quality in a sustainable manner, through enhanced soil care and development of best land-management practices. Soil is a fragile resource which is degraded in many parts of the world. The rapidly growing global population has placed further pressure on the soil resource to accommodate increased demand for food, fibre and soil-derived materials. Such pressures are accelerating degradation and so novel approaches are needed. Literature search within this review demonstrated Soil Security and Food Security to be a convergence of disciplines. To truly identify solutions to challenges faced in either realm, an interdisciplinary approach seeking to understand deeper interactions between the two concepts is needed. Driven by this need, our review sought to investigate such interactions between the challenges faced in Soil Security and Food Security. Following assessment of these interactions, four potential solutions were discussed and included sustainable intensification and management, digital agriculture, circularisation and reducing the food demand trajectory through enhanced soil care. Soil Security and Food Security are interconnected concepts which will help facilitate implementation of the above solutions, and so approaches are needed which take this connection into account.

This unit of study is designed to introduce students to the fundamental concepts within pedology, soil physics and soil chemistry. These concepts are part of the grounding principles that underpin crop and animal production, nutrient and water cycling, and environmental sustainability taught by other units of study in the Faculty. Students will participate in a two-day field excursion in the first week of semester to examine some common soils of the Sydney Basin, they will also learn to describe soil, and measure soil chemical and physical properties in the field. Referring to common soil profiles of the Sydney Basin, students will concentrate on factors affecting soil formation, the rudiments of soil description, and analysis of soil properties that are used in soil classification. Students will also develop knowledge of the physics of water and gas movement, soil strength, soil chemical properties, inorganic and organic components, nutrient cycles and soil acidity in an agricultural context. At the end of this unit students will become familiar with the factors that determine a soil's composition and behaviour, and will have an understanding of the most important soil physical and chemical properties. Students will develop communication skills through essay, report and practical exercises. The final report and laboratory exercise questions are designed to develop team work and collaborative efforts.

We introduce and discuss the multi-faceted concept of Soil Security. Soil security addresses scientific, economic, social, and policy dimensions of soil and its role in sustainable development. The dimensions are called capability, condition, capital, connectivity and codification. This is a wider concept than currently extant notions such as soil quality and health.