After two years of intensive work, 2015 has been declared the International Year of Soils by the 68th UN General Assembly (A/RES/68/232). The IYS aims to be a platform for raising awareness of the importance of soils for food security and essential eco-system functions.
The objectives of the IYS are:
- to create full awareness of civil society and decision makers about the fundamental roles of soils for human’s life;
- to achieve full recognition of the prominent contributions of soils to food security, climate change adaptation and mitigation, essential ecosystem services, poverty alleviation and sustainable development;
- to promote effective policies and actions for the sustainable management and protection of soil resources;
- to sensitize decision-makers about the need for robust investment in sustainable soil management activities aiming at healthy soils for different land users and population groups;
- to catalyze initiatives in connection with the SDG process and Post-2015 agenda;
- to advocate rapid enhancement of capacities and systems for soil information collection and monitoring at all levels (global, regional and national).
After the declaration [pdf, 40kB] of 2015 as the International Year of Soils 2015 (IYS) by the UN, the Global Soil Partnership as the Secretariat of IYS is currently working on the visibility of the IYS by developing a logo and a dedicated website.
The Secretariat will establish a Steering Committee that will support the implementation of activities of the IYS. The composition of this Committee and the decisions about the plan of activities of the year will be decided at the upcoming GSP Plenary Assembly (22-24 July 2014). Meanwhile, an ad-hoc Steering Committee will be established to advance in the preparation of this year. The first meeting of this ad-hoc Steering Committee will take place in early March at FAO, HQ, Rome, Italy.
Source: Envirocentrenews.ie – International Year of Soils 2015 – IYS 2015
