SOB4ES at the EU Mission Soil Week 2024 in Brussels, Belgium

From November 12–13, 2024, SOB4ES partners attended the EU Mission Soil Week in Brussels, Belgium!

The first day was opened by Diego Canga Fano (European Commission, Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development), who referred to the dramatic floods in Spain and reminded us that soils are crucial for mitigating natural disasters and acting as a buffer against extreme weather events. He also highlighted the importance of motivating younger generations of farmers.

Some of the key takeaways from the plenary sessions include:

• Science and policy alone cannot solve soil problems; citizens, land managers, and policymakers must work together on collective agreements and renew our motivation.
• In recent years, there has been a high-level policy shift, with healthy soils becoming a key topic.
• In the future, we will use more AI and big data techniques, notably to properly utilise all the data generated from the soil monitoring law.
• It is important for farmers to understand the impact of their practices on soil life.
• Soil health should not be treated as a niche topic, either in research or policy.

On the second day, social aspects were explored, such as “soils and architecture” and “soils and humans.” The importance of soil carers and the threat of soil degradation to the social and cultural fabric of humanity were outlined. Afterwards, some time was allocated for visiting stands of various projects, as well as different field trips.

It was once again an exciting event full of interesting talks and discussions.

More information on the full programme and speakers can be found here.