THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL TECHNICAL PANEL ON SOILS (ITPS)

Main activities and outcomes

Luca Montanarella (ITPS Chair)

Mandate of the ITPS (Rule VI of the GSP Rules of Procedures)

a) 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 (UNCCD, UNFCCC, CBD) b) advocate for the inclusion of sustainable soil management into different development agendas. c) 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. d) review and endorse from a technical viewpoint the GSP Plans of Action. e) 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. f) in exceptional cases, when complex technical matters arise, request the Plenary Assembly and the Secretariat to form technical committees aiming to gather specific advice.

UNCCD CBD

Climate Change

Biodiversity Desertification

IPCC

SPI IPBES

Food Security

Bridging the gap between soil science and policy

THE 27 SCIENTSTS MEMBERS OF THE FIRST ITPS 2013-2015 Proposed by GSP Partners and nominated by Member Countries of FAO

NORTH AMERICA Jon Hempel – United States

John Daniel Pennock – Canada

EUROPE Helaina Black - United Kingdom

Jaroslava Sobocká - Slovak Republic Dominique Arrouays – France

Luca Montanarella – Italy Pavel Krasilnikov - Russia

AFRICA Isaurinda Dos Santos Baptista Costa -Cape

Verde Martin Yemefack – Cameroon

Victor Chude – Nigeria Mohamed Badraoui – Morocco

Tekalign Mamo - Ethiopia

ASIA Gan Lin Zhang – China Milkha Singh Aulakh – India Kazuyuki Yagi – Japan Suk Young Hong – Republic of Korea Pisoot Vijarnsorn – Thailand

LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN Maria de Lourdes Mendonca Santos –Brazil

Miguel Taboada – Argentina Carlos Roberto Henríquez - Costa Rica

David Espinosa Victoria – Mexico Julio Alegre - Peru

NEAR EAST Seyed Kazem Alavi Panah – Iran

Elsiddig Ahmed ElMustafa ElSheikh – Sudan Abdullah AlShankiti – Saudi Arabia

SOUTH WEST PACIFIC Marta Camps Arbestain - New Zealand

Neil McKenzie - Australia

What have we achieved: Finalization and endorsement of the 5 plans of actions for the 5 pillars of the

GSP Revision of the FAO World Soil Charter Support to the development of Regional Soil Partnerships Support to the development of the proposals for Post-2015 Sustainable

Development goals (SDGs) Report on the Status of World’s Soil Resources (SWSR) Concept note for the development of Voluntary Guidelines for Sustainable Soil

Management (SSM) Links and collaborations with other scientific panels, like the Science Policy

Interface (SPI) of UNCCD and the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES)

6 http://www.fao.org/globalsoilpartnership/intergovernmental-technical-panel-on-soils/en/

Plans of action for the 5 GSP Pillars The ITPS finalized the 5 plans of action for the GSP Pillars of activity: 1. Promote sustainable management of soil resources for soil protection, conservation

and sustainable productivity 2. Encourage Investment, Technical Cooperation, Policy, Education, Awareness and

Extension 3. Promote targeted soil research and development focusing on identified gaps,

priorities and synergies with related productive, environmental and social development actions

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 28 August 2015

Revision of the FAO World Soil Charter • The first World Soil Charter (WSC) was conceived and formulated,

negotiated and adopted by the FAO member countries in the 1981 FAO Conference

• The Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils (ITPS) was tasked to produce a new version of this WSC making use of wide consultations within the international soil community in order to assist with the process.

• The ITPS was able to submit a revised text to the GSP Plenary Assembly at its second meeting in July 2014.

• After the further changes introduced by the Assembly, the revised WSC was endorsed by the 24th session of the Committee on Agriculture (COAG) in October 2014 and by the FAO Council in December 2014.

• Coinciding with 2015 the International Year of Soils, member countries during the 39th FAO Conference unanimously endorsed the new World Soil Charter as a vehicle to promote and institutionalize sustainable soil management at all levels.

8 28 August 2015

Development of Regional Soil Partnerships

9 28 August 2015

Post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals

10 28 August 2015

Goal 2: End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture Target 2.4 By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, that strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and that progressively improve land and soil quality. Goal 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages Target 3.9 By 2030, substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil pollution and contamination. Goal 15: Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss Target 15.3 By 2020, combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought and floods, and strive to achieve a land-degradation-neutral world

Report on the Status of World’s Soil Resources (SWSR) First ever comprehensive global assessment of the status of world’s

soil resources A large collective effort of more then 200 soil scientists coordinated by

the ITPS A 600 page report completed in less then 12 month providing a

comprehensive overview of the status of soils in the world Full report consisting of 3 main parts: Global Soil Resources, Global

Soil Change and Impact and responses Complete regional assessments for each of the 7 FAO Regions Summary for policy makers for your consideration and endorsement

11 28 August 2015

Voluntary Guidelines for Sustainable Soil Management (SSM)

Concept note developed following a specific request from COAG

Close links with the Pillar 1 of the GSP

Provides also elements for a potential indicator for the soil related

SDGs (Area of land under Sustainable Soil Management practices)

Could be one of the main areas of work of the next ITPS

12 28 August 2015

Links and collaborations with other scientific panels

Close links developed with the Science – Policy Interface (SPI) of

UNCCD (joint meeting at the 2015 Global Soil Week)

Close links established with the Intergovernmental Platform for

Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES): Appointment of the ITPS Chairperson as co-chair of the thematic assessment

on land degradation and restoration

Still lacking closer collaboration with the Intergovernmental Panel

on Climate Change (IPCC)

Conclusions and final recommendations ITPS mandate is too short (2 years), should be prolonged to 3 years

Continuity between panels need to be assured by a proportion (50%)

of renewed nominations for outgoing panel members

Independence and scientific excellence are of crucial importance

Good regional balance but still lacking adequate gender balance

Location of ITPS plenary meetings should be rotating among the 7

FAO regions

Closer involvement of the ITPS in the implementation process of the 5

GSP plans of action

Closer collaboration with the climate change scientific community

(IPCC) needs to be developed

Thank you!