The Latin American Soil Science Society and the International Year of Soils 2015

Who

Mónica Barbazán (Ph.D., Ing. Agr.)
Departamento de Suelos y Aguas
Facultad de Agronomía
Universidad de la República
Montevideo – Uruguay

What

The 19 societies that conform the Latin American Soil Science Society (SLCS) have launched several activities during the International Year of Soils 2015.
In Argentina was organized a Contest of Mural for agricultural school students “Paint the soil” (Pintemos el Suelo) , organized by the Argentinian Soil Science Association and FEDIAP. Moreover, from the 11 to 13 November 2015 was held the Second National Teaching Meeting of Soil Science, and on 27- November 2015 will be the Seminar of Soil Physic
(Read more).

In Brazil, from 25 to 27 April 2015 was presented the Soil Governance Conference (Brasilia, DF, Brazil) promoted by the Brazilian Federal Court of Accounts, with the support of the Brazilian Soil Embrapa Soils Science and Society (Read more), where there are the activities programmed for the whole year.

The Soil Science Society of Cuba organized a Phonebook 2015 International Year commemorative of the Soil, and in June took place the meeting of the Central America-Mexico-Caribbean Regional Alliance, Havana,Cuba.

Ecuador celebrated the IYS with the Symposium “The Soil and the Nutrition of Crops in Ecuador” (El Suelo y la Nutrición de Cultivos del Ecuador”), by the Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones, on May 20-21. On June 28 was held the Symposium on Soil Biology, coordined by the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador.
On July (22-24) was held the VII Latin Congres of Agronomy, organized by the Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo del Ecuador.
Also in Noviembre (27) 2015 will be held the Jornadas del Año Internacional de los Suelos, organized by the Sociedad Ecuatoriana de la Ciencia del Suelo, INIAP, the Agencia de Aseguramiento de la Calidad del Agro and the International Plant Nutrition Institute.
Also it was presented the book “Los Suelos del Ecuador”, edited by J. Espinosa, J Moreno and G Bernal.
The Soil Science of Honduras celebrated the IYS with the Week of the Soil (Contact), with distinguished experts, where attended about 480 participants.

The Soil Science Society of Mexico organized several activities, such as
1) Contest of posters to the 2015 International Year of Soils (Read more)
2) Edition Calendar 2015 International Year of Soils;
3) Symposium “World Soil Day”, organized by the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), Colegio Postgraduate and National Institute of Ecology and Climate Change. December 5 of 2014
4) Delivery of Calendar “2015 International Year of Soils” and “Atlas of the Soils of Latin America and the Caribbean” in Cuautitlan FES-UNAM, February 18, 2015
5) Symposium “The Geography of the International Year of Land”. March 23, 2015, organized by the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, UNAM
6) Soil, water, life. Supplement of the month “La Jornada Field No. 91 “20 pages devoted to the 2015 International Year of Soils. April 18, 2015. (Read more)
7) National Meeting of Teachers and Researchers of soil science. 18 to 19 of June
8) National Alliance for the Soil. August 17, 2015. Palace Mining UNAM;
9) Symposium “Inorganic Chemistry in the International Year of Soils”. 14 to 16 October 2015. UNAM FES-Cuautitlán;
10) University International Meeting of Soil Science. 4 to 10 October 2015. UNAM Campus Juriquilla;
11) Metropolitan Soil Science Symposium. October 19, 2015 FES-Zaragoza, UNAM.

In Puerto Rico there was a poster competition “Suelos sanos para una vida sana” (Read more).

In El Salvador, on April 30 was held a Forum on Soils and Landscapes in El Salvador, in the Hotel Terrace.

In Uruguay, scientists, policy influencers, investors, students and citizens met at Paysandú, Uruguay, on 28 and 29 October. “Seeking the path for sustainable intensification of agriculture” was the topic of this 4th biennial scientific and professional symposium organized by the Facultad de Agronomia of the University of Uruguay and the International Plant Nutrition Institute (IPNI). This year the Symposium was also jointly organized by the Soil Science Society of Uruguay (SUCS), the Minister of Livestock, Agriculture, and Fisheries of Uruguay (MGAP) & FAO, and the National Institute of Investigation in Agronomy (INIA) (Read more).
Also a Memorial Video of the International Year of Soils was presented in this symposium (Read more).

A philatelic stamp allusive to the International Year of Soils will be presented on December 3th.

We also would like to mention that the Soil Conservation Program, – a joint program of the University of the Republic, the National Institute of Agricultural Research, and the Ministry of Livestock, agriculture and Fisheries was distinguished with an award of the Foundation “Lolita Rubial” Morosoli. This Foundation expressed that the program has earned this distinction: “By studying the erosion problems in the country and to find ways to improve the use of agricultural soils, avoiding the most diverse difficulties, integrating academic information into practice”.

In Venezuela the SVCS celebrated of the First World Soil Day, in December of 2014, with school children between 5 and 12 years more than 5 schools. The meeting was held at the Museum of the National Land Agricultural Research Institute (INIA).
Moreover, the XXI Congress of Soil Science, organized by the Universidad Nacional Experimental del Táchira, San Cristóbal Edo. Táchira, and the SVCS will be held on 24-27 November.

A very remarkable action was performed by the Soil Science Society of Spain (SECS), demonstrating the hard degree of compromise of its members with the mission of the IYS (Read more).

The SECS and the Universitat of Lleida organized multiple activities through the country, where the participants were the protagonists:

a Poster contest allusive to 2015 IYS,
an international photography and video contest,
a Comics contests,
a Prize for the best article in 2015 in the media,
moreover of an itinerant exhibition of soils “Soils and Forest Biodiversity”, and
a documentary “The skin of the world”.
Further activities of the SECS were the emission of a coupon of the National Organization of Spain Blind (ONCE), with the logo of the IYS included in the coupon.

Please see download of report for a lot of great pictures, some of them you find below in the photo gallery