The 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, which concluded on December 19, agreed on the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which includes targets to protect 30 per cent of the planet’s lands, coastal areas and inland waters by the end of the decade. 

Recently, the importance of biodiversity in food and nutrition security has been recognized, but while much attention has been paid to the diversity of plant and animal species on the ground, soil biodiversity has tended to be neglected. In reality, soil biodiversity plays an essential role in the purification of soil and water needed for food production processes. Proper soil management is an essential component of sustainable agriculture and is essential for climate control and ecosystem service functions and biodiversity conservation.

The related COP15 document, Biodiversity and agriculture, focused on soil biodiversity as a determinant of the healthy functioning of terrestrial ecosystems and emphasized its importance in the functioning of sustainable agri-food systems in food and nutrition security, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and the achievement of sustainable goals.　

The document was based on  the Status of the World’s Soil Resources report and on the findings of the report on the State of Knowledge on Soil Biodiversity - Status, Challenges and Potentialities, prepared by FAO and other existing initiatives for soil biodiversity conservation.

Reference
FAO, ITPS, GSBI, SCBD, and EC. 2020. State of knowledge of soil biodiversity - Status, challenges and potentialities, Report 2020. Rome, FAO.

Contributor: IIYAMA Miyuki (Information Program)