Agricultural News
Soil Health Institute Announces Agenda for "Scaling Up Soil Health" Virtual Annual Meeting
Thu, 28 Jul 2022 10:33:25 CDT
The Soil Health Institute (SHI) has released the agenda for its upcoming annual meeting to be held virtually on Aug. 11-12. Attendees at this year’s annual meeting of the Soil Health Institute can expect a content-rich program ranging from scientific results to their translation and implementation, all designed to increase on-farm and environmental benefits by “Scaling Up Soil Health.”
The keynote presentation for this year’s meeting will be provided by Jane Ewing, Senior Vice-President for Sustainability, Walmart. This presentation will be followed by a session entitled “Engaging Commodities for Scaling Adoption of Regenerative Soil Health Systems in Cotton.” In this session, which features three panel discussions, participants will learn about the tactics different organizations and individuals are using to bring on-farm and environmental benefits of soil health to scale.
In the first panel, farmers will discuss the challenges they encountered and overcame when adopting regenerative soil health systems in different soils and climates. In the second panel, leaders from Ralph Lauren, Walmart Foundation, VF Corporation, and Levi Strauss & Co. will discuss how they are supporting farmers in adopting soil health practices to achieve societal, environmental, and other goals. Insights into supply chain standards to further connect the market for fiber grown using soil health systems will be provided by a third panel of leaders from the Textile Exchange; Cotton, Inc.; U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol; and 2050.cloud.
Highlighting the afternoon of Aug. 11 is “Climate Change Mitigation through Soil Health,” a session that discusses current programs ranging from local to global initiatives. This session will include a presentation by SHI on comparing strategies for assessing soil carbon stocks. Lessons learned from implementing such strategies at a regional scale will be described by Truterra, while programs to address climate change through soil health at the national scale will be presented by leaders from USDA-NRCS and Dairy Management, Inc. The session will close with a presentation on the “4 per 1000 Initiative,” which uses soil health to address food security and climate goals at a global scale.
Recommended Measurements of Soil Health for North America
On Day Two of the meeting (Aug. 12), scientists from SHI will present results of a 3-year, $6.5-million project to assess and identify the most effective measurements of soil health. Management impacts on the carbon cycle, nitrogen cycle, water cycle, and soil microbiome will be presented, culminating in an announcement of the Institute’s recommended measurements for assessing soil health across North America and beyond.
That afternoon, a panel on “Creating Impactful Learning Opportunities in Soil Health Education Programs” will be led by one of SHI’s soil health educators. Panelists ranging from a farmer to a university educator to a Regional Director of USDA’s Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education program will share their experiences and creative techniques for increasing effectiveness of soil health education programs.
Registration is free but required to participate. Continuing Education Credits will be offered. Register here.
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