World Soil Day (WSD) is held annually on 5 December as a means to focus attention on the importance of healthy soil and to advocate for the sustainable management of soil resources.The Day raises awareness on the role of soil management in ensuring soil biodiversity and improving soil health, reducing erosion and pollution, enhancing water filtration and storage, achieving sustainable and resilient agrifood systems, and contributing to carbon sequestration.
The International Union of Soil Sciences (IUSS), in 2002, adopted a resolution proposing that 5 December be marked as World Soil Day to celebrate the importance of soil as a critical component of the natural system and as a vital contributor to human well-being. The date of 5 December was chosen because it corresponds with the official birthday of the late Bhumibol Adulyadej, King of Thailand, who was one of the main proponents of this initiative.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) Conference, in June 2013, unanimously endorsed World Soil Day and requested official adoption at the 68th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA). In December 2013, the UNGA 68 declared 5 December as the World Soil Day.
The World Soil Day 2025 theme is ”Healthy Soils for Healthy Cities,” which focuses on the vital role of soil in urban environments. This theme highlights how urban soils support cities by filtering water, regulating temperature, storing carbon, and enabling food production, while also addressing challenges like soil sealing and pollution.
Our planet’s survival depends on the precious link with soil. Over 95 percent of our food comes from soils. Besides, they supply 15 of the 18 naturally occurring chemical elements essential to plants.
However, in the face of climate change and human activity, our soils are being degraded. Erosion disrupts the natural balance, reducing water infiltration and availability for all forms of life, and decreasing the level of vitamins and nutrients in food.
Sustainable soil management practices, reduce erosion and pollution, and enhance water infiltration and storage. They also preserve soil biodiversity, improve fertility, and contribute to carbon sequestration, playing a crucial role in the fight against climate change.
But when we think about soil, we almost always associate it with the countryside and nature. We rarely stop to consider that urban soil is also fundamental.
This World Soil Day 2025 focuses on urban landscapes with the theme “Healthy Soils for Healthy Cities.” Beneath asphalt, buildings, and streets lies soil that, if permeable and vegetated, helps absorb rainwater, regulate temperature, store carbon, and improve air quality. But when it’s sealed with cement, it loses these functions, making cities more vulnerable to flooding, overheating, and pollution.
Soil health and soil security are intrinsically interconnected with food and nutrition security. Hence, their improvement is necessary for a normal functioning of terrestrial ecosystems, including but not limited to increasing biodiversity and crop productivity and improving people’s livelihoods. Studies on soil fertility status across various agro-ecological or geographic regions of Nepal provide important information like soil-related constraints to crop production, factors affecting soil fertility decline, improved soil management practices, soil-related policies and strategies, and contribution of soil to food and nutrition security in the country.
Soils show spatial variability across agro-ecological or geographic regions. Soils across hills and mountains are light-textured, shallow, and susceptible to erosion while low-lying areas including Terai have heavy textured soils with greater depth, and prone to flooding. Majority of the soils in the country are acidic, low in organic carbon and total nitrogen, and deficient in zinc, boron, and molybdenum.
Soil fertility is in declining trend mainly due to soil nutrient mining, depletion of soil organic matter, soil erosion in hills and mountains, and inappropriate use of chemical fertilizers in Terai region. Long-term cropping systems experiments conducted across research centres and farmers’ fields have indicated that integrated nutrient management with organic inputs and inorganic fertilizers is necessary for maintaining soil nutrient balance and enhancing productivity, profitability, and sustainability of cropping systems.
Nepal has launched several initiatives aimed at improving soil health through sustainable management practices. The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development (MoALD) introduced Digital Soil Maps and Soil Health Cards in collaboration with the National Soil Science Research Centre, providing tailored fertilizer recommendations based on soil data. The country promotes Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) technologies and Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) practices to enhance soil organic carbon and build climate resilience, with a goal to increase soil organic carbon from 2% to 3.95%. Agroforestry practices are encouraged to improve soil quality and farmer income. Partnerships with international organizations, such as CIMMYT and UNDP, focus on research and training regarding soil health technologies like biochar. Additionally, policies such as the ‘Soil and Watershed Conservation Act’ and the National Land Use Act promote sustainable land management. However, challenges persist, including limited soil testing access, funding constraints for research, and the need for improved institutional coordination.
On the occasion, the Russian House in Kathmandu hosted a joint celebration of World Soil Day 2025 and the 6th anniversary of Land Our Future (LOF), organised by Land Our Future and SEWA Nepal in cooperation with the Nepal Russia Science Society (NRSS) and the Russian House. The event brought together environmental experts, academics, students and civil society representatives to discuss the role of healthy soils in building sustainable and resilient cities.
The programme opened with an interactive exhibition featuring LOF’s projects on soil conservation, sustainable land use, eco-friendly urban planning and youth led green initiatives. Participants were able to explore practical solutions for protecting soil, restoring degraded land and integrating nature based approaches into city development. The formal anniversary session highlighted six years of LOF’s work and its growing contribution to community engagement and environmental awareness in Nepal.
Honourable guests – former Minister for Science and Technology Ganesh Shah, former Minister for Environment Sunil Manandhar and Principal of SCHEMS College Dr. Ajay Mathema – underlined in their remarks that soil health, biodiversity and climate resilience are inseparable, and stressed the importance of youth participation in environmental decision making. An expert session on the theme “Healthy Soils for Healthy Cities” featured presentations by Dr. Him Lal Shrestha (Kathmandu University) and Dr.Navaraj Pandit, who spoke about the links between soil quality, food security, water management and the long term sustainability of urban areas.
Director of the Russian House in Kathmandu Ms. Anastasia Khokhlova noted that the topic of soil and climate is relevant not only for Nepal but for all countries, and thanked LOF, NRSS and Nepali partners for their commitment to joint initiatives. She also invited young Nepalis interested in environmental studies and sustainable development to explore opportunities for higher education in Russia, including government scholarship programmes, and to use the acquired knowledge to contribute to the green transformation of their homeland. Former Minister Ganesh Shah encouraged young members of Land Our Future to remain innovative and creative, emphasising that the doors of the Russian House are open to collaborative projects and new ideas in the field of ecology and climate action.
The event concluded with networking and refreshments, giving participants space to discuss future cooperation and new project ideas. The celebration became a vivid example of how international partnerships, scientific expertise and youth activism can work together to protect soils, support biodiversity and promote a more sustainable future for cities and communities.
Moreover, some government institutions and non-government organisation organised different knowledge sharing on soil health management event on the occasion of World Soil Day 2025. (By Purna N. Ranjitkar)
