March 2013: The European Commission (EC) will provide €1 million to the Global Soil Partnership (GSP) for three activities during 2014-2015. The EC financing will support the: work of the Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils, including its 2014 working session; development of detailed, regional-level Implementation Plans for each GSP Pillar; and capacity building on digital soil mapping in Africa.

The five GSP Pillars focus on soil management, awareness, research, information and data and standards. Specifically, the GSP Pillars address five action areas: promoting sustainable soil resource management for conservation, protection and sustainable productivity; encouraging education awareness, investment, technical cooperation and policy on soil; promoting targeted soil research and development on identified gaps, priorities and synergies; enhancing the quantity and quality of soil data and information, including data collection, analysis, validation and monitoring; and harmonizing methods, measurements and indicators for sustainably managing and protecting soil resources.

The EC’s support is in line with the European Union’s (EU) Soil Thematic Strategy. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) will provide supplementary funding for project activities. [GSP Press Release] [GSP Website]