The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) have developed a series of educational materials to teach children the importance of healthy soils for food, the environment, livelihoods and general well-being.
The series, which is called ‘DIG IT!
The Secrets of Soil' and was developed as part of the 2015 International Year of Soils (IYS 2015), targets children ages 5 to 14, using word games, puzzles, drawing activities and other interactive exercises.
24 July 2015: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) have developed a series of educational materials to teach children the importance of healthy soils for food, the environment, livelihoods and general well-being. The series, which is called ‘DIG IT! The Secrets of Soil,’ was developed as part of the 2015 International Year of Soils (IYS 2015). It targets children ages 5 to 14, using word games, puzzles, drawing activities and other interactive exercises.
Four educational booklets are separately designed for beginner, intermediate, advanced and young adult students, with an accompanying educator’s guide for teachers. The materials, which were initially produced to complement an exhibit on soils at the US Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, are available in French, Spanish, Italian, Chinese, Arabic and Russian.
FAO is also collaborating with governments that wish to translate the materials into additional languages for use in primary and secondary school curricula. All of the materials will be available online and free for use by member countries, teachers and students in time for the beginning of the fall 2015 school year.
Mario Lubetkin, FAO, said that the collaboration fulfills a primary objective of the IYS, which is to raise awareness regarding the “profound importance” of soil for human life. He added that the materials produced will help FAO educate others about the important role soils play in food security, climate change adaptation and mitigation, ecosystem services, poverty alleviation and sustainable development.
NACD is a Washington DC-based nonprofit organization, representing 3000 US-based conservation districts that carry out natural resource management programs at the local level to protect land and water resources. The districts work with landowners and operators to help them manage and protect land and water resources on all private lands and many public lands in the US. NACD also works with soil scientists to produce educational materials to teach students about the importance of conserving and protecting soils. [FAO News Story] [‘DIG IT! The Secrets of Soils’ Website] [NADC Website]