The Stars in Our Soil: Soil Heroes

A hero is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as a real person or fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. The hero archetype of classical epics did such things for the sake of glory and honour.

This article refers to soil heroes as people, places or things that stand for soil health even when climate change and other threats are rampant; all living and nonliving components that support the soil ecosystem, thus bringing it glory and honour in the form of soil health. 

No, they don't wear capes, but people, practices and soil biology stand together as heroes of soil health.

PRACTICES

To ensure healthy soil, practices like cover cropping, crop rotation, reduced tillage, and adding organic matter, improve soil structure, nutrient availability, and water retention, leading to a more resilient and productive ecosystem. Such heroic outcomes! 

The Coalition of Action for Soil Health CA4SH gathers original content and lessons learned from across the Coalition in the resource centre, elevating the reach of heroic practices, and the soil solutions page and the flagship initiatives page connect readers with innovative initiatives and practices that support soil health. 

In 2024, CA4SH co-produced a knowledge brief with five youth-led soil health initiatives to showcase some examples of soil health heroism. The initiatives are scaling soil health through awareness raising, policy advocacy, engagement, education, and science & research. In March 2025, the #Youth4Soil initiative also hosted a soil health solutions webinar to showcase even more innovative solutions from across the Coalition.

Members and partners are doing a tremendous job promoting these heroic practices in their communities. They are heroes because in the face of soil degradation due to climate change and mismanagement, they rejuvenate the soil, bringing hope to all who depend on it. That's what heroes do, they bring hope! 

SOIL BIOLOGY

Diverse organisms that live in soil, including bacteria, fungi,  roots, and various animals and their interactions with each other and the soil environment, which are crucial for soil health and ecosystem functioning, make up soil biology. It includes all organisms that spend a significant portion of their life cycle within a soil profile or at the soil-litter interface.

One gram of fertile soil can contain up to one billion microorganisms. Soil biology plays a critical role in the carbon cycle by decomposing organic matter and releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Soil is the 3rd largest carbon sink. By storing carbon, soil helps to reduce the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere, which is a key factor in mitigating climate change. Talk about heroic! 

In the soil ecosystem, macro-organisms (like earthworms and insects) and micro-organisms (like bacteria and fungi) play crucial roles in nutrient cycling, decomposition, and soil structure, impacting plant growth and overall ecosystem health. Next time you meet some earthworms or other small organisms as you interact with soil, remember to give a standing ovation for these unsung heroes. 

PEOPLE

While it may be tempting to cap the likes of Dr. Rattan Lal and Dr. Leigh Winowiecki as the standard of soil heroes, this article is about aligning them with unsung soil heroes on a pedestal, and acknowledging that without multi-stakeholders promoting soil health, practices preserving it and biology sustaining it, soil functions for agricultural, rangeland, wetland and forest systems will be compromised for many years to come.

From scientists to farmers, policymakers, CA4SH members, creatives, individuals, and organizations, these people have committed themselves to improving soil health globally by addressing critical implementation, monitoring, policy, and public and private investment barriers that constrain farmers from adopting and scaling healthy soil practices, preserving healthy soil for future generations.

Meet the CA4SH members, all of whom are soil heroes, learn what they do, support their work, and start your journey to become a member of CA4SH by filling in this form and signing the support letter. To all CA4SH members, receive your badge of honour!

Soil health Frontline heroes, behind-the-scenes heroes and undercover heroes, living and non-living, are all stars of our soil. May we know them, may we recognize them, may we be them! 

Join the Coalition of Action for Soil Health (CA4SH) to display your cap and heroic badge for your achievements with soil.

About the Author

Sussana Phiri is an alumnus of the Global Change Makers School, where she pursued Project Management for Change Makers (2020). She is also an alumnus of the Global Leadership Fellows Programme (GLFP ‘19), which focuses on imparting Strategic Management and Science Communication skills. Her most recent achievement is becoming the Young Professionals in Agriculture Development (YPARD) Zambia country representative.

Sussana carries a wealth of experience in fostering meaningful youth engagements in youth-led projects and women-focused interventions as a developer and project lead of the Future Fields and Orange Fleshed Sweet Potato Projects respectively. She is a certified aquaculture and fish farming professional and holds a certificate in agriculture mechanics and machinery. She possesses a Bachelor’s Degree in Education and is currently studying for a Master of Education in Curriculum Studies from the University of Zambia. Most recently, she acquired a Diploma in Agroecology from the Kasisi Agricultural Training Centre.

Sussana has developed and implemented assignments with partners such as the Zambia Youth Environmental Network, Women Who Farm Africa, Zambia Agriculture Research Institute, Access Agriculture, CAADP Youth Network, Grand Challenges Canada, Chedic Associates, Ministry of Health- Mother and Child Health Department and the Chilanga District Agriculture Department.

Sussana is currently working with CA4SH as a Communications and Coordination intern through CIFOR-ICRAF, and is a member of the #Youth4Soil Initiative. The Stars in Our Soil is a 6-part series highlighting the scientific and social elements of the soil that are synonymous with the stars; each of them unique but when they are together, they light up the universe.