14-18 October 2024: The World Food Forum (WFF) was held at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) headquarters in Rome, Italy. It served as a powerful platform, bringing together a diverse group of stakeholders to leverage the power of intergenerational collaborations, partnerships, and action across policy, science, innovation, culture, and investment. 

CA4SH members joined a series of youth-led dialogues, workshops, and networking events to highlight the transformative potential of soil health as the foundation of sustainable, resilient food systems. With over 200 members - including farmer organizations, youth, policymakers, scientists, and NGOs - the Coalition is committed to translating science into action, fostering multi-stakeholder collaboration, and amplifying the vital role of youth in global soil health initiatives. 

The Stars in Our Soil is a 6-part series highlighting the scientific and social elements of the soil that are synonymous to the stars; each of them unique but when they are together, they light up the universe. 

In this article, Sussana Terieza Phiri (#Youth4Soil, YPARD Zambia, CA4SH Intern) explores the physical properties of soil, and some of the implications for agricultural growers.

23 October 2024: The Coalition of Action 4 Soil Health (CA4SH) co-hosted a virtual side event with CIFOR-ICRAF and the International Fertilizer Development Centre (IFDC) at the Norman A. Borlaug Dialogue of the World Food Prize (WFP). The event highlighted the critical importance of leveraging robust soil health monitoring methodologies to answer key knowledge gaps on the impact of land management and landscape restoration practices on soil health and to translate this information into policy.

From 19-26th September 2024, the inaugural cohort of the Youth Academy on Climate Adaptation & Leadership met in Nairobi, Kenya to strengthen their skills around youth leadership and climate adaptation.

The Academy was officially launched via a partnership between the Global Centre on Adaptation, the University of Nairobi, and the University of Groningen. The University of Nairobi hosted the 62 students, government officials, youth organizations, and other youth stakeholders who were selected to join the Academy. Among them was #Youth4Soil member Eliseus Bamporineza who shared some reflections in a Q&A with CA4SH.

The IFRC Limitless Innovation Challenge is a chance for youth around the World to showcase their innovations for climate and the environment. Daniel Chavo Kisekka of the #Youth4Soil Initiative has submitted his climate solution Nurtavest to support smallholder farmers in Uganda, and the World over.

We are calling on the CA4SH network to help support him by engaging with his pitch video, which could place him in the top 100 innovations!

Upendra Bhusal is a student of Agriculture at the Agriculture and Forestry University, Nepal. He is a member of the CA4SH #Youth4Soil initiative, IAAS, YPARD, FAYI, Leo Club, and more.

Learn about his unique approach to scaling soil health in his community, and his plans to scale this approach in 2024/2025.

Eliseus Bamporineza is an East African Community Youth fellow, writer, poet, and staunch advocate for youth empowerment. He is a dedicated and visionary leader committed to driving positive change in the fields of education, climate resilience, agribusiness and diplomacy across Africa. Through different initiatives, such as Feed2Care where he advocates for quality food for all, and #Youth4Soil where he gives voice to life under our feet, he is committed to raising concerns about soil health threats and the need for its protection.