BLOGS, ARTICLES AND NEWS
Get updates directly from the CA4SH Global team and stakeholders
Soil Health Takes Centre Stage at COP17: A Landmark Food Systems and Soil Health Day
27 August 2026, Ulaanbaatar | At UNCCD COP17 Mongolia, soil health was at the center of the agenda. It was present across negotiations, ministerial dialogues, side events, and the Action Agenda. The numbers give a sense of its scale: the Coalition of Action 4 Soil Health (CA4SH) network held 72 events alongside 90+ partners across the two weeks.
From Soil Data to Action: Turning Evidence into Restoration at COP17
CA4SH joined stakeholders working across the soil data landscape to explore how robust, accessible and harmonised soil health data can turn evidence into action — from informed decisions by farmers and land managers to stronger policy, national reporting and investment. The session highlighted both the challenges of fragmented datasets, limited interoperability and capacity gaps, and the opportunity to build soil information systems that support greater coherence across all three Rio Conventions while helping to de-risk investment in land restoration and soil health.
Linking Land Restoration, Soil Health and Nutrition: Highlights from COP17 Side Event
On Tuesday, 18 August, the Coalition of Action 4 Soil Health (CA4SH) joined Drynet, AIDER, and Fundación CAUCE on a side event dubbed“Healthy Soils 4 Food: Connecting Agricultural Land Restoration, Food Systems and Nutrition.”
The session brought together diverse voices — soil scientists, policy experts, nutrition advocates, and youth leaders — to explore the vital link between land restoration, soil health, nutrition, and healthy diets.
Op-Ed | Soil health, global goals, and coordinating efforts: Reflections on five years of the Coalition of Action 4 Soil Health
Five years ago, the Coalition of Action 4 Soil Health (CA4SH) was launched at the UN Food Systems Summit to advocate for healthy soil as central to food system transformation.
At that time, healthy soil was not formally recognized as a climate solution, despite it being the largest terrestrial carbon sink and having a central role in upholding food and nutrition security, combating land degradation and drought, hosting biodiverse ecosystems, and filtering and storing water, among a myriad of other co-benefits.
But momentum was growing.
Read the full op-ed by CA4SH co-Lead Dr Leigh Winowiecki