#COPSOIL
A hub for soil health at the Rio Conventions
Soil health is a unifier.
Healthy soil is central to achieving the objectives of all three Rio Conventions simultaneously: climate resilience and carbon sequestration, land restoration and combating desertification and drought, habitat connectivity and supporting biodiversity.
The COPSoil Initiative brings soil evidence to bear on policy and investment decisions at the Rio Conventions. It connects the knowledge, events, resources, and advocacy across the Coalition toward a shared goal: soil health at the center of every COP agenda.
-
United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
Healthy soil is essential for the restoration of degraded lands, and it is directly linked to the prevention of land degradation and desertification. Practices that improve soil health help prevent soil erosion, nutrient depletion, and loss of organic matter, making land more productive and less susceptible to desertification.
-
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
Healthy soil is a significant carbon sink, capturing and storing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Soil organic matter enhances soil structure, fertility, and water retention, and healthy soil enhances the resilience of ecosystems to climate change by improving water infiltration and storage, reducing erosion, and supporting diverse plant communities.
-
United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD)
Soil is teeming with life, hosting a vast array of organisms from microbes to earthworms to plant roots. Healthy soil supports diverse plant communities, which in turn provide habitat and food for a wide range of animal species, and contributes to the connectivity of habitats, facilitating the movement and interaction of species across landscapes.
-
Events
View the event calendar for all sessions related to soil and land health
-
Resources
Access resources related to soil and land health
-
News
Read the curated collection of blogs, articles, updates and more
Soil Achievements Timeline
CA4SH was launched at the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit, and we have since had an extensive presence at the three Rio Conventions, advocating and communicating the essential role of soil health in reaching global goals.
-
![]()
UNCCD COP15 (2022)
CA4SH hosts a side event on multi-stakeholder action for scaling soil health globally through evidence-based public and private investment, our first major presence at a UNCCD COP. 38 decisions are adopted, including commitment to accelerate the restoration of one billion hectares of degraded land by 2030.
-
![]()
UNFCCC COP27 (2022)
Soil is officially recognized in the Koronivia/Sharm el-Sheikh Joint Work on Agriculture. CA4SH co-hosts the first ever Food Systems Pavilion (FSP), leading a day at the FSP under the theme of BOOSTing soil health, and holding a High-Level Plenary for the Soil Health Resolution to mobilize action.
-
![]()
UNFCCC COP28 (2023)
Soil health is formally recognized in the UNFCCC COP28 UAE Declaration on Food and Agriculture, endorsed by the leaders of 160 countries. The Food Systems Call to Action identifies soil health as a key priority. CA4SH hosts World Soil Day at the Food Systems Pavilion and the Soil Health Leadership Dinner.
-
![]()
CBD SBSTTA26 (2024)
CA4SH and partners co-host a roundtable luncheon discussing the critical role of multi-stakeholder partnerships in creating an enabling environment for farmers to scale healthy soil practices, with a focus on Target 18 of the Global Biodiversity Framework, which calls for the repurposing and reforming of subsidies and incentives.
-
![]()
UNFCCC COP29 (2024)
CA4SH convenes members, partners, and stakeholders across sessions on financing soil health, agroecology and healthy diets, cross-sectoral approaches to soil health, and green fertilizers, keeping soil health on the climate agenda ahead of UNCCD COP16 in Riyadh one week later.
-
![]()
UNCCD COP16 (2024)
Decision 19/COP.16 on Agricultural lands and Decision 29/COP.16 on Rangelands and pastoralists are adopted, placing soils at the center of global action. The Riyadh Action Agenda is launched as a global platform to advance voluntary action to restore 1.5 billion hectares of degraded land by 2030. CA4SH hosts a record 47 events alongside 70+ partners.
-
![]()
UNFCCC COP30 (2025)
CA4SH and partners co-host 20+ sessions across the two weeks and launch the COP30 Action Agenda Plan to Accelerate Regenerative Agriculture for Healthy Soil and Healthy Diets to unlock and redirect sources of finance for farmer-centered regenerative practices.
Scaling soil health must not happen in a vacuum. We need multi-stakeholder, multilateral approaches that address the Rio Conventions in tandem.
Join the Coalition of Action 4 Soil Health (CA4SH), a global multi-stakeholder partnership of 350+ stakeholders working together to improve soil health through collective, coordinated action.
Are you engaging on soil health at the Rio Conventions?
Share your events, resources, initiatives and we will feature them on the COPSoil Initiative page.
Reach out to collaborate!
