The Eurasian Soil Partnership workshop will be held on 16-18 June 2015 in Izmir, Turkey with the participation of national focal points to the Global Soil Partnership (GSP), Eurasian members of the GSP Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils (ITPS), research organizations, CSOs and other regional members.

The Global Soil Partnership is a major international initiative with a vision ‘to improve global governance of the limited soil resources of the planet in order to guarantee healthy and productive soils for a food secure world, as well as sustain other essential ecosystem services’. The Regional Soil Partnerships are to assist the GSP to move into concrete field action at regional, national and local levels through ‘Implementation Plans’.

Objectives of the workshop

• to raise awareness and share information on action taken or planned by member Countries and regional partners in celebrating the International Year of Soil 2015;
• to review the priorities in the region for ensuring the sustainable soil management, protection and restoration - by building on experiences and lessons learned and through an active and dynamic network of champions and stakeholders under the umbrella of the Eurasian Soil Partnership;
• to renew the Eurasian Soil Partnership (EASP) by updating the steering committee members, including lead roles and members of each working group; and
• to review and validate the EASP Implementation Plan and discuss and agree on the way forward.