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15:00 - 15:05 | OPENING REMARKS - Ms. Maria Helena Semedo, FAO Deputy Director-General, Climate and Natural Resources, FAO
15:05 - 15:10 | OPENING ADDRESSES
- His Excellency Mohammad Hossein Emadi, Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran to FAO
- Mr David Cooper, Deputy Executive Secretary, Convention on Biological Diversity
15:10 - 15:20 | KEYNOTE PRESENTATION - Is soil biodiversity a nature-based solution? Mr Wim van der Putten, Netherlands Institute of Ecology, The Netherlands
15:20 - 15:30 | KEYNOTE PRESENTATION - Why should we care about soil biodiversity? Links to human-health and food security, Ms Daphne Miller, Department of Family Medicine, University of California, USA
15:30 - 15:40 | Global Soil Biodiversity: Status, gaps and way forward Ms Monica Kobayashi, FAO
15:40 - 15:55 | OPEN SESSION - Discussion
15:55 - 16:00 | CONCLUSION - Mr Eduardo Mansur, Director, Land and Water Division, FAO
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Keynote Speakers
Daphne Miller, Department of Family Medicine, University of California, USA
"Whether we are talking about microbes, plants, insects, animals, or humans, there is an abundance of evidence that diversity promotes health and resilience"
Wim H. van der Putten | Netherlands Institute of Ecology, Wageningen, the Netherlands
"Soil biodiversity lessons from nature help to suppress soil-borne diseases incidence in crop production systems and develop long-term strategies towards ecologically sustainable food production"
 Monica Kobayashi | FAO, Global Soil Partnership
"Soil biodiversity plays a pivotal role in the functioning of the Earth’s ecosystems. Healthy soils, plants, animals and humans depend directly on those several functions and services provided by soil organisms that we have taken for granted."
Background
Today - 22nd May - we celebrate the “International Day for Biological Diversity” and soil biodiversity plays a pivotal role in the functioning of the Earth’s ecosystems. Soils are widely recognized as a major reservoir of global biodiversity and up to 90% of living organisms in terrestrial ecosystems are associated during their life cycle with belowground habitats. Besides improving soil conditions to grow healthy and nutritious food, soil biodiversity helps to control outbreak of plant, animal and human diseases and contributes to the stabilization of greenhouse gases, air and water purification, as well as mitigation of floods, drought and soil erosion. Soil biodiversity constitutes an important source of genetic resources for biotechnological and medical innovation. Yet, the Status of the World’s Soil Resources concluded that the loss of soil biodiversity is considered one of the major soil threats in many regions of the world. Despite the enormous scientific progress made to date, the protection and monitoring of soil resources at national and global levels face complex challenges, restricting the design and implementation of on-the-ground policies and actions.
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