SSS Soil System Sciences
Division on Soil System Sciences
European Geosciences Union
Division on Soil System Sciences sss.egu.eu
Division on Soil System Sciences
President: Heike Knicker
(Emailsss@egu.eu)
Deputy President: Daniel L. Evans
(Email)
ECS Representative: Beatrice Giannetta
(Emailecs-sss@egu.eu)
Soil is the interface between the crust and atmosphere, and is the basis of life on Earth. The impact of soil science to the society has probably never been as high as it is currently. The importance of soils in the Earth system must make us, the soil scientists, more noticeable at the EGU. The aim of the Division on Soil System Sciences (SSS) is to coordinate the EGU scientific programme on soil science and related activities. The SSS contributes actively with EGU by promoting scientific interchange and dissemination of activity carried out by members.
Soils at Imaggeo: shoot your soil!
Amazing soil pictures? Are you a photo artist? Share your work at Imaggeo, the open-access image repository of European Geosciences Union.
Soil degradation has become a major environmental concern. Today, 62% of European soils are affected by at least one degradation process, largely driven by land sealing and unsustainable farming practices (Mason et al. 2023; EUSO 2024). Conservation Agriculture (CA) is often promoted as a promising alternative, combining sustainable production with improved soil quality (Chabert et Sarthou 2020; Thierfelder et al. 2017). CA is built on three pillars: minimizing mechanical soil disturbance, maximizing soil organic cover, and diversifying crop species. Together, …
Soils play a central role in climate change mitigation and adaptation, with soil carbon management increasingly seen as a key pathway for enhancing ecosystem resilience—particularly in agricultural systems. At the same time, predicting how soil carbon responds to changing climate and management remains one of the major challenges in soil system science. In this interview, we speak with Katerina Georgiou, recipient of the 2025 EGU Outstanding Early Career Scientist Award in Soil System Sciences. Her research focuses on advancing our …
The 2026 Alina Kabata-Pendias Medal is awarded to
Bettina Weber for pioneering, interdisciplinary contributions to understanding cryptogamic communities and biocrusts, and their role in biogeochemical cycles, particularly in nitrogen cycle.
The 2026 Philippe Duchaufour Medal is awarded to
Cornelia Rumpel for pioneering interdisciplinary research on soil organic matter and exceptional leadership advancing soil science through mentorship and global engagement.
The 2026 Division Outstanding Early Career Scientist Award is awarded to
Layla Márquez San Emeterio for significantly advancing our understanding of the origin, turnover, and stabilization of soil organic matter in Mediterranean agroecosystems.
The 2025 Philippe Duchaufour Medal is awarded to
Wulf Amelung for pioneering research in uncovering the mechanisms of soil degradation and efforts to restore soil functions, thereby enabling sustainable agriculture and land use.
The 2025 Division Outstanding Early Career Scientist Award is awarded to
Katerina Georgiou for significant contributions to the understanding of the fundamental mechanisms of carbon cycling at a range of scales; from soil particle to field-scale, to global predictions.
Outstanding Student and PhD candidate Presentation (OSPP) Award
The 2025 Outstanding Student and PhD candidate Presentation (OSPP) Award is awarded to
Daniel Asiamah Aboagye Effect of Residue Application Methods and Long-Term No-Tillage Management on Residue Decomposition and Priming Effect in Japanese Andosol: Evidence from a Field Incubation Experiment
Outstanding Student and PhD candidate Presentation (OSPP) Award
The 2025 Outstanding Student and PhD candidate Presentation (OSPP) Award is awarded to
Kavindra Senaratna Characterizing Soil Respiration rates across different Land uses in a Tropical Urban Catchment
Outstanding Student and PhD candidate Presentation (OSPP) Award
The 2025 Outstanding Student and PhD candidate Presentation (OSPP) Award is awarded to
Martin-Georg Endress Exploring the energetics of soil microbial metabolism under substrate limitation
In our May issue, we look back on another amazing General Assembly in Vienna and online, the EGU awards and medals are now open for nominations, funding is now open for public engagement grants, distinguished lecture speakers, science journalism fellowships, an Early Career Scientist career development workshop and more - and there is a vacancy for an Editorial Manager at the EGU Executive Office in Munich!
Dear Colleagues, Welcome to the May newsletter of the EGU Soil System Sciences Division! This month, we invite you to learn more about the presentation and discussion of Mission Soil in the European Parliament, have a look back at EGU26, read a new SOIL paper, and learn more about the SSS Division through our Linkedin and Bluesky pages. Moreover, we also have some reminders to contribute to the improvement of the AI4SoilHealth’s new Soil Health Viewer, attend the 14th International Conference on Sustainable Development, and apply to the EGU Public Engagement Grants 2026. Heike Knicker, Division President
Beatrice Giannetta, Perrine Florent (ECS Reps) Diana Vieira, Fatima Meite The ECS Team
