With approximately 33% of global soils classified as degraded, it is important to have a more holistic understanding in soil governance, management and the protection of the services that soils provide. There is a pressing need to determine the status of sustainable soil management efforts and raise awareness on its importance in the Asia Pacific region, particularly in Southeast Asia. This webinar seeks to start the conversation on this issue with an initial focus on the southeast Asian region and promotes initiatives that would improve soil governance and supports its conservation and sustainable productivity

Dr Ian Hannam is an Adjunct Associate Professor with UNE’s Australian Centre for Agriculture and Law. He is also a member of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Commission on Environmental Law (WCEL) and Chair Emeritus of the WCEL’s Specialist Group on Soil, Desertification and Sustainable Agriculture. He also collaborates with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation’s (UN FAO) Global Soil Partnership (GSP).

Dr Hannam is currently involved with developing SoilEx, which is a new global database collating all national laws which cover soil protection, conservation and restoration. Along with #UNElaw student, Yasmin Fosternally, he is currently identifying relevant Australian soil laws, according to SoilEX criteria, to add to the database.

Other speakers are: Dr. Harald Ginzky, German Environment Agency – Umweltbundesamt (UBA); Dr. Wanwisa Pansak , Naresuan University , World Association of Soil and Water Conservation; and Sylvia Bankobeza, Legal Officer at the Law Division of UN Environment Programme.

The webinar runs from 6:00pm – 8:00pm AEST and you can register for it here https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/soils-governance-southeast-asia-in-focus-tickets-153592079043