Nature and Purpose

Communities of practice are groups of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly. This CoP is composed of professionals working in development cooperation who are dealing with issues related to the climate-soil nexus.

Background

Healthy soils are vital for our environment and food systems. They are fundamental for food security and biodiversity, mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, and help with adaptation to the adverse impacts of climate change. Nature-based Solutions that increase the amount of soil organic carbon (SOC) can significantly reduce the CO2-concentration in the atmosphere related to human activity, while contributing to fertile soils and suitable habitats for micro and macro fauna. Herewith, they are a crucial element to meet the targets of international agendas, like the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals. Even though the potential of sustainable land management (SLM) and soil carbon is increasingly recognized at the international level, upscaling of soil-carbon practices on a broader scale is not yet achieved.

Objective

Together with the "4 per 1000" Initiative, we want to promote awareness of the climate potential of sustainable land management and soil-carbon practices and identify concrete pathways for improvement and implementation. Specifically, we want to advocate increased and concrete consideration of soil organic carbon in relevant interventions and politicy processes, such as the National Determined Contributions (NDCs).

The "Climate-Soil Community of Practice" (CoP) aims to disseminate information on successful land management and soil carbon projects, highlight good practices for overcoming adoption barriers and strengthen the case for sustainable land management as a key to effective climate action. While "4 per 1000" facilitates related activities at the global level, this "Community of Practice" (CoP) focuses on the development cooperation context.

Format

This CoP provides a space for actors to exchange knowledge and experience, to present their work, to learn from each other and to develop partnerships. The process for their development is catalyzed by a series of events on selected topics. In cooperation with "4 per 1000", we will provide a platform for follow-up and networking for project development.