Living Soils in the Americas

Descripcion

One of the goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which was approved in September 2015 by the United Nations General Assembly, is to protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss. In this context, the protection and care of soil acquires greater importance, as soil is the main foundation that supports the growth of plants, many of which are a source of nutrition for living organisms.

Agriculture is a key sector, not only due to the need to increase productivity without endangering the capacity of natural systems to continue producing food, but also to ensure sustainable management of converging ecosystems in the soil. Considering that one third of the world’s land area is moderately or severely degraded, agriculture offers multiple opportunities as a production system to improve this situation, in the hope that we are able to meet the agreed target to reduce the percentage of degraded land in relation to the total surface area of the Earth by the end of 2030. Effectively transitioning from current food production systems to resilient food systems, that are capable of bolstering food and nutritional security and providing prosperity for current and future generations, calls for comprehensive approaches and consistent effort.

With this in mind, IICA is proposing to undertake an open and virtual event on 4 December, in collaboration with other organizations, in commemoration of World Soil Day. The aim is to emphasize that national and local actions must take into account best practices that ensure soil sustainability. It will appeal for reflection on the importance of proper soil management and will launch the Living Soils Initiative of the Americas. Moderated by the Director General of IICA, the expectation is that all 34 Member States of the Institute will participate.

Program

Fecha - Hora	Actividad	Expositores
Friday 4 december - 9:00 a.m. (Costa Rica time) 10:00 a.m. (EST)	Welcome and opening	Dr. Manuel Otero, Director General del IICA
	Living Soils of the Americas Initiative	Dr. Rattan Lal, C-MASC, OSU
	Remarks by the Ministers of Agriculture	The Hon. Michael Pintard, Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources of The Bahamas
		H.E. Renato Alvarado Rivera, Minister of Agriculture and Livestock of Costa Rica
		H.E. Mauricio Guevara Pinto, Secretary of Agriculture and Livestock of Honduras
		H.E. Juan Gonzalo Botero Botero, Vice Minister of Agricultural Affairs of Colombia
		H.E. Fernando Camargo, Secretary of Innovation, Rural Development and Irrigation Brazil
		Hon. Javier Gracia-Garza, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) Special Advisor for Agriculture and Climate Change, Canada
		Hon. Scott H. Hutchins, Deputy Under Secretary, Research Education and Economics- (Adjunct Appointment) USDA United States of America
		Hon. Gilbert F. Houngbo, President International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) Italy
	Video: Living soils of the Americas
	Signing of a general technical cooperation agreement between CMASC, CFAES, OSU and IICA	Kristina M. Johnson, President, The Ohio State University
		Cathann A. Kress, Vice President for Agricultural Administration and Dean of the College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CFAES), The Ohio State University
	Remarks by OSU
	Remarks by specially invited guests	Private sector and international funding agency representatives
		Carlos Felipe Jaramillo, Vice President for Latin America and the Caribbean, World Bank
		Juan Pablo Bonilla, Manager of the Climate Change and Sustainable Development Sector, Inter-American Development Bank
		Julián Suárez, Vice President of Sustainable Development, CAF
		Natasha Santos, Vice President, Bayer AG
		José Antonio Ysambert, Business Sustainability Head, Sygenta Latin America North
		Representative, Corteva Agriscience
		Facundo Etchebehere, VP Global Public Affairs and Corporate Affairs for Essential Dairy & Plant Based, Danone
		José Luis Tedesco, President, Aapresid
		Ruth Junkin, Deputy Regional Director, Catholic Relief Services
	Comentarios finales	Dr. Manuel Otero, Director General of IICA

Speakers

Dr. Manuel Otero, Director General of IICA

Dr. Rattan Lal, Director Carbon Management & Sequestration Center. (C-MASC) -The Ohio State University

Ministers of Agriculture
 The Hon. Michael Pintard, Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources of The Bahamas
 H.E. Renato Alvarado Rivera, Minister of Agriculture and Livestock of Costa Rica
 H.E. Mauricio Guevara Pinto, Secretary of Agriculture and Livestock of Honduras
 The Hon. Alexis Jeffers, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Marine Resources of Saint Kitts and Nevis
 H.E. Juan Gonzalo Botero Botero, Vice Minister of Agricultural Affairs of Colombia
 H.E. Dr. Julian Echazarreta, Secretary of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries of Argentina
 H.E. Fernando Camargo, Secretary of Innovation, Rural Development and Irrigation Brazil
 Hon. Javier Gracia-Garza, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) Special Advisor for Agriculture and Climate Change, Canada
 Hon. Scott H. Hutchins, Deputy Under Secretary, Research Education and Economics- (Adjunct Appointment) USDA United States of America
 Hon. Gilbert F. Houngbo, President International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) Italy

Kristina M. Johnson, President, The Ohio State University

Cathann A. Kress, Vice President for Agricultural Administration and Dean of the College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CFAES), The Ohio State University

Private sector and international funding agency representatives
 Carlos Felipe Jaramillo, Vice President for Latin America and the Caribbean, World Bank
 Juan Pablo Bonilla, Manager of the Climate Change and Sustainable Development Sector, Inter-American Development Bank
 Julián Suárez, Vice President of Sustainable Development, CAF
 Natasha Santos, Vice Presidente Bayer AG
 José Antonio Ysambert, Business Sustainability Head, Sygenta Latin America North
 Representative, Corteva Agriscience (To be confirmed)
 Facundo Etchebehere, VP Global Public Affairs and Corporate Affairs for Essential Dairy & Plant Based, Danone
 José Luis Tedesco, President, Aapresid
 Ruth Junkin, Deputy Regional Director, Catholic Relief Services

Live Transmission

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