The International Union of Soil Sciences (IUSS), founded in 1924 under the name ''International Society of Soil Science'', is a scientific union and member of the

International Council for Science The International Council for Science (ICSU, after its former name, International Council of Scientific Unions) was an international non-governmental organization devoted to multilateralism, international cooperation in the advancement of scie ...

(ICSU). The Union has 86 national and regional member societies with about 60,000 scientists in several countries and individual members in 57 countries. Every four years, the IUSS holds the

World Congress of Soil Science The World Congress of Soil Science (WCSS) is a conference held every four years (although interrupted by World War II) under the guidance of the International Union of Soil Sciences (IUSS). The purpose of a congress is to: (i) ensure the advance ...

. The Secretary is Sigbert Huber. He is an officer of the Environment Agency Austria (

Umweltbundesamt The Umweltbundesamt (; UBA, ) is the ''German Environment Agency''. Together with the Bundesamt für Naturschutz, the Bundesamt für kerntechnische Entsorgungssicherheit and the Bundesamt für Strahlenschutz, it operates under the jurisdiction ...

), located in Vienna.

Mission

The purpose of the IUSS is to promote all branches of

soil science Soil science is the study of soil as a natural resource on the surface of the Earth including soil formation, classification and mapping; physical, chemical, biological, and fertility properties of soils; and these properties in relation to ...

and its applications, to promote contacts among scientists and other persons engaged in the study and the application of soil science; to stimulate scientific

research Research is "creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness ...

and to further the application of such research. The IUSS is a founding partner of the

International Year of Planet Earth The United Nations General Assembly declared 2008 as the International Year of Planet Earth to increase awareness of the importance of Earth sciences for the advancement of sustainable development. UNESCO was designated as the lead agency. The Y ...

and supports all of its activities. The IUSS has contributed to the International Year of Planet Earth's brochure "Soil – earth's living skin", which has been translated into several languages. The IUSS publishes monthly the ''IUSS Alert'' and twice a year the ''IUSS Bulletin''. December 5 is celebrated as the ''World Soil Day''.

Organization: The Divisions

The IUSS has Divisions and Commissions in the following areas:

Division 1 – Soils in space and time

*C1.1 Soil morphology and micromorphology *C1.2 Soil geography *C1.3 Soil genesis *C1.4 Soil classification *C1.5 Pedometrics *C1.6 Paleopedology

Division 2 – Soil properties and processes

*C2.1 Soil physics *C2.2 Soil chemistry *C2.3

Soil biology Soil biology is the study of microbial and faunal activity and ecology in soil. Soil life, soil biota, soil fauna, or edaphon is a collective term that encompasses all organisms that spend a significant portion of their life cycle within a ...

*C2.4 Soil mineralogy *C2.5 Soil interfacial reactions

Division 3 – Soil use and management

*C3.1 Soil evaluation and land use planning *C3.2 Soil and water conservation *C3.3

Soil fertility Soil fertility refers to the ability of soil to sustain agricultural plant growth, i.e. to provide plant habitat and result in sustained and consistent yields of high quality.

and plant nutrition *C3.4 Soil engineering and technology *C3.5 Soil degradation control, remediation, and reclamation

Division 4 – The role of soil in sustaining society and the environment

*C4.1 Soil and the environment *C4.2 Soil, food security, and human health *C4.3 Soil and land use change *C4.4 Soil education and public awareness *C4.5 History, philosophy, and sociology of soil science This structure and the Commissions have grown from the original six Commissions established in 1924. In addition, the IUSS holds many Working Groups. Every Working Group is associated to a Commission.

Organization: The President

Until 2014, the IUSS President was designated by the national soil science society that was responsible for the next World Congress of Soil Science. This was normally a 4-years period. The change in office was immediately after closing the World Congress. However, many tasks of scientific leadership were done by a Secretary-General. The last IUSS President according to this regulation was Jae Yang, who acted from the closure of the World Congress 2010 till the closure of the World Congress 2014. Since 2014, the IUSS President is elected by the IUSS Council for a 2-years period. Since 2017, the change in office is January 1. The election is more than two years in advance. The IUSS President is the scientific leader, and the Secretary (instead of the former Secretary-General) is the organizing leader. The first IUSS President according to the new regulation was Rainer Horn, who acted from the closure (June 13) of the World Congress 2014 till December 31, 2016.

Congresses and Presidents

World Congresses of Soil Science and IUSS PresidentsIUSS Past Presidents
Retrieved 02/06/2015.

References

External links

IUSS Website
{{Authority control Members of the International Council for Science International scientific organizations Soil and crop science organizations Scientific organizations established in 1924 Members of the International Science Council