The World Congress of Soil Science (WCSS) is a conference held every four years (although interrupted by

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

) under the guidance of the

International Union of Soil Sciences 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 (ICSU). The Union has 86 national and regional m ...

(IUSS). The purpose of a congress is to: (i) ensure the advancement 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 th ...

and its application, and (ii) to handle the business of the society. Of the 18 congresses, eight have been held in Europe, five in the Americas, three in Asia, one in Australia and one in Africa. The congresses are only open to society members. The number of members attending has steadily increased, with approximately 2000 members attending each congress since the 15th WCSS in

Acapulco Acapulco de Juárez (), commonly called Acapulco ( , also , nah, Acapolco), is a city and major seaport in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, south of Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semicircular bay and has bee ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. The 19th WCSS was held in the week of 1 to 6 August 2010International Union of Soil Sciences
/ref> in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

at the

Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre (BCEC) is a convention centre in Brisbane, Australia. It is located in South Brisbane and occupies most of the block formed by Grey Street, Melbourne Street, Merivale Street, and Glenelg Street. The centr ...

. The congress theme was "''Soil solutions for a changing world''". The conference was organised by the IUSS President ( Roger Swift) and Vice-President (

Neal Menzies Neal Menzies (born 7 December 1959) is an Australian professor of soil science at Griffith University. In his early adult years, he completed a bachelor of agricultural science (hons) in 1985, a master of agricultural studies in 1987, and a PhD ...

). The 19th WCSS was the second congress held in Australia (the 9th WCSS was held in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

, in 1968), and was held in conjunction with the

Australian Society of Soil Science Incorporated The Australian Society of Soil Science Incorporated (ASSSI) was founded in 1955 to "advance soil science in the professional, academic, and technical fields". The Society consists of a federation of branches operating the 'umbrella' of the ASSSI Fe ...

. The 20th WCSS was held from 8 to 13 June 2014 on Jeju-do Island,

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. The 21st WCSS was held in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

(

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

) in August 2018, the 22nd in 2022 in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

(

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

). The upcoming congresses are 2026 in

Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...

(

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

) and 2030 in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

(

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

). Past and future locations for the WCSS:IUSS Congresses]

Notes

External links

IUSS Official Website19th WCSS (2010) Official WebsiteASSSI Official WebsiteBrisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre Website
{{soil science topics Earth science conferences Quadrennial events Recurring events established in 1927