90th UNEP/UNESCO/BMUV International Short Course - Optimizing Soil Health for Enhanced Ecosystem Services through Nature-based Solutions (SC90)

Duration: September 01, 2024 - October 06, 2024 (on-site in Dresden)

Motivation

Healthy soils are essential for the provision of ecosystem services, such as conserving biodiversity, sustainably producing food, sequestering carbon, retaining rainwater, or providing clean drinking water. Although soil is not directly addressed as a SDG like water (SDG #6 Clean water and sanitation), natural soil functions are essential for a number of other SDGs (#2 Zero hunger, #3 Good health and well-being, #12 Responsible consumption and production, #15 Life on land). As a result, soil management is an integral part of nature-based solutions (NbS) and natural climate solutions across different land uses (Nature-based solutions form an umbrella framework for sustainable management and use of natural features and processes to tackle socio-environmental issues, e.g. within the frame of an integrated watershed management. These issues include for example climate change (mitigation and adaptation), water security, food security, conservation of biodiversity, and disaster risk reduction. Figure 1). Healthy soils also contribute significantly to climate change mitigation and adaptation, while often providing multiple co-benefits that improve ecosystem resilience and soil and water related ecosystem services. These include soil erosion reduction, nutrient regulation, drought and flood control, wildfire management, and biodiversity protection. There are increasing efforts to conserve and restore natural landscapes, including wetlands and floodplains, and to promote Soil Health and carbon sequestration potential through more sustainable, regenerative and climate-smart practices, e.g. agroforestry. Sustainable management of soil organic matter and soil biotic activity plays a critical role in this context.

Interest in NbS interventions to mitigate and adapt to climate change has never been greater. But something very important is often overlooked in discussions of such solutions: the role of healthy soils. Yet Soil Health is at risk in many parts of the world, depleted by decades of large-scale "industrial" agriculture, urbanization, and soil degradation resulting from large-scale deforestation or improper irrigation. This adverse situation has been intensified by climate change. One third of the world's soils are already degraded. This short course aims to demonstrate the potential of NbS to respond to emerging climate-related challenges in soil management and land-use decisions by providing a science-based state of the art, presenting a collection of case studies, and discussing lessons learned to date.

Course concept

This short course offers a unique opportunity to explore the transformative potential of nature-based solutions in addressing soil and land management issues while enhancing ecosystem services, by delving into the principles, practices, benefits, challenges and opportunities of harnessing the power of nature to address these pressing concerns. The short course will explore critical topics such as:

• Understanding Soil Health in the context of ecosystem services and SDGs
• Understanding NbS in land-use decisions
• Sustainable soil and land management
• Soil restoration and rehabilitation
• Soil and water conservation
• Sustainable water resources management, including integrated watershed management and groundwater protection
• Water-soil-waste nexus
• Planetary boundaries and doughnut economy
• Theory of change and systemic change
• Value of nature and ecosystem services
• Policy frameworks for implementing NbS

• Climate action and ecosystem-based adaption

Objectives

With the course-accompanying creation of Post-Training Action Plans (PTAPs), participants prepare themselves to transfer knowledge acquired in the training into their professional action spaces.

Target groups

This course is aimed at experts who prepare and implement political decisions and practical measures towards the goals of sustainable development and soil and land management in ministries, authorities, local government and non-governmental institutions of developing countries (including emerging economies).

We expect a high motivation to explore concepts for sustainability and soil and land management and to work towards implementing them. A first university degree (e.g. BA, BSc) in a related field is essential. Adequate communication skills in the English language and the nomination by the delegating institution for this full-time course are mandatory.

What makes participating in this course transformative?

• Experience of the CIPSEM team in conducting engaging, meaningful trainings considering the challenges in developing countries and emerging economies
• A full-time, 4-weeks learning experience combining classroom sessions, excursions and group work with guided self-study units
• Renowned international and German facilitators
• Boost of motivation through experience sharing and bonding with fellow experts
• Participants become part of a large international network of environmental experts and leaders (more than 2 700 alumni from 145 countries)
• Transfer of the gained knowledge and skills though mentored development of post-training action plans
• Alumni of this course can apply for one of several innovation fellowships supporting the implementation of the post-training action plan with 2000 €

Fellowship opportunities

The program can award 16 fully funded fellowships covering accommodation in comfortable single studio apartments, local public transport, and all tuition fees (including excursions). Also included are round-trip flights from the participant's country of origin to Dresden, insurance, and a contribution of €550 toward living expenses.

Five additional, partial, fellowships can be awarded among those applicants, who are able to contribute transportation to and from Dresden, insurance, and living expenses other than housing. The partial fellowships include housing in comfortable single studio apartments, public transportation, and all tuition (including excursions).
For these partial fellowships, also applicants who currently reside in a non-DAC country are eligible, if their origin and (prospective) area of professional engagement is in a DAC country.

Application and participation

Qualified professionals are welcome to apply for this training from February 14 until March 27, 2024 on CIPSEM’s online application portal. The Steering Committee selects 21 (16+5) participants of this course by May 2024. Only selected participants will be informed via email. Successful participants are awarded a Certificate of Proficiency in Optimizing Soil Health for Enhanced Ecosystem Services through Nature-based Solutions.

Please note that the duration stated at the beginning corresponds to the financing period. This includes the course period from September 05, 2024 - October 02, 2024 as well as four arrival days before the start of the course and four departure days after the end of the course.

You can access the online application portal via the following link: https://crm.bu.tu-dresden.de/ausschreibung?1&call=CIPSEM2024-SC90.

Before applying, please also have a look at our hints on application, explanations regarding the application portal and answers to frequently asked questions. For information on other courses, please visit https://tud.de/cipsem/upcoming.

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