What research shows about how to improve soil health

CFAES’ Organic Food and Farming Education and Research (OFFER) program hosts a free public webinar, “Management Practices That Impact Soil Health and Organic Matter,” by Christine Sprunger, assistant professor in the CFAES School of Environment and Natural Resources, at 11 a.m. Wednesday, March 17. It’s part of a weekly series by OFFER. Learn more.

Peace, stability start in the soil

Even in the presence of royalty, the conversation was down to earth. And that was totally appropriate.

In a formal ceremony in April 2019 in Tokyo, CFAES soil scientist Rattan Lal received a 2019 Japan Prize, one of the most prestigious global awards in science and technology.

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World Soil Day, world soil expert

Celebrate World Soil Day today, Dec. 5, by reading a recent story about CFAES’ own world soil expert, Rattan Lal, Distinguished University Professor of Soil Science, who received the Glinka World Soil Prize on last year’s World Soil Day and the Japan Prize shortly after that.

“In just a handful of soil,” the Ohio State Alumni Magazine story begins, “Rattan Lal ’68 PhD sees the key to feeding people, to preserving their land for generations, to making Earth a better place for all of us.”

Read the full story, and watch the related video above.

Breakfast to feature Ohio soil experts

The next monthly breakfast program by the CFAES-based Environmental Professionals Network will have you “Digging in With Ohio’s Soil Experts”—including Rattan Lal, CFAES’ 2019 Japan Prize laureate and Glinka World Soil Prize recipient—on the hows and whys of having healthy soils. It’s set for Wednesday, Dec. 4, the day before World Soil Day. Unearth details and register to join us.

Carbon farming ‘a bridge to the future’?

Bloomberg reports that “Al Gore Is Opening a New Front In the War on Climate Change”—farming practices that sequester carbon dioxide in the soil—and CFAES’ own world expert on the subject, Rattan Lal, visited the former vice president’s farm in Tennessee to look at, walk upon, and talk about the possibilities. Excellent story by Emily Chasan, Bloomberg’s sustainable finance editor.

Lal directs CFAES’ Carbon Management and Sequestration Center. Earlier this year he was awarded the Japan Prize.

Rattan Lal quoted in Wall Street Journal

CFAES’ Rattan Lal, Distinguished University Professor of Soil Science and a 2019 winner of the prestigious Japan Prize, was interviewed for a recent story in the Wall Street Journal. In “How to Get Rid of Carbon Emissions: Pay Farmers to Bury Them,” Lal talks about whether paying farmers to sequester carbon to fight the climate crisis is realistic or not, and what some feasible goals could be. The story is here, but you’ll need a subscription to read it.

Lal founded and directs CFAES’ Carbon Management and Sequestration Center. In the video above, he explains the interconnected reasons for storing organic matter (such as carbon) in the soil.

Today in Tokyo

Watch the ceremony. Read about Rattan Lal receiving the Japan Prize.

Watch: Rattan Lal receives Japan Prize

CFAES soil scientist Rattan Lal formally received the Japan Prize today, Monday, April 8, in Tokyo. You can watch the ceremony in the video above. Ohio State President Michael V. Drake, First Lady Brenda Drake, and CFAES Wooster Director Dave Benfield were among the delegation from Ohio State attending the ceremony. The Japan Prize is considered one of the most prestigious honors in science and technology.