SOIL conservation and SDG’S achievement in Europe and central Asia: WHICH role for the European SOIL partnership?

Abstract Voluntary soil protection measures are not sufficient to achieve sustainable soil management at a global scale. Additionally, binding soil protection legislation at national and international levels has also proved to be insufficient for the effective protection of this non-renewable natural resource. In 2012, the FAO Members established the Global Soil Partnership (GSP) with the mission to facilitate and contribute exchange of knowledge and technologies related to soils, and develop dialogue and raise awareness for the need to establish a binding global agreement for sustainable soil management. Moreover, region-specific aspects of implementation are considered and strengthened through regional soil partnerships for actions addressing various local approaches, cultural specificities, and regional priorities. In this context, the European Soil Partnership (ESP) was established in October 2013, followed by the Eurasian Sub-Regional Soil Partnership (EASP) in November 2013. The ESP has taken a role as an umbrella network covering 40 countries in Europe and Central Asia to improve the dialogue in the whole region and has encouraged establishing goals that would promote sustainable soil management. In this regard, the first regional implementation plan for the 2017–2020 period was adopted and implemented along the five GSP pillars of action. This study demonstrates that establishing national and local partnerships is an additional step in the sustainable soil management implementation process, suggesting that a complementary approach between legal instruments and voluntary initiatives linked to the development of strong communication is the key to success.