Despite the large amount of scientific knowledge produced by research on land and on soils, recent polls carried out independently by United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and by DesertNet International, an association of scientists, highlighted that results of basic research are not sufficiently used and that there is a strong need for better information transfer about land and about soils for environmental management. This gap jeopardizes the efficiency of programmes to combat land degradation, particularly in drylands, where livelihoods are very dependent from the natural resources.

This session is planned to bring together scientists from various backgrounds to present case studies -success and failures- on research applied to land management. This includes soil science-based studies, sustainable agriculture, management of abandoned lands, water use efficiency, watershed management or any other studies contributing to sustainable land use. We also encourage discussions regarding the positioning of the various facets of soil science in the broader context of land and landscape based approaches. In this regard, the participants are also invited to analyse the complex relationship between basic and applied research and the inter-connections with policy makers, land managers and land users organisations.

The goal is to find the way to increase synergies and to better define the most effective combination of disciplines to conduct research targeted on preventing land degradation and on restoring degraded lands