We translate the latest soil science research from universities and field stations into plain-English stories anyone can understand, share, and act on.
Mycorrhizal fungi form symbiotic relationships with the roots of around 90% of all land plants. These networks — sometimes called the "Wood Wide Web" — allow trees and plants to share nutrients, water, and even chemical signals across vast distances.
New research is revealing just how sophisticated these communication networks are — and what happens when they're disrupted by modern agriculture.
Soils contain approximately 1,500–2,400 Gt of carbon — more than three times the amount in the atmosphere. This makes soil management one of the most powerful levers we have for addressing climate change.
But soil carbon can be gained or lost rapidly depending on land use. Research is identifying which practices build carbon — and which destroy it.
Ancient and old-growth forest soils contain extraordinarily rich communities of organisms — many found nowhere else. These communities took hundreds or thousands of years to develop and cannot be restored quickly once lost.
Protecting old-growth forests is therefore not just about trees — it's about protecting irreplaceable underground communities.
An estimated 25% of all species on Earth live in or depend on soil — yet the vast majority have never been described or named by science. Recent advances in environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis are revealing the staggering scale of this hidden diversity.
Industrial chemicals, microplastics, heavy metals, and agrochemicals are accumulating in soils globally. These pollutants kill soil organisms, disrupt food chains, and ultimately enter human food supplies.
Research is identifying which pollutants are most damaging — and which soil organisms might help remediate them.
Climate change and soil health are deeply interconnected. Rising temperatures affect soil moisture, microbial activity, and carbon storage. Meanwhile, better soil management could sequester billions of tonnes of CO₂ annually.
The IPCC has highlighted soil-based interventions as among the most cost-effective natural climate solutions available.