This was the 2nd Soil Symposium: Soil amelioration - The circular way!
15.02.2024
On 13 February, the 2nd Soil Symposium took place at the ILRI campus in Addis Ababa. The event offered Ethiopian scientists in the opportunity to discuss current research findings and projects on biochar-based biofertilizers. In addition to the formulation of fertilizers and agricultural productivity gains, the efficient production of biochar from various biomasses was an important topic of the presentations.
The symposium was opened by Dr. Volker Lenz (DBFZ) who conveyed his appreciation for the widespread Ethiopian efforts to test and advance biochar-based fertilisers. The sessions began with keynote speeches of a) Prof. Sheleme Beyene on the role of biochar in sustainable soil management and b) Dr Getachew Agegnehu, who updated the audience on research results which underline the effectiveness of biochar-based fertilisers for increased crop yields and carbon sequestration. Thereafter, the grant holders of the 1st ETH-Soil Call presented their preliminary results from pot and field research. In the late morning session, the four winners of the call for abstracts presented their research results. A committee consisting of Dr Asefa Taa, Dr Solomon Tulu Tadesse, Dr Teferi Tadesse, Dr Amsalu Nebiyu, Prof. Dr Bruno Glaser and Dr Annett Pollex evaluated and ranked these contributions. The Best Presentation Award was obtained by Getachew Mulatu for his work on "Aggregate size distribution, labile carbon fractions and litter decomposition after long-term application of biochar-based soil amendments in low-input acidic soils".
After a relaxing lunch break, the four research proposals selected from over 40 submissions to the 2nd ETH-Soil Call were presented. The audience contributed hints for further improvement and reflections. During the last session, the C-Sink certification scheme of Carbon Standard International was explained. Finally, research results on the fertilizing effect of liquid and solid bio-slurry fertilizers completed the symposium. The audience had the opportunity to vote on the best presentation from all contributions (keynotes excluded). Dr Milkiyas Ahmed (Jimma University) attracted most votes and, thus, gained the Audience Award. With her closing of the event, the ETH Soil project manager, Kerstin Wilde, provided an update on the implementation status and 2024 priorities. The project coordinator, Dr. Getachew Eshete, and several other persons expressed overwhelming satisfaction with the quality of presentations and the set-up of the symposium. Some wishes for the next event were also raised.
The ETH-Soil team would like to thank all speakers and participants for their travelling efforts, inspiring and interesting contributions, the exciting discussions and impressive commitment to healthy soils. We look forward to the coming year and the Soil Symposium 2025!
You can find the documentation of the 1st and 2nd Soil Symposium here: https://edms.dbfz.de/seafile/d/20581b69c3ef492189be/
