Argentina
The project is an initiative led by CREA (Regional Consortiums of Agricultural Experimentation)- a Global Soil Partnership member, and has the support of the Argentinean Association of Soil Science (AACS), FAO and the National Institute of Agricultural Technology (INTA). It is quite innovative as it promotes fluid dialogues, interaction and exchange between teachers, students, researchers, producers and the community as a whole, from a local-to-regional perspective. The initiative was designed to be educative, thought provoking and value-driven; it encourages students to work in groups to propose and lead an innovative research activity regarding soils and then present it to peers and other schools of the region. The main objectives of the Project are to:
- Promote a space of debate, awareness generation and knowledge transfer in educative contexts, using research as a tool for discussion and learning.
- Highlight the importance of soil and environment protection, as the fundamental elements for food production and for the provision of plenty of other ecosystem services.
- Promote a working methodology based on networks generation, and meetings and exchange spaces that include students, teachers, agricultural producers, researchers and institutions.
- Promote through an interdisciplinary approach and teamwork, the integration among students and with the community, the respect for differences, sustainability and innovation.
So far:
- 60 public and private organizations have participated
- 166 teachers and directives have involved in the project
- More than 100 CREA and INTA tutors have provided local support
- More than 80 schools have presented research works
- More than 40 professionals have participated in examination tables
- More than 80 teachers were trained on soil science
In a nutshell:
Project name: Así son los suelos de mi país (My Country’s soils are like this)
Objective: Raise awareness at schools on the importance of soils as a natural resource in which Argentina bases its main economic activity, agriculture and livestock.
Target audience: students of the last two years of secondary school in Argentina. In 2019, we will make a pilot phase to include primary schools.
Scope: different Argentinian provinces, including Buenos Aires, Córdoba, Santa Fe, Tucumán, Salta and Jujuy.
Sustainable Development Goals:
Institutions that participate: CREA, FAO, GSP, AACS and INTA.
In addition to the educative experience, Así son los suelos de mi país, contributed to the creation –in each community- of multidisciplinary networks of teachers, technicians, researchers, agricultural entrepreneurs, parents and future professionals (current students) who share a common view on the importance and responsibility of a sustainable way of using natural resources.
Forthcoming challenges:
In next editions of the project, we are planning on increasing the coverage of the participation (both in number of students as in the ages)
