Soil degradation caused by land conversion, agricultural intensification, urbanization, and the impacts of climate change has become a serious challenge in Indonesia and globally. Therefore, it is necessary to raise public awareness and strengthen cross-sector and inter-institutional collaboration to emphasize the importance of soil security through a dedicated soil preservation campaign.
This issue was raised during a discussion titled “Save Soil Movement: Sahil Cycling Across Four Continents” held at the Universitas Gadjah Mada Innovation and Creativity Hub (GIK UGM) on Friday, Jun. 13, 2025.
The event, initiated by the UGM Strategic Management Bureau (BMS UGM), featured four keynote speakers: Sahil Jha (Save Soil Changemaker), Raline Shah (Save Soil Ambassador), Professor Benito Heru Purwanto (Lecturer at the Faculty of Agriculture, UGM), and Praveena Sridhar (Chief Science & Technology Officer, Save Soil Movement).
Head of BMS UGM, Dr. Wirastuti Widyatmanti, stated that soil plays a crucial role in mitigating climate change due to its ability to store carbon and regulate greenhouse gas emissions.
She emphasized that the collaboration between UGM and Save Soil represents a strategic step to increase global awareness about soil security.
“Soil is vital to our life. It is the source of life, the foundation of food, water, and forest systems,” she asserted.
Sahil Jha, a young activist from India currently cycling across 20 countries on four continents, took the opportunity to share the essence of the Save Soil movement.
Sahil explained that his journey aims to promote soil preservation as a solution to the climate crisis and global food security challenges.
He also conveyed that healthy soil is the key to producing quality food and ensuring human survival.
Sahil shared that he initially knew little about soil.
However, after extensive reading and research, he came to understand the vital importance of soil to human life.
“Without healthy soil, we won’t be able to grow healthy food for the next generation,” said Sahil.
From an academic perspective, Professor Purwanto, a soil expert from UGM, explained that soil is a vital component of the ecosystem, highly vulnerable to degradation, and takes hundreds of years to regenerate.
He stressed that soil is the most biodiverse habitat on earth, yet it is currently under serious threat from various human activities.
“One square meter of healthy soil contains up to 1.5 kilograms of living organisms. However, we are losing millions of hectares of productive soil annually due to erosion, acidification, urbanization, and mining,” the professor explained.
At the end of the session, Raline Shah joined virtually to encourage participants to actively support the Save Soil movement.
She emphasized that soil is not merely an agricultural element, but the foundation of human life and health, including its crucial role in supporting food security and maintaining ecosystem balance.
“Soil is the foundation of life, and Save Soil is not only an environmental movement but also a call to raise awareness about the importance of soil,” she said.
Dr. Widyatmanti also underlined that the Save Soil Movement is a strategic moment for UGM to encourage youth involvement in soil preservation and to strengthen the university’s role in sustainability issues.
This initiative also aligns with UGM’s efforts to establish a Center of Excellence in Soil Security, as a concrete contribution to building a more sustainable future.
Author: Lintang Andwyna
Editor: Gusti Grehenson
Post-editor: Lintang Andwyna
Photographer: Donnie Trisfian