Global Symposium on Salt-Affected Soils: Outcome document

Book excerpt: The GSAS21 was held virtually on the Zoom platform on 20-22 October 2021 and was attended by over 4 000 participants. The objective of the symposium was to combine science, policy, and practice to evaluate the issues related to salt-affected soils and to formulate a strategy for the implementation of Voluntary Guidelines for Sustainable Soil Management in the areas affected by salinity and sodicity. The GSAS21 symposium was structured around three main themes focusing on: 1) Assessment, mapping, and monitoring of salt-affected soils; 2) Integrated soil – water – crop solutions in rehabilitation and management of salt-affected areas; 3) Agenda for action to prevent and rehabilitate salt-affected soils, protect natural saline and sodic soils, and scale-up sustainable soil management practices. The fourth session on testimonies from the field was organized to showcase the good practices illustrating the rehabilitation and sustainable use of salt-affected soils. The symposium included more than 70 oral presentations, presented over 17 hours of parallel sessions. Recordings of the presentations can be accessed via . In addition, 58 posters were open for public voting during the GSAS. Over 67 000 votes have been received which helped identify three winners of the poster session. The posters are available from . The recommendations presented in this document aim to support decision-making and innovative actions to minimize the challenges posed by soil salinity and sodicity, thereby assisting in the augmentation of global food security and ecosystem protection through salt-affected soils management in impacted regions.