Soil biodiversity is essential to healthy ecosystems, sustainable agriculture and food security. Yet efforts to conserve and sustainably manage soils cannot be effective or equitable without addressing the gender inequalities that shape access to land, resources, knowledge, decision-making and benefits.
This policy brief examines women’s contributions to soil biodiversity and the structural barriers that constrain their rights, agency and leadership in sustainable soil management. It highlights gaps in gender-responsive implementation, monitoring and reporting under the Convention on Biological Diversity’s Soil Biodiversity Plan of Action (2020–2030).
Ahead of CBD COP17, the brief presents six recommendations to strengthen implementation of existing commitments, address gender-specific barriers, recognize women’s knowledge and leadership, assess differentiated risks and benefits, and improve gender-responsive data, monitoring and accountability.
It calls for stronger alignment with the CBD Gender Plan of Action (2023–2030) and Target 23 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, ensuring that gender equality is integrated into soil biodiversity action rather than treated as an additional consideration.
Healthy soils require gender-responsive action.
Explore six recommendations to strengthen women’s rights, knowledge and leadership in soil biodiversity conservation and sustainable management.
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