Closing Remarks World Soil Day 2025 “Healthy Soils for Healthy Cities”

Excellencies,
Distinguished Delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am pleased to provide closing remarks at this year's commemoration of World Soil Day 2025 in New York, dedicated to the theme "Healthy Soils for Healthy Cities." This year's event carries special significance, as mentioned by the Director-General, as it coincides with the 80th anniversary of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations-which has eight decades of data and evidence-driven, collective action, innovation, and partnership.

I wish to thank the Permanent Missions of the Kingdom of Thailand, the Kingdom of Bhutan and the Russian Federation, as well as the Vice President of the ECOSOC and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification for the excellent collaboration to ensure the success of this event.

Over 80% of the world's food comes from family farmers who depend on healthy soils. With two-thirds of the world's population expected to live in cities by 2050, soils in rural areas remain essential to feed urban dwellers and sustain farmers' livelihoods, which strengthens global food security.

The message is clear: sustainable and healthy cities begin with healthy soils. From one of the world's largest cities, New York, we are reminded that soil health is the living foundation of our food, our water, and our future.

As cities continue to grow, maintaining and restoring soil functions in and around urban areas is both a challenge and an opportunity.

A case in point was the High Line project, which provides benefits across all three dimensions of sustainable development.

Urban soils are the hidden infrastructure of our cities, quietly defending us from floods, landslides, and erosion, while supporting food production, filtering water, and sustaining biodiversity.

Practicing urban agriculture on well managed and healthy soils supports food security, nutrition and livelihoods, and is an integral part of the urban socio-economic, ecological system. 

We have heard today how sealed urban soils trap heat, worsen floods, and increase energy demand for cooling. Yet, solutions exist, and we have heard many of these today: de-sealing, green roofs, urban vegetation and agriculture, composting, and sustainable urban planning can transform soils into opportunities that help farmers weather climate shocks, safeguard public health, and strengthen disaster risk reduction efforts.

I would like to thank our speakers, who have highlighted fascinating examples-from policy, local initiatives, , research and technical tools, to community -and even family- implementation-that demonstrate the critical role of healthy soils in ensuring food security, nutrition and building sustainable cities.

As we close, the benefits of investing in healthy soils cannot be understated. I am confident that, together, we will continue to champion soil health as the foundation for resilient and sustainable agrifood systems and thriving cities for generations to come.

Thank you for joining us today.