A down-to-earth approach to climate change

Humans are, of course, reliant on soil for food. But what many might not realize is that soil’s rich biodiversity helps to regulate the composition of Earth’s atmosphere by recycling and storing nutrients, such as carbon. Biogeochemist Asmeret Asefaw Berhe studies how physical changes to soil affect the carbon in Earth’s atmosphere. “I’m interested in how some soils hold on to organic carbon for hundreds, even thousands, of years without degrading,” she says. But erosion, fire, deforestation and desertification can release stored carbon. “Earth and soil science is an area that desperately needs more diversity,” Berhe says. Earth and soil science is an area that desperately needs more diversity in its participants”. Click to read more.