“Ensure that the world speaks about soil because soil is the basis of pure water, (clean air and) the basis of the very life that we are,” said Sadhguru, Founder-Isha Foundation, in his Earth Day message. Conveying his “best wishes to all the Earthlings” from the Seriban capital city, Belgrade, on day 33 of his 100-day, 30,000 km lone motorcycle journey as part of the Movement to Save Soil, Sadhguru said that the planet “could be in serious peril in the next 30-40 years’ time” if the world failed to act immediately and decisively to initiate global policy reforms to save soil from extinction. “We, as a generation, if we make up our minds, we can turn this around in the next 8-12 or maximum 15 years’ time,” he said referring to rapid soil degradation leading to an annual extinction rate of 27,000 microbial species.
Speaking about the potent power of rich soil which is not only responsible for a fertile earth but also water security and clean air, Sadhguru urged citizens around the world to “take this commitment on Earth Day” to “be a source of inspiration (and) a source of galvanizing this Movement. Ensure that the world speaks about soil.”
Referring to the impact of human footprint on soil, Sadhguru said that in the last thousand years, “the area of photosynthesis in the world has come down by 85%”. Photosynthesis is the phenomenon which ensures that the earth’s atmosphere is rich in oxygen and the soil is rich in carbon to keep it alive and thriving with microbial activity. Only green cover makes both possible. “We need to make policies in every nation to ensure the land must either have crops, cover crops, bushes or trees – something green – which is doing this miracle called photosynthesis which both enriches the soil and the atmosphere: soil with carbon sugars, atmosphere with oxygen,” he explained.
United Nations’ bodies such as United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have warned that soil extinction poses a global threat to food and water security and could result in brutal civil strife around the world. It could also set off unprecedented migratory exodus, threating national security of every country.
Sadhguru launched the global Movement to Save Soil last month. His journey through Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East to build global consensus for urgent policy reform will culminate in the Cauvery river basin in June. The river basin is ground zero for Isha’s Cauvery Calling – an ambitious ecological movement initiated by Sadhguru to showcase the river basin as a demonstrable model for restoration of soil health and water bodies in tropical regions.
(This is an official press release from Isha Foundation. The Commune was not involved in creating this content.)
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