Why treat soils like dirt?
Public awareness of the importance of soil science is a continuing problem in raising the profile of the profession. The great majority of people are unaware of the contribution of soil knowledge to food and fibre production, sustaining ecosystems, managing water, managing contaminants and waste, and in engineering applications. This symposium should be pitched at attracting an interested lay audience, e.g. urban professionals from regional government and rural professionals involved in regional planning, as well as science professionals, and will be an excellent opportunity to showcase success stories in the application of soil knowledge in providing benefits to individuals, community groups and society at large. It will require inspirational speakers who could give an exciting account of their experiences and put them in a broader context, to which lay people could easily relate. It should inspire greater interest in studying soils at tertiary institutions and through post-experience
