Earth’s buried wealth: uncovering global soil biodiversity

Soils harbor more than half the biodiversity of our planet, yet they are underappreciated and often unprotected. Among the initiatives promoting the sustainable use and conservation of soil biodiversity is the International Network on Soil Biodiversity (NETSOB - https://www.fao.org/global-soil-partnership/netsob/en/), a Technical Network of the Global Soil Partnership (GSP) within the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) that promotes the sustainable use and conservation of soil biodiversity. NETSOB, together with its chairs and members, initiated this special issue named “Highlights from the International Network on Soil Biodiversity” that covers advancements in soil biodiversity research, and provides insights into its ecological, economic, and policy dimensions. The articles included in this special issue cover topics such as the current knowledge of soil biodiversity worldwide, bibliometric analyses on ecosystem services provided by soil biodiversity, as well as on the state of global micro-, meso- macro- and megafauna biodiversity, the potential threats to soil biodiversity, and information on the establishment of the Global Soil Biodiversity Observatory (GLOSOB), an initiative established to assess and monitor soil biodiversity, and forecast changes in soil biodiversity worldwide. The articles in this special issue highlight the knowledge gaps in soil biodiversity, including the connections between specific components of soil biodiversity and parameters such as threats, ecosystem services and soil degradation, and value and limitations of using soil respiration and soil organic carbon as a proxy to infer soil biodiversity. We suggest that recognizing and preserving soil biodiversity is a matter of safeguarding our own future and the health of our planet.