Learn about soils, the variety of life they contain and how humans impact this fragile system, with this free online course. Soils are a complex environment, teeming with life and supporting our most fundamental environmental processes. We will take a journey through the soil, learning about the basics of soil science and also about life in the soil. We will look at why soil is so important and investigate threats to soil - a topic relevant to the past and present.
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Finally we will learn about how and why soils are under threat at a local and global scale.
You will also get the chance to get your hands dirty with some activities to give you practical experience of assessing soil properties and conditions.
Soils are really important. How much do you know about the world beneath our feet?
What topics will you cover?
- Basic soil science - what is soil made of
- Soil organisms - why soil microbes are so important
- The rise and fall of civilisations and how they depend on soils
- The impact of climate change on soils
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you'll be able to...
- Develop an understanding of what soil is made of and how it forms
- Describe soil texture including how to test it yourself
- Explore the variety and diversity of life in the soil
- Evaluate the importance of soils throughout history
- Identify threats to soil security
- Assess threats of global environmental change to soils
