Deadline: 30 Sept 2020
Food and Agriculture Organizations of the United Nations (FAO) is inviting applications for the King Bhumibol World Soil Day Award to encourage organizers of WSD events at all levels to facilitate challenging and outstanding celebrations around the globe.
The 6th GSP Plenary Assembly endorsed the establishment of the annual King Bhumibol World Soil Day Award (WSDA), as a recognition tool for individuals and/or institutions that have made an effort to organize successful celebrations.
The Award is sponsored by the Kingdom of Thailand, the champion country in the establishment of the now-famous World Soil Day. The UN General Assembly decided in December 2013 to officially designate 5 December as World Soil Day to acknowledge the lifelong work and commitment of His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand who has significantly contributed to improving the quality of lives of millions through sustainable soil management.
Eligibility Criteria
- The Award may be granted to individuals, institutions, NGOs, academia, colleges and universities, private companies or any other entities;
- A wide range of WSD events can be considered for the award. The event has to follow the WSD theme of the year and has to take place between 1 – 15 Dec.
How is the World Soil Day Award Laureate selected?
The organizers should take into consideration the following selection criteria: commitment, public engagement and outreach, awareness raising, inter-institutional work, involvement of the press and media, impact at global, regional, national levels, and the inclusion of educational efforts in their planned activities (if possible). Below is a brief description of the process involved in selecting the World Soil Day Award Laureate.
- June – Launch of the WSDA campaign. Organizers can submit the report to the GSP Secretariat (Download the call for application 2020) of the WSD event organized in the previous year.
- 30 September – Deadline for submission. The completed nomination forms must reach the GSP Secretariat by post or email no later than 30 September. The GSP Secretariat will pre-screen the applications based on the above mentioned selection criteria and prepare a short list of the most qualified nominees.
- October – Assessment by the Selection Committee. The GSP Secretariat will send the shortlisted nominees to the Selection Committee of the World Soil Day Award for their assessment of the candidates’ work and for the final selection of the winner.
- November – The name of the World Soil Day Laureate is announced.
- December – Award of the prize to the World Soil Day Laureate. The Ceremony will take place every year on 5 December in Thailand, during which the WSD Laureate is presented with the World Soil Day Medal, a prize of 15,000 USD and a paid trip to Thailand.
For more information, visit http://www.fao.org/world-soil-day/wsd-award/en/