2017 Summit + SES Meeting June 5th - 9th @ Colorado State University Fort Collins, Colorado elcome to the Ecology of Soil Health Summit and the biennial meeting of the Soil Ecology Society. This meeting comes at a time when interest Win soil health–a concept that embraces not only the importance of soil organic matter content and physical structure, but also the key role of soil biology for productive and efficient agroecosystems–is rapidly growing. In parallel, our scientific understanding of the ecology of the soil system has advanced tremendously in recent years, in many cases challenging longstanding paradigms. This international summit provides a unique opportunity to advance the development and implementation of science- based programs that enhance Soil Health. I hope that all meeting participants come away with a broader perspective, new ideas and new collaborators. It has been my pleasure to help organize this meeting, and I thank you for joining us. Matthew Wallenstein, PhD President, Soil Ecology Society Director, Innovation Center for Sustainable Agriculture Acknowledgements Chairman Matthew Wallenstein Program Assistant Laurie Richards Soil Ecology Society Conference Committee Loren Byrne Samantha Chapman Jen Krumins Michael Weintraub Ecology of Soil Health Summit Committee Nicholas Goeser Mary Beth Miranda Whendee Silver Allison Thomson Local Conference Committee Charlotte Alster Courtland Kelly Yamina Pressler Summit Supporters Summit Advocates The Soil Ecology Society (SES) is an international professional organization dedicated to furthering the science, education and awareness of soil ecology and the importance of soils for human and environmental well-being. Commitment to Diversity Just as healthy soils rely on interactive networks of incredibly diverse organisms, SES depends on all dimensions of human diversity. SES actively promotes participation and inclusion of all individuals regardless of age, gender, gender identity, race, cultural background, religion, physical ability, sexual orientation, professional status, geographic location, and all other characteristics that make our members unique. We strive to cultivate a scientific society of excellence built on mentorship, encouragement, tolerance, and mutual respect. SES is committed to proactively rejecting and denouncing prejudice and stereotyping whenever it is encountered in the Society or the profession. Soil Ecology Society Awards 2017 (sub-committee chair, Becky Ball) Career Achievement Award- Mary Firestone, Service Award- Deborah Neher Early Career Research Award- Thomas Crowther Parkinson Travel Awards (sub-committee chair, Sam Chapman) Lea Carlesso, Roberto Carrera-Martinez, Martha Mary Gebhardt, Brittany McAdams, Daniel Kane, Matthew Reid Board of Directors 2015-2017 Matthew Wallenstein (President) Samantha Chapman (At-Large) Stuart Grandy (Past-President) Felicty Crotty (At-Large) Michael Weintraub (President Elect) Jennifer Krumins (At-Large) Becky Ball (Secretary) Loren Byrne (Communications) Emma Aronson (Treasurer) Amanda Daly (Student Member) Cathy Stewart (Former Treasurer) To feed increasing global populations, global crop production will need to double in the coming decades while minimizing environmental impacts. New innovations are needed to meet emerging sustainability metrics related to nutrient use efficiency, greenhouse gas emissions, soil carbon sequestration without sacrificing yield and farmer profit. To advance truly sustainable agriculture, new technologies and practices must be not only developed, but also broadly adopted. Healthy soils are critical to sustainable farming systems, yet 40% of our agricultural soils are degraded. Agronomic practices and technologies that rebuild our soils can enable enhanced productivity with decreased inputs. Healthy soils are teaming with microbes that enhance nutrient use efficiency and improve plant health—harnessing this natural plant- microbe interaction can hold the key to enhanced farm productivity and sustainability. ICSA’s objective is to catalyze innovations that advance sustainable agriculture and soil health through partnerships with industries, governments, grower organizations, and other academic institutions. Soil Ecology Society Awards 2017 The hallmark of our unique approach is an integrated systems view of agricultural (sub-committee chair, Becky Ball) technology development, adoption and implementation. We combine cutting-edge scientific expertise in soil science, plant biotechnology, the microbiome, and big-data analytics with rigorous socioeconomic analyses. Examples of our current initiatives: Integration of cutting-edge crop and economic models to optimize production systems Application of biogeochemical models to optimize nutrient use efficiency and minimize greenhouse gas emissions An integrated economic and biophysical assessment of organic waste products for soil quality; Development of training programs for the next generation of agricultural innovation scientists; Development of below-ground sensor technologies to improve understanding of plant-soil- microbe interactions. We seek to expand and strengthen our partnerships with corporations and NGO’s in order to incorporate the scientific best practices into sustainability incentive programs, to provide training, and to commercialize new innovations. ICSA aims to be the premier global center for practical innovations in sustainable crop production. Event Agenda June 5th - 7th @ Colorado State University Fort Collins, Colorado Monday June 5th Lory Student Center, Ballroom 350 C & D, Colorado State University 2:00 Welcome: Matthew Wallenstein, Director, Innovation Center for Sustainable Agriculture; President, Soil Ecology Society; Associate Professor, Colorado State University Plenary session: Overview of Soil Health Science & Challenges 2:30 Michael Doane, The Nature Conservancy 3:00 Wim van der Putten, Head, Depart of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology Soil health: from ecological concepts to the Holy Grail of sustainability 3:30 Esther Ngumbi, Auburn University Harnessing science-based soil solutions to revolutionize African Agriculture: Challenges and opportunities. 4:00 Moderated Panel Discussion: What is soil health? How do we manage it? Miles O’Brien, Moderator Keynote panel discussion moderated by Miles O’Brien, Emmy-award winning veteran independent journalist who focuses on science, technology and aerospace. He is the science correspondent for the PBS NewsHour, a producer and director for the PBS science documentary series NOVA, and a correspondent for the PBS documentary series FRONTLINE and the National Science Foundation Science Nation series Monday June 5th (Continued) Lory Student Center, Ballroom 350 C & D, Colorado State University 4:30 IGNITE Session 1: The Science of Soil Health 5 minute lightning talks; selected from submitted abstracts from The Soil Ecology Society Jessica Gutknecht Is your farm ready for the next storm? Soil health as a win-win for sustainability and resiliency to climate change Stephen Wood Can different types of organic matter can have contrasting effects on soil health? Matt Ruark Why isn’t soil ecology considered when developing nitrogen fertilizer recommendations? Loren Byrne Soil health fosters student engagement and deepens environmental literacy in soil ecology education 5:00 Poster Session and reception (appetizers and open bar) POSTER SESSION I Ballroom B, Lory Student Center 5:00 – 7:00 PM S1.1 Kerri Steenwerth, Rachel Greenhut, *Francisco Calderon Fine soil organic matter fractions in wine grape vineyards (Napa, CA) reflect distinctions in soil microbial community composition S1.2 Lisa Windom, Maria Dragila, Noam Weisbrod Carbon dioxide sequestration in karst micro-fissures: the solution of a droplet S1.3 Catherine Stewart, Damaris Roosendaal, Karolien Denef, Louise Comas, Gautam Sarath, Virginia L. Jin, Marty Schmer Seasonal switchgrass ecotype contributions to soil organic carbon, deep soil microbial community composition and rhizodeposit uptake during an extreme drought S1.4 Adi Oren Examination of residual chloroform interference in the measurement of microbial biomass C by fumigation-extraction S1.5 Michael Allen, Michael Taggart, George Rothbart, Thomas Harmon, Rebecca Hernandez, Philip Rundel Peering into the Soil Black Box: A soil ecosystem observatory by rhizosystems, LLC. S1.6 Emily Webster, Amélie Gaudin, Mirjam Pulleman, Pablo Siles, *Steven Fonte Establishment of improved pastures supports early indicators of soil restoration in low-input agroecosystems of Nicaragua S1.7 Adam Cobb, Gail Wilson The influence of agricultural practices on the abundance of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in rural eastern Zambia S1.8 Terry Woodford-thomas, *Sandra Arango-Caro MO DIRT - Missourians Doing Impact Research Together - A citizen science project to monitor soil health in the state of Missouri S1.9 Cam Gudmundson, Louise Egerton Warburton Soil aggregation and organic matter stabilization in green roof systems and implications for C sequestration S1.10 Daniel Kane Estimating soil carbon with open-source VNIR spectroscopy S1.11 Edward Ayres, Natchaya Durden, David Durden, Monique Leclerc, Josh Roberti Mitigating the impact of slow sensor response times on calculating soil CO2 fluxes from NEON’s soil CO2 measurements S1.12 Adam von Haden, Christopher Kucharik, Randall Jackson, Erika Marín-Spiotta Changes in physical protection of soil organic matter following five years of biofuel cropping system cultivation: soil texture matters S1.13 Phil Murray,