Lunch seminar "Soils and Civilizations" by Iain Young

Along with water, soils are the most important natural resource in the planet. Many ancient civilisations whilst recognising this fact were not able to grasp the additional fact that soils are a finite resource. This talk will present the consequences of civilisations, past and present, of failing to take account the fragility of Earths soils. Case studies will be presented and the interactions of the use of soil linked to poor political decisions will be explained in the context of the failure of large populations to survive around the world. The talk will draw on the work of Jarrod Diamond and Timothy Egan.