Soils play a fundamental role in our daily lives, professions, and routines. However, with one-third of the world’s soils now degraded and increasing demands on them to provide essential ecosystem goods and services, raising public awareness about their significance is crucial to ensuring their protection for future generations.
Last year, Dr Dan Evans, Lecturer in Soil Science at Cranfield University, introduced the UK’s first ‘Talking Soil Benches.’ These benches, which feature an integrated speaker system, are designed to share a sequence of informative audio tracks. Commonly placed at sites of public interest or along nature trails, Talking Benches offer visitors an engaging way to learn about the local environment. In this case, listeners embark on an intriguing journey to discover the fascinating soils beneath their feet.
In December 2024, one of the two Talking Soil Benches currently installed on the Cranfield University campus went on location to Cardiff. Its first stop was the Glamorgan Cricket Club, to greet delegates arriving for the British Society of Soil Science Annual Conference. As well as a celebration of World Soil Day, users were able to listen to an eco-acoustic recording of an earthworm, provided by Soil Acoustics Limited, a new venture launched by Baker Consultants Ltd.
After the BSSS Annual Conference, the Talking Soil Bench was transferred to Bute Park, close to Cardiff Castle, providing the public with a unique opportunity to learn about soils, as well as some of the activities that took place at the conference. Over its period at Bute Park, the Talking Soil Bench was used by over 150 users. That brings the total number of listens since the launch of the Talking Soil Bench to just under 1,000 since September 2024.
Looking ahead to 2025, plans are in place for the Talking Benches to embark on a mini tour across the UK.
If you are interested in the project and would like to learn more, please reach out to Dr Dan Evans at Daniel.L.Evans@cranfield.ac.uk
