Can soil save us from our disastrous climate trajectory? While the search continues for natural and technological ways to remove carbon from the atmosphere, we seem to have forgotten just how much can be stored in the ground beneath our feet.

Soil holds an estimated 2,500 gigatons of carbon, which is more than all carbon in the atmosphere and in plants combined – and scientists believe it could sequester billions more tons annually through more sustainable agricultural and land use practices.

In this episode, originally released in June 2022, we quiz one of the world’s foremost soil scientists, 2020 World Food Prize recipient Rattan Lal, on why soil has been overlooked for so long – and how we can start to tap into all the benefits it can bring.