The Department of Environmental Sciences at COMSATS University Islamabad, Abbottabad campus, in collaboration with the Soil Sciences Society of Pakistan (SSSP), organized a national seminar on “Innovative Technologies for Soil Management under Changing Climate” on June 15, 2023. The seminar was attended by over a hundred participants, including individuals from academia, the scientific community, and students from various universities such as International Islamic University, BioSciences COMSATS Islamabad, Bahria University, National Agriculture Research Center and WWF Pakistan.

During the welcome speech, Prof. Dr. Zahir Ahmead Zahir the President of SSSP highlighted the importance of the seminar and presented facts and figures regarding the potential damages to soil quality and agricultural productivity caused by climate change. Following the welcome speech, Prof. Dr. Adnan Ahmad Tahir from the Department of Environmental Sciences at COMSATS delivered a thoughtful presentation on the impacts of climate change on glacier melting and glacier lakes, emphasizing its implications for mountain agriculture and water security.

Dr. Aansa Rukya Saleem from the Department of Earth and Environmental Science at Bahria University enlightened the audience on the use of biological tools for soil stress management, focusing on the potency of microbial ACC-deaminase in regulating plant biomass, ethylene, and isoprene emissions. Dr. Qaiser Hussain from the Institute of Soil and Environmental Sciences at PMAS Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi presented his research on a new frontier in soil analysis, using soil spectral libraries and artificial intelligence to predict key soil properties.

Following these presentations, Dr. Azeem Khalid General Secretary of SSSP, conducted a fruitful discussion session with renowned scientists in the field of environment and soil sciences, allowing the audience to engage and exchange ideas. In the closing ceremony, Prof. Dr. Muhammad Maroof Shah, Director of COMSATS Abbottabad, shared his thoughts on the topic and emphasized the need for the scientific community and students to take practical steps and raise awareness about the current and future damages caused by climate change. The campus director also expressed appreciation to SSSP for organizing the event at COMSATS Abbottabad.

As the chief guest in the closing session, Prof. Dr. Malik Mujaddad Ur Rehman, Acting Vice Chancellor of Abbottabad University of Sciences and Technology, commended the campus director and organizers for successfully conducting the event in COMSATS Abbottabad. In his speech, he emphasized the importance of the scientific community in creating awareness among both the local and business communities about the degradation of productive agricultural land due to anthropogenic activities. He highlighted the potential food security issues that may arise in the region if productive land continues to be unavailable.

In the end, Prof. Dr. Muhammad Irshad, Chairman of the Department, expressed his gratitude and delivered a vote of thanks to all the invited speakers, participants, chief guest, campus management, and the organizing committee for their contributions to making the event a resounding success.

After the seminar, Prof. Dr. Farid Ullah, the Head of the Department, expressed his appreciation to his departmental team for their successful organization of the seminar. He acknowledged that the event had provided a valuable platform for fruitful discussions, knowledge sharing, and the identification of innovative technologies for soil management in the face of changing climate conditions.