Women in Soil Science: Growing Participation, Emerging Gaps, and the Opportunities for Advancement in the USA

Abstract

The soil science discipline has undergone significant changes since its establishment in the 1900s; from strong connections with agronomy to a broader focus on ecosystems, earth, and environmental sciences while also during this period experiencing a notable increase in diversity among soil scientists. In this review, we explore soil science from the perspective of gender demographics and disciplinary foci of soil scientists. We examine graduate student enrollment metrics; employment information in academia, the federal government, and the private sector; and membership data from SSSA to gain deeper insight into these changes and the implications for the future of soil science. Women earn nearly half of the advanced soil science degrees. The number of women pursuing soil science careers has also increased, albeit less markedly, as women now comprise 24, 26, and 20% of the soil scientists in academic faculty positions, federal agencies, and private industry, respectively. However, there is reason for concern that women linger in intermediate levels of employment, and further attrition occurs along the career ladder with only ~18% of the highest employment levels held by women; even fewer reach executive leadership levels in any sector. The growing participation of women in soil science is further reflected in a nearly 45% increase in female membership and meeting attendance in SSSA over the past decade, but recognition of their accomplishments and their presence in SSSA leadership positions remains low. We provide recommendations toward greater inclusion and gender diversity as this represents an important pathway to grow and innovate our science.

Undergraduate degrees that train students for soil science careers at universities in the USA and its territories

“…The Certified Professional Soil Scientist criteria established by the Soil Science Society of America could have also been used as the evaluation criteria (Soil Science Society of America, 2020) but these are very similar to the OPM 0470 standard and are likely to yield similar results. Therefore, the OPM 0470 standard was used because it provides uniform criteria and because the federal government employs a large number of soil scientists (Vaughan et al., 2019) hired under this standard. Additional discussion of potential ways to evaluate degrees that prepare students to work as soil scientists can be found in Brevik (2019).…”

Towards diverse representation and inclusion in soil science in the United States

“…LGBTQ+ STEM professionals reported greater feelings of acceptance and openness in STEM fields with greater participation of women. Given this, we suggest that the low numbers of women in soil science (Vaughan et al, 2019) may contribute to a less inclusive culture for LGBTQ+ soil scientists. Until recently, the lack of federal protection in employment discrimination (Bostock vs. Clayton County, Georgia, 2020) prevented open self-identification of LGBTQ+ individuals and forced these individuals to weigh potential employment loss with being out about their identity.…”

Disproportionate Effects of the Pandemic: Why It Matters and What You Can Do

“…Although the number of women and minorities has increased in SSSA (women increasing by almost 43% in the last decade; Vaughan et al., 2019), our total membership numbers are stagnant or falling, and we need to attract and retain more members to remain sustainable. Younger members are typically more diverse and represent the future of our discipline, especially as we face new challenges in urban soil science and climate change.…”