Technical Abstract: EuroSoil2012 was convened in Bari ITALY from 2-6 July 2012 as the 4th International Congress of the European Confederation of Soil Science Societies (ECSSS). The theme of EuroSoil2012 as “soil science for the benefit of mankind and environment” aimed to cover several broad aspects of soil science with relevance to how humans treat, interact, and respond to their environment. With the pedosphere (soil science) at the heart of interactions with the biosphere (plants, animals, and microorganisms), the atmosphere (air), the hydrosphere (water), and the lithosphere (rocks and minerals), soil science is a key discipline that attempts to and must integrate across a broad wealth of information sources and spatial and temporal scales. Another significant event that was held concurrently at the EuroSoil2012 congress was a series of business meetings between the Croplands Research Group and the Carbon and Nitrogen Crosscutting Group of the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases. A total of 2289 presentations (660 oral and 1629 posters) were jam-packed into a full five days of the congress. Scientific delegates exchanged ideas in sit-down oral presentations and stand-up poster presentations from early in the morning until late in the evening each day. Discussions were intense, because so much useful scientific information was communicated among seasoned colleagues and younger students, all of whom were engaged in one of the key ecosystem elements that most vitally supports mankind and the environment – the soil.