Jaume Porta Casanellas (Barcelona, 1944 – Lleida, 2023) was one of the leading driving forces behind soil science in Catalonia and an internationally recognised figure in the field of soli edaphology. An agricultural engineer trained at the Polytechnic University of Madrid, he specialised in soil studies under the guidance of Carlos Roquero, with whom he shared an applied and integrated vision of the discipline.

Public awareness of the importance of forests in land preservation hugely increased thanks to his efforts, which he did by writing a number of articles, most importantly, an article published in La Vanguardia in 1898 (‘Patriotism and the Tree’). A year later, the first festival of the tree in Barcelona was celebrated in 1899 thanks to his initiative, then consolidated by royal decree in 1915 when it Arbour Day was established as a compulsory celebration in Spain.