Great article.
People who want to help improve the soil in their environs need to start by studying local soils.
Every ecosystem is different. What may be good for one area may be bad for another.
There is not a general rule that says "X is good" and "Y is bad."
For example, there are a few ecosystems where fire is good for ecosystem.
Another example is that many people buy earth worms on the Internet with the goal of improving their soil.
If the earthworms are not native to your local ecosystem, then the can wreak havoc by destroying local composters. It is better to discover the native composters before importing invasive species to compost the soil.
As for what I do: I mulch most of my yard waste. To start my mulch pile, I went out and found some rich soil by a remote mountain stream and used that instead of earthworms.
I burn some of the yard waste in my rocket stove and add the ashes back to the soil. A little ash from burnt yard waste usually helps the soil.
!BEER