Bonn, Germany – The COP Bureau has confirmed the members of the new Intergovernmental Working Group (IWG) on effective policy and implementation measures for addressing drought under UNCCD. They will be working together with the experts appointed by the Parties to form recommendations that will be…

By UNCCD Executive Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw. Published 13 February 2020 by project-sydicate.org Bonn, Germany – For the last decade, bioenergy has been confined to the sidelines of climate-policy debates, owing to the environmental problems associated with its production. But recent innovations have…

Desertification and Drought Day, a United Nations observance day held on 17 June each year, will in 2020 focus on changing public attitudes to the leading driver of desertification and land degradation: humanity’s relentless production and consumption. Read more...

Bonn, Germany – The diminishing capacity of land to support ever-increasing demands of growing human populations is among today's main challenges. The Assessment of land degradation and restoration by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) has…

Bonn, Germany – Senegalese singer and Land Ambassador Baaba Maal visited the UNCCD headquarters at the end of January 2020 to discuss his role as the UNCCD Land Ambassador and the champion of unlocking the potential of African countries to build lasting peace, food security, gender equality and…

2020 Desertification and Drought Day will focus on links between consumption and land This year's global observance event, hosted by Korea Forest Service, will take place online, with a full-day program featuring a variety of exciting events and international talent. Desertification and Drought Day…

Bonn, Germany – A unique global initiative to promote peace through land restoration was signed today by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the Korea Forest Service (KFS). Conflicts over natural resources are among key peace and security challenges of the twenty…

Bonn, 28 January 2020 – A unique global initiative to promote peace through land restoration was signed today by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the Korea Forest Service (KFS). Conflicts over natural resources are among key peace and security challenges of the…

Bonn, Germany – The auditorium at the German Development institute (DIE) quickly filled up on 22 January, as attendees gathered for the drought preparedness event organized in cooperation with UNCCD to discuss ways to shape a better interface between global efforts in disaster management with the…

Countries in Central Asia are highly vulnerable to drought and sand and dust storms (SDS), particularly outside high-elevation areas where the climate is mostly semi-arid to arid. Recognizing the increasing risk of drought and SDS, UNCCD Parties adopted decisions on addressing the negative impact of…

Bonn, Germany — To celebrate 25 years of remarkable positive impact on land, people, communities and society, the UNCCD secretariat launched a collection of land-related commemorative items at UNCCD headquarters in Bonn, Germany. The exhibit embodies the convention's firm commitment to protecting…

Bonn, Germany — Six weeks after the launch of UNCCD Land Anthem, composed and performed by award-winning musicians and UNCCD Land Ambassadors Ricky Kej and Baaba Maal, more than 300 000 people enjoyed the official music video released on World Soil Day, December 5, 2019. We are amazed and incredibly…

The second edition of the International Standards for the Practice of Ecological Restoration was released in September 2019. This groundbreaking publication provides updated and expanded guidance on the practice of ecological restoration, clarifies the breadth of ecological restoration and allied…

Combating land degradation for sustainable agriculture In order to work along the same lines with the 16th and 17th sessions of the third implementation cycle of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) focusing on the issues of Agriculture, Rural development, Land, Drought…

To celebrate 25 years of remarkable positive impact on land, people, communities and society, the UNCCD secretariat launched a collection of land-related commemorative items at UNCCD headquarters in Bonn, Germany. The exhibit embodies the convention's firm commitment to protecting healthy and…

Nouakchott hosted an important conference on Environment and Sustainable Development on Thursday, 26 December 2019. The conference was organized by the “Collectif des Cadres Mauritaniens Expatriés” (CCME) under the theme "Environment and Sustainable Development in Mauritania: Challenges and…

Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) can directly support the achievement of more than three-quarters of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets, according to a new report published by the Global Mechanism of the UNCCD, in collaboration with the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Global…

Land degradation and biodiversity loss are among the most pressing environmental challenges facing humanity. Land degradation has reduced the productivity of nearly one-quarter of the global land surface, impacted the wellbeing of about 3.2 billion people and cost about 10% of annual global gross…

The report “Land Degradation Neutrality for Biodiversity Conservation: How Healthy Land Safeguards Nature” highlights how LDN can address the priorities of both the CBD and the UNCCD in an effective and complementary manner. According to the report, LDN and the CBD’s 2011-2020 Strategic Plan for…

Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) can directly support the achievement of more than three-quarters of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets, according to a new report published by the Global Mechanism of the UNCCD, in collaboration with the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Global…

UN General Assembly (UNGA) unanimously adopted a resolution on the work of UNCCD on 19 December, reaffirming the role of land degradation neutrality (LDN) as a vehicle for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and recognizing the potential of land-based solutions to address climate…

At COP25 in Madrid today, heads of UN agencies met for a high-level leadership dialogue on how to turn the tide on deforestation and committed to the common goal of helping countries reduce deforestation and improve forest management. According to the UN, up to 23 per cent of all greenhouse gas…

"Droughts really are changing the planet, around us. They are one of the worst impacts that we will see in terms of the human impacts of climate change," said Louise Baker, the UNCCD External Relations, Policy and Advocacy Chief at a film screening event, "When the Skies Ran Dry", on 7 December 2019…

Podor, Senegal – UNCCD Land Ambassador and renowned singer Baaba Maal returned to his native Senegal in December to headline the annual Blues de Fleuve festival and make a contribution to the global sustainable development through agriculture. His non-profit organization NANN-K works to bring to…

In an unprecedented public action for a greener future, 650 000 trees have been planted across Azerbaijan on 6 December 2019. This environmental campaign took place at the initiative of Azerbaijan’s First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva to mark the 650 anniversary of the great Azerbaijani poet and…