UNCCD Terminology

A period of dry weather long enough to cause a serious hydrological imbalance. The UNCCD defines drought as “the naturally occurring phenomenon that exists when precipitation has been significantly below normal recorded levels, causing serious hydrological imbalances that adversely affect land resource production systems.

Class of drought intensity as described by a drought index. For UNCCD reporting, drought intensity class refers to classes of Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) values by drought intensity: mild drought (0 to -0.99), moderate drought (-1 to -1.49), severe drought (-1.5 to -1.99) and extreme drought (less than -2). As the intensity classes become increasingly extreme, the likelihood of those values occurring (and the time spent in that category) decreases. See also ‘Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI)’

Mitigation is the lessening or minimizing of the adverse impacts of a hazardous event, in this case drought. Mitigation measures include engineering techniques and hazard-resistant construction as well as improved environmental and social policies and public awareness. It should be noted that, in climate change policy, “mitigation” is defined differently, and is the term used for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions that are the source of climate change.

The knowledge and capacities developed by governments, response and recovery organizations, communities and individuals to effectively anticipate, respond to and recover from the impacts of likely, imminent or current droughts.

The restoring or improving of livelihoods and health, as well as economic, physical, social, cultural and environmental assets, systems and activities, of a drought-affected community or society, aligning with the principles of sustainable development and “build back better”, to avoid or reduce future drought risk.

Actions taken directly before, during or immediately after a drought in order to save lives, reduce health impacts, ensure public safety and meet the basic subsistence needs of the people affected.

Drought risk management (DRM) is the process of data and information gathering for risk analysis and evaluation; appraisal of options; and making, implementing, and reviewing decisions to reduce, control, accept, or redistribute drought risks. It is a continuous process of analysis, adjustment and adaptation of policies and actions to reduce drought risk, including reducing the vulnerability and enhancing the resilience of the receptors threatened. DRM focuses on delivering a drought-resilient society by reducing drought risks and promoting environmental, societal and economic opportunities now and in the longer term. It recognizes that risks can never be removed entirely and that reducing risk may be at the expense of other societal goals

Arid, semi-arid or dry sub-humid areas, in which the ratio of mean annual precipitation to mean annual potential evapo-transpiration lies between 0.05 and 0.65. Areas with a ratio of less than 0.05 are considered hyper-arid deserts.

Interacting biological, chemical and geo-physical processes that underpin the provision of ecosystem services.

A dynamic complex of plant, animal and micro-organism communities and their non-living environment interacting as a functional unit.

The benefits that people obtain from ecosystems. These include: a) provision services such as supply of nutritious food and water; b) regulating services such as climate change mitigation, flood management and disease control; c) cultural services such as spiritual, recreational, and cultural benefits; and d) supporting services, such as nutrient cycling, that maintain the conditions for life on Earth

The sustainable management, conservation, and restoration of ecosystems with the aim of enabling these ecosystems to provide services that mitigate hazards, reduce vulnerability, and increase livelihood resilience.

Ecotourism is defined as responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment, sustains the well-being of the local people, and involves interpretation and education. Education is meant to be inclusive of both staff and guests.

The extent to which the objectives of the policy measure or the desertification-related development intervention were achieved, or are expected to be achieved, taking into account their relative importance.

A measure of how economically resources/inputs (funds, expertise, time, etc.) are converted to results

An 'optimized' vegetation index for use with remote sensing data, similar to NDVI. It is designed to enhance the vegetation signal with improved sensitivity in high biomass regions.