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A simple theory of ‘desertification’ is found inadequate for understanding the complexity, diverse patterns and flexibility of farmers’ responses to change in environmental conditions and population growth in the Sahel. These include long-term transitions in farming practices, in management of natural resources and in income diversification. This paper reviews evidence relating to deforestation,…

A great many debates have grown up around the notion of desertification as a process of degradation that affects the arid, semi-arid and sub-humid zones of the globe. A fundamental and continuing debate has been over whether desertification actually exists and, if so, how it might be defined, measured and assessed. Rather than simply review the evolution of these debates we examine the contexts…

Desertification is the result of complex interactions among various factors, including climate change and human activities. However, previous research generally focused on either meteorological factors associated with climate change or human factors associated with human activities, and lacked quantitative assessments of their interaction combined with long-term monitoring. Thus, the roles of…

The idea of migration as an adaptation strategy has gained traction in the debates on climate change and mobility. It emphasises migrants’(economic) agency and praises remittances as source of funding for household and community resilience. The environmental determinism of the previously dominant narratives on ‘climate refugees’ gives way to more accurate understanding of how environmental…

Interactions between climate change, environmental degradation and population movements in the West African Sahel have received a great deal of scholarly attention in recent years. Since the majority of the population living in Sahelian countries depend on subsistence and small-scale farming, climate changes such as increasing temperatures and declining rainfall pose considerable risks to their…

Despite many important success stories around the planet, there is general disappointment at the overall impact of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (hereinafter: UNCCD) during its first 20 years, with soil degradation still a challenge for land managers throughout much of the world's drylands. Calls for a new protocol under the UNCCD that will ensure “Zero Net Land…