Considering that the world’s drylands is home to more than 2 billion people and being concerned that many drylands are subject to desertification as a result of extended droughts, climate change and human activities, new scientific challenges and opportunities for research and development have emerged. The recent scientific results need to be addressed in order to promote sustainable development through action plans for combating desertification.

On Tuesday, January 22, 2008, Ghent University received the honour to be selected for the establishment of a UNESCO Chair of Eremology (science of drylands and desertification). As a follow-up of the inauguration of the ‘UNESCO Chair on Eremology’, the International Centre for Eremology (ICE) and the Belgian Expert Group on Desertification (Belgian Development Cooperation) organized the ‘Conference on Desertification’ on 23 January 2008 at the Faculty of Bioscience Engineering of Ghent University, Belgium.

The conference focused on recent research findings from the following main topics: (1) desertification and climate, (2) methods for assessing and monitoring desertification, (3) combating desertification.

The results were presented in 11 oral papers and 30 posters, the latter being given ample attention. More than one hundred participants attended the one-day conference and papers were selected for publication in the proceedings of that conference, printed with support of the Belgian Development cooperation.