During the United Nations General Assembly's 58th Ordinary Session in 2003, a decision was adopted declaring 2006 the International Year of Deserts and Desertification (IYDD) to profile Desertification as a Major Thread to Humanity.

Ms. Wangari Maathai of Kenya, 2004 Nobel Peace Laureate; H.E. Mr. Cherif Rahmani, Minister of Environment of Algeria and President of the Foundation “Déserts du Monde”; and Mr. Hristo Stoitchkov, Bulgarian international football star and winner of the Golden Boot in Europe in 1990 were selected as the Honorary Spokespersons for the IYDD.

Following the joint circular sent by the Executive Secretary of the UNCCD and the Director General of the Universal Postal Union (UPU), encouraging the issuance of commemorative stamps on the occasion of the IYDD, the postal administrations of Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Brazil, Egypt, China, El Salvador, the Holy See, Portugal, Spain and Turkey issued such stamps.

Many events, exhibitions, conferences, festivals have taken place during the IYDD among which:
International exhibition “The deserts” (30 March to 8 October 2006, Rosenheim, Germany). This exhibition was part of the Bavarian contribution to the celebration of the IYDD. By the time the exhibition closed, more than 200,000 people had visited it

International film festival “Desert Nights: Tales from the Desert” (1–7 December 2006, Rome, Italy). The aim of this international film festival was to raise awareness and inform the public at large, through the magic of cinema, about the daily lives, the stories, the struggles and the dreams of the people of the drylands.

The International Year of Deserts and Desertification ( IYDD ) provided a unique opportunity for awareness rising on a truly global scale and through a variety of stakeholders, including Parties, observers, international organizations and NGOs. As such, it made a substantial contribution to ongoing efforts to raise the profile and visibility of the land degradation issue in the international sustainable development agenda, and confirmed the active commitment of numerous institutional partners to fully integrate and mainstream the desertification agenda in their respective areas of intervention and programme of work.

Three worlds one world, a vulnerable world North, South, East or West no matter where we live, we all have one thing in common: dependency on basic natural resources for our survival. This is the important message of this exhibition which highlights not only our vulnerability as human beings living on a fragile planet, but also our duty as one human family sharing this earth to help each other protect its natural assets. One of these unique assets is soil. Although often ignored as such, there is no mistaking the fact that it constitutes a commodity as rare and important as the air we breathe or the water we drink. The rapid loss of the earth s topsoil is accelerating the problem of desertification and threatening the livelihoods of over one billion people worldwide. Its physical effects can be felt thousands of kilometres away from affected areas and it has equally far-reaching economic and social consequences. By designating 2006 the International Year of Deserts and Desertification, the United Nations General Assembly has issued a timely reminder to us all of the need to preserve the land upon which, ultimately, we all depend for our existence. While our natural resources are unevenly distributed, those of us living in areas of abundance cannot afford to be complacent. Rather, it is incumbent upon us all to become involved in protecting our environment. This exhibition is a worthy example of what individuals can do to raise awareness of the issue. Only through a common effort to protect our earth s resources can we build a secure future for ourselves and for generations to come