News & stories

Santiago de Chile  – The UNCCD presented its work at the Rotary Club Vitacura on 21 November, 2018 to discuss the threats, causes and impacts of desertification with the local members of the organization that has over 1 200 000 across five continents. The president of the club Mr. Marcelo Canobra welcomed the head of the UNCCD Regional Coordination Unit for Latin America and the Caribbean Mr. Jose Miguel Torrico and emphasized how important it is for the club members to stay informed on environmental issues and become involved in activities that can help address land degradation in the region, such as reforestation and awareness raising. The meeting concluded with a round of questions and answers on the role that UNCCD plays in the fight against desertification. The participants also proposed that the Rotary Club be accredited as a civil society organization (CSO) to the UNCCD, becoming an advocate for the key UNCCD  issues.  Read more: Achieving land degradation neutrality UNCCD and CSOs Policy making and sustainable land management in Latin America World Day to Combat Desertification celebrated in Ecuador

Ebène, Mauritius – Recognizing the urgent need to address pressing environmental challenges, the representatives of the Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius and the Seychelles gathered for a workshop on 21-22 November 2018 to develop a joint game plan to increase the resilience to natural disasters and ensure food security. The participating Indian Ocean nations have already committed to achieving land degradation neutrality (LDN) and take bold steps to avoid, reduce and reverse land degradation by combating deforestation, soil erosion and soil sealing. Together, the workshop participants have developed steps to sustainably manage the impact of urban agglomerations on the islands’ landscape, reduce the pressure on forest ecosystems by upscaling sustainable agriculture practices and mainstream LDN principles into land use planning.  The workshop, hosted by the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) secretariat and co-organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Global Mechanism of the UNCCD, has also given momentum to the “Neutral Island Initiative” (Neutral-is), which will address the land–water–ocean nexus when building resilience and food security in the region. Read more: Achieving land degradation neutrality Land and SDGs Land and climate change

In May 2019, representatives of 130 governments will be presented, for discussion and possible approval, with a definitive new global synthesis of the state of nature, ecosystems and nature’s contributions to people – the first such report since the landmark Millennium Ecosystem Assessment was published in 2005, and the first ever that is intergovernmental. Prepared by150 leading international experts from 50 countries working with the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), the Global Assessment of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services will inform better policies and actions in the coming decade. The report will be finalized and considered at the seventh session of the IPBES Plenary on 29 April – 4 May 2019). The report will offer an integrated overview of where the world stands in relation to key international goals, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Aichi Biodiversity Targets and the Paris Agreement on climate change. It examines causes of biodiversity and ecosystem change, the implications for people, policy options and likely future pathways over the next three decades if current trends continue, and other scenarios.  In the words of Sir Robert Watson, IPBES Chair, “the loss of species, ecosystems and genetic diversity is already a global and generational threat to human well-being. Protecting the invaluable contributions of nature to people will be the defining challenge of decades to come. Policies, efforts and actions – at every level - will only succeed, however, when based on the best knowledge and evidence. This is what the IPBES Global Assessment provides.” Read more: Assessment primer Land and the SDGs Land and climate change  

Istanbul, Türkiye –  Scientists and experts from West Asia, Central Asia and the Balkans, together with the representatives of the UNCCD, UNEP and WMO, attended the Sixth International Sand and Dust Storm (SDS) workshop on 12-15 November 2018 to discuss the importance of partnerships in addressing SDS, with the focus on anthropogenic source management.  Workshop included presentations on SDS policies, source management, impact mitigation, early warning and forecasting, SDS observation, assessment and modeling. Country delegates also presented best practices in addressing SDS, highlighting the importance of knowledge sharing between countries, national  and international agencies.  Workshop participants agreed that the development of a capacity-building project on SDS sources, monitoring and impact assessment, as well as sand stabilization for affected areas would be the next important step in addressing SDS at the regional level.  Read more: Sand and dust storms Sustainable land management is key to fighting sand and dust storms

The online registration process opens on 22 November 2018 and closes 10 January 2019. Bonn, Germany. For the first time since the adoption of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification in 1994, world governments are meeting to consider the impact of land degradation on people and ecosystems, drawing on data gathered on the ground. The meeting will take place on 28-30 January 2019 in Georgetown, Guyana, during the Seventeenth Session of the Committee for the Review of Implementation of the Convention (CRIC 17). In 2009, scientists recommended, and governments agreed on the 11 indicators to use to measure land degradation. The proportion of the population living above the poverty line, which measures the impact on people, and the change in land cover, which measures the impact on the land, are mandatory.   The indicator on land cover was refined further in 2014 and now measures land cover, soil organic content and net primary productivity. It was made one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) indicators of Life on Land in 2015 because achieving it – known as achieving land degradation neutrality – will ensure there is stability in the amount and quality of land resources necessary to support life on Earth by 2030, and onwards. Further, CRIC 17 will consider, in depth, this and other emerging issues such as drought management, halting forced migration in degraded areas negatively impacted by climate change and progress in promoting gender equality, which are on the agenda of Conference of the Parties -  the governing body of the Convention – that will meet in Fall 2019. CRIC 17 will be preceded by a two-day training some of these issues. Journalists and media organizations are welcome to attend and cover CRIC 17 and the press conferences planned during the meeting. Foreign and local journalists and media organizations require clearance from the UNCCD secretariat to cover the meeting, and are encouraged to review and apply for registration and accreditation as early as possible. The online registration process opens on 22 November 2019. Details about the requirements for participation are provided in the Press Invitation posted online on the CRIC 17 website. Regular updates and resources for participating journalists will be uploaded forthwith. Read More…..    

Budapest, Hungary – The Hungarian Meteorological Service and the Disaster Risk Management Knowledge Center (DRMKC) of the European Commission organized an international training course on drought risk assessment on 6 – 8 November 2018 to discuss the increasing frequency, severity and intensity of droughts in many regions of Europe as a consequence of climate change. The course brought together 50 participants from Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Malta,cNetherlands, Poland, Serbia, Slovenia, Sweden. While national efforts in drought management are mostly concentrated on risk assessment, there is also a considerable variability between countries in approaches and applied methods for risk evaluation. The DRMKC training offered the participants an opportunity to exchange experiences on best practices and get information on recent developments. The main goal of the training was to help member states enhance their preparedness for drought by improving knowledge on drought risks in the region where competition between different water users, such as agriculture, industry, tourism and households, is likely to increase due to existing and expected drought trends. Hungarian national focal point Mr. Peter Molnar, delivered a presentation on the relevance of drought management in Europe and its place on the UNCCD agenda, including the  UNCCD 2018-2030 Strategic Framework, The Drought Initiative and the National Drought Plans. To illustrate the UNCCD institutional results in drought preparedness, he also presented the Drought Management Centre for South-Eastern Europe (DMCSEE), established by the UNCCD and WMO.   Read more: The Drought Initiative Land and drought Land and climate change