How the Changwon Initiative powers the Peace Forest vision

In a world where tensions often flare over shrinking resources, the Peace Forest Initiative (PFI) offers a quiet revolution. Launched by the UNCCD in 2019, the initiative brings together countries — sometimes even former adversaries—to restore degraded land and rebuild trust through nature.

This isn’t about top-down diplomacy. It’s about neighbors planting trees side by side, transforming contested borders into corridors of collaboration. The logic is powerful: when land thrives, so do the communities that depend on it. Healthy soil, clean water and green landscapes can help stabilize economies, improve food security and reduce the risk of displacement or violence.

From vision to action: The role of the Changwon Initiative

While the Peace Forest Initiative officially launched in 2019, its foundation was laid out much earlier — in 2011 — through the Changwon Initiative, a visionary programme led by the UNCCD and the Korea Forest Service (KFS). Between 2018 and 2020, Changwon provided critical start-up support, from technical expertise to catalytic funding, helping translate the PFI concept into action. Since then, the Korea Forest Service has continued to fund and expand the initiative, enabling it to grow its reach and ambition.

Restoring land, rebuilding trust

At its core, the Peace Forest Initiative turns contested land into common ground. In regions fractured by conflict, shared reforestation projects are rewriting narratives—replacing suspicion with collaboration. Here, planting a tree isn’t just ecology; it’s diplomacy.

In places once marked by mistrust, shared reforestation is opening doors to cooperation — helping communities see one another not as threats, but as partners.

This approach is gaining traction. Countries like Bosnia and Herzegovina, Indonesia, Timor-Leste and several in Central Asia are exploring ways to join the initiative. Their interest sends a powerful message: even in regions touched by instability or division, land restoration can become a tool for healing.

Central Asia’s dust storm diplomacy

In March 2024, the Peace Forest Initiative brought together all five Central Asian nations — Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan — for a landmark workshop in Tashkent. The stakes were high: sand and dust storms choke the Ferghana Valley, water scarcity threatens high mountain regions and climate stress is intensifying across borders.

But the Tashkent meeting was more than technical — it was political. For the first time, these countries agreed to share transboundary data on environmental risks, a breakthrough after years of mutual caution. They also outlined joint strategies to align their efforts with the Rio Conventions on land, climate and biodiversity, and pledged to prioritize regional cooperation at UNCCD COP16.

“This wasn’t just about trees,” said one delegate. “It was about building a common language for peace.” The message was clear: in a region once marked by mistrust, restoring land is becoming a path toward restoring relationships.

Greening borders and shaping policy

Beyond the local impact, the Peace Forest Initiative is helping shift how global institutions think about land. Land restoration is no longer just about conservation or carbon — it’s increasingly seen as a pathway to peace. As a result, international organizations like the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) are beginning to integrate land restoration into their peacebuilding agendas.

The PFI has also influenced policymaking more broadly. A roadmap has been developed to help other countries design and implement their own peace-driven restoration efforts. And the goals of the initiative are now aligned with key global commitments such as Land Degradation Neutrality and Sustainable Development Goal 16, which promotes peace, justiceand strong institutions.

A model for the future

With strong backing from the Korea Forest Service and the strategic vision provided by the Changwon Initiative, the Peace Forest Initiative is poised to grow. Its next chapter includes expanding into transboundary regions affected by desertification and resource stress, deepening partnerships with local communities to ensure long-term impact and developing new financing models to attract private sector investment.

A legacy rooted in hope

In an era defined by environmental stress and geopolitical uncertainty, the Peace Forest Initiative offers something rare: a solution that is both tangible and transformative. By restoring the land, we restore the conditions for peace. And in that shared soil of effort and purpose, trust can grow.

As more countries step forward to take part, the PFI reminds us that peace does not have to be negotiated in conference rooms alone. Sometimes, it begins with the quiet act of planting a tree — together.