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For centuries, we have used nature to live. As a result: Nearly one million species are at risk of extinction. Nearly three quarters of the Earth's ice-free land has been transformed to meet human demands for food, raw materials, and homes. If humans continue to emit greenhouse gases at current rates, global temperature will rise more than 1.5 degrees Celsius target within decades. Today, we need nature to survive. Protecting and restoring nature can help drive a green recovery and prevent future pandemics. Investing in nature-based solutions will allow us to build forward better, greener, healthier, stronger, and more sustainably. The three Rio Conventions on biodiversity, land and climate are joining forces to ensure that each and every one of us takes action in their own environment in order to change the course of the world to restore balance with nature. Learn more about the campaign at the Rio Conventions Pavillion website and follow it on social media: @UNCCD @UNBiodiversity @UNFCCC. Read more: Rio conventions Land and climate Land and biodiversity Solution brief: Restored Land, healthy people, green recovery

This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Ramsar Convention, the intergovernmental treaty which unites 171 countries to protect and use wisely the wetlands and the resources they provide. The Ramsar Convention is the oldest of the modern global intergovernmental environmental agreements. In the fifty years since it was founded, a lot more became known about the importance of wetlands for water security, disaster risk reduction, mitigating climate change, supporting biodiversity and providing livelihoods.  Across the world, wetlands are of great importance to humanity. All agricultural production depends on water which is transported and provided to humankind through wetlands. More than half of the world relies on wetland-grown produce for their staple diet, for example from rice paddies. Wetlands also provide more than a billion livelihoods across the world in an array of activities that also deliver food, water supplies, transport, and leisure. Wetlands loss contributes to poverty and food insecurity. During the months of August and September 2021, the anniversary website is featuring stories and messages on why wetlands are important and what can be done to ensure they are better protected and used. On October 7, the Ramsar secretariat will host an intergenerational dialogue between leaders past and future to create connections across generations to elevate the urgency to protect, conserve and restore wetlands. This anniversary-themed video presents the many benefits of wetlands and gives the overview of the convention's work.  

The international community needs a strong biodiversity framework to guarantee the future we want, says Ibrahim Thiaw, the UN’s top policy advisor on land. “We live on the land and when we degrade it, we erode the soil and compromise the ability to feed ourselves…. We need a framework that is anchored in ecosystem management, particularly in sustainable land management,” he said. “Reviving ecosystems, which includes restoration of the land, is necessary for successful climate and biodiversity action,” he said. He laid out the triple benefits, in terms of real and immediate action, that follow when land is restored. “It reduces potential emissions from the land use sector. It stores carbon in soils and vegetation. And it enhances the ability of communities and ecosystems to withstand climate change, which also benefits biodiversity conservation.” Ibrahim Thiaw, who heads the Convention that addresses desertification, land degradation and drought, made the remarks during the high-level event on sustainable consumption and production patterns. The event, which was streamed live on Monday, 30 August, was hosted by the Government of Colombia, in the context of the post-2020 framework that will be adopted at the UN Biodiversity Conference in Kunming, China, in 2022. The latest science on land and  biodiversity loss, desertification and climate change all shows that changing consumption and production patterns are today the leading drivers of the loss of productive land. In response, 127 countries have committed to restore degrading land over the last six years. Over one billion hectares of land is earmarked for restoration by 2030, of which more than 450 million hectares are commitments by over 100 countries under the Convention’s Land Degradation Neutrality initiative. Read more...

The Convention on Biological Diversity has issued the programme for its next Conference and Meetings of the Parties to be held in Kunming, China. It also opened the registration for media. The conferences (COP15/COP-MOP10/COP-MOP4) are organized in two parts. Part 1 will take place on 11-15 October2021 as a virtual event. It will include an online high-level segment.  The in-person meetings and Part 2 of the conference will resume on 25 April - 8 May 2022. The Parties will conclude negotiations and decide on the new Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. A high-level segment will also take place.  The Open-Ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework will meet online starting next week, 23 August - 3 September 2021, to prepare the advance draft text. A high-level segment is also planned during this session. Decisive in-person meetings that were planned for October in China were paused for a few more months due to the coronavirus pandemic. Online accreditation of media for the events taking place now is available immediately. Accreditation for next years' meeting will open at a future date.  For more information, click here.  

Kick-off meeting of the study "Climate Change, Land Degradation and Migration Nexus in Central Asia" took place on 19 July online, with the UNCCD Secretariat representatives, UNCCD national focal points and experts from Central Asia and Russian Federation. The participants discussed the main objectives and the outline of the future research as well as the work plan and expected outcomes. The study aims to provide evidence on how the increasing land degradation and climate change on land-dependent economic sectors in five Central Asian countries affects availability of resources and jobs, driving out-migration and, in some cases, instability. Central Asia is becoming a new hotspot for environmental and social challenges. The combination of rapid population growth, increased urban pressures, poverty and dependence on the agricultural sector  for over 50 per cent of the population together with environmental and climate crises, lead to growing migration and social risks. COVID-19 outbreak has amplified existing socio-economic problems in the region, leading to disruptions in food supply and increasing vulnerability of rural communities, as well as massive return of labor migrants and loss of jobs. The meeting participants agreed on the importance and timeliness of the study, which results will be presented at the upcomingConference of the Parties in May 2022. The interlinkages between land degradation and migration are embedded in the main objectives of the Delhi Initiative of the Central Asian countries and the Russian Federation, which set up the Interregional Group "Central Asia – Russia" at theprevious UNCCD COP14. The research project is implemented by the Institute of Geography of the Russian Academy of Sciences and financed by the voluntary contribution from Russian Federation.

Königswinter, Germany – On Friday 6th of March, the Capacity Development & Innovations Office (CDIO) of the Secretariat of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) was welcomed at the CJD Königswinter School for a very special event. The occasion was the first ever film screening  organized by the CDIO to raise awareness about the UNCCD, the protection of the environment  and sustainable development. This event saw the screening of “Wild Karnataka”, a cinematographic masterpiece that presents the flora, fauna, and natural beauty of the Indian state of Karnataka in breathtaking pictures. Wild Karnataka is a 52-minutes film, narrated by Sir David Attenborough. It is a brilliant documentary, suitable for viewing by the entire public, and is a visual celebration of the wildlife and ecosystems of Karnataka that we must protect. This film reinforces the crucial importance of the realization of Sustainable Development Goal 15: Life on Land. The event heard brief remarks from Head of the CDIO, Dr. Richard A. Byron-Cox who introduced the presenter of the film and its soundtrack composer, Grammy award-winning artist and UNCCD Land Ambassador, Indian national, Ricky Kej, who was the special guest of the occasion. The screening was a wonderful opportunity to raise awareness of Karnataka’s rich biodiversity, as well as to share its linkage with the UNCCD goals. The audience was totally engrossed by the film following which Dr. Byron-Cox and Ambassador Kej fielded questions from the young audience who fully engaged a series of queries on issues such as the role of the UNCCD in sustainable development and what they can do to help protect the environment. The CDIO is certain that these sorts of events and visits are key to raise awareness, engaging the public at large including the youngest in supporting the UNCCD; and addressing the achievement of global sustainable development. In the end, everyone present agreed that we are all required to preserve our beautiful planet, its biodiversity and land. The CDIO has among its chief aims providing inspiration to the youth to play their part in promoting the importance of land globally. The entire CDIO composing of the Head of the office, Dr. Richard A. Byron-Cox, Sandrine Rastetter, J. Daniel Gonzalez Carmena, Ana Marques, Jorge Sanz, Mariya-Yelyzaveta Tserkovnyuk, Nicolo Accame, Eldhos Vakkanal and Alejandra Peña Vasquez, being officers, consultants and interns, respectively. This multicultural Team comprises people representing countries from all over the world i.e.: St. Vincent and the Grenadines, France, Spain, Portugal, Ukraine, Italy, Japan, India and Colombia.