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This year's  Land for Life Award goes to Familial Forestry of Rajasthan, India, a unique concept of Shyam Sunder Jyani, Associate Professor for Sociology at in Rajasthan that relates a tree with a family, making it  a green "family member." Placing a family at the cornerstone of society, the concept ensures the success of any social campaign. Familial Forestry means transferring the care of tree and environment in the family so that a tree becomes a part of the family’s consciousness. More than a million families from more than 15,000 villages of desert-prone northwest Rajasthan in over 2.5 million saplings have been planted in the past 15 years, with active participation of students and desert dwellers.  "The journey of desertland Rajasthan towards a lush green Rajasthan has been a dream for me, and Familial Forestry is my dedicated endeavor in this direction." — ShyamSunder Jyani, founder of Familial Forestry. 2021 Land for Life Special Mention  The special nomination has been awarded by the UNCCD Executive Secretary Mr. Ibrahim Thiaw to the Global Landscapes Forum in recognition of the exceptional work as one the world’s largest knowledge-led platforms on sustainable and inclusive landscapes.  "Land degradation and desertification is a multi-faceted problem where single sectoral approaches won’t work. By working together, across sectors and regions we can restore the balance between people, animals, and the environment to sustain productivity in these ecosystems, while supporting the aspirations of the next generation. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with UNCCD to restore and protect the biodiversity and livelihoods of the world’s drylands." — Robert Nasi, Director General of the Center for International Forestry Research, which leads GLF together in collaboration with co-founders UNEP, World Bank and Charter Members. The Land for Life Award ceremony will take place in August at the Eighth Kubuqi International Desert Forum in China. The award winner will also have an opportunity to present their work at the UNCCD Fifteenth Conference of the Parties UNCCD COP15. Learn more: Land for Life Award Land for Life Programme Familial Forestry Greater Sahel call to fund 5 new GLFx chapters

The UNCCD participated the Structured Expert Dialogue of the UNFCCC second Periodic Review to help identify gaps and opportunities in the efforts to keep global warming in check below 1.5 degrees. Together with representatives of CBD and WHO they outlined the linkages between the work of their agencies and climate change, illustrating the major challenges and potential solutions, while a representative of the GEF described their approach to supporting countries in addressing many of these challenges. The UNCCD described the potential for Land Degradation Neutrality to deliver multiple benefits while ensuring no further land degradation in net terms. The secretariat experts also outlined pathways to boost nature-positive production systems and catalyze global efforts to turn restoration commitments in to action on the ground. The UNCCD team introduced the ongoing work of PBL in developing a restoration scenario which will be published as part of the 2nd Edition of the Global Land Outlook. Watch the full recording here...

As the world continues to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic, one fact has never been more evident – our world, our planet and our lives are inextricably interconnected. There are very few issues that can be considered simply “health problems,” as nearly every aspect of life is connected to other societal, economic and environmental issues. While we recognize the negative impact of tobacco on our health, we tend to think less frequently about the economic impact of tobacco use on health costs and productivity losses. What is even less well known is how tremendously destructive tobacco cultivation and tobacco use is for the environment – on land, water and air.

This journey for ELYX, the UN’s Digital Ambassador, begins on World Bee Day, 20 May 2021, with more stops ahead – the International Biodiversity Day on 22 May and World Environment Day on 5 June, and finally a celebration of Desertification and Drought Day on 17 June. ELYX is working with UNCCD to get the world’s private sector organizations excited and involved in both the 2021 Desertification and Drought Day and the Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, which runs from 2021 to 2030. UNCCD and ELYX are inviting private sector organizations around the world to commit to supporting one or more of the 12 targets of Sustainable Development Goal 15, Life on Land. ELYX was born in 2011 as an artistic project of renowned French artist Yacine Ait Kaci (YAK), became an Instagram influencer and in 2014 was appointed the first United Nations Digital Ambassador. UNCCD and ELYX will reach out to the private sector to bring their attention to the High-Level Dialogue on Desertification, Land Degradation and Drought hosted by Mr. Volkan Bozkir, the seventy-fifth President of the United Nations General Assembly (PGA) to bring together Heads of State and Government to map the actions for the next ten years of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, after assessing the progress made to reduce the loss of productive land during the the United Nations Decade for Deserts and the Fight Against Desertification that ended in 2020. ELYX's journey begins on the World Bee Day because bees are essential to keep our land healthy. Their disappearance  is a powerful signal that land is degrading. Protecting habitats of key pollinators such as bees is necessary to keep land productive and the entire ecosystem healthy – a cornerstone of sustainable post-pandemic recovery. Next, ELYX will join the international community to celebrate and launch of the UN Decade for Ecosystem Restoration 5 June. Together with UNCCD, he is inviting private companies to become part of the global movement of citizens backing governments to put life back into the one billion hectares of land that are no longer producing. On 17 June UNCCD will profile companies that respond to this invitation by announcing their commitments to leave Earth with better prospects for healthier and more productive future on land. For more information about the event contact Ms. Wagaki Wischnewski wwischnewski@unccd.int For information about how to get involved contact Mr. Marcos Montoiro mmontoiro@unccd.int

  Protecting and restoring nature can help drive a green recovery and prevent future pandemics. Investing in nature-based solutions, specifically land restoration, will allow us to build forward better, greener, healthier, stronger, and more sustainably. COVID-19 has revealed how vulnerable our societies and economies are to global, systemic risk. Its root causes - land degradation, biodiversity loss, and climate change – are interlinked. Furthermore, they are planetary crises in themselves. The pandemic, rooted as it is in exploitation of the environment, has been a devastating but timely wake-up call. It has shown that if we continue to abuse nature, waves of crises will cascade across our economies and societies. On the other hand, it has also shown that we can respond decisively when political will, collective action and sustained investment are aligned. Today, more than ever, societies are ready for change; there is broad consensus that it is not only desirable but possible to build forward better, towards sustainable development anchored in multilateralism and global solidarity. Land restoration is an essential component of any building-forward strategy. In preparation for the UN PGA High-level event on desertification, land degradation and drought, the UNCCD secretariat prepared a brief that presents land-centered solutions for green recovery post COVID-19. Read more: High-level dialogue on desertification, land degradation and drought Role of land in COVID response  

Patricia Kombo is a young social entrepreneur and a climate activist from Kenya. She studied journalism at Moi University and is known for her tree planting activities, especially her nonprofit PaTree Initiative that planted over 10,000 trees as of 2020. She is actively engaging school students in tree planting and nature conservation and strongly believes in educating them on the benefits of sustainable living. During the COVID-19 lockdown, Patricia raised 10 000 saplings from indigenous seeds in her nursery. Working with her community, she set up kitchen gardens and gave trainings on sustainable farming and land conservation to help achieve zero hunger, eliminate poverty and promote gender equality. Find Patricia on: Facebook: @patreeinitiative Twitter: @patriciakombo  Instagram: @pattykomboh