Land use change is the primary transmission pathway for emerging infectious diseases, and the rate of land conversion is accelerating. Moreover, the foundation for building back better in the face of climate change and the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic will be centered upon future land use decisions. The good news is that governments around the world have already initiated policies at UNCCD COP 14 to strengthen all dimensions of an effective enabling environment that could lead to more integrated land use planning and help us all be more careful about what we do where, by navigating the inevitable trade-offs in land use decisions. This approach can result in more strategic land investment that strengthen the links between urban and rural areas, building local and regional resilience to replace what has been lost at the global level. This report, which is anchored in science, provides the context and cases that demonstrate how land can move from being part of the problem to being central to the solution.