Other meetings & events

The World Bank Land Conference has catalyzed the global land community for over 20 years. The Conference is the premier global forum for the land sector, bringing together over 1 000 participants from governments, development partners, civil society, academia and the private sector to showcase policy-relevant research, discuss technical issues and sector good practice and inform our dialogue. The Conference also aims to encourage cross-sectoral knowledge exchange and has incubated numerous investments, initiatives, and research projects led by diverse stakeholders, including the Voluntary Guidelines, the Land Governance Assessment Framework and the Stand for Her Land Campaign. More info here.

Following up on the first High-level meeting on National Drought Policies in 2013, the Drought Resilience +10 Conference aims on scaling up and accelerating drought action on the ground. It will bring together countries, experts and practitioners to review progress and lessons learnt in drought management to explore and define a joint way forward towards a more drought resilient world. View the programme and register to attend in person here Submit your side event proposal by 30 June here.

 World Water Week’s 2024 theme ‘Bridging borders: Water for a Peaceful and Sustainable Future’ focuses on water cooperation for peace and security. Join UNCCD and members of the International Drought Resilience Alliance (IDRA) for the following events highlighting the links between healthy lands, water security, and drought resilience: Monday 26 August 11:00-12:30 (GMT+2 hours): Water: A regional public good for peace in West AfricaLearning from decades of transboundary work in West Africa, the session will bring national, regional and international viewpoints on the role of water as catalyst for peace, resilient livelihoods, and development. The region counts 28 transboundary river basins covering 71% of its area, making water cooperation key for the future. With a focus on West Africa, the trend and projections of drought and desertification and the role of various actors to address drought proactively, across sectors and scales will be addressed. Tuesday 27 August 16:00-17:30 (GMT+2 hours): A Hydro-Extreme Serious Game: Managing Disasters and Conflicts.The Hydro Extreme Game highlights the complexity of taking consensual decisions towards integrated disaster management. Players will attempt to come up with the best mix of water management solutions to manage both droughts and floods based on tools of the UNCCD Drought Toolbox, Associated Programme of Flood Management (APFM), Integrated Drought Management Programme (IDMP) and the IWRM Toolbox. Wednesday 28 August 08:00-09:00 (GMT+2 hours): Early Warning, Local Action: Synergies, Strategies for Climate Shocks. Rising climate shocks demand action. Across diverse regions, the session will analyze warning systems, actions taken, and how local adaptations fit specific contexts. Findings show that integrated approaches significantly outperform separate interventions. Furthermore, empowering communities through locally led adaptation ensures relevant and sustainable solutions.11:00-12:15 (GMT+2 hours), 7A Posthuset, Room 202 : Nature for Resilient Food, Land, and Water.15:00-17:30 (GMT+2 hours): Presentations on the upcoming Drought Resilience +10 Conference (30 September – 2 October. Geneva, Switzerland) with WMO, UNCCD, and GWP representatives Thursday 29 August 11:40-12:40 (GMT+2 hours): Live studio talk show: Elevating Drought resilience beyond borders and sectors.This session examines cross border collaborative approaches to addressing drought proactively at all levels. Notably, by bringing together early warning, prevention, and response, and by building drought resilience. The discussion will be informed by joint activities of the convening organizations including UNCCD, United Nations University and The Nature Conservancy. Check the full programme and the details on the sessions above here.

UNCCD and UNDP are organizing a three-day workshop with the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Program (CAREC) and international experts, donors, government officials and development agencies to discuss joint work under the Peace Forest Initiative in the region of Central Asia.

Desertification and land degradation represent a major challenge for the global sporting community. Sports pitches are directly affected by these phenomena. Drought and extreme temperatures make playing surfaces harder and more brittle, increasing the risk of injury for athletes. In addition, frequent heatwaves mean sporting events must be rescheduled, disrupting athletes' preparation and performance. To address these issues, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is organizing a ‘Desertification Day’ on 31 July 2024 at the Africa Station of the Olympic Games on Ile-Saint-Denis. The aim of the event is to raise awareness and get the sporting community involved in land issues ahead of UNCCD COP16, the UN's biggest conference on land issues, in December 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.