Desertification 2006-2007

Desertification is the loss of topsoil and soil fertility in the arid regions, or drylands, of the world. The delicate soils in these regions are becoming so degraded they can no longer support life, causing malnutrition, poverty, economic failure, forced migration, conflict, and extinction of species. The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is an international treaty ratified by 191 countries. It contains effective solutions to stop and reverse this deadly problem. But governments must be pressed to keep their treaty commitments.

These drylands are found in over 100 countries and are home to over 40% of the world’s population. Unsustainable farming practices, overgrazing, poor irrigation, excessive and illegal logging and burning bush lands and forests are mainly responsible. Climate change and severe weather make things worse.

YOU CAN HELP

Please write to your national legislators and encourage them to fully implement the UNCCD, a legally binding treaty that your country has ratified. Ask them to see that your government makes substantial financial and technical resources available to combat desertification where it exists. If you live in a country affected by desertification, also ask them to let you know what your government is doing to fully implement your nation's National Action Programme to combat desertification.

Please raise the issue of desertification in your legislative and other policy-making bodies, and in your cities, towns and communities.

BACKGROUND INFO

This land is my land

Each of us, as we look at a photo of the Earth, can say, “This Land is My Land.” It feeds us, sustains us, provides us with shelter and a place for our communities, cultures and spirits to grow.

But much of our land is fragile and in danger of being unable to support life. Especially at risk are the dry regions that cover over 40% of the Earth’s land surface and are home to over two billion people.

The loss of soil and soil fertility in these arid regions is called “desertification.” It is caused by both human activities and climatic variations.

Desertification is one of our most serious and far-reaching challenges. It is connected to poverty, malnutrition, epidemics, extinction of species, climate change, conflicts, forced migration and human rights issues. Combating desertification will have a direct impact on each of these related issues.

Food security & conflict 
Hindi Amina waters seedlings at the Burka Jalala tree nursery and plantation site in Ethiopia. “I’ve worked here for 3 months, doing the packing of soil into bags, watering, removing weeds from between the seedlings and moving the seedlings around the site. We feel the trees on the hill are our own when we see them grow, as we have planted and nursed them.”

Trees are key to preserving the fertility of drylands. They keep the soil from washing or blowing away, provide shade, coolness and preserve moisture.

In Africa, Asia and Latin America, conflicts over arid, fragile, productive lands are increasing as food-producing areas shrink in size. Many countries have already seen bloody wars over the issue of food security due to the loss of the land’s biological productivity.

As productive land continues to diminish as a result of desertification, and as food security takes center stage, the potential for conflict will rise accordingly, with not only national, but also international implications for peace and security.

Women
Women in Rajastan, India carry water to meet their families’ needs. Women have been called “the invisible managers and practitioners in combating desertification.” They are tied closely to the land by their responsibility to provide their families with food, water, fuel and shelter.

The Green Belt Movement in Kenya, founded by 2004 Nobel Peace Laureate, Wangari Maathai, one of the IYDD Honorary Spokespersons, is one example of the ways women have organized to combat desertification in spite of the obstacles they face. During the nearly 30 years of the Green Belt Movement, women have planted more than 30 million trees. Other efforts to combat desertification such as the use of solar cookers can save women time and drudgery while providing them with economic opportunities.

The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, UNCCD, states that the people most affected by desertification—especially women—must be involved in the design and implementation of National Action Programmes. This is a unique and powerful aspect of this treaty.

Climate Change
This Navajo Indian Reservation in the southwestern United States is the largest severely desertified area in all of North America. In this region, overgrazing by sheep has exposed the soil to extensive erosion by water and wind.

In the fragile and vulnerable drylands of the world, global warming and desertification feed off and intensify each other. As temperatures increase, plants wither and die, reducing soil cover and the ability of the soil to hold moisture—causing the soil to heat up. This heat is then radiated back into the air causing the temperature to rise higher, killing more plants and exposing more soil. As the cycle continues, the amount of degraded land increases while the temperature rises.

The projected impact of climate change, combined with desertification, will have a devastating effect on the people, plants and animals that live in these already fragile environments. Combating desertification and keeping our drylands productive, growing and green, will help stabilize our climate worldwide.

Biodiversity
This Thorny Devil inhabits the Great Sandy Desert in Australia. Animals and plants that live in the arid regions adjacent to Australia’s deserts are at serious risk. 33% of Australia’s arid zone mammals are already extinct.

Drylands cover over 40% of the Earth’s land surface. They are home to a great diversity of plant and animal species, including some of the rarest plants on Earth that are on the verge of extinction. Dryland regions with their arid ecosystems are fragile and at risk from overgrazing, water extraction, fires, inappropriate farming methods, invasive species and harvesting of firewood. The resulting desertification of the land is a death sentence for the animals and plants that once lived there.

Migration
A girl plays with sand that has drifted up and over the roof of her home in Langtou Gou, a village 130 km from Beijing, China. The village is being progressively covered by sand blowing down off the Gobi Desert, forcing its inhabitants to migrate. Migration is strongly linked to desertification. Severely degraded drylands can no longer support agriculture of any kind, forcing people to leave.

With over 2 billion people living in regions vulnerable to desertification, the effects of mass migration could prove catastrophic. If present trends continue, some 60 million people will be forced to move from newly desertified areas of sub-Saharan Africa alone by the year 2020. In a vicious cycle, these migrants are likely to seek a livelihood in cities, causing increased water use, pollution and further degradation of the environment.

The UNCCD calls for programmes that help local people protect, conserve and develop their land so that it can provide them with food, shelter and a livelihood. Combating desertification will ease the strains of migration on our global community.

Desertification is a Global Problem 
Over 100 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, North America and Oceania (Pacific Islands) are directly affected by desertification. Other countries are indirectly affected or have drylands at risk of being desertified.

Over 40% of the Earth’s land surface is dryland: arid, semi-arid, or dry sub-humid areas that are threatened by desertification and experience frequent droughts.

More than two billion people live in dryland regions. If current trends continue, hundreds of millions of people are expected to migrate from degraded drylands in the coming decade. Where will they go?