With more than 900 million people world-wide affected by chronic hunger, international action on soil conservation is urgently required. The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) enjoys substantial support, and the author of this article demonstrates that it could play a key role as a global policy and monitoring framework in addressing land and soil degradation.

In order to adequately address the important role of soils and land for sustainable development, a holistic approach is needed. This article discusses why biophysical but also socio-economic aspects have to be considered – using the example of Guatemala, one of the first countries to support the proposal to create the Sustainable Development Goals.

Soil carbon is important for soil structure and related nutrient and water holding properties. Increasing soil carbon stocks results in improved crop growth and contributes to enhanced climate resilience. In addition, the increase in soil organic carbon through sustainable agricultural land management (SALM) practices, such as the use of cover crops, residue management and agroforestry, will also reduce the need for synthetic nitrogen fertiliser at a given level of crop production.

More than three times as much carbon is stored in soils across the world as it is in the atmosphere, making them one of the most important global carbon sinks. Therefore, processes impacting on the soil in which carbon is released, such as deforestation or agricultural activities, significantly contribute to climate change. The debate on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural activities and their consideration in the international climate negotiations has brought soils as carbon reservoirs more to the public eye.

Crop yield improvement is dearly needed in sub-Saharan Africa, but remarkably, African farmers do not adopt the available ‘Green Revolution’ fertiliser technologies. This has many reasons, a crucial one being soil properties.

Soils are naturally poor in sub-Saharan Africa, and poor management has further reduced their productive capacity. The author argues that more fertiliser use is required to reverse further nutrient mining and productivity decline and that this agro-input is best used in combination with other measures to ensure that most of its nutrients are taken up by the crop.

The System of Rice Intensification (SRI) is a natural resource management technology that has supporters and opponents. Evidence of the technology’s impacts is mixed. Recent research results from Timor Leste suggest that SRI can improve yields and incomes of smallholder farmers when proper extension systems are in place.

Zimbabwe used to be well-known for its high-quality meat exports. The sector was hard hit by the economic crisis that set in during the 1990s and coincided with the impact of a failed land reform and recurrent drought. Now, a new livestock-fattening scheme is to contribute to the survival of the branch and help resource-poor smallholders earn a living by marketing their meat.

The Cadastral system in Kenya was established in 1903 to support land alienation for the white settlers who had come into the country in the early part of the 20th Century. In the last hundred years, the system has remained more or less the same, where land records are kept in paper format and majority of operations are carried out on a manual basis. The lack of a modern cadastral system has contributed to problems in land administration in the country.

The present Law enforces the Regulation (EC) No. 166/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning the establishment of a European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register and amending Council Directives 91/689/EEC and 96/61/EC.

Este artículo pretende tanto mostrar cómo los procesos de agricultura comercial y cambio climático están agotando los mantos acuíferos del estado de Chihuahua en el norte de México, como reconstruir los movimientos, demandas y logros de los agricultores contra la apropiación excluyente de los recursos hídricos.

This issue brief presents an overview of REDD+ and the associated tenure and property rights challenges and opportunities.
Spanish Translation
Release Date: Wednesday, April 17, 2013File:  Land Tenure and REDD+: Risks to Property Rights and Opportunities for Economic Growth