This paper presents the proceedings of a United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) held in December 2005. The report presents the workshop programme, objectives and methodology. Four papers were presented at the workshop, ensuing discussions by the participants are also included.

This article focuses on lessons about desertification and the potential of trees as part of the solution, drawn from a specific rural situation in the Sahel, that of Keita, Tahoua Department, the Niger. Author provides observations and conclusions based on the direct experience over almost 15 years in Keita.Article describes the forces that left the district classified as marginal land with no hope of rehabilitation and the lengthy process by which the land had been rehabilitated.

Traditional land tenure systems in Togo have been undermined but not destroyed by the introduction of private property and ‘modern’ tenure reform. However, confusion over land tenure issues has proved to be an obstacle to efforts to promote efficient resource management and to combat desertification.

This report highlights key developments and recent sustainability trends in agriculture, rural development, land, desertification and drought, five of the six themes being considered by the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) at its 16th and 17th sessions (2008-2009).

This paper explores the ways in which the interlinked challenges of climate change and desertification are managed in Malawi. The authors examine the synergy and conflict between local autonomous adaptation strategies and national adaptation policies, which are in accordance with international commitments to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

The state of the Arab environment stands at a pivotal juncture with numerous environmental problems both current and imminently threatening the region. Among the major challenges being faced are water scarcity, land degradation and desertification, inadequate waste management, coastal and marine environment degradation and air pollution.

This report highlights the major biological factors that contribute to ecosystem resilience under the projected impacts of global climate change. It assesses the potential consequences for biodiversity of particular adaptation activities under the thematic areas of the Convention on Biological Diversity, provides methodological considerations when implementing these activities, and highlights research and knowledge gaps.

The Integrated Drylands Development Programme (IDDP) is a global UNDP initiative to promote sustainable development in the drylands, and advance the implementation of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification. This topic brief highlights the important role that gender plays in this context of sustainable development, in particular the role of women in the Arab States and Africa. In these regions, inequality and stereotypical gender norms often prevent women from contributing to the sustainable development of drylands, despite possessing a wealth of traditional knowledge and skills.

in these ecosystems can easily result in widespread and severe land degradation and thus desertification.
Combined with global issues such as climate change, economic disparities, migration, and competing claims
on land, this often leads to a vicious cycle of aridity, land degradation, and productivity loss. In addition to
the harsh environmental conditions limiting land productivity, the socio-economic situation in drylands can
pose challenges as well, given that these regions are often characterised by remoteness, marginality, lowproductivity

Desire for Greener Land compiles options for Sustainable Land Management (SLM) in drylands. It is a result of the integrated research project DESIRE (Desertification Mitigation and Remediation of Land - A Global Approach for Local Solutions). Lasting five years (2007–2012) and funded within the EU’s Sixth Framework Programme, DESIRE brought together the expertise of 26 international research institutes and non-governmental organisations.