By declaring the Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, the UN has recognized that there are only 10 years left to restore the world's degraded land. Countries are striving to fight climate change by 2030 through their Paris Agreement commitments and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). But in many cases, their climate and development agenda are disconnected, even though sustainability and development go hand in hand – especially for rural communities. The divide is particularly severe when it comes to restoring degraded land.

In a world grappling with the challenges of food insecurity, climate change, landscape degradation, and rural poverty, regreening offers a path forward, especially in dryland areas. The transformation of degraded landscapes—restoring productivity and increasing resilience through the widespread adoption of agroforestry and sustainable land management practices—can deliver food, climate, and livelihood benefits.
Table of contents:
Part I. Introduction
Part II. How and Where is Regreening Happening?
Part III. The Impacts Of Regreening

These guidelines have been developed based on FAO’s and WOCAT’s extensive experience. The book draws, in particular, on WOCAT’s network and its database of SLM knowledge - as well as on WOC AT’s first overview book entitled ‘Where the land is greener’. These guidelines were implemented in the framework of the TerrAfrica partnership, whose main objective is to mainstream and upscale SLM in SSA, through the leveraging and harmonising of multisectoral investments at the local, country, subregional and regional levels.

‘Over the past three decades hundreds of thousands of farmers in Burkina Faso and Niger, on the fringes of the Sahara Desert, have transformed large swathes of the region’s arid landscape into productive agricultural land, improving food security for about three million people. Once-denuded landscapes are now home to abundant trees, crops, and livestock.'

Valuable lessons can be learned from smallholder farmers who have successfully protected and regenerated tree cover across agricultural landscapes in Senegal, with minimal reliance on tree nurseries, seedling distribution or tree planting. In the process, they have restored soil fertility to sustainably increase agricultural production.

In the above initiatives, self-motivated populations increased food security and reduced vulnerabilities to climatic shocks by restoring and sustainably managing local forest resources. To regenerate agroforestry parklands, farmers built on traditional systems to increase on-farm tree density and convert degraded lands to densely wooded savannas. These actions increased crop yields and produced new sources of livestock browse. The population of Sambandé restored the local forest and managed it to sustainably produce fuel and fruit.

i A necessidade de um "Manifesto para territórios de vida" foi estabelecida pelo Consórcio ICCA em janeiro de 2019. Desde então, ocorreram intercâmbios específicos durante as reuniões do Consórcio e assembleias internacionais e regionais, e várias declarações relevantes foram produzidas. Com base nelas, bem como em relatórios, publicações e discussões por e-mail entre os membros que ocorreram desde 2008, um exercício específico com foco no Manifesto foi realizado entre os membros do Consórcio em 2022.

Este segundo relatório anual do Grupo de Fomento ao Manejo Florestal (FTFG) analisa o progresso em relação ao compromisso de cinco anos e US$ 1,7 bilhão com os direitos de posse e tutela florestal de povos indígenas e comunidades locais (PIs e LCs) em países de floresta tropical, anunciado na COP26.

O FTFG está fazendo progressos significativos em seu compromisso de 1,7 bilhão de dólares ao longo de cinco anos para apoiar os povos indígenas e as comunidades locais na garantia da posse da terra e na promoção da gestão florestal nas regiões tropicais. Em 2023, quase 1,34 bilhão de dólares (79% do compromisso total) foram desembolsados, com 521 milhões de dólares de financiamento reportados apenas nesse ano. O relatório destaca as barreiras para ampliar o financiamento direto e sugere estratégias colaborativas para superar esses desafios.