New York Global Landscapes Forum ‘Restore the Earth’ 2019
This blog was initially published on the International Land Coalition website by Fiona Flintan.
The Rangelands Initiative of the International Land Coalition (ILC) is drawing attention to rangelands and drylands at the highest levels, in order to find solutions to the challenges faced by local populations that live and work there, and to encourage appropriate investment including in securing land rights and good governance, building resilience to drought and other shocks or stresses, and increasing rangeland productivity.
As part of this effort, in September, the Rangelands Initiative hosted a panel, Drylands and Rangelands: Harnessing Change, at the Global Landscapes Forum (GLF) New York organized as a starting point for planning the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration, which will be launched in 2021. This decade is a global call to action that aims to draw together political support, scientific research and financial muscle to massively scale up restoration from successful pilot initiatives to areas of millions of hectares.
The aim of the drylands and rangelands session was to highlight important issues and opportunities related to restoration of rangelands and drylands. The dearth of good data on rangelands and drylands was highlighted as well as the lack of investments in rangeland restoration, particularly when compared to forests.
Real-life solutions on rangeland restoration were presented, together with the potential they offer in terms of improving the environment and local livelihoods. The role of land tenure security and good governance was stressed, along with how initiatives such as the call for a UN International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists provide opportunities to address such issues.
Read more here.
The drylands and rangelands session at the Global Landscapes Forum in New York was co-sponsored by the Rangelands Initiative and the CGIAR Research Program on Livestock as part of its ongoing research work on rangelands and pastoralism. We thank all donors who support the program’s work through their contributions to the CGIAR Trust Fund.
