Responsible consumption of resources to stop the desertification and drought

Desertification and Drought Day before 2020 known as the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought, is celebrated annually by the United Nations on 17 June to promote public awareness of international efforts to combat desertification.

It refers to the degradation of the ecosystem of land in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas, which cover over one third of the world's land area, are extremely vulnerable to inappropriate land use. Poverty, political instability, deforestation, overgrazing and bad irrigation practices can all undermine the productivity of the land.

The date of 17 June was chosen to mark the Anniversary of the Convention to Combat Desertification adopted in Paris in 1994, that remains the only legally binding international Agreement between the Environment and the sustainable management of Land Resources. 197 parties of the Convention take active part in the exchange of knowledge among countries, encourage local population participation to the combat the Desertification and Drought. The UNCCD works closely with the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Framework Convention on Climate Change, UN FCCC.

Russia, where according to various assessments, around 100 million hectares of soil to various degrees are prone to desertification, acceded to the Convention in 2003.

In 2020 the Desertification and Drought Day proceeds under the slogan “Food. Feed. Fibre” and is aimed at changing society`s attitude toward the main factor of the Desertification and Drought – a steady growth of production and resources consumption by the man.

To have enough land to meet the demands of ten billion people by 2050, lifestyles need to change. Today more than two billion hectares of previously productive land is degraded, over 70 per cent of natural ecosystems have been transformed (by 2050, this could hit 90 per cent). By 2030, food production will require an additional 300 million hectares of land. The fashion industry by 2030 is predicted to use 35 per cent more land – over 115 million hectares, equivalent to the size of Colombia. In parallel a negative impact on the climate is increasing - agriculture, forestry and other land use contribute with around a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions, clothing and footwear production cause 8 per cent emissions (a figure predicted to rise almost by half by 2030).

With changes in consumer and corporate behaviour, and the adoption of more efficient planning and sustainable practices, there could be enough land to meet the demand. If every consumer were to buy food and clothes that do not degrade the land, suppliers would cut back the flow of these products and send a powerful signal to producers and policymakers. Such a crucial topic for the FAO as changes in diet, cutting food waste, buying from local markets – can free up land for other uses (dietary change alone can free up between 80 and 240 million hectares of land) and lower carbon emissions.

According to Ibrahim Thiaw, Executive Secretary of the UNCCD, “If we keep producing and consuming as usual, we will eat into the planet’s capacity to sustain life until there is nothing left but scraps. We all need to make better choices about what we eat and what we wear to help protect and restore the land.”