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Desertification: what is it and why is it one of the greatest threats of our time?

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Desertification has been described as the “ the greatest environmental challenge of our time ” and climate change is making it worse.

While the term may bring to mind the windswept sand dunes of the Sahara or the vast salt pans of the Kalahari, it’s an issue that reaches far beyond those living in and around the world’s deserts, threatening the food security and livelihoods of more than two billion people.

The combined impact of climate change, land mismanagement and unsustainable freshwater use has seen the world’s water-scarce regions increasingly degraded. This leaves their soils less able to support crops, livestock and wildlife.

This week, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) will publish its special report on climate change and land . The report, written by hundreds of scientists and researchers from across the world, dedicates one of its seven chapters solely to the issue of desertification.

Ahead of the report, Carbon Brief looks at what desertification is, the role that climate change plays and what impact it is having around the world.

Defining desertification

In 1994, the UN established the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) as the “sole legally binding international agreement linking environment and development to sustainable land management”. The Convention itself was a response to a call at the UN Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 to hold negotiations for an international legal agreement on desertification.

The UNCCD set out a definition of desertification in a treaty adopted by parties in 1994. It states that desertification means “land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities”.

So, rather than desertification meaning the literal expansion of deserts, it is a catch-all term for land degradation in water-scarce parts of the world. This degradation includes the temporary or permanent decline in quality of soil, vegetation, water resources or wildlife, for example. It also includes the deterioration of the economic productivity of the land – such as the ability to farm the land for commercial or subsistence purposes.

Arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas are known collectively as “drylands”. These are, unsurprisingly, areas that receive relatively little rain or snow each year. Technically, they are defined by the UNCCD as “areas other than polar and sub-polar regions, in which the ratio of annual precipitation to potential evapotranspiration falls within the range from 0.05 to 0.65”.

In simple terms, this means the amount of rainfall the area receives is between 5-65% of how much it loses through evaporation and transpiration from the land surface and vegetation, respectively. Any area that receives more than this is referred to as “humid”.

You can see this more clearly in the map below, where the world’s drylands are identified by different grades of orange and red shading. Drylands encompass around 38% of the Earth’s land area, covering much of North and southern Africa, western North America, Australia, the Middle East and Central Asia. Drylands are home to approximately 2.7 billion people (pdf) – 90% of whom live in developing countries.

Drylands are particularly susceptible to land degradation because of scarce and variable rainfall as well as poor soil fertility. But what does this degradation look like?

There are numerous ways in which the land can degrade. One of the main processes is erosion – the gradual breaking down and removal of rock and soil. This is typically through some force of nature – such as wind, rain and/or waves – but can be exacerbated by activities including ploughing, grazing or deforestation.

A loss of soil fertility is another form of degradation. This can be through a loss of nutrients, such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, or a decline in the amount of organic matter in the soil. For example, soil erosion by water causes global losses of as much as 42m tonnes of nitrogen and 26m tonnes of phosphorus every year. On farmed land, this inevitably needs to be replaced through fertilisers at significant cost. Soils can also suffer from salinisation – an increase in salt content – and acidification from overuse of fertilisers.

Then there are lots of other processes that are classed as degradation, including a loss or shift in vegetation type and cover, the compaction and hardening of the soil, an increase in wildfires, and a declining water table through excessive extraction of groundwater.

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Mix of causes

According to a recent report from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), “land degradation is almost always the result of multiple interacting causes”.

The direct causes of desertification can be broadly divided between those relating to how the land is – or isn’t – managed and those relating to the climate. The former includes factors such as deforestation, overgrazing of livestock, over-cultivation of crops and inappropriate irrigation; the latter includes natural fluctuations in climate and global warming as a result of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions.

Then there are underlying causes as well, the IPBES report notes, including “economic, demographic, technological, institutional and cultural drivers”.

Looking first at the role of the climate, a significant factor is that the land surface is warming more quickly than the Earth’s surface as a whole. (This is because the land has a lower “ heat capacity ” than the water in the oceans, which means it needs less heat to raise its temperature.) So, while global average temperatures are around 1.1C warmer now than in pre-industrial times , the land surface has warmed by approximately 1.7C. The chart below compares changes in land temperatures in four different records with a global average temperature since 1970 (blue line).

Global average land temperatures from four datasets: CRUTEM4 (purple), NASA (red), NOAA (yellow) and Berkeley (grey) for 1970 to the present day, relative to a 1961-90 baseline. Also shown is global temperature from the HadCRUT4 record (blue). Chart by Carbon Brief using Highcharts .

While this sustained, human-caused warming can by itself add to heat stress faced by vegetation, it is also linked to worsening extreme weather events , explains Prof Lindsay Stringer , a professor in environment and development at the University of Leeds and a lead author on the land degradation chapter of the forthcoming IPCC land report. She tells Carbon Brief:

“Climate change affects the frequency and magnitude of extreme events like droughts and floods. In areas that are naturally dry for example, a drought can have a huge impact on vegetation cover and productivity, particularly if that land is being used by high numbers of livestock. As plants die off due to lack of water, the soil becomes bare and is more easily eroded by wind, and by water when the rains do eventually come.”

(Stringer is commenting here in her role at her home institution and not in her capacity as an IPCC author. This is the case with all the scientists quoted in this article.)

Both natural variability in climate and global warming can also affect rainfall patterns around the world, which can contribute to desertification. Rainfall has a cooling effect on the land surface, so a decline in rainfall can allow soils to dry out in the heat and become more prone to erosion. On the other hand, heavy rainfall can erode soil itself and cause waterlogging and subsidence.

For example, widespread drought – and associated desertification – in the Sahel region of Africa in the second half of the 20th century has been linked to natural fluctuations in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans , while research also suggests a partial recovery in rains was driven by warming sea surface temperatures in the Mediterranean .

Dr Katerina Michaelides , a senior lecturer in the Drylands Research Group at the University of Bristol and contributing author on the desertification chapter of the IPCC land report, describes a shift to drier conditions as the main impact of a warming climate on desertification. She tells Carbon Brief:

“The main effect of climate change is through aridification, a progressive change of the climate towards a more arid state – whereby rainfall decreases in relation to the evaporative demand – as this directly affects water supply to vegetation and soils.”

Climate change is also a contributing factor to wildfires , causing warmer – and sometimes drier – seasons that provide ideal conditions for fires to take hold. And a warmer climate can speed up the decomposition of organic carbon in soils, leaving them depleted and less able to retain water and nutrients .

As well as physical impacts on the landscape, climate change can impact on humans “because it reduces options for adaptation and livelihoods, and can drive people to overexploit the land”, notes Stringer.

That overexploitation refers to the way that humans can mismanage land and cause it to degrade. Perhaps the most obvious way is through deforestation. Removing trees can upset the balance of nutrients in the soil and takes away the roots that helps bind the soil together, leaving it at risk of being eroded and washed or blown away.

Forests also play a significant role in the water cycle – particularly in the tropics. For example, research published in the 1970s showed that the Amazon rainforest generates around half of its own rainfall. This means that clearing the forests runs the risk of causing the local climate to dry, adding to the risk of desertification.

Food production is also a major driver of desertification. Growing demand for food can see cropland expand into forests and grasslands , and use of intensive farming methods to maximise yields. Overgrazing of livestock can strip rangelands of vegetation and nutrients.

This demand can often have wider political and socioeconomic drivers, notes Stringer:

“For example, demand for meat in Europe can drive the clearance of forest land in South America. So, while desertification is experienced in particular locations, its drivers are global and coming largely from the prevailing global political and economic system.”

Local and global impacts

Of course, none of these drivers acts in isolation. Climate change interacts with the other human drivers of degradation, such as “unsustainable land management and agricultural expansion, in causing or worsening many of these desertification processes”, says Dr Alisher Mirzabaev , a senior researcher at the University of Bonn and a coordinating lead author on the desertification chapter of the IPCC land report. He tells Carbon Brief:

“The [result is] declines in crop and livestock productivity, loss of biodiversity, increasing chances of wildfires in certain areas. Naturally, these will have negative impacts on food security and livelihoods, especially in developing countries.”

Stringer says desertification often brings with it “a reduction in vegetation cover, so more bare ground, a lack of water, and soil salinisation in irrigated areas”. This also can mean a loss of biodiversity and visible scarring of the landscape through erosion and the formation of gullies following heavy rainfall.

“Desertification has already contributed to the global loss of biodiversity”, adds Joyce Kimutai from the Kenya Meteorological Department . Kimutai, who is also a lead author on the desertification chapter of the IPCC land report, tells Carbon Brief:

“Wildlife, especially large mammals, have limited capacities for timely adaptation to the coupled effects of climate change and desertification.”

For example, a study (pdf) of the Cholistan Desert region of Pakistan found that the “flora and fauna have been thinning out gradually with the increasing severity of desertization”. And a study of Mongolia found that “all species richness and diversity indicators declined significantly” because of grazing and increasing temperatures over the last two decades.

Degradation can also open the land up to invasive species and those less suitable for grazing livestock, says Michaelides:

“In many countries, desertification means a decline in soil fertility, a reduction in vegetation cover – especially grass cover – and more invasive shrub species. Practically speaking, the consequences of this are less available land for grazing, and less productive soils. Ecosystems start to look different as more drought tolerant shrubs invade what used to be grasslands and more bare soil is exposed.”

This has “devastating consequences for food security, livelihoods and biodiversity”, she explains:

“Where food security and livelihoods are intimately tied to the land, the consequences of desertification are particularly immediate. Examples are many countries in East Africa – especially Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia – where over half of the population are pastoralists relying on healthy grazing lands for their livelihoods. In Somalia alone, livestock contributes around 40% of the GDP [Gross Domestic Product].”

The UNCCD estimates that around 12m hectares of productive land are lost to desertification and drought each year. This is an area that could produce 20m tonnes of grain annually.

This has a considerable financial impact. In Niger, for example, the costs of degradation caused by land use change amounts to around 11% of its GDP . Similarly in Argentina, the “total loss of ecosystem services due to land-use/cover change, wetlands degradation and use of land degrading management practices on grazing lands and selected croplands” is equivalent to about 16% of its GDP .

Loss of livestock, reduced crop yields and declining food security are very visible human impacts of desertification, says Stringer:

“People cope with these kinds of challenges in various ways – by skipping meals to save food; buying what they can – which is difficult for those living in poverty with few other livelihood options – collecting wild foods, and in extreme conditions, often combined with other drivers, people move away from affected areas, abandoning the land.”

People are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of desertification where they have “insecure property rights, where there are few economic supports for farmers, where there are high levels of poverty and inequality, and where governance is weak”, Stringer adds.

Another impact of desertification is an increase in sand and dust storms. These natural phenomena – known variously as “sirocco”, “haboob”, “yellow dust”, “white storms”, and the “harmattan” – occur when strong winds blow loose sand and dirt from bare, dry soils. Research suggests that global annual dust emissions have increased by 25% between the late nineteenth century and today, with climate change and land use change the key drivers.

Dust storms in the Middle East, for example, “are becoming more frequent and intense in recent years”, a recent study found. This has been driven by “long-term reductions in rainfall promot[ing] lower soil moisture and vegetative cover”. However, Stringer adds that “further research is needed to establish the precise links between climate change, desertification and dust and sandstorms”.

Dust storms can have a huge impact on human health, contributing to respiratory disorders such as asthma and pneumonia, cardiovascular issues and skin irritations, as well as polluting open water sources. They can also play havoc with infrastructure, reducing the effectiveness of solar panels and wind turbines by covering them in dust, and causing disruption to roads, railways and airports .

Climate feedback

Adding dust and sand into the atmosphere is also one of the ways that desertification itself can affect the climate, says Kimutai. Others include “changes in vegetation cover, surface albedo (reflectivity of the Earth’s surface), and greenhouse gases fluxes”, she adds.

Dust particles in the atmosphere can scatter incoming radiation from the sun, reducing warming locally at the surface, but increasing it in the air above. They can also affect the formation and lifetimes of clouds, potentially making rainfall less likely and thus reducing moisture in an already dry area.

Soils are a very important store of carbon. The top two metres of soil in global drylands, for example, store an estimated 646bn tonnes of carbon – approximately 32% of the carbon held in all the world’s soils.

Research shows that the moisture content of the soil is the main influence on the capacity for dryland soils to “mineralise” carbon. This is the process, also known as “soil respiration”, where microbes break down the organic carbon in the soil and convert it to CO2. This process also makes nutrients in the soil available for plants to use as they grow.

Soil respiration indicates the soil’s ability to sustain plant growth . And typically, respiration declines with decreasing soil moisture to a point where microbial activity effectively stops . While this reduces the CO2 the microbes release, it also inhibits plant growth, which means the vegetation is taking up less CO2 from the atmosphere through photosynthesis. Overall, dry soils are more likely to be net emitters of CO2.

So as soils become more arid, they will tend to be less able to sequester carbon from the atmosphere, and thus will contribute to climate change. Other forms of degradation also generally release CO2 into the atmosphere, such as deforestation , overgrazing – by stripping the land of vegetation – and wildfires .

Mapping troubles

“Most dryland environments around the world are being affected by desertification to some extent,” says Michaelides.

But coming up with a robust global estimate for desertification is not straightforward, explains Kimutai:

“Current estimates of the extent and severity of desertification vary greatly due to missing and/or unreliable information. The multiplicity and complexity of the processes of desertification make its quantification even more difficult. Studies have used different methods based on different definitions.”

And identifying desertification is made harder because it tends to emerge relatively slowly, adds Michaelides:

“At the start of the process, desertification may be hard to detect, and because it’s slow it may take decades to realise that a place is changing. By the time it is detected, it may be hard to halt or reverse.”

Desertification across the Earth’s land surface was first mapped in a study published in the journal Economic Geography in 1977. It noted that: “For much of the world, there is little good information on the extent of desertification in individual countries”. The map – shown below – graded areas of desertification as “slight”, “moderate”, “severe” or “very severe” based on a combination of “published information, personal experience, and consultation with colleagues”.

In 1992, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) published its first “ World Atlas of Desertification ” (WAD). It mapped global human-caused land degradation, drawing heavily on the UNEP-funded “ Global Assessment of Human-induced Soil Degradation ” (GLASOD). The GLASOD project was itself based on expert judgement, with more than 250 soil and environmental scientists contributing to regional assessments that fed into its global map, which it published in 1991.

The GLASOD map, shown below, details the extent and degree of land degradation across the world. It categorised the degradation into chemical (red shading), wind (yellow), physical (purple) or water (blue).

While GLASOD was also used for the second WAD , published in 1997, the map came under criticism for a lack of consistency and reproducibility. Subsequent datasets, such as the “ Global Assessment of Land Degradation and Improvement ” (GLADA), have benefitted from the addition of satellite data .

Nevertheless, by the time the third WAD – produced by the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission – came around two decades later, the authors “decided to take a different path”. As the report puts it:

“Land degradation cannot be globally mapped by a single indicator or through any arithmetic or modelled combination of variables. A single global map of land degradation cannot satisfy all views or needs.”

Instead of a single metric, the atlas considers a set of “14 variables often associated with land degradation”, such as aridity, livestock density, tree loss and decreasing land productivity.

As such, the map below – taken from the Atlas – does not show land degradation itself, but the “convergence of evidence” of where these variables coincide. The parts of the world with the most potential issues (shown by orange and red shading) – such as India, Pakistan, Zimbabwe and Mexico – are thus identified as particularly at risk from degradation.

As desertification cannot be characterised by a single metric, it is also tricky to make projections for how rates of degradation could change in the future.

In addition, there are numerous socio-economic drivers that will contribute. For example, the number of people directly affected by desertification is likely to increase purely because of population growth. The population living in drylands across the world is projected to increase by 43% to four billion by 2050.

The impact of climate change on aridity is also complicated. A warmer climate is generally more able to evaporate moisture from the land surface – potentially increasing dryness in combination with hotter temperatures.

However, climate change will also affect rainfall patterns, and a warmer atmosphere can hold more water vapour, potentially increasing both average and heavy rainfall in some areas.

There is also a conceptual question of distinguishing long-term changes in the dryness of an area with the relatively short-term nature of droughts.

In general, the global area of drylands is expected to expand as the climate warms. Projections under the RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 emissions scenarios suggest drylands will increase by 11% and 23% , respectively, compared to 1961-90. This would mean drylands could make up either 50% or 56%, respectively, of the Earth’s land surface by the end of this century, up from around 38% today.

This expansion of arid regions will occur principally “over southwest North America, the northern fringe of Africa, southern Africa, and Australia”, another study says, while “major expansions of semiarid regions will occur over the north side of the Mediterranean, southern Africa, and North and South America”.

Research also shows that climate change is already increasing both the likelihood and severity of droughts around the world . This trend is likely to continue. For example, one study , using the intermediate emissions scenario “RCP4.5”, projects “large increases (up to 50%–200% in a relative sense) in frequency for future moderate and severe drought over most of the Americas, Europe, southern Africa, and Australia”.

Another study notes that climate model simulations “suggest severe and widespread droughts in the next 30–90 years over many land areas resulting from either decreased precipitation and/or increased evaporation”.

However, it should be noted that not all drylands are expected to get more arid with climate change. The map below, for example, shows the projected change for a measure of aridity (defined as the ratio of rainfall to potential evapotranspiration , PET) by 2100 under climate model simulations for RCP8.5. The areas shaded red are those expected to become drier – because PET will increase more than rainfall – while those in green are expected to become wetter. The latter includes much of the Sahel and East Africa, as well as India and parts of northern and western China.

Climate model simulations also suggest that rainfall, when it does occur, will be more intense for almost the entire world , potentially increasing the risks of soil erosion. Projections indicate that most of the world will see a 16-24% increase in heavy precipitation intensity by 2100.

Limiting global warming is therefore one of the key ways to help put a break on desertification in future, but what other solutions exist?

The UN has designated the decade from January 2010 to December 2020 as the “United Nations decade for deserts and the fight against desertification”. The decade was to be an “opportunity to make critical changes to secure the long-term ability of drylands to provide value for humanity’s well being”.

What is very clear is that prevention is better – and much cheaper – than cure. “Once desertification has occurred it is very challenging to reverse”, says Michaelides. This is because once the “cascade of degradation processes start, they’re hard to interrupt or halt”.

Stopping desertification before it starts requires measures to “protect against soil erosion, to prevent vegetation loss, to prevent overgrazing or land mismanagement”, she explains:

“All these things require concerted efforts and policies from communities and governments to manage land and water resources at large scales. Even small scale land mismanagement can lead to degradation at larger scales, so the problem is quite complex and hard to manage.”

At the UN Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro in 2012, parties agreed to “strive to achieve a land-degradation neutral world in the context of sustainable development”. This concept of “ land degradation neutrality ” (LDN) was subsequently taken up by the UNCCD and also formally adopted as Target 15.3 of the Sustainable Development Goals by the UN General Assembly in 2015.

The idea of LDN, explained in detail in the video below, is a hierarchy of responses: first to avoid land degradation, second to minimise it where it does occur, and thirdly to offset any new degradation by restoring and rehabilitating land elsewhere. The outcome being that overall degradation comes into balance – where any new degradation is compensated with reversal of previous degradation.

“Sustainable land management” (SLM) is key to achieving the LDN target, says Dr Mariam Akhtar-Schuster , co-chair of the UNCCD science-policy interface and a review editor for the desertification chapter of the IPCC land report. She tells Carbon Brief:

“Sustainable land management practices, which are based on the local socio-economic and ecological condition of an area, help to avoid desertification in the first place but also to reduce ongoing degradation processes.”

SLM essentially means maximising the economic and social benefits of the land while also maintaining and enhancing its productivity and environmental functions. This can comprise a whole range of techniques, such as rotational grazing of livestock, boosting soil nutrients by leaving crop residues on the land after harvest, trapping sediment and nutrients that would otherwise be lost through erosion, and planting fast-growing trees to provide shelter from the wind.

But these measures can’t just be applied anywhere, notes Akhtar-Schuster:

“Because SLM has to be adapted to local circumstances there is no such thing as a one size fits all toolkit to avoid or reduce desertification. However, all these locally adapted tools will have the best effects if they are embedded in an integrated national land use planning system.”

Stringer agrees that there’s “no silver bullet” to preventing and reversing desertification. And, it’s not always the same people who invest in SLM who benefit from it, she explains:

“An example here would be land users upstream in a catchment reforesting an area and reducing soil erosion into water bodies. For those people living downstream this reduces flood risk as there is less sedimentation and could also deliver improved water quality.”

However, there is also a fairness issue if the land users upstream are paying for the new trees and those downstream are receiving the benefits at no cost, Stringer says:

“Solutions therefore need to identify who ‘wins’ and who ‘loses out’ and should incorporate strategies that compensate or minimise inequities.”

“Everyone forgets that last part about equity and fairness,” she adds. The other aspect that has also been overlooked historically is getting community buy-in on proposed solutions, says Stringer.

Research shows that using traditional knowledge can be particularly beneficial for tackling land degradation. Not least because communities living in drylands have done so successfully for generations, despite the tricky environmental conditions.

This idea is increasingly being taken on board, says Stringer – a response to “top-down interventions” that have proved “ineffective” because of a lack of community involvement.

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Desertification

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Desertification poses a serious challenge to sustainable development and humanity’s ability to survive in many areas of the world. The UNCCD’s goal is a future that avoids, reduces, and reverses desertification. Our work paves the way for a land degradation neutral world, one that fosters sustainable development to achieve the goals set in the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.​

Humanity needs productive land. Yet the desertification and the mounting losses of productive land driven by human action and climate change have the potential to change the way billions of people will live, both now and later in this century.​ The warming global climate means desertification poses a challenge across the world, especially in existing drylands. As the global population increases, ever-larger areas are devoted to intensive agriculture. Widely, excessive irrigation erodes precious soil and depletes aquifers, especially in arid areas. ​

Currently, about 500 million people live within areas that have experienced desertification since the 1980s. People living in already degraded or desertified areas are increasingly negatively affected by climate change.​ Desertification aggravates existing economic, social, and environmental problems like poverty, poor health, lack of food security, biodiversity loss, water scarcity, forced migration, and lowered resilience to climate change or natural disasters.​

Addressing desertification requires long-term integrated strategies that focus on:​

• improving already degraded land​
• ongoing rehabilitation and conservation​
• managing sustainable land and water resources. ​

We work with scientists and governments to monitor land changes worldwide and drive efforts to slow land degradation. We do so by focusing on incentives that motivate and drive producers and consumers to change their behavior. ​

We advise and support the development, adoption, monitoring, and evaluation of policies designed to ensure all the world’s land-based ecosystems not only survive, but thrive, supporting the wellbeing of present and future generations.​

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Publications.

Paragraph 33 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development focuses on the linkage between sustainable management of the planet’s natural resources and social and economic development as well as on “strengthen cooperation on desertification, dust storms, land degradation and drought and promote resilience and disaster risk reduction” .

Sustainable Development Goal 15 of the 2030 Agenda aims to “protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss” .

The economic and social significance of a good land management, including soil and its contribution to economic growth and social progress is recognized in paragraph 205 of the Future We Want. In this context, Member States express their concern on the challenges posed to sustainable development by desertification, land degradation and drought, especially for Africa, LDCs and LLDCs. At the same time, Member States highlight the need to take action at national, regional and international level to reverse land degradation, catalyse financial resources, from both private and public donors and implement both the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and its 10- Year Strategic Plan and Framework (2008-2018).

Furthermore, in paragraphs 207 and 208 of the Future We Want, Member States encourage and recognize the importance of partnerships and initiatives for the safeguarding of land resources, further development and implementation of scientifically based, sound and socially inclusive methods and indicators for monitoring and assessing the extent of desertification, land degradation and drought. The relevance of efforts underway to promote scientific research and strengthen the scientific base of activities to address desertification and drought under the UNCCD is also addressed.

Combating desertification and drought were discussed by the Commission on Sustainable Development in several sessions. In the framework of the Commission's multi-year work programme, CSD 16-17 focused, respectively in 2008 and 2009, on desertification and drought along with the interrelated issues of Land, Agriculture, Rural development and Africa.

In accordance with its multi-year programme of work, CSD-8 in 2000 reviewed integrated planning and management of land resources as its sectoral theme. In its decision 8/3 on integrated planning and management of land resources, the Commission on Sustainable Development noted the importance of addressing sustainable development through a holistic approach, such as ecosystem management, in order to meet the priority challenges of desertification and drought, sustainable mountain development, prevention and mitigation of land degradation, coastal zones, deforestation, climate change, rural and urban land use, urban growth and conservation of biological diversity.

The sectoral cluster of land, desertification, forests and biodiversity, as well as mountains (chapters 10-13 and 15 of Agenda 21) were considered by CSD-3 in 1995 and again at the five-year review in 1997.

The UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) called upon the United Nations General Assembly to establish an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INCD) to prepare, by June 1994, an international convention to combat desertification in those countries experiencing serious drought and/or desertification, particularly in Africa. The Convention was adopted in Paris on 17 June 1994 and opened for signature there on 14-15 October 1994. It entered into force on 26 December 1996.

Deserts are among the "fragile ecosystems" addressed by Agenda 21, and "combating desertification and drought" is the subject of Chapter 12. Desertification includes land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub humid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities. Desertification affects as much as one-sixth of the world's population, seventy percent of all drylands, and one-quarter of the total land area of the world. It results in widespread poverty as well as in the degradation of billion hectares of rangeland and cropland.

Integrated planning and management of land resources is the subject of chapter 10 of Agenda 21, which deals with the cross-sectoral aspects of decision-making for the sustainable use and development of natural resources, including the soils, minerals, water and biota that land comprises. This broad integrative view of land resources, which are essential for life-support systems and the productive capacity of the environment, is the basis of Agenda 21's and the Commission on Sustainable Development's consideration of land issues.

Expanding human requirements and economic activities are placing ever increasing pressures on land resources, creating competition and conflicts and resulting in suboptimal use of resources. By examining all uses of land in an integrated manner, it makes it possible to minimize conflicts, to make the most efficient trade-offs and to link social and economic development with environmental protection and enhancement, thus helping to achieve the objectives of sustainable development. (Agenda 21, para 10.1) The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is the task manager for chapter 10 of Agenda 21.

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• January 2015 SDG 15 - Desertification SDG 15 aims at protecting, restoring and promoting sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainable manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss. Target 15.3 in particular reads to achieve "by 2030, combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought and floods, and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral world".
• January 2012 Future We Want (Para 205-209) The economic and social significance of a good land management, including soil and its contribution to economic growth and social progress is also recognized in paragraph 205 of the Future We Want. In this context, Member States express their concern on the challenges posed to sustainable development by desertification, land degradation and drought, especially for Africa, LDCs and LLDCs. At the same time, Member States highlight the need to take action at national, regional and international level to reverse land degradation, catalyze financial resources, from both private and public donors and implement both the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and its 10- Year Strategic Plan and Framework (2008-2018). Furthermore, in paragraphs 207 and 208 of the Future We Want, Member States encourage and recognize the importance of partnerships and initiatives for the safeguarding of land resources, further development and implementation of scientifically based, sound and socially inclusive methods and indicators for monitoring and assessing the extent of desertification, land degradation and drought. The relevance of efforts underway to promote scientific research and strengthen the scientific base of activities to address desertification and drought under the UNCCD is also taken into account by paragraph 208.
• January 2010 UN Decade on Desertification Launched by the General Assembly with the adoption of Resolution A/RES/64/201, the UN Decade for Deserts and the Fight Against Desertification was designed to address the Parties'concern about the worsening of the situation of desertification and its negative impact on the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. The Decade started in January 2010 and will end in December 2020 with the aim of promoting action ensuring the protection of dry-lands.
• January 2008 CSD-16 (Chap.2 C,D,E) CSD-16 focused on the thematic cluster of agriculture, rural development, land, drought, desertification and Africa.
• January 2006 Int. Year of Deserts and Desertification The International Year of Deserts and Desertification was launched to highlight the threat represented by the advancing of deserts and the loss it may cause to biodiversity. Through this International Year, the UN aimed at raising public awareness on this issue and at reversing the trend of desertification, setting the world on a safer and more sustainable path of development.
• January 2000 CSD-8 (Chap. 4) As decided at UNGASS, the economic, sectoral and cross-sectoral themes under consideration for CSD-8 were sustainable agriculture and land management, integrating planning and management of land resources and financial resources, trade and investment and economic growth.CSD-6 to CSD-9 annually gathered at the UN Headquarters for spring meetings. Discussions at each session opened with multi-stakeholder dialogues, in which major groups were invited to make opening statements on selected themes followed by a dialogue with government representatives.
• January 1996 UNCCD The only legally binding international agreement connecting environment and development to sustainable land management, UNCCD addresses the arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas, known as the drylands, where some of the most vulnerable ecosystems and peoples can be found. In 2007 the 10-Year Strategy of the UNCCD (2008-2018) was adopted and on that occasion, parties to the Convention further specified their goals: "to forge a global partnership to reverse and prevent desertification/land degradation and to mitigate the effects of drought in affected areas in order to support poverty reduction and environmental sustainability". The Convention was adopted in Paris on 17 June 1994 and entered into force on 26 December 1996, 90 days after the 50th ratification was received. 194 countries and the European Union are Parties as at April 2015.
• January 1992 Agenda 21 (Chap. 10 and 12) Integrated planning and management of land resources is the subject of chapter 10 of Agenda 21, which deals with the cross-sectoral aspects of decision-making for the sustainable use and development of natural resources, including the soils, minerals and water that land comprises. Included in the sections devoted to the management of fragile ecosystems, chapter 12 has focused on combating desertification and droughts. The priority to keep in mind while combating desertification is identified by Chap 12.3 in the need to implement "preventive measures for lands that are not yet degraded, or which are only slightly degraded. However, the severely degraded areas should not be neglected. In combating desertification and drought, the participation of local communities, rural organizations, national Governments, non-governmental organizations and international and regional organizations is essential".

Sand dunes show the increasing desertification of the Tibetan Plateau, as land dries out and vegetation cover vanishes due to human activity.

• ENVIRONMENT

Desertification, explained

Humans are driving the transformation of drylands into desert on an unprecedented scale around the world, with serious consequences. But there are solutions.

As global temperatures rise and the human population expands, more of the planet is vulnerable to desertification, the permanent degradation of land that was once arable.

While interpretations of the term desertification vary, the concern centers on human-caused land degradation in areas with low or variable rainfall known as drylands: arid, semi-arid, and sub-humid lands . These drylands account for more than 40 percent of the world's terrestrial surface area.

While land degradation has occurred throughout history, the pace has accelerated, reaching 30 to 35 times the historical rate, according to the United Nations . This degradation tends to be driven by a number of factors, including urbanization , mining, farming, and ranching. In the course of these activities, trees and other vegetation are cleared away , animal hooves pound the dirt, and crops deplete nutrients in the soil. Climate change also plays a significant role, increasing the risk of drought .

All of this contributes to soil erosion and an inability for the land to retain water or regrow plants. About 2 billion people live on the drylands that are vulnerable to desertification, which could displace an estimated 50 million people by 2030.

Where is desertification happening, and why?

The risk of desertification is widespread and spans more than 100 countries , hitting some of the poorest and most vulnerable populations the hardest, since subsistence farming is common across many of the affected regions.

More than 75 percent of Earth's land area is already degraded, according to the European Commission's World Atlas of Desertification , and more than 90 percent could become degraded by 2050. The commission's Joint Research Centre found that a total area half of the size of the European Union (1.61 million square miles, or 4.18 million square kilometers) is degraded annually, with Africa and Asia being the most affected.

The drivers of land degradation vary with different locations, and causes often overlap with each other. In the regions of Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan surrounding the Aral Sea , excessive use of water for agricultural irrigation has been a primary culprit in causing the sea to shrink , leaving behind a saline desert. And in Africa's Sahel region , bordered by the Sahara Desert to the north and savannas to the south, population growth has caused an increase in wood harvesting, illegal farming, and land-clearing for housing, among other changes.

The prospect of climate change and warmer average temperatures could amplify these effects. The Mediterranean region would experience a drastic transformation with warming of 2 degrees Celsius, according to one study , with all of southern Spain becoming desert. Another recent study found that the same level of warming would result in "aridification," or drying out, of up to 30 percent of Earth's land surface.

A herder family tends pastures beside a growing desert.

When land becomes desert, its ability to support surrounding populations of people and animals declines sharply. Food often doesn't grow, water can't be collected, and habitats shift. This often produces several human health problems that range from malnutrition, respiratory disease caused by dusty air, and other diseases stemming from a lack of clean water.

Desertification solutions

In 1994, the United Nations established the Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), through which 122 countries have committed to Land Degradation Neutrality targets, similar to the way countries in the climate Paris Agreement have agreed to targets for reducing carbon pollution. These efforts involve working with farmers to safeguard arable land, repairing degraded land, and managing water supplies more effectively.

The UNCCD has also promoted the Great Green Wall Initiative , an effort to restore 386,000 square miles (100 million hectares) across 20 countries in Africa by 2030. A similar effort is underway in northern China , with the government planting trees along the border of the Gobi desert to prevent it from expanding as farming, livestock grazing , and urbanization , along with climate change, removed buffering vegetation.

However, the results for these types of restoration efforts so far have been mixed. One type of mesquite tree planted in East Africa to buffer against desertification has proved to be invasive and problematic . The Great Green Wall initiative in Africa has evolved away from the idea of simply planting trees and toward the idea of " re-greening ," or supporting small farmers in managing land to maximize water harvesting (via stone barriers that decrease water runoff, for example) and nurture natural regrowth of trees and vegetation.

"The absolute number of farmers in these [at-risk rural] regions is so large that even simple and inexpensive interventions can have regional impacts," write the authors of the World Atlas of Desertification, noting that more than 80 percent of the world's farms are managed by individual households, primarily in Africa and Asia. "Smallholders are now seen as part of the solution of land degradation rather than a main problem, which was a prevailing view of the past."

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Desertification: Causes, Effects, And Solutions

Soaring temperatures and improper disaster management have resulted in increased desertification rates across the globe. Coupled with droughts and a drop in agricultural productivity, the effects of desertification cannot be ignored. To curb such high rates of land degradation that many regions of the world are experiencing, effective risk management is needed. What is desertification and what are the main causes and solutions?

What Is Desertification?

Desertification has a few varying definitions, but mostly centres around semi-arid, sub-humid lands; in simple terms, it can be described as areas with low or variable rainfall. In addition, there is also the added element of human-induced land degradation owing to an expanding population and rampant deforestation.

Land degradation is a systematic global issue. The scale of the problem has been questioned for decades, with estimates of degraded areas ranging between 15 to 60 million kilometres. Currently, an estimated 2 billion people live on drylands vulnerable to this phenomenon and scientists predict that the effects of desertification could lead to the displacement of around 50 million people by 2030 as a result of the soaring temperatures, large-scale deforestation, and ecosystem damage in many parts of the world. Alone in Asia, more than 2 billion people will be living in dryland conditions, while Africa sees at least 1 billion in the same (Figure 1) .

What Are the Causes of Desertification?

Land degradation has been ongoing for several decades. Droughts –  increasingly frequent extreme weather events caused by global warming – also amplify this situation and can lead to the depletion of nutrients from the soil and the inability of land to regrow plants, resulting in drylands that currently cover about 40% of the globe, from the Mediterranean regions and the south-western parts of the US to Asia and the Middle East. Droughts, coupled with land degradation, give rise to desertification.

But this phenomenon is also caused by activities such as urbanisation, ranching, mining, and clearing of land and emission generation. By further contributing to a rise in temperatures and a reduction in precipitation, human interventions create a vicious cycle that only exacerbates the issue.

The degradation of land leads to a reduction in soil productivity, which can lead to a variety of complexities such as environmental hazards, food insecurity as well as loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services. 

Where Does Desertification Occur the Most?

More than 60% of Central Asia is vulnerable to desertification processes. Soaring temperatures in parts of China, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and many other countries have been a cause of concern. Scientists have concluded that, since the 1980s, much of the Central Asian region was classified as having a desert climate . However, the issue has now spread toward northern Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, southern Kazakhstan, and around the areas of the Junggar Basin in north-western China. Mountains across the continental region have become hotter and wetter, resulting in the retreat of glaciers. An example of this is the Tian Shan region in north-western China . Here, an increase in temperature and precipitation in the form of rain instead of snow has contributed to the melting of ice at mountain tops . Thereby, glaciers in Central Asia are unable to replenish ice and as a consequence, less meltwater will flow to nearby regions, causing water shortages that affect people as well as the agricultural sector.

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Desertification is a huge issue also in Africa. For example, poor harvesting and a surge in barren lands continue to plague the inhabitants of Engaruka, Tanzania . In Mauritania, a drop in rainfall has worsened agricultural production and has left many farmers struggling to grow enough food to eat or sell. 

What Are the Main Effects of Desertification?

Desertification is attributed to soaring temperatures and/or drop in precipitation; this is likely to result in the modification and replacement of plant communities by species that are adapted to hotter and drier conditions. The most common change induced by desertification is the conversion of native vegetation by woody plants and invasive shrub species (for example Bufflegrass and Onion-weed in southwest America, and the Tamarisk plant in the Sahara). 

In this regard, Jeffrey Dukes, an ecologist from Carnegie Institution for Science’s Department of Global Ecology at Stanford said : “[Desertification] is going to have consequences for things like the grazing animals that are dependent on the steppe or the grasslands”. In some regions, he adds, extended periods of drought will reduce the land’s productivity until it becomes ‘dead’ soil. 

Desertification can also cause loss of biodiversity and loss of aquifers. In Africa, with nearly 45% of the landmass experiencing desertification, many people face even greater risks. In Mauritania, the dire situation has caused food insecurity, housing problems and population health declines . Villagers are trying to migrate as their houses become buried under the sand in addition to a lack of water sources and income. 

Desertification has also led to an increase in the frequency of dust storms. Particulate matter, pathogens, and allergens are detrimental to human health. The health effects caused by dust storms are greatest in the areas in the immediate vicinity of their origin and regions like the Sahara Desert, Central, and eastern Asia, the Middle East, and Australia are largely affected. In places such as the Sahara region, the Middle East, and South as well as East Asia, dust storms have been attributed to causing approximately 15–50% of all cardiopulmonary deaths .

The impacts of desertification in conjunction with climate change on socio-economic systems were also exemplified in an IPCC Report on climate change and land degradation. The report suggests that the interplay between desertification and climate change greatly affects the achievement of the targets of SDGs 13 (climate action) and 15 (life on land) , thereby highlighting the need for efficient policy actions on land degradation neutrality and climate change mitigation (Figure 2) .

How Can We Solve Desertification?

A new global approach of proactive action and risk management efforts is warranted in today’s changing landscape and climate. Droughts seem to be concurrent with desertification in many parts of the Earth. 

In Niger, local bodies have rehabilitated land to restore soil fertility, which has positively affected the country whose economy is largely dependent on agriculture. Here, the smallholder farmers have taken the initiative into their own hands by developing the principle of farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR) . This technique involves the regeneration and multiplication of valuable trees whose roots already lay underneath their land, encouraging significant tree growth. Felled tree stumps, sprouting root systems, and seeds are regrown; this has boosted soil productivity, improved agricultural income and the lands are greener than before.

Village communities in Kenya and Tanzanian are fighting droughts and desertification by digging semi-circular trenches that store water when it rains, thereby retaining moisture for plants and trees. 

Some World Bank-funded projects have helped carry out ecological restoration and fixing of sand dunes in north-western China. One of the major problems of desertification is the migration or shifting of sands threatening infrastructure, villages, and irrigated farmland. Stabilisation of dunes (synonymously dune-fixing) is based on the straw-checkerboard technique. This technique involves planting straws of wheat, rice, reeds, and other plants in a checkerboard shape where half is buried and the other half is exposed. Desertification control efforts have also benefited several communities living in these areas by creating jobs and increasing incomes through the growing of sand-fixing shrub species and greenhouses .

Several other countries have already taken charge of curbing land degradation through tree-planting efforts. A nationwide ongoing effort is the “Great Green Wall of China” which has aimed to plant 88 million acres of forests in a 3000-mile network with a goal to tackle deforestation. A similar anti-desertification tree planting ambition, “Great Green Wall” of Africa has also been moving steadily since its inception in 2007. The plan to restore the degraded lands of the Sahel Region has had its fair share of progress and setbacks, but last year’s major boost announced at the One Planet Summit has planned to accelerate its completion in order to support the local farmers and support the agriculture business.

Every year, the United Nations observes the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought, an occasion to promote public awareness of the presence of desertification and drought. This day is considered a unique moment to remind people of the ways in which land degradation can be solved through efficient problem-solving techniques and the cooperation between local, governmental, and environmental bodies. 

You might also like: The Great Green Wall Receives an Economic Boost, But Is It Enough to Save It?

In May 2022, the 15th Conference of Parties (COP15) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) brought together ministers, high-level officials, the private sector, NGOs, and stakeholders to adopt resolutions that aim to drive progress in the protection and restoration of land . Among the resolutions adopted to curb desertification were the development of land restoration projects as well as increasing efforts to involve women in land management and collect gender-disaggregated data on the impacts of desertification and droughts. Promoting land-based jobs for youth and land-based youth entrepreneurship to strengthen youth participation and robust data monitoring of land restoration processes was also highlighted. Another key moment from this event was the launch of the Abidjan Legacy Programme; a US$2.5 billion project to strengthen supply chains while tackling the issues of deforestation and climate change. 

The takeaways from this are straightforward: A call to action and risk management efforts should be at the forefront of every planned proposal to curb environmental degradation. Be it land, soil, or water, efficient cooperation, and community efforts will certainly go a long way in mitigating the consequences of climate change and environmental degradation. 

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Desertification 101: Definition, Types, Causes and Effects

Deserts, which are found on every continent, stretch across more than ⅕ of the globe’s total land area. While many think of deserts as barren wastelands devoid of life, deserts are home to some of the most specialized organisms on the planet. Around 1 billion humans also live in deserts. Plants, animals and humans have adapted to these harsh environments, but that doesn’t mean they can survive anything. As human activities like agriculture and mining cause land degradation, deserts are getting dryer while lusher, greener areas are transforming into deserts through a process called desertification. In this article, we’ll define what desertification is, its different types, its causes and its effects.

Desertification is a type of land degradation where once-productive and thriving land transforms into dry, desert landscapes. Features include a loss of plant life, soil erosion, degraded soil quality, water scarcity and so on. The effects on plants, animals and humans can be devastating.

How is desertification defined?

Deserts are extremely dry areas of land that, according to data from National Geographic, get no more than 10 inches of rain every year. Because deserts are so dry, living things like plants and animals must adapt to the area’s harsh conditions. During long stretches without rain, many plant seeds can lie dormant until a light sprinkle of rain triggers fast growth. Animals, which can include camels, foxes, snakes, lizards, rabbits and rats, tend to be nocturnal, which helps them avoid the hot sun. Humans can adapt, as well. In fact, around 6% of the human population lives in deserts. Life in the desert can be very difficult as food, water and shelter are hard to come by. Heat, desert dust and dehydration can also harm human health.

Desertification may sound like it refers to the expansion of existing deserts, but it also means land degradation that causes harm to soil, water, plants, wildlife and so on. Desertification has happened throughout time, but in 1994, the United Nations recognized it as a serious issue . They established the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification , which is the only legally binding international treaty that connects environment and development to sustainable land management. The treaty defines desertification as “land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities.” The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which is the UN body focused on climate change research, uses the same definition. Their 2019 special report on climate and land found with high confidence that desertification has increased in some drylands, while climate change will increase the risks from desertification.

Check out this online course on understanding and protecting the environment. 

What are the types of desertification?

There are two main types of desertification: desertification as a natural process and desertification as a result of human activity. Because humans have such a significant impact on the climate, the types of desertification often v. Let’s explore both:

Natural desertification

According to Britannica, most deserts form on the eastern sides of big subtropical high-pressure cells. These are wheels of wind that move clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and counterclockwise in the South. When moist air rises near the Equator and cools down, it turns into clouds and rain. As this air moves toward the pole, it releases its rain, but when it starts wheeling back to the Equator, the air starts descending. The air becomes warmer and more compressed, which does not allow for cloud and rain formation. Without much rain, the areas below become deserts. The world’s oldest desert is likely the Sahara Desert, whose origins remain a mystery. At its youngest, this North African desert could be thousands of years old, but many believe it’s around 5 million years old .

Human-driven desertification

Humans are responsible for the second type of desertification. Without activities like poor land management, overconsumption, agricultural land expansion and so on, this type of desertification would not be as severe. According to Britannica, desertification affects four main areas : irrigated croplands, rain-fed croplands, grazing lands and dry woodlands. We’ll discuss specific causes and effects of human-driven desertification in the next section of this article.

Desertification is just one environmental issue we need to address. Here’s our article on 20 other issues .

What causes desertification?

Desertification has many causes that play off one another. As an example, experts talk about climate change and desertification as a hand-in-hand relationship. Climate change makes desertification worse, while desertification also exacerbates the effects of climate change. That means most of the factors causing desertification are driving – and reinforcing – climate change. Here are five specific causes:

Overgrazing

When plants are exposed to grazing for too long or without rest periods, the land starts to degrade. This became clear in Mongolia in 2013. Known for its large grasslands, Mongolia has depended on animals like sheep and goats. Overgrazing has led to serious issues. In a study published by Global Change Biology, researchers discovered that overgrazing by sheep and goats degraded about 70% of the grasslands in the Mongolian Steppe. That meant overgrazing was responsible for 80% of the vegetation loss, while the remaining 20% was lost because of a decrease in rain. Desertification is making the Gobi Desert, a desert larger than France and Germany combined, grow.

Mining is the extraction of valuable materials and minerals like coal, gold and cobalt from within the Earth. According to research , around 40 million people are involved in large-scale mining, while 13 million work in “artisanal” mining. While mining has been essential to the economy, especially the economies of developing countries, it’s causing desertification. Specific consequences include deforestation, water and air pollution, soil erosion, increased dust, greenhouse gas emissions and so on. The impacts don’t stop even when mines are abandoned, which makes mining a complex and persistent problem.

Water extraction

Water extraction is when water is taken from a source for purposes like irrigation, flood control, drinking water and so on. Water is essential to life, but it’s possible to extract too much and cause serious issues. The over-extraction of groundwater, which is the world’s largest supply of fresh water, is one example. According to the Groundwater Foundation, groundwater depletion leads to issues like water scarcity, soil collapse and contamination from saltwater. All these issues have a severe impact on plants, wildlife and the land as a whole.

Deforestation

Deforestation is the clearing of forests to turn the land into something else, like farms, ranches, cities, grazing land and so on. When too many trees are destroyed, it affects the soil quality and soil erosion. Forests provide vital nutrients to soil, while their roots help hold the land together. When those trees are suddenly gone, the soil suffers. Forests, especially tropical forests, are also vital to the water cycle. According to Carbon Brief, clearing forests could lead to a dryer, more desert-like climate .

Want to learn more about deforestation? Here’s our article on its negative effects .

Wildfires can be frightening, but fire is part of the natural world. Vegetation has adapted to fires as part of their normal routines, but when patterns are disrupted, plants can’t adapt quickly enough. What disrupts fire? Climate change is one of the big culprits. According to research, climate change leads to warmer, drier conditions and higher temperatures , which extends normal fire seasons and makes forests and grasslands easier to burn. According to the IPCC, wildfires drive desertification because they destroy vegetation cover, increase soil erosion and degrade soil quality.

What are the effects of desertification?

Desertification has serious consequences for things like the environment, the economy and human health. Here are five effects:

Reduced biodiversity

One of the clearest effects of desertification is the loss of plant and animal life . When once-thriving habitats like forests and grasslands become deserts, the organisms that live there suffer. Places like the Amazon Rainforest are home to millions of species, some of which are only found there, while existing deserts also protect thousands of plants and animals. Desertification, which also makes deserts more hostile, threatens everything in a habitat.

Food and water scarcity

Deserts are famous for not having much food or water, so when these areas start spreading, it threatens the food and water security of even more places. Expert groups like the IPCC pay close attention to desertification’s effects on food and water scarcity, and the data is grim. In a 2023 policy brief, the OHCHR reported that between 2015 and 2019, at least 100 million hectares of land were lost, impacting food and water around the world. If desertification isn’t seriously addressed, 95% of the world’s land area could be degraded by 2050.

Desertification and poverty have a close relationship. According to the IPCC, desertification – along with factors like climate variability – will contribute to poverty, while climate change will worsen poverty for some dryland populations. Reasons vary, but in general, poverty gets worse when people can no longer grow crops or access enough water. It doesn’t help that those already living in poverty depend the most on agriculture, which desertification threatens.

Harmful health effects

Desertification harms human health in a few ways. The first is through food and water insecurity, but researchers are also raising the alarm about dust. According to an IPCC report, dust storms are becoming more frequent and intense. These storms carry harmful substances like pathogens and allergens over large distances, threatening the health of anyone in their path. Desertification can also contribute to water pollution and contamination , which is linked to several serious diseases like cholera, typhoid, cancer, liver damage and much more.

Increased forced migration

When productive land becomes desert, people living there often have no other option but to leave. Forced migration linked to climate change is becoming more common. According to Migration Policy, more than 1 million people in Somalia were displaced in 2022 because of drought. People often migrate within the same country, but if desertification continues to get worse, entire regions will become unlivable.

Can we fight desertification?

Deserts are part of the world’s ecosystems and far from the lifeless voids people often picture, but desertification is a devastating process we can prevent. Experts advocate for strategies such as better land and water management, improved soil quality, forest protection, different irrigation methods and so on. Anything that addresses climate change, such as a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, will also help combat desertification. With critical thinking and commitment, the world can hold back the desert.

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Mitigating the impacts of desertification and drought

By Abubakar Jimoh Over the years, desertification and drought are two related disasters largely contributing to high rate of famine, especially in the Northern part of Nigeria. In the analysis of the United Nation Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), desertification was described as a process involving land degradation in a dryland area resulting to environmental crises, such as loss of biodiversity and global warming. Similarly, drought is a condition of unusually dry weather in a geographic area, where rainfall is normally present; resulting to water shortage that seriously interferes with human activities such as water-supply reservoir emptiness, wells dry up, crop damage and other consequences which trigger ‘desertification’. Unarguably, desertification and drought have continuous to sabotage the nation’s socio-economic, food security and employment opportunities. For instance, about 35 million people in northern part of the country are reportedly suffering from the dangers of desertification. While not less than 50,000 farmers in about 100 villages in Yobe state have been affected by sand dunes. Also, it was estimated that over 55 million people have been seriously affected in Borno, Bauchi, Gombe, Adamawa, Jigawa, Kano, Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto and Kebbi states; and approximately 350,999 hectares of land is lost to desertification annually. It is noteworthy to recall that phenomena of drought had triggered the recent crisis which erupted between Gwari farmers and Fulani herdsmen as a result of encroachment of herds of cattle into farmlands in Gwako, under Gwagwalada Local Government Area of the Federal Capital Territory. Not surprisingly, after the crisis, Youths Against Disaster Initiative (YADI) observed that during the dry season, low feedstuff and low water in rivers would trigger an early movement of herds in search of pasture and water as early as December/January, thereby increasing the risk of conflicts between herdsmen and farmers. Overgrazing and overcrowding settlements could further intensify conflicts between herdsmen and farmers in the affected areas. In its surveillance, YADI revealed that communal clash has remained a persistent phenomenon between farmers and herdsmen across the country, especially during the dry season starting from November/December every year. Also, as struggles persist against low feed purchasing power and the general fall in prices of animals as a result of deterioration in animal body conditions in dry season, the country is expected to witness further Farmers-Herdsmen conflicts across the country. More importantly, a study carried out by National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) under the leadership of leadership of the Director-General, Alhaji Muhammed Sani-Sidi in collaboration with United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), and United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) showed that both natural and human activities have contributed to the menace of desertification and drought. Such activities include inadequate rain fall, harsh climate condition, over-cultivation which exhausts soil, overgrazing involving removal of vegetation that prevents and poorly drained irrigation. In addition, Justin Uwazuruonye in 2010 reported that excessive heat and dust could further result in the upsurge of diseases such as meningitis and asthma. Millet the main crop in the north would experience crop failure and losses culminating into localised production shortages. The situation could lead to low food supply at market and household levels, unusually high food prices at harvest, reducing food access for the most affected population. While low water levels in rivers and pounds will lead to low production of dry season farming and fishing, resulting in poor income. Low hydro power generation could hamper economic activities due to decline in electricity production earlier than usual. In a bid to minimize the impact of this hazard on households in the vulnerable areas, Alhaji Sani Sidi in 2010 has gone into technical partnership with National Space Research and Development Agency (NSRDA) and United Nations Space Based Information for Disaster Management and Emergency Response (UNI-SPIDER). This led to the adoption of space-based technology to assist in obtaining instant information that could enhance disasters prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery. The space technology is used to display spatial location of the drought vulnerable communities, visualize the potential risk points of interest, highlight the possible save areas for the evacuation purpose in case of emergency, and take inventory of critical facilities available. After this, earlier warning alert is issued to the population at risk. YADI recommended that all levels of Government should make good drinking water available for both man and animals in water deficit areas, through the provision of sufficient wells or boreholes in the affected communities. While urging farmers to start planting at the appropriate period, consciously use their food reserve, and improve feeds during the growing season in accordance with guidance and advice of state agriculture services. Traditional rulers and community heads across the country should encourage the herdsmen to make adequate provisions for their animal feeds against dry season; through massive storage of animal feedstuffs during the growing season. Traditional rulers and community heads should institute alternative means of conflict resolution, especially between their farmers and herdsmen to avoid undesirable elements that could capitalize on the insecurity in the country to attack innocent citizens. In addition, YADI advises traditional rulers to encourage active participation of their community members in the ongoing NEMA’s campaigns and sensitization on Disaster Risks Reduction (DRR), which includes mitigating against the upsurge of desertification and drought across the country. Among such measures instituted by Alhaji Sani Sidi since 2010 are constant seminars, workshops, public education and enlightenment involving advocacy visitation to states and grassroots, purposely to build disaster-resilient communities against the impacts of global warming. Upholding ecological management practices such as planting of trees, shelterbelts to protect soil from wind and water erosion are found to have been effectively adopted in various developing nations like Bolivia, Mali, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, among others in combating their environmental challenges. Nigerian Communities are advised to follow their counterparts and put in place appropriate ecosystem management to conserve major ecological services; and abide by ethical use of natural resources to meet the socioeconomic, political and cultural needs of current and future generations. Encouraging local participation and community education on environmental matters and land use innovation is a proven solution to tackle the hazards of drought and desertification. This should include adequate sensitization concerning various aspects of drought and water scarcity to predict, and articulate local methods and strategies which could help to minimize the effects of drought and desertification. Following a study conducted in 2009 by University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka to mitigate communities’ vulnerability to the effects of climate change, it was discovered that through community-based participatory risk assessment, the community coping capacity would be enhanced to share responsibilities to reduce risk, and take decision to battle water scarcity and seasonal droughts. In area of education and enlightenment to enhance local skills and methods, farmers’ needs must be fully understood or met by the scientific community, especially the needs to adequately reduce the training to local language that every farmer and community members can understand. This will encourage a wide participation and achievement of the training objectives. Effort should be made to reduce desertification by developing sustainable sources of income for rural women as an alternative to their commerce in wood. These alternative livelihoods in the words of include vegetable gardens, literacy and financial education, training in soap making and in making energy-efficient stoves for rural women. The benefits of such project have been highlighted in the words of the Coordinator Malian Rural Women Development Programme, Johanna Togola in 2009 that diversification of the communities income sources, and reduction in wood-cutting, will mitigate the future threat of intensified climate change and weather-related hazards such as flooding, landslides, drought and desertification. Empowering the communities with education about the environment, and giving them the skills to diversify their livelihoods is an environmentally conscious way that can lead to significant success in effecting change. The States’ Environmental Agencies can organize environmental education for the desertification and drought vulnerable communities to address challenges of deforestation, erosion, cutting wood, farming, and water, as well as to improve stoves and planting trees. Communities must therefore avoid unethical land use practices like overgrazing, overexploitation of plants, trampling of soils, and unsustainable irrigation. Moreover, instituting poverty eradication programs in the degraded communities will be a welcome development to secure the socio-economic and environmental conditions for prosperity, stability and equity. This can be achieved through the joint effort of local communities, regional organizations, governments, Non-Governmental Organizations, and other related stakeholders. Abubakar Jimoh is the National Coordinator, Youths Against Disaster (YADI), and lives in Abuja. [email protected]

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Defining desertification: A review

• Published: August 1986
• Volume 9 , pages 5–18, ( 1986 )

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• Michel M. Verstraete 1  

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The concept of desertification was introduced in the late forties to designate a number of ecological degradation processes in tropical Africa, in particular the progressive transformation of tropical forests in savannahs or even drier ecosystems. Since then, the word has received a number of other meanings, some of them contradictory, most of them ambiguous.

This paper reviews the historical developments that lead to the introduction of the concept of desertification, summarizes some of the reasons why this issue is so controversial, and suggests specific elements that should be incorporated in the definition of the concept. The point is made that each user of the concept should probably design a definition for his or her own use, depending on the goals, among other things.

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Deserts and Drylands Before the Age of Desertification

Desertification paradigm: 40 years of development and global efforts

Where does desertification occur mapping dryland degradation at regional to global scales.

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Desertification [UPSC Environment & Ecology Notes]

This article shares details on the meaning of desertification, the 7 different causes behind desertification, and the harmful effects of desertification like an increase in poverty, hunger, fall in farm outputs, etc.

Desertification is a topic in the Geography as well as environment & ecology sections of the UPSC syllabus. This makes the topic of desertification crucial as it is a part of GS Papers I and III. Aspirants would find this article very helpful while preparing for the IAS Exam .

What is Desertification?

Desertification is the degradation process by which a fertile land changes itself into a desert by losing its flora and fauna, this can be caused by drought, deforestation, climate change, human activities or improper agriculture. Desertification is a process of degradation of the land. It occurs because of man-made activities and climate change. Desertification takes place when a particular type of biome converts into a desert biome. 

Desertification Causes

• Overgrazing
• Deforestation
• Farming Practices
• Urbanization and other types of land development
• Climate Change
• Stripping the land of resources
• Natural Disasters

Desertification Impacts

• Farming becomes difficult or even impossible in the area
• Flooding chances are more
• Hunger – because of no farming
• Poor quality of water
• Overpopulation
• Poverty as a result of the above

Steps To Reduce Desertification

Given below are the steps which may help in reducing Desertification:

• Focus on Water management. Rainwater harvest must be done, water that can be reused must not be left out as waste
• Reforestation and tree regeneration
• Buttressing the soil through the use of sand fences, shelter belts, woodlots and windbreaks
• Better and hyper-fertilization of soil through planting
• The residue from pruned trees can be used to provide mulching for fields thus increasing soil water retention and reducing evaporation

UPSC Aspirants can refer to the links below for exam preparation:

Desertification in India

• Population growth, removal of wood, overgrazing, soil erosions, etc. are all important factors that have caused desertification in India.
• According to the Government’s data recently presented to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), India lost 31%, or 5.65 million hectares, of grassland area in a decade.
• As per reports, over 105 million hectares or about 32% of India’s areas have degraded.
• Between 2003-2005 and 2011-2013, 26 states witnessed an increase in the level of desertification in India.

Measures Taken To Curb Desertification in India

Multiple steps and measures have been taken by the concerned authorities regarding curbing desertification in India. Discussed below are the same:

• A Command Area Development Programme was launched in 1974 which is coordinated by the Ministry of Water Resources for its implementation in various states of the country. It aims to improve the irrigational potential through water management.
• In 1989-90, Integrated Watershed Management Programme was launched, which was later renamed as Haryali Guidelines in 2013, and then, subsumed under Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana.
• Implemented by the Ministry of Rural Development, the Desert Development Programme was launched in 1995 to minimize the effects of drought in areas across the country.
• India also became a signatory to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in 1994
• The National Afforestation Programme was implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the year 2000.
• In 2001, the National Action Programme to Combat Desertification was implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
• The Desertification and Land Degradation Atlas of India was released by ISRO in 2016 to combat desertification and land degradation.

Measures Taken To Curb Desertification Globally

Desertification is an issue for people across the globe and multiple steps have been taken to curb it. Given below are the steps which have been taken globally to curb  desertification:

• Goal 15 of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), 2030 declares that “we are determined to protect the planet from degradation, including through sustainable consumption and production.”
• The Bonn Challenge has been taken up according to which 150 million hectares of the world’s deforested and degraded land is expected to be restored by 2020 and around  350 million hectares to be restored by 2030.
• United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) was established in 1994.
• Apart from this, every year, June 17 is observed as the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought.

Desertification – Latest News

• Recently, the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought was observed on June 17th. The theme for 2019 is ‘Let’s Grow the Future Together’ to encourage people against depleting the land of its inbuilt resources
• For years, commentators have questioned the popularity of sugarcane in arid, drought-prone Marathwada. When farmers reluctantly shifted to tur in 2016, the state government had the opportunity to promote better crop planning, as per water experts. But things didn’t pan out on expected lines. If things continue unchanged, water-stressed regions such as Marathwada could be heading towards desertification, as per opinions shared by experts.
• According to statistics, China has 2.61 million square kilometres of desert, meaning more than a quarter of the country’s land is either degraded or lost to sand. However, thanks to decades-long efforts to combat desertification, China has achieved substantial progress in sand control and ecological protection.

Desertification UPSC Question Example

Consider the following statements:

• Desertification makes land fertile.
• Desertification is always a natural process.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

• Both 1 and 2
• None of the above

Frequently Asked Questions related to Desertification

What are the main causes of desertification, what are the effects of desertification, how can desertification be stopped, where is desertification a problem, how does desertification affect the economy.

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Candidates preparing for the Civil Service exam can refer to the below-given links, for more information related to climate change, environment and ecology, water scarcity, and various Government of India schemes to tackle the problem of Climate change.

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What is Desertification and how can we solve it?

• January 28, 2020
• By: Savory Institute
• Blog , Featured Stories

Climate change has accelerated dramatically in the last two centuries due to our heavy use of fossil fuels and the resulting emissions of CO2 and other heat-retaining gases into the atmosphere.

It has also accelerated due to the development of industrial (oil-based) agriculture and the dramatic expansion of the world’s deserts.

In short, desertification and climate change are inseparable. Together they have led to the demise of many civilizations in various areas of the world, and they now threaten civilization globally.

What is Desertification?

Desertification is the persistent degradation of dryland ecosystems by variations in climate and human activities. These drylands are home to over a third of the entire human population and they occupy nearly half of Earth’s land area.

Desertification affects the livelihoods of millions of people who rely on the benefits that dryland ecosystems can provide.

Some 10 to 20% of drylands are already degraded, and ongoing desertification threatens the world’s poorest populations and the prospects of poverty reduction.

Therefore, desertification is one of the greatest environmental challenges today and a major barrier to meeting basic human needs in drylands.

What Causes Desertification?

Man-made desertification begins when the available rainfall becomes less effective. Most of the rain (or snowmelt) runs off the soil surface, or is absorbed by the soil but then evaporates out of the soil surface – resulting in both floods and droughts.

In the vast grasslands of the world, rainfall becoming less effective begins with increased soil exposure between grass plants.

After sixty years of investigation on six continents, and a great amount of literature research, Allan Savory found only two things lead to millions of hectares of grassland with a high percentage of bare soil between plants:

• Too few animals providing inadequate periodic disturbance while overgrazing plants

When there are too few large grazing animals, there is not enough physical disturbance to ensure rapid biological decay of annually dying leaves and plants, nor adequate trampling of that plant material to provide soil cover.

When exposed to sunlight, this dying plant material breaks down by gradual chemical oxidation rather than rapid biological decay, thus breaking the decay part of the annual cycle of dying leaves and stems.

So, what can we do to fight against these trends?

We Need to Increase Organic Matter & Carbon in Soils

Covering bare soil, and keeping it covered, with living or dead plant material (litter) is key to restoring soil health and the biggest hope for immediate salvation from desertification because it is relatively easy to provide soil cover, which in turn leads to an increase inorganic matter.

Any increase in soil organic matter also greatly increases the rate of water infiltration and retention in soil. The amount of water that can be held in the ground through healthy, covered soils dwarfs the storage in the World’s largest dams.

Relatively small increases in soil organic matter amount to billions of tons of carbon stored safely and permanently over billions of acres of land.

Conversely, relatively small decreases in soil organic matter result in vast amounts of carbon released to the atmosphere. This in turn helps minimize the frequency and severity of most of today’s floods and droughts that are worsened by desertification.

Restoring Desertified Croplands: A New Agriculture is Required

Most cropland soils, whether rain-fed or irrigated, have lost much of their organic matter and soil life, resulting in more rapid soil erosion than at any time in history — about 21 gigatons per year on croplands alone. Not only does that impact our ability to grow food, it impacts the soil’s ability to store carbon. Independent scientists involved in sustainable agriculture estimate that the entire legacy carbon load could be absorbed in the world’s croplands, were they properly managed.

Recent estimates put the amount of eroding soil annually going down the world’s rivers at about 24 billions tons or 4 tons per human alive today.

We need a new form of agriculture that can provide easily harvestable and transportable excesses to feed urban populations.

This new agriculture will need to be truly holistic in that it mimics nature and restores soil health — keeping soils permanently covered with cropping practices more akin to nature’s polyculture complexity than today’s single-crop fields that leave the soil bare between plants and rows and, in many cases, over the entire non-growing season.

Such a new agriculture will remove and store carbon from the atmosphere risk-free, while also increasing water retention.

Restoring Desertified Rangelands: Using Livestock to Reverse the Trend

According to the United Nations, one-third of the earth’s land surface (10 billion acres / 4 billion hectares) is threatened by desertification, the bulk of which is rangelands.

Using a simple grazing planning procedure developed more than 40 years ago, and field-tested on rangelands the world over, livestock can be used to restore rangelands to health and productivity.

Desertification can be reversed on most rangelands by increasing livestock numbers while planning their concentration and movement carefully.

At Savory Institute, we call this Holistic Planned Grazing .

It uses a planning procedure for grazing herds that mimics the movement and grazing patterns of the wild herds of old, minimizing overgrazing of plants while harnessing the beneficial soil-preparation effects of trampling hooves that knockdown old vegetation and chip bare soil surfaces, and dung and urine that cover them with fertilizer.

This process is designed to naturally increase vegetation on rangelands, fill in bare spaces, and keep the soil covered year-round — once again helping the soil to store both carbon and water.

Holistic Planned Grazing , combined with the rest of what has become known as Holistic Management , not only enables us to massively sequester carbon from the atmosphere, it also helps ensure food and water security.

What’s more, it produces greater revenue for land managers than the cost of implementation, while generating a truly sustainable form of wealth in healthier, more productive, land.

This post has been adapted from Allan Savory’s essay “A Global Strategy for Addressing Climate Change.”

More Resources

Holistic Management: A New Framework for Decision Making »

Allan Savory’s TED Talk »

Holistic Management Courses Online »

What is Holistic Management? »

Holistic Planned Grazing »

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How does the US know that forced labor is happening in China? A Northeastern supply chain expert weighs in

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Shawn Bhimani leads Northeastern’s Supply Trace project, an open-access platform that uses machine learning and shipping data — and on-the-ground investigations — to link forced labor to international trade transactions.

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The Biden administration has added 26 more companies to the list of Chinese textile traders and manufacturers whose goods are blocked from entering the United States because of their alleged ties to forced labor.

The banned imports, known as the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, names businesses that are said to be involved in exploiting forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region. The announcement brings the total number of banned companies to 65.

The act, passed by Congress in 2021 and enacted in June 2022, prohibits the import of any goods made in Xinjiang from entering the U.S.

Shawn Bhimani, assistant professor of supply chain management at Northeastern University, says 90% of the cotton in China is grown in Xinjiang. Other industries, he says, such as solar and electronics, are also tainted by the Uyghur human rights abuses.

Bhimani leads Northeastern’s Supply Trace project, an open-access digital platform that uses machine learning and shipping data — as well as on-the-ground investigations — to link forced labor to international trade transactions. 

Northeastern Global News spoke to Bhimani about the evidence the U.S. government has of the alleged human rights violations in China, as well as how Supply Trace helps companies and consumers to make ethical decisions.

His responses have been edited for brevity and clarity.

How do you define “forced labor” and how big is this problem globally?

The International Labor Organization defines forced labor as “all work or service which is exacted from any person under the threat of a penalty and for which the person has not offered himself or herself voluntarily.” If I was to simplify, its people working against their will.

Forced labor is estimated currently at 27 to 28 million people globally [comparable to the population of Australia]. It is a subset of what some people refer to as modern slavery.

Where in the world does forced labor happen most?

The highest problems of forced labor occur in India [11 million people] based on the 2023 estimates by the Global Slavery Index. China is also on their list.

China is much more in the news and in focus right now because of multiple political discussions that are happening this year. Part of it is tariffs that were levied against China two days ago by the Biden administration.

Part of it is because the Chinese government has been committing human rights abuses against the Uyghur population for many years. Because of that, the U.S. Congress passed in 2021 the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which prohibits the importation of any goods made in whole or in part, in Xinjiang [province] from entering the U.S. That law was enforced in June of 2022. 

The U.S. government continues to build out credible evidence and a list of entities that should be avoided in business transactions.

Recent testing shows that of goods coming into the U.S. 20% of the apparel was still being made with Xinjiang cotton.

How does the U.S. government know that these human rights abuses, including forced labor, are happening?

We have victim testimony. People who are from that region are able to provide testimony of the atrocities that are occurring, which are not limited to forced labor.

Additionally, we are able to leverage the fact that shipments coming out of China into the U.S. and other Western markets are traceable.

As part of our Supply Trace project, we trace shipments from factories in China with known links to Xinjiang and make it clear that those factories are shipping to the U.S. companies in our pilot phase of the platform. As we grow, there will be companies all over the world that are buying these products made by victims of forced labor.

We use shipping records of goods that travel by ocean freight. We also look at investigations performed on factories within China, where we look at their public disclosures on where the materials come from and who their customers and clients are.

How can American companies vet their supply chain? 

It is imperative that companies comply with the [Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act] and the list of banned companies. 

About 90% of the cotton from China is from Xinjiang, which means that there’s a 90% chance that any cotton that China exports has Xinjiang fibers in it. There are so many other industries such as solar or electronics or others that are tainted by bigger human rights abuses in China.

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When it comes to other countries, and other areas [of China], there are business advisories or recommendations of where companies should consider exercising caution. They can do this by vetting their supply chain by mapping it, by understanding known areas of risk and performing due diligence… for example, factory investigations to ensure that there’s no forced labor happening out of the facility. 

They need to think about corrective action and in the case of Uyghur human rights abuses, they need to change their sourcing locations.

Many companies don’t know where to start. They don’t know what to do with the list. They don’t even know sometimes if their suppliers are connected to Xinjiang.

So what we do is we create an open-access website where they can see a map of their supply chain based on shipping records. We use machine learning to connect the dots for them. We also provide resources if a company realizes they are connected [to forced labor] on what to do about it.

How can consumers figure out if a brand was produced with forced labor?

Supply Trace is open to everyone. It is an equal access platform, so anyone anywhere in the world can access it. There is no paywall. You type in the name of the brand or a factory and see potential risk and make better, more informed decisions.

Sometimes products do not ship directly from China to the U.S. They go through a third-party country before they arrive in the U.S.

How have these bans affected China?

We know that after passing of the law in 2021, and enforced in 2022, Customs Border Patrol has stopped over $3 billion worth of goods at the U.S. border to comply with the UFLPA.

We also know because of our own research that we’ve been conducting, that we have seen a decrease in raw cotton from China entering the United States because of companies trying to comply with this law.

However, in our recent research we found that retail products that are made in part with [Xinjiang] cotton have not significantly decreased, which is another way of saying we’re still importing those products tainted with human rights abuses.

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai today released the following statement concerning the statutory review of the tariff actions in the Section 301 investigation of China’s Acts, Policies, and Practices Related to Technology Transfer, Intellectual Property, and Innovation: “After thorough review of the statutory report on Section 301 tariffs, and having considered my advice, President Biden is directing me to take further action to encourage the elimination of the People’s Republic of China’s unfair technology transfer-related policies and practices that continue to burden U.S. commerce and harm American workers and businesses,” said Ambassador Katherine Tai.    “As the President recognizes in his memorandum, while the tariffs have been effective in encouraging the PRC to take some steps to address the issues identified in the Section 301 investigation, further action is required.   “In light of President Biden’s direction, I will be proposing modifications to the China tariffs under Section 301 to confront the PRC’s unfair policies and practices. From the beginning of the Biden-Harris Administration, I have been committed to using every lever of my office to promote American jobs and investments, and these recommendations are no different. Today, we serve our statutory goal to stop the PRC’s harmful technology transfer-related acts, policies, and practices, including its cyber intrusions and cyber theft. I take this charge seriously, and I will continue to work with my partners across sectors to ensure any action complements the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to expand opportunities for American workers and manufacturers.”   The Section 301 statute directs that the four-year review includes a consideration of: the effectiveness of the tariff actions in achieving the objective of the investigation; other actions that could be taken; and the overall effects of the tariff actions on the U.S. economy. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative’s (USTR) Report  addresses the statutory elements of the review, suggests modifications to strengthen the actions, and makes certain recommendations.   To encourage further elimination of the PRC’s technology transfer-related acts, policies, and practices, Ambassador Tai has recommended that products from the PRC currently subject to Section 301 tariffs should remain. Additionally, in light of the increased burden on U.S. commerce, President Biden is directing Ambassador Tai to take action to add or increase tariffs for certain products. As the Report details, Ambassador Tai will propose the following modifications in strategic sectors:

The Report also makes recommendations for: (1) establishing an exclusion process targeting machinery used in domestic manufacturing, including proposals for 19 exclusions for certain solar manufacturing equipment; (2) allocating additional funds to United States Customs and Border Protection for greater enforcement of Section 301 actions; (3) greater collaboration and cooperation between private companies and government authorities to combat state-sponsored technology theft; and (4) continuing to assess approaches to support diversification of supply chains to enhance our own supply chain resilience.   President Biden is also directing Ambassador Tai to establish an exclusion process for machinery used in domestic manufacturing and to prioritize, in particular, exclusions for certain solar manufacturing equipment.   Next week, USTR will issue a Federal Register notice announcing procedures for interested persons to comment on the proposed modifications and information concerning an exclusion process for machinery used in domestic manufacturing.    Background     In May 2022, USTR commenced the statutory four-year review process by notifying representatives of domestic industries that benefit from the tariff actions of the possible termination of those actions and of the opportunity for the representatives to request continuation.  In September 2022, USTR announced that because requests for continuation were received, the tariff actions had not terminated and USTR would conduct a review of the tariff actions.  USTR opened a docket on November 15, 2022, for interested persons to submit comments with respect to a number of considerations concerning the review.  USTR received nearly 1,500 comments.   As part of the statutory review process, throughout 2023 and early 2024, USTR and the Section 301 Committee (a staff-level body of the USTR-led, interagency Trade Policy Staff Committee) held numerous meetings with agency experts concerning the review and the comments received.    Specifically, the Report concludes: 

• The Section 301 actions have been effective in encouraging the PRC to take steps toward eliminating some of its technology transfer-related acts, policies, and practices and have reduced some of the exposure of U.S. persons and businesses to these technology transfer-related acts, policies, and practices.  
• The PRC has not eliminated many of its technology transfer-related acts, policies, and practices, which continue to impose a burden or restriction on U.S. commerce. Instead of pursuing fundamental reform, the PRC has persisted, and in some cases become aggressive, including through cyber intrusions and cybertheft, in its attempts to acquire and absorb foreign technology, which further burden or restrict U.S. commerce.  
• Economic analyses generally find that tariffs (particularly PRC retaliation) have had small negative effects on U.S. aggregate economic welfare, positive impacts on U.S. production in the 10 sectors most directly affected by the tariffs, and minimal impacts on economy-wide prices and employment.  
• Negative effects on the United States are particularly associated with retaliatory tariffs that the PRC has applied to U.S. exports.  
• Critically, these analyses examine the tariff actions as isolated policy measures without reference to the policy landscape that may be reinforcing or undermining the effects of the tariffs.  
• Economic analyses, including the principal U.S. Government analysis published by the U.S. International Trade Commission, generally find that the Section 301 tariffs have contributed to reducing U.S. imports of goods from the PRC and increasing imports from alternate sources, including U.S. allies and partners, thereby potentially supporting U.S. supply chain diversification and resilience. 

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No, the House didn't pass bill to 'outlaw' the New Testament | Fact check

The claim: House passed bill to outlaw the New Testament

A May 3 Facebook post ( direct link , archive link ) shows a screenshot of a headline that claims federal lawmakers took steps to ban a religious text central to Christianity.

"US Congress House Passes Bill to Outlaw New Testament," the headline reads. Below it is text that reads, "The US House of Representatives passed the Antisemitism Awareness Act, but concerns arise over its potential restriction on the biblical portrayal of Jesus' crucifixion."

The post's caption reads, "Remember, they don't want to you (sic) reading the Bible!"

The post was shared more than 100 times in a week.

More from the Fact-Check Team: How we pick and research claims | Email newsletter | Facebook page

Our rating: False

The bill referenced in the post would not outlaw the New Testament, according to multiple legal experts. Instead, it would require the Department of Education to use a certain definition of antisemitism when it enforces federal anti-discrimination laws on college campuses.

Bill defines antisemitism in federal anti-discrimination law

In early May, the House approved legislation that, if enacted, would expand the definition of antisemitism that the Department of Education uses when it investigates discrimination against Jews on college campuses. It passed with some bipartisan support amid a wave of protests on college campuses over Israel's war in Gaza. The bill's fate in the Senate is uncertain, the Associated Press reported.

The legislation, called the Antisemitism Awareness Act , would apply the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance 's definition of antisemitism to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 , which prohibits discrimination based on "race, color and national origin in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance." That includes all colleges and universities that receive federal funds.

In a post on X , formerly Twitter, Florida Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said before the vote she wouldn't support the legislation, claiming it "could convict Christians of antisemitism for believing the Gospel that Jesus was handed over to Herod to be crucified by the Jews." Similarly, Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz said in an X post that “the Gospel itself would meet the definition of antisemitism under the terms of the bill.”

Fact check : House condemned pro-Palestinian slogan in resolution, did not ban it

But Richard Painter , a University of Minnesota law professor, told USA TODAY that the legislation "doesn't outlaw the New Testament at all," nor would it ban the religious text from federally funded institutions.

"You're not banning something, you're conditioning federal funds on something," Painter said. "That's different than banning it."

While certain passages of the New Testament could potentially be interpreted in ways that fit the bill's definition of antisemitism, "that doesn't mean the New Testament itself would meet the definition of antisemitism," Painter said.

Jason Mazzone , a law professor at the University of Illinois, said there is no plausible way to interpret the legislation as banning the New Testament, even in a higher education setting.

"Title VI has never been understood to require schools and other recipients of federal funding to remove or prohibit from campus books on the basis that they may contain offensive material," Mazzone said. "Nothing in the Antisemitism Awareness Act newly imposes such a requirement. And if it did, it would be a clear violation of the First Amendment."

There is only one reference to the New Testament in the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of antisemitism – in this example : "Using the symbols and images associated with classic antisemitism (e.g., claims of Jews killing Jesus or blood libel) to characterize Israel or Israelis."

The Anti-Defamation League and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum both consider the claim that Jews killed Jesus to be an antisemitic myth used to justify violence against Jews for centuries. In 2011, Pope Benedict XVI wrote that there is no basis in scripture to support the claim that Jewish people as a whole were collectively responsible for Jesus' death, CBS News reported .

USA TODAY reached out to the social media user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Our fact-check sources:

• Richard Painter , May 8, Phone interview with USA TODAY
• Jason Mazzone , May 9, Email exchange with USA TODAY
• Associated Press, May 1, House passes bill to expand definition of antisemitism amid growing campus protests over Gaza war
• The New York Times, May 2, Bill to Combat Antisemitism on Campuses Prompts Backlash From the Right
• Congress.gov, accessed May 10, H.R.6090 - Antisemitism Awareness Act of 2023
• International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, accessed May 10, Working definition of antisemitism
• Justice Department, accessed May 10, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

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