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	Some 110 countries are at the risk of desertification by Ibrahim Thiaw, Sunita Narain UNCCD, UN News, Centre for Science and Environment India, agencies   Sep. 2019 (UN News)   Put concisely, we must 'invest in land restoration as a way of improving livelihoods, reducing vulnerabilities contributing to climate change, and reducing risks for the economy', Ibrahim Thiaw, Executive Secretary of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) said, speaking on the sidelines of the 14th session of the Conference of the Parties, in New Delhi.   The COP14 summit, which runs through 13 September, hosts ministers, scientists, government representatives, non-governmental organizations, and various community groups from 196 countries, in the hope of agreeing new actions to boost land fertility.   'Land is providing us with 99.7 per cent of the food we eat', Mr. Thiaw said. 'It is also providing us with water we drink - the quality of the water we get is coming from land and its ecosystems', but, he added, the precious resource is in serious jeopardy.   Last year, 25 countries called for emergency measures following widespread drought, Mr. Thiaw said, and on average, 70 countries are affected by droughts per year. Often the poorest communities are those who bear the brunt; facing depletion of resources and left relying on humanitarian aid.   Land degradation also 'has connections with peace and security', he added, forcing communities to compete for access to land and water, and in some cases, spiralling into conflict.   As desertification intensifies it is raising pressures on fertile soil, food insecurity, and financial burdens. 'It is estimated that desertification alone is generating a loss between 10 and 17 per cent of the global GDP', said Mr. Thiaw.   Poor land health combined with biodiversity loss - exacerbated by the effects of climate change - has given birth to environmental shifts that could force up to 700 million people to migrate by 2050, the UNCCD calculates.   http://reliefweb.int/report/world/briefing-note-land-degradation-poverty-and-inequality   June 2019   Let's grow the future together, by Ibrahim Thiaw, Executive Secretary, UN Convention to Combat Desertification   There are only three things you need to know about the World Day to Combat Desertification: it isn't just about sand, it isn't an isolated issue that will quietly disappear, and it isn't someone else's problem. It's about restoring and protecting the fragile layer of land which only covers a third of the Earth, but which can either alleviate or accelerate the double-edged crisis facing our biodiversity and our climate.   That makes it the problem of anyone who wants to eat, drink or breathe; to make their home in a town, in the country or even in security; to use technology, medicine or infrastructure; to have equal access to work, learning or relaxation. To live.   Twenty-five years ago, the international community acknowledged the central role our land plays in that equation and beyond, by creating the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification. Since then, 196 countries and the European Union have signed up to coordinated actions for sustainable land management.   However, poor land management has degraded an area twice the size of China and shaped a farming sector that contributes nearly a quarter of all greenhouse gases. There are even more stories about how half the people on this planet are affected by that damaged land or live in urban areas, consuming resources that require 200 times as much land as their towns and cities and generating 70 per cent of emissions.   For the next 25 years, I would love to say that as the only international treaty dealing with land management, we have our work cut out to turn that around before the population reaches nine billion. But I can't. We simply don't have that long.   Because unless we rapidly get control of the land that underpins our biodiversity and provides the second largest carbon reservoir on this planet, we will trigger a series of reactions that puts the outcome entirely beyond our control.   Which is why the world is determined that by 2030, we will switch from destroying the Earth to making it productive enough to grow a better future for everyone.   If we take action to restore our degraded land, it will save $1.3 billion a day to invest in the education, equality and clean energy that can reduce poverty, conflict and environmental migration.   In recent months, the leading authorities from science, finance and government have sounded the alarm about the very real, very imminent threats from biodiversity loss and climate change. Better land management does not hold all the answers, but it offers a stepping stone to reach our goals by 2030 and then act as a natural multiplier of their benefits.   People around the world are learning to understand their own impact on the climate and make choices to reduce it. But, if we want to keep three times as much carbon locked beneath our feet as above them, then we also need to understand our impact on the land and learn to live within our means.   So, for this World Day to Combat Desertification, I am calling on everyone to drive this change from the ground up; to make choices and take action, either privately or professionally, as producers or consumers, to protect and restore our land. Let's grow the future together.   * By 2025, two-thirds of the world will be living under 'water-stressed' conditions when demand outstrips supply during certain periods with 1.8 billion people experiencing absolute water scarcity, where a region's natural water resources are inadequate to supply the demand. Migration is likely to increase as a result of desertification, with the UN estimating that, by 2045, it will be responsible for the displacement of some 135 million people.   http://www.un.org/en/events/desertificationday/index.shtml http://www.unccd.int/issues/land-and-drought http://news.un.org/en/story/2019/06/1040561 http://www.ipsnews.net/2019/06/theres-no-continent-no-country-not-impacted-land-degradation/ http://www.ipsnews.net/2019/06/implacable-desertification-planet-earth/   The World Atlas of Desertification, prepared by the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), released in 2018, shows that more than 75 per cent of Earth's land area is already degraded and some 418 million ha, or half of the size of the European Union, is getting degraded every year.   Most of this is happening in Africa and Asia, which account for almost 67 per cent of the degradation occurring in dryland areas. By 2040, over 70 per cent of the big cities currently in non-dryland areas will grow drier. In contrast, 43 per cent of the big cities in dryland areas will be hit by desertification.   As a consequence of accelerated deforestation, which is a major driver of land degradation and desertification, it will become more difficult to mitigate the effects of climate change, observes JRC.   Together, land degradation and climate change could lead to a 10 per cent loss in global crop yield by 2050, says a press release issued by the European Commission. Most of this will occur in India, China and sub-Saharan Africa, where land degradation could halve crop production.   By 2050, more than 90 per cent of the global land could become degraded and 700 million people displaced. The figure could reach up to 10 billion by end of this century.   Sep. 2019   Land is at the core of fighting climate change that is sure to hurt us all eventually, writes Sunita Narain, Director General of the Centre for Science and Environment in India.   The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (CCD) is Rio's Stepchild, we said. Why? Because it was a neglected and frankly unwanted agreement, signed by the world at the Rio Conference in 1992.   It was agreed because African and other developing countries wanted it. It was a sop - give them the crumbs of an agreement, which the rich world did not understand or believe in. In Rio, climate change was the top agenda.   Next came the issue of biodiversity conservation - a resource largely surviving in the countries of the South, which need to be conserved and access secured. Then there was the issue of forests - a convention was proposed and staunchly opposed by the developing countries who said that it would infringe on their national resources. In all this acrimony, the desertification convention was born.   Today, close to 30 years later; now when the world is beginning to see the deadly impacts of climate change; now when it is still losing the war against the extinction of species and is faced with the dire prospects of catastrophic changes, this forgotten, this neglected convention, must shed its stepchild image.   It is the global agreement that will make or break our present and future. The fact is that management of our natural resources, particularly land and water - what this convention is concerned about - is at huge risk today; our own mismanagement is being exacerbated by weird weather events, which is making millions more vulnerable and more marginalised.   But there is another side as well. If we can improve our management of land and water, we can shave off the worst impacts of climate change. We can build wealth for the poorest and improve livelihoods.   And, by doing this, we mitigate greenhouse gases (GHG) - growing trees that can sequester carbon dioxide; improving soil health that captures carbon dioxide, and most importantly, changing practices of agriculture and diets is reducing emissions of GHG. So, this convention, needs to be moved from the stepchild to the parent.   Why do I say this? Sample what is happening in terms of extreme rain events in vast parts of the world - developing and developed; rich and poor; urban and rural.   In India, this monsoon, rain has been a curse, not the boon it always is. It has come down in torrents - regions have received 1,000-3,000 per cent excess rain; that is over the average of a day. It has meant that rain submerged vast lands; destroyed homes and livelihoods.   But what is worse is that flood becomes a drought within no time. This is because the heavy rain cannot be captured; cannot be recharged; and so, there is drought at the time of flood.   Each of these now, not so natural calamities, takes away the development dividend that governments work so hard to secure. Houses and other personal belongings are washed away; roads and infrastructure destroyed and all then has to be rebuilt. It is also clear that flood or drought is not just about climate change or changing weather patterns.   The fact is drought is about the mismanagement of water resources; where not enough rain is being recharged or water is used inefficiently and inequitably. Flood is about the sheer inability to plan for drainage; for our lack of concern to protect the forests on watersheds or the near criminal act of building and destroying the flood plains.   Then there is also the fact that global temperatures are increasing; intense heat events are being seen in many parts of the world. There is more heat and dust everywhere.   In the South Asian subcontinent, temperatures have spiked to unimaginable levels. High temperature means less moisture on ground; more dust and more desertification. It creates the conditions for a dust bowl - which then the winds of over 130 kilometre per hour - over what is called storm winds of 90-100 km/hour sweep away and make a destructive force.   In 2018, over 500 people died in northern Indian states from dust storms. Again, this is the double whammy. High temperatures are only adding to the already heat and water stressed lands. Lack of green cover, increases desertification conditions; over-withdrawal of groundwater; and, poor irrigation practices degrades land over time.   Then there is the over-intensification of land, largely because of the way we are doing agriculture. A report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2019 rightly indicted the modern agricultural practices for being over-chemicalised and over-industrialised and so adding to GHG emissions. The report has also called for changes in diets, which will make us tread lightly on earth. Our food and our climate change footprint is now connected.   Therefore, this desertification convention, signed so unwillingly in 1992 at the Earth Summit in Rio, is now relevant more than ever. There is also another critical change. At the Rio Summit, northern countries asked what this issue had to do with them. Desertification was not a global issue and so, why should there be an international agreement at all.   In Rio, African nations, who argued for this convention, had drawn important linkages to how price of their commodity was dropping, forcing them to discount their land and this, in turn, was adding to desertification and land degradation.   Today, there should be no doubt that desertification is a global issue, it requires cooperation between nations. The fact is that we are only just beginning to see the impacts of climate change. These will become more deadly as temperatures continue to spiral and this spiral gets out of hand. It is also clear that today the poor in the world are the victims of this 'human-made' disaster - local or global. The rich do not die in sandstorms. The rich do not lose their livelihoods when the next cyclonic system hits.   But the fact is that this weird weather is portend of what awaits us. The change is not linear - it is not predictable. It will come as a shock and we will not be prepared for it - the rich in developing world or the developed world. Climate change at the end will be an equaliser - it will impact all.   It is also clear that one impact of this corrosive change - increasing numbers of disasters because of growing intensity and frequency of weird and abnormal weather will make poor, poorer. Their impoverishment and marginalisation will add to their desperation to move away from their lands and to seek alternative livelihoods.   Their only choice will be to migrate - move to the city; move to another country. The double jeopardy, as I have called it, will add to the already-volatile situation of boat people and walls and migrant counting, which is making our world insecure and violent. This is the cycle of destructive change that we must fight. Desertification is then about our globalised world. Inter-connected and inter-dependent.   This is where the opportunity exists. This convention is not about desertification. It is about fighting desertification. The fact is that every way - in which we choose to fight desertification or land degradation or water scarcity - we will improve livelihoods and end up mitigating climate change.   The land and water agenda is at the core of fighting climate change. It is at the core of building local economies to improve the wellbeing of people. To fight poverty. To win the war against human survival. This is what CCD is about. Now, let's push for global leadership that can drive this change. http://bit.ly/2lDlEi6   http://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/climate-change/how-desertification-is-silently-fueling-conflicts-66446 http://www.downtoearth.org.in/blog/agriculture/desertification-and-climate-change-60709 http://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/climate-change/land-degradation-a-major-threat-but-avoidable-so-why-the-inaction-66508 http://bit.ly/2lK167q http://www.unccd.int/issues/land-and-human-security http://www.unccd.int/publications Visit the related web page
	Tackling widespread hunger in cities means listening to the urban poor by Cecilia Tacoli International Institute for Environment and Development   For decades, the global debate around food and nutrition security focused mainly on production, but there is now increased attention on consumption.   This reflects two major transformations: the first is that the majority of the world's population now lives in urban centres and relies primarily on purchasing food to feed itself.   The second is the changing nature of malnutrition. There is a growing number of overweight and obese people and, at the same time, persistently high levels of undernourishment, especially among children.   Most policies that aim to address food and nutrition security from a consumption entry point focus on access to markets and education about nutrition. While these are certainly important, there seems to be an underlying assumption that urban consumers are a homogenous and relatively affluent group able to make choices when it comes to their diets.   But this ignores the large proportion of urban residents who live in poverty. For them, food is a central concern that is deeply interconnected with concerns about income, shelter and access to basic infrastructure and services.   To effectively address food insecurity and malnutrition, we need to give voice to the urban poor. What are the main challenges to putting food that is sufficient and of the quality they want on the table? What are their strategies to make sure that, come what may, their families have something to eat?   Since no one knows more about these issues than the urban poor themselves, we turned over these questions to our long-term partner, the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights (ACHR). Since 1988, ACHR has brought together professionals, NGOs and grassroots organisations committed to working with the urban poor to ensure their voices are heard so that they are able to influence change in their cities.   Between 2017 and 2019, women from ACHR member organisations in Cambodia and Nepal spoke to women in low-income urban settlements about their struggles to put food on the table. The study found that:   Hunger is a real issue for the urban poor: in Cambodia, people may eat just one meal a day of rice with a little fish sauce. In Nepal, women regularly skip meals to feed their families; despite this, the whole family still often goes hungry.   In Cambodia, almost half the people who participated in the discussions said they go hungry or eat poorly most of the time. But this level of food insecurity rarely appears in aggregate national statistics.   Low and irregular incomes make it hard for the urban poor to eat well: the urban poor use a huge proportion of their incomes to buy food. In Nepal, even the better-off groups said they spend at least half their income on food. And prices get constantly higher.   Almost everyone in the group discussions was deeply in debt and, after food, debt repayment is the second largest household expenditure. Despite this, the high cost of borrowing and the fact that incomes are lower than expenditure mean that debts are never fully repaid and are often passed on to the next generation in a form of perpetual bondage.   Natural disasters contribute to food insecurity: in Cambodia, floods in the Mekong River areas are becoming more frequent, more severe and lasting longer. The ability to earn money drops drastically, prices soar, water-borne illnesses become endemic and hunger swells.   Food safety is a growing concern: there are also huge concerns about the ever-growing use of pesticides and other chemical products. The urban poor cannot afford organic produce, and to avoid stomach upsets they must wash vegetables several times, which is time and energy consuming where access to water is limited.   Food is bought daily and in small quantities: inadequate housing that lacks safe storage space and irregular earnings force people to buy their food daily and in small quantities.   Small neighbourhood shops offer an accessible service: they stay open until late and sell small portions of cooking ingredients. But this comes at a cost as unit prices are often much higher than in larger retail outlets. However, perhaps the most valuable service offered to poor consumers is short-term credit.   Sharing food is a key survival strategy: in Cambodia, the poorest people in the community are invited by their neighbours to share their often meagre meals. As Mary, a fisherwoman in Phnom Penh, observed: "It's funny, if we all eat together, the amount I cook is always enough. But if we eat separately, it's never enough!".   In Nepal, the frequent religious festivals are also ways to share what little food is available with relatives and visitors. But where traditional gender roles prevail, women are the first to skip meals for the benefit of their families.   For the urban poor, food insecurity is a multi-faceted problem, which is difficult for individuals and single households to address on their own. Policies advocating better access to markets and nutrition education are unlikely to make a dent as they ignore other significant constraints, such as low-income levels, poor infrastructure and inadequate housing.   The communities in this food study agreed that collective action was needed. Existing savings groups have been re-energised and new ones set up with a focus on reducing the burden of debt; and community gardens are flourishing on vacant plots, rooftops and windowsills.   But most importantly, as communities take ownership of issues and develop their own leadership, they become stronger and are able to engage in dialogue with local government to drive deeper change.   http://www.iied.org/tackling-widespread-hunger-cities-means-listening-urban-poor   * In 2018 the International Labour Organization estimate of the informal labour force - 61% of the world's workers earn their livings in the informal economy, more than 2 billion people. Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing & Organizing (WIEGO) is a global network focused on securing livelihoods for the working poor, especially women, in the informal economy. We believe all workers should have equal economic opportunities and rights.   http://www.wiego.org/informal-economy/statistics/statistical-picture http://www.wiego.org/informal-economy/worker-stories http://www.wiego.org/blog/living-precipice-extreme-poverty-how-financial-downturns-devastate-working-poor   July 2019   The Political Economy of Food. (IDS/IPES-Food)   Any analysis of food systems needs to include power as an aspect of political economy, in order to understand how power relations develop over time and how they affect different food system actors.   This issue of the Institute for Development Studies (IDS) Bulletin examines a range of perspectives on power in food systems, and the various active players, relationships, activities, and institutions that play a major role in shaping them.   It notes the need for mainstream research and policy to grapple with power inequities in the food system, in order, for instance, to challenge the increase in private sector funding that is reshaping food systems. The power of dominant food system actors is often reinforced or overlooked, having negative consequences for those unable to access sufficient healthy food or to participate in decision-making about the food system.   The articles present the viewpoints that emerged during a workshop on the Political Economy of Food Systems, run jointly by IDS and IPES-Food.   http://bulletin.ids.ac.uk/idsbo/issue/view/239 http://www.ids.ac.uk/news/ids-bulletin-asks-whose-power-matters-when-it-comes-to-food/ http://www.ipes-food.org/   * The Political Economy Approach to Food Systems Reform, by Olivier De Schutter - former UN Rapporteur on the Right to Food and Co-chair of the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food): http://bit.ly/2k6SGXs   http://www.unenvironment.org/news-and-stories/story/last-call-food-systems-revolution Visit the related web page
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