While you might be reading this article with a cup of coffee or perhaps a cookie in hand, there are millions who get up every day without the assurance of a proper meal at the end of the day. One in eight people around the world does not have access to a basic nutritious meal, which is one of the most common symptoms of desertification. 17 June is that day of the year when the United Nations spreads awareness about such widespread inadequacies. Since 1995, this day is observed as ‘World Day to Combat Desertification’.
According to The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), desertification is ‘land degradation in arid, semi-arid and sub-humid areas resulting from various factors including climatic variations and human activities.’ It is swiping away topsoil, diminishing groundwater reserves, and affecting all life residing in dry and vulnerable ecosystems.
The UNESCO website clearly lays down general, climatic as well as human factors contributing to desertification. Abnormally high temperatures, irregular rainfall, reduction of fallow period in farming, and subsequent loss in organic matter, results in displacement of vegetation cover, poorer harvests (sometimes permanent loss of soil productivity) and malnourishment of cattle and dependent population.
The unique thing about this day is that every year, this day is observed with a new mission to throw a light on the different problems incumbent with desertification and drought around the world. The mission in 2015 is ‘attainment of food security for all through sustainable food systems.’ And the slogan for this year’s action plan is quite relevant with the relation between food and economy in the current times. The slogan goes ‘No such thing as a free lunch. Invest in a healthy soil.’
One in eight people around the world lack a proper nutritious diet. And many of them sleep through countless nights without eating anything whatsoever.
The Day will be observed in Milan, Italy during the 2015 UN Expo, besides being observed in various other parts of the world.
This is what the United Nations requests people, governments, international bodies and NGO’s around the world to do:
(1) Use smart agricultural techniques in accordance with today’s climate scenario, especially in areas most vulnerable to desertification and drought.
(2) Land rights and better access to technology shall be provided to farmers, who are critical to the sustainability of the environment and responsible for meeting the food needs for millions of people.
(3) Maintain a balance between the land use for ecology and consumption, resorting to the best practices for the same.
(4) More emphasis and investment should be made on sustainable land practices, so that sustainable food systems become the normally prevalent practice.
(5) Take more effective action on desertification whose effects on security, peace and stability are invisible yet real for the affected countries due especially to food and water scarcity and environmentally forced migration.
What we can do
While the government can do a lot to combat such major problems, small steps taken by individuals like us can go a long way in tackling drought and desertification. Since more than 99.7% of our food calories come from land, we need to find alternative land (including degraded and infertile land) and restore it to satisfy the needs of the growing population.
Simple things we can do individually and collectively in our respective societies are:
- Reforestation: Grow as many trees as possible and care for the ones that exist.
- Tree regeneration and Silviculture: Restoring damaged forests and maintaining the overall quality of forests and trees.
- Saving water, reusing treated water, desalination
- Rainwater harvesting and directly using seawater for salt-loving plants
- Soil fixation with the help of sand fences, shelter belts, woodlots and windbreaks
- Enrichment and hyper-fertilization of soil through planting
- Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR), enabling native sprouting tree growth through selective pruning of shrub shoots. The residue from pruned trees can be used to provide mulching for fields thus increasing soil water retention and reducing evaporation.
Sources: www.unesco.org, UNCCD Art..1.a, unccd.int, un.org
