23 August 2010: The Second International Conference on Climate, Sustainability and Development in Semi-arid Regions (ICID 2010), which convened in Fortaleza, Brazil, from 16-20 August 2010, brought together participants to discuss climate change and sustainable development in arid and semi-arid regions, and sought to raise the priority of these issues on the agenda of the 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20).

ICID 2010 began with the launching of the UN Decade on Deserts and the Fight Against Desertification. The main theme of ICID 2010, “climate, sustainability and development,” was addressed in four sub-themes, namely: climate information; climate and sustainable development; climate governance, representation, rights, equity and justice; and climate policy processes.

ICID 2010 concluded with a discussion of the primary conference output, the Fortaleza Declaration, which was developed with the goal of raising the profile of issues facing semi-arid regions at UNCSD and during its preparatory process. Among other items, the Declaration calls for: better governance of the drylands, representation of their populations and enhanced livelihoods; the enhancement of climate-sensitive sustainable development interventions in drylands; recognition of potential synergies to reduce vulnerability and increase resilience for the poor; the creation of favorable conditions for sustainable development in drylands through integrated actions to fight land degradation, mitigate drought effects, conserve biodiversity and adapt to climate change; and investment opportunities to exploit the comparative advantage of drylands in renewable energy production. [IISD RS Coverage of ICID 2010] [ICID 2010 Website]