April 2014: Global Risk Forum (GRF) Davos has dedicated a special issue of its journal ‘Planet@Risk’ to the topic of desertification. All of the papers in the issue are based on presentations that were given during the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) 2nd Scientific Conference, which addressed the theme of ‘Economic assessment of desertification, sustainable land management and resilience of arid, semi-arid and dry subhumid areas.’

The UNCCD 2nd Scientific Conference convened from 9-12 April 2013, in Bonn, Germany, with GRF Davos serving as the lead institution for the Conference.

Articles in the special issue address the following topics: Is the Economic Internal Rate of Return of Projects to Combat Desertification and Land Degradation Evaluation a Relevant Tool for Evaluation?; The Drylands Development Model in Argentina’s Central West: the Case of Mendoza Province; Water and Soil Conservation Practices in the Sahel: an Analysis of their Potential to Increase Resilience of Rural Livelihoods; Towards Improved Decision-Making in Degraded Drylands of Southern Africa: an Indicator Based Assessment for Integrated Evaluation of Restoration and Management Actions in the Kalahari Rangelands; Sustainable Land Management (SLM) Oriented Projects in Tajikistan: Experience and Lessons Learned; Topsoiling and Subsoiling as Rainwater Harvesting Techniques for Arid Climates: a Case Study from Sudan; Are the Most Valuable Resources in Dryland Areas Isolated Wetlands?; Analysis of Plans, Programs and Policies to Combat Desertification in the state of Ceará, Brazil in the period 2004 to 2012; and From Vulnerability to Resilience: Agroecology for Sustainable Dryland Management. [Publication: Planet@Risk: Vol 2, No1 (2014) Special Issue on Desertification][IISD RS Coverage of UNCCD 2nd Scientific Conference]