During a special award programme on the side of the High-Level Segment for the Eleventh Session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP 11), the UNCCD Secretariat recognized several individuals and organizations for their contributions to addressing sustainable land management issues.
23 September 2013: During a special award programme held on the side of the High-Level Segment for the Eleventh Session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP 11), the UNCCD Secretariat recognized several individuals and organizations for their contributions to addressing sustainable land management (SLM) issues.
Three organizations were recognized with the Land for Life Award, which the UNCCD and partners launched as the only global award dedicated to recognizing achievements in SLM and soil restoration. First prize was awarded to Foundation for Ecological Security (FES), India, which has worked to mobilize communities, including peasants, to protect and restore over 200,000 ha of common property rangelands, forests and water resources, and influenced national policy on the commons. Also recognized were the Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration land restoration technique, developed by World Vision Australia, which involves cultivating underground root systems to restore productivity, and Consejo Civil Mexicano para la Silvicultura Sostenible (CCMSS), Mexico, which has worked with smallholder farmer families to carry out sustainable agriculture and forestry management.
At the same award programme, five Drylands Champions were recognized. This initiative recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to the UNCCD process and leadership in SLM, especially in the drylands. The new Drylands Champions are: Zakiya Wadada, Trinidad and Tobago, for her leadership in promoting SLM in her country and the Caribbean; Chris Reij, World Resources Institute (WRI), for his research on re-greening initiatives in the drylands; Wang Wengbiao, the founder of the Elion Group, China, which has invested US$ 500 million to combat desertification in the Kubuchi desert; Yacuba Savadogo, Burkina Faso, who is the farmer whose work is profiled in the film titled ‘The Man Who Stopped the Desert;’ and Rattan Lal, Professor of Soil Science in the School of Environment and Natural Resources at Ohio State University, whose research on SLM has made invaluable advancements in the field. [UNCCD Press Release] [Dryland Champions] [Land for Life Award] [IISD RS Sources]