1 December 2014: The UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) has welcomed the Rome Declaration on Nutrition, which was adopted at the Second International Conference on Nutrition (ICN 2). In a press release, UNCCD highlights the Declaration’s linkages between the environment, food security and nutrition and proposes two pathways for action to increase the resilience of food systems.

To maintain and improve the productivity of land resources, the UNCCD recommends upscaling sustainable land management (SLM). UNCCD also recommends restoring and rehabilitating ecosystems to maintain or increase environmental services provision, noting its key role in food production and contributions to achieving land degradation neutrality.

“Only food systems, which can cope with the threats of desertification and land degradation, will be able to provide the necessary source of nutrition for people, supporting their livelihoods and helping them to adapt to the effects of climate change,” said Sven Walter, Programme Officer and head of the Global Mechanism Liaison Office in Rome, on behalf of Monique Barbut, UNCCD Executive Secretary. Walter noted that the Declaration recognizes that droughts, floods and desertification hinder food security and nutrition.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) jointly organized the conference, which convened under the theme ‘Better Nutrition, Better Lives.’ It took place at FAO Headquarters in Rome, Italy, from 19-21 November 2014. [UNCCD Press Release] [Rome Declaration on Nutrition] [IISD RS Story on Rome Declaration] [IISD RS Coverage of ICN 2]