11 October 2011: On the sidelines of the 10th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP 10), UNCCD Executive Secretary Luc Gnacadja named Dennis Garrity, outgoing Director General of the World Agroforestry Centre, and Deborah Fraser, South African gospel singer, as UNCCD Drylands Ambassadors.

The new Drylands Ambassadors will take a lead in raising international awareness of land degradation, its causes and possible solutions. [UNCCD News Report]