A Land Conference in the Heart of the Steppe
On 17 August 2026, the seventeenth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17) opened in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Running through 28 August, the conference brings together delegates from 196 countries under the theme 'Restoring Land. Restoring Hope,' with a particular focus on rangelands, pastoralist communities, and the finance needed to scale land restoration globally.
The choice of Mongolia as host is symbolic and strategic. Approximately 70% of Mongolia's land area is classified as rangeland, and the country has experienced some of the most dramatic consequences of desertification and land degradation in recent decades. Over 70% of Mongolia's rangelands are now affected by degradation, driven by overgrazing, climate change, and the transition from nomadic to sedentary livestock management. Mongolia's experience encapsulates the challenges facing rangelands worldwide.
Pastoralists at the Centre
A defining feature of COP17 has been the prominent role given to pastoralist communities. On the opening day, pastoralists from Mongolia, Kenya, Brazil, and other nations participated in a ministerial dialogue on the restoration of rangelands—the first time pastoralists have been so directly integrated into the formal proceedings of a UNCCD COP.
Pastoralists are nomadic or semi-nomadic livestock herders who depend on extensive grazing systems across rangelands. Their traditional knowledge and mobility-based management practices have sustained these ecosystems for millennia. However, pastoralists face mounting pressures: privatisation of communal lands, restriction of migration routes, expansion of cropland into grazing areas, and climate change-driven shifts in rainfall patterns.
The International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP 2026), declared by the UN General Assembly, has provided a platform for elevating pastoralist voices in global policy. COP17 represents the culmination of this year of advocacy, with pastoralist organisations calling for recognition of their land rights, protection of migration corridors, and inclusion in restoration planning.
The Scale of the Challenge
UNCCD data paint a stark picture of global land degradation:
| Indicator | Figure |
|---|---|
| Total degraded land globally | Approximately 3.2 billion hectares |
| People affected by land degradation | Over 3 billion |
| Annual land area lost to degradation | 12 million hectares |
| Estimated annual cost of inaction | USD 278 billion |
| Current annual investment in restoration | USD 77 billion |
The funding gap between what is needed and what is currently invested—approximately USD 200 billion per year—is one of the central challenges facing COP17 negotiators. The conference is expected to discuss innovative financing mechanisms, including private sector investment in land restoration, carbon markets for soil carbon sequestration, and debt-for-nature swaps that link land restoration to debt relief.
Land Restoration Pledges: Progress and Gaps
A major report released by the IUCN on 21 August 2026, timed to coincide with COP17, assessed the global state of land restoration implementation. The report found that approximately 124.3 million hectares of land are currently under restoration, rehabilitation, or improved management globally. While this represents progress, it amounts to only about 10.4% of the total area pledged by countries under international frameworks including the Bonn Challenge and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
India has emerged as a notable contributor, bringing over 21.76 million hectares of land under restoration as part of its Bonn Challenge commitments. However, the IUCN report highlighted that implementation is highly uneven across countries, with many pledges remaining unfulfilled due to lack of financing, technical capacity, or political will.
Rangelands: The Forgotten Ecosystem
Rangelands have historically received less attention than forests in global restoration efforts. While initiatives like the Bonn Challenge and the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration have focused primarily on forests and wetlands, rangelands—which cover roughly twice the area of forests globally—have been comparatively neglected.
COP17 seeks to correct this imbalance. The conference programme includes dedicated sessions on rangeland restoration, sustainable grazing management, and the integration of traditional pastoralist knowledge into modern land management frameworks. The UNCCD has emphasised that rangelands are not only important for the livelihoods they support but also for their role in carbon sequestration, biodiversity conservation, and water regulation.
Mongolia has used its role as COP17 host to launch a national rangeland restoration initiative, supported by the IUCN, that aims to demonstrate scalable approaches to rangeland rehabilitation. The project focuses on restoring degraded pasturelands through community-led management, reseeding of native grasses, and the reintroduction of sustainable grazing practices.
Drought Resilience
Drought is the other major theme of COP17. The UNCCD has been developing a drought protocol that would establish international frameworks for drought preparedness, early warning, and response—similar to the way the Paris Agreement addresses climate change mitigation. Negotiations on the drought protocol are ongoing, with some countries pushing for a legally binding instrument while others prefer voluntary commitments.
The timing is critical. Droughts have increased in frequency and severity globally, with the Horn of Africa, the Mediterranean, and the western United States all experiencing severe multi-year droughts in recent years. Mongolia itself has experienced a drying trend, with declining precipitation and increasing temperatures contributing to rangeland degradation.
Sources
- UNCCD, COP17, unccd.int/cop17
- UNDP, UNCCD 'Land' COP17, undp.org/nature/events/unccd-cop17
- IISD ENB, Highlights and images for 17 August 2026, enb.iisd.org
- IPS News, As Mongolia Hosts COP17, Pastoralists Demand Space to Move, Survive and Restore, ipsnews.net, 17 August 2026
- IUCN, Global land restoration gains ground, but delivers only 10% of national pledges, iucn.org, 21 August 2026
- Xinhua, UNCCD COP17 opens in Mongolia's capital, english.news.cn, 17 August 2026
- FAO, UNCCD COP17, fao.org/events/detail/fao-at-the-un-convention-to-combat-desertification-conference-(unccd-cop17)-2026
FIRAT Editorial Board
Institutional Research Desk · Foresight Institute of Research and Translation
The collective editorial and research translation board of FIRAT, synthesising peer-reviewed evidence, policy briefs, and division milestones across our seven foundational research pillars.
