UNCCD, 2017. UNCCD Terminology: Desertification. United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Accessed 19 October 2020.
" }, "editorialNote": { "en": [ "source:IPCC Glossary AR6", "source:UNDRR HIPS" ] }, "scopeNote": { "en": [ "Desertification and land degradation are very serious challenges. They lead to hunger and poverty, drive unemployment, forced migration and conflict, while increasing the risk of extreme weather related to climate change (FAO, 2020a). The most widely accepted definition in China for desertification is that given by Zhu et al. (1989, cited by FAO, 1997). Zhu describes desertification as the degradation process in environments similar to that of deserts consisting of blown and undulating sand sheets and mobile dunes which occurs when fragile ecosystems such as those with loose sandy surfaces in arid semi-arid and sub-humid zones are exposed to drought and frequent wind. This process reduces biomass productivity and arable land. The environmental changes caused by desertification produce desert-like landscapes in aboriginal non-desert areas or steppes (FAO, 1997). Desertification is a silent, invisible crisis that is destabilising communities on a global scale. As the effects of climate change undermine livelihoods, inter-ethnic clashes are breaking out within and across states and fragile states are turning to militarisation to control the situation (UNCCD, 2014). The effects of desertification are increasingly felt globally as victims turn into refugees, internally displaced people and forced migrants or they turn to radicalisation, extremism or resource-driven wars for survival. If peace, security and international stability are to be restored in a context where changing weather events are threatening the livelihoods of increasing numbers of people, survival options are declining and state capacities are overburdened, then more should be done to combat desertification, reverse land degradation and mitigate the effects of drought. Otherwise, many small-scale farmers and poor, land dependent communities face two choices: fight or flight (UNCCD, 2014). In 2008, food insecurity triggered riots in over 30 countries. Drylands, which make up nearly 34% of the land mass and are a major source of food security especially for the poor, are being degraded daily (UNCCD, 2014). It is estimated that 135 million people are at risk of being displaced by desertification. The problem is most severe in sub- Saharan Africa, particularly in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa (UNCCD, 2014). A total of 842 million people, or about one in eight people in the world, were estimated to be suffering from chronic hunger in 2011–2013 and 12 million hectares of productive land become barren every year due to desertification and drought alone, which is a lost opportunity to produce 20 million tons of grain. Agricultural yields could fall by up to 50% in some African countries if production practices are not changed (UNCCD, 2014)." ] }, "broader": { "id": "http://connectivity-hub.com/terms/17bb4e8f-1a97-4343-95a9-d506b8a7c832", "prefLabel": { "en": "Environmental degradation" } }, "inScheme": [ { "id": "http://connectivity-hub.com/terms/", "title": { "en": "Climate Connectivity Taxonomy" } } ], "inSchemeAll": [ { "id": "http://connectivity-hub.com/terms/" } ], "@context": { "@version": 1.1, "id": "@id", "type": "@type", "@vocab": "http://www.w3.org/2004/02/skos/core#", "xsd": "http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#", "dct": "http://purl.org/dc/terms/", "dc": "http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/", "schema": "https://schema.org/", "vann": "http://purl.org/vocab/vann/", "ldp": "http://www.w3.org/ns/ldp#", "owl": "http://www.w3.org/2002/07/owl#", "title": { "@id": "dct:title", "@container": "@language" }, "dc:title": { "@id": "dc:title", "@container": "@language" }, "dc:description": { "@id": "dc:description", "@container": "@language" }, "description": { "@id": "dct:description", "@container": "@language" }, "license": { "@id": "dct:license", "@container": "@language" }, "issued": { "@id": "dct:issued", "@type": "xsd:date" }, "created": { "@id": "dct:created", "@type": "xsd:date" }, "modified": { "@id": "dct:modified", "@type": "xsd:date" }, "creator": "dct:creator", "publisher": "dct:publisher", "preferredNamespacePrefix": "vann:preferredNamespacePrefix", "preferredNamespaceUri": "vann:preferredNamespaceUri", "isBasedOn": "schema:isBasedOn", "source": "dct:source", "prefLabel": { "@container": "@language" }, "altLabel": { "@container": [ "@language", "@set" ] }, "hiddenLabel": { "@container": [ "@language", "@set" ] }, "definition": { "@container": "@language" }, "note": { "@container": [ "@language", "@set" ] }, "changeNote": { "@container": [ "@language", "@set" ] }, "editorialNote": { "@container": [ "@language", "@set" ] }, "historyNote": { "@container": [ "@language", "@set" ] }, "scopeNote": { "@container": [ "@language", "@set" ] }, "notation": { "@container": "@set" }, "example": { "@container": "@language" }, "narrower": { "@container": "@set" }, "related": { "@container": "@set" }, "relatedMatch": { "@container": "@set" }, "narrowerTransitive": { "@container": "@set" }, "broaderTransitive": { "@container": "@set" }, "broadMatch": { "@container": "@set" }, "narrowMatch": { "@container": "@set" }, "closeMatch": { "@container": "@set" }, "exactMatch": { "@container": "@set" }, "hasTopConcept": { "@container": "@set" }, "inScheme": { "@container": "@set" }, "topConceptOf": { "@container": "@set" }, "deprecated": { "@id": "owl:deprecated", "@type": "xsd:boolean" }, "isReplacedBy": { "@id": "dct:isReplacedBy", "@container": "@set" } } }