Restoring Land, Restoring Hope: Voices from UNCCD COP17

Hi, Paul.

Now, we know about COP26 that took place in Glasgow and that focused on climate change.

And in fact, just yesterday, the prime minister said he is going to COP31 in Turkey.

So, COPs are, to some extent, top of mind.

But tell us what this particular COP is about.

Yeah, well, it's really good to hear that the other Manchester Andy, Andy Burnham, is going to COP31.

And most people are familiar with the climate cops under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change or the UNFCCC.

And we refer to it affectionately as the Hollywood cop.

But this is a cop of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification.

And it's often referred to as a land cop.

And the UNCCD is one of the three real conventions alongside climate change and biodiversity.

The UNFCCC gets a lot of the headlines as it has the most funding and overarches the many facets of climate change from energy to water to land, etc.

But it doesn't deep dive or focus on one central issue, which is obviously unlike the UNCCD.

A key difference with this COP is a heavy civil society focus, which represents the key actors and communities hardest hit by drought and degrading land, but who will drive change in the ground and have inherited knowledge to do so.

So such as indigenous peoples, local communities, the NGOs, private and third sectors, and the CSO panel comprising of myself, Sopico, and three other members who are Mariody, Ellen, and EMEA.

They represent every geographical area globally, and it's our job to connect with the policymakers, apply pressure using diplomatic channels, and create position statements that will hopefully be adopted throughout the negotiations.

COP17's focus in Ulaanbaatar is on tackling land degradation, desertification and drought, which are the issues directly affect food production, water security, biodiversity, livelihoods and ultimately political and economic stability.

And for soil scientists, this is arguably the COP where soils take centre stage because healthy soils obviously underpin productive agriculture, climate resilience, biodiversity recovery and sustainable development.

And one thing you've touched on, but I'm very struck by the use of the phrase civil society for many of the people who we're going to hear from.

What's the official definition of civil society?

Well, civil society spans... non-government actors, basically.

So it's everything from indigenous peoples, local communities, youth, the youth, NGOs, third sector, private sector.

So it's kind of an overarching branch term which covers everybody other than state actors, basically.

And United Nations, what is its role in terms of making this event happen?

Well, the UN provides something that, frankly, no other organization can.

Hi, Paul.

Now, we know about COP26 that took place in Glasgow and that focused on climate change.

And in fact, just yesterday, the prime minister said he is going to COP31 in Turkey.

So, COPs are, to some extent, top of mind.

But tell us what this particular COP is about.

Yeah, well, it's really good to hear that the other Manchester Andy, Andy Burnham, is going to COP31.

And most people are familiar with the climate cops under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change or the UNFCCC.

And we refer to it affectionately as the Hollywood cop.

But this is a cop of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification.

And it's often referred to as a land cop.

And the UNCCD is one of the three real conventions alongside climate change and biodiversity.

The UNFCCC gets a lot of the headlines as it has the most funding and overarches the many facets of climate change from energy to water to land, etc.

But it doesn't deep dive or focus on one central issue, which is obviously unlike the UNCCD.

A key difference with this COP is a heavy civil society focus, which represents the key actors and communities hardest hit by drought and degrading land, but who will drive change in the ground and have inherited knowledge to do so.

So such as indigenous peoples, local communities, the NGOs, private and third sectors, and the CSO panel comprising of myself, Sopico, and three other members who are Mariody, Ellen, and EMEA.

They represent every geographical area globally, and it's our job to connect with the policymakers, apply pressure using diplomatic channels, and create position statements that will hopefully be adopted throughout the negotiations.

COP17's focus in Ulaanbaatar is on tackling land degradation, desertification and drought, which are the issues directly affect food production, water security, biodiversity, livelihoods and ultimately political and economic stability.

And for soil scientists, this is arguably the COP where soils take centre stage because healthy soils obviously underpin productive agriculture, climate resilience, biodiversity recovery and sustainable development.

And one thing you've touched on, but I'm very struck by the use of the phrase civil society for many of the people who we're going to hear from.

What's the official definition of civil society?

Well, civil society spans... non-government actors, basically.

So it's everything from indigenous peoples, local communities, youth, the youth, NGOs, third sector, private sector.

So it's kind of an overarching branch term which covers everybody other than state actors, basically.

And United Nations, what is its role in terms of making this event happen?

Well, the UN provides something that, frankly, no other organization can.