WOCAT

Meet us at the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia between August 17 and 28. As the knowledge partner of the UNCCD, WOCAT will be featured in the plenary sessions related to SLM and LDN knowledge exchange, capacity building and reporting, and share latest SLM and LDN evidence, tools and insights with our partners during side events.

We look forward to engaging with Country Parties and all other stakeholders throughout the conference.

In the context of the Decision 9/COP.15 and 9/COP.16, WOCAT and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) are sharing a new two-page brief highlighting how their collaboration helps connect experience from GEF-founded projects and programmes with the WOCAT Global SLM Database - turning project-level knowledge into a resource for practitioners, policymakers and future investments.

As the host country of UNCCD COP17, Mongolia showcases a selection of SLM best practices that address land degradation, strengthen resilience, and support sustainable livelihoods. The compendium highlights local knowledge and solutions that support land productivity, strengthen the resilience of rural livelihoods and support Mongolia’s commitments to combat desertification and achieve LDN.

Developed under the REDESER Project (Combating Desertification in Brazil's Semi-Arid Caatinga Region), these newly documented good practices have been published in the WOCAT Global SLM Database. The practices showcase locally tested solutions for combating desertification, restoring degraded lands, and strengthening the resilience of communities in the Caatinga.

Dive in and learn about WOCAT's new role as a Global Technical Adviser for the 2026 UNCCD reporting process, news from the global database, events and learning opportunities. Together we are continuing our work towards sustainable land management and land degradation neutrality!

This new documentation highlights a participatory habitat protection initiative designed to safeguard vital wetlands for the endangered white-naped crane in Mongolia's eastern steppe. By combining herder-led grazing agreements with youth Eco-Club monitoring, this community-driven approach reverses wetland degradation, improves livestock water access, and secures immediate crane breeding success. The documentation of this practice has been facilitated by WWF Mongolia, local government authorities, and the Ulz River Basin Administration.