WOCAT deals with local and global
concerns and linkages to SDGs
Local-level
occurrences can have a global impact, which is why WOCAT looks beyond
local sustainable land management (SLM). For example, if soil erosion
occurs on enough farms, greenhouse gas emissions will rise, leading
to climate change. For this reason, WOCAT is dedicated – on the one hand – to assisting land users, and – on the other – to
helping governments define national policy. WOCAT is engaged in the
international debate on land degradation, ecosystems, climate change,
and SLM. It works to implement the objectives of the United Nations
Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), of which the WOCAT
database is an official tool. Furthermore, WOCAT’s focus on SLM in
the broadest sense anchors it firmly within the framework of the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
For example, it promotes sustainable agriculture and food security (
SDG
2). or it also is concerned with water security (
SDG 6). The focus on climate change-related issues that
involve land – including adaptation, resilience, mitigation, and
disaster risk reduction – all fall under “climate action” (
SDG
13). The broad range of issues that concern land degradation,
biodiversity, and ecosystems are covered by “life on land” (
SDG
15).