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This narrative provides useful insights when working with indigenous peoples. It offers an overview of some of the work done by the FAO Indigenous Peoples Unit and provides an historical background since the adoption of the Indigenous peoples ́ policy. It also explains the ongoing work-programme jointly designed by Indigenous peoples and FAO staff, describing its seven pillars and two thematic areas. The narrative introduces essential concepts such as indigenous peoples ́ food systems, FPIC, Interculturality and Biocentric restoration among others.

This report examines how forests contribute to or suffer from disasters. Three events are examined: the tempest Gudrun (Sweden, 2005); the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami (Japan 2011); and the 2017 firestorm in Chile.Forests are “victims” of disaster when unable to provide services required by society and cannot recover within a relevant timeframe. Trees damaged may host insect pests that may kill healthy trees or become fuel for forest fires. Fallen trees also damage infrastructure.Extreme events can change the cultural and economic life of small states/islands and/or cause the breakdown of societal services.Disasters affect timber supplies, distorting market functioning. Damaged timber [...]

This Unasylva issue aims at showcasing forest and landscape restoration (FLR) opportunities and recent developments that have the power to upscale restoration, in order to achieving the Bonn Challenge pledge and other national and international commitments (Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Convention for Biological Diversity (CBD) Post-2020 Agenda, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) Land Degradation Neutrality, Paris Agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)) and addressing the needs of the UN Decade 2021-2030 on Ecosystem Restoration.The content adresses thematics of relevance to various audiences: i) flagship restoration initiatives that differ from the so-called [...]

The sixth edition of this biennial publication showcases the breadth of work and main achievements and partnerships of FAO Forestry in implementing the FAO Strategic Objectives as well as its linkages to the SDGs, with descriptive information on project and programme delivery and funding resources. It is also intended to serve as a reference for delegates attending the 25th Session of the Committee on Forestry during discussions on programme implementation as well as a resource for new staff, partners and the media to help them better understand FAO's forestry programme and its linkages with other sectors, partners and international processes. Approximately [...]

La Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Agricultura y la Alimentación (FAO), a través de Global Environment Facility (GEF) junto a la Unión Internacional para la Conservación de la Naturaleza (UICN), desarrolló un proyecto global centrado en la Degradación y en el Manejo Sostenible de Tierras en las zonas de pastoreo compuestos por praderas y pastizales (Proyecto GCP/GLO/530/GFF). El Proyecto global tenía por objetivo fortalecer la capacidad de los actores locales y nacionales en las zonas de pastoreo compuestas por pastizales para evaluar la Degradación de Tierras (DT), tomar decisiones informadas hacia la promoción del Manejo Sostenible de Tierras [...]

It is increasingly recognized that human, plant and animal health, environmental health and food security are inter-linked and that the degradation of ecological systems has significantly increased the overall risk of zoonotic disease outbreaks, in addition to having other complex effects on human health. The devastating human, social and economic effects of COVID-19 should force the global community to ensure prevention of another similar event.The One Health approach provides a platform to work on the interface between human, animal and plant health and their shared environment. Working on the synergies among these areas is key to preventing the outbreak, or [...]

In recent decades, concerns have grown around the environmental impact of the Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use (AFOLU) sector, more specifically on the impact of agricultural activities on biodiversity. Since the introduction of the Aichi targets, released by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in 2010, the United Nations have been empowered with greater influence on decision-making impacting biodiversity. The Biodiversity Integrated Assessment and Computation Tool (B-INTACT) uniquely seeks to provide a thorough biodiversity assessment of project-level activities in the AFOLU sector, taking on both a quantitative and a qualitative approach. Revised 4 June 2020: The name of the tool [...]

Biodiversity loss is accelerating at an unprecedented rate across the planet putting a great number of species on the brink of extinction. A decline in the plants, animals and micro-organisms threatens food security, sustainable development and the supply of vital ecosystem services. In order to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda, there is an urgent need to take action to halt biodiversity loss and consequently ecosystem degradation. Since the introduction of the Aichi targets, released by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in 2010, the United Nations have been empowered with greater influence on decision-making impacting biodiversity. [...]

Biodiversity loss is accelerating at an unprecedented rate across the planet putting a great number of species on the brink of extinction. A decline in the plants, animals and micro-organisms threatens food security, sustainable development and the supply of vital ecosystem services. In order to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda, there is an urgent need to take action to halt biodiversity loss and consequently ecosystem degradation. Since the introduction of the Aichi targets, released by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in 2010, the United Nations have been empowered with greater influence on decision-making impacting biodiversity. [...]

As the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity 2011–2020 comes to a close and countries prepare to adopt a post-2020 global biodiversity framework, this edition of The State of the World’s Forests (SOFO) examines the contributions of forests, and of the people who use and manage them, to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.Forests cover just over 30 percent of the global land area, yet they provide habitat for the vast majority of the terrestrial plant and animal species known to science. Unfortunately, forests and the biodiversity they contain continue to be under threat from actions to convert the land [...]