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Pastoralists across the world are on a mission to gain recognition and restoration of rights as stewards of rangelands, which cover about half of the world’s landmass. In August, Ulaanbaatar, the capital city of Mongolia, where pastoralism contributes up to 10 per cent of GDP (gross domestic product), saw hundreds of pastoralists and environmental activists pitching to undo the historical injustice meted to them and champion their way of life as not just one of the oldest vocations that nurtures ecology but also as the new defence against climate change. The protest was at the right place at the right time. Ulaanbaatar hosted the Conference of Parties (COP17) to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) on August 17-28. UNCCD has marked 2026 as the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists.
Prior to COP17, on August 8, a global outreach campaign, the Silk Road Caravan, ended in Ulaanbaatar after a 6,000-km journey criss-crossing Eurasia. The Caravan interfaced with pastoralist communities as well as scientists, policymakers and young people on experiences and practical approaches for restoring rangelands and strengthening resilience to increasingly frequent drought conditions. On the inaugural day of COP17, pastoralists from 100 countries met UNCCD executive secretary Yasmine Fouad to hand over a manifesto, “Global Pastoralist Declaration”. Fouad noted, “Throughout the Silk Road Caravan journey, we have seen how countries and communities are managing and restoring rangelands that are inseparable from their identities, cultures, economies and ways of life. Every stop along the journey has reinforced one simple truth: people are at the heart of restoration.”
The Declaration’s preamble reads, “We, the Pastoralist Peoples of the World, including the Indigenous Pastoralist Peoples, declare that we are the true guardians, knowledge and rights-holders of our ancestral lands, territories and resources. For generations, we have sustainably governed and managed Pastoral rangelands through our customary institutions, traditional knowledge, mobility and collective stewardship, sustaining biodiversity, ecosystems, food systems, cultures and livelihoods.” It asserts: “Pastoralism is not a relic of the past, it is a living, dynamic and resilient system that contributes to the well-being of present and future generations.”
Rangelands, or grasslands and shrublands primarily used for grazing, provide critical ecosystem services. Pastoralists, who majorly come from indigenous and local communities, manage and conserve some 1.4 billion hectares of these ecosystems. Studies estimate rangelands and pastoralists provide food, income and other environmental benefits to 2 billion people. Nomadic pastoralists and their livestock help regenerate the ecosystem, making it more resilient to drought and degradation. It is estimated that pastoralist-controlled rangelands held 44 billion tonnes of soil organic carbon in 2020, proving to be a critical carbon sink. Rapid degradation of this ecosystem threatens livelihoods of the people as well the environment, particularly through desertification. The world has lost on average 14 million hectares of rangelands in 2016-24 to land use conversion, mostly for agriculture and infrastructure purposes. But when indigenous communities own and manage rangelands, degradation is low. The demand for rights of communities over rangelands is what world leaders aim to deliberate in COP17.
This article was originally published in the September 1-15, 2026 print edition of Down To Earth
