World Environment Day 2024.

All over the world, ecosystems are threatened. From forests and drylands to farmlands and lakes, natural spaces on which humanity’s existence depends are reaching a tipping point.

According to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, up to 40 per cent of the planet’s land is degraded, directly affecting half of the world’s population. The number and duration of droughts has increased by 29 per cent since 2000 – without urgent action, droughts may affect over three-quarters of the world’s population by 2050.

The Importance of Land

Land restoration is a key pillar of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030), a rallying call for the protection and revival of ecosystems all around the world, which is critical to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

Land purchase is both the ultimate protection for biodiversity and one of the most effective ways of tackling climate change.

Currently, 15% of land on Earth is protected. This figure needs to jump to 50%, scientists say, if we are to reverse biodiversity loss and stabilise our climate. This “Global Safety Net” is made up of proposed and pre-existing protected areas all over the world, chosen for their carbon storage capacity and rich species assemblages. Many occur in the four countries that comprise the World Land Trust Carbon Balanced programme: Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico and Vietnam.

World Land Trust Carbon Balance Programme

This is why World Environment Day 2024 focuses on land restoration, halting desertification and building drought resilience under the slogan “Our land. Our future. We are #GenerationRestoration.”  We cannot turn back time, but we can grow forests, revive water sources, and bring back soils.

Our Land. Our Future.

By working with Impress and asking for World Land Trust Carbon Balanced Print, you can be part of the solution to protect and restore even more land.