Environmental Affairs
By Glenn BrigaldinoLesson 7: Deserts never sleep
An investigation into issues pertaining to the world's deserts from an environmental management perspective.
The desert lives, often nearby
The deserts of the world are hot places, as we all know, perhaps even from first hand experience. But there are also "cold" deserts, the ice and wastelands of the far North and South. People in rich countries usually have resources at their disposal to be able to live and cope with deserts. But most people in the world are far less fortunate, technology and resources are not readily available to them. Increasingly they find their exposure to desert-like conditions steadily on the rise: they may need to lead animal herds on longer journeys to reach water sites, crop harvests may be declining and less predictable, access to much needed resources like water and firewood may be proving harder to find every year.
Desertification has been the term used by researchers, policy makers and the media to refer to this sort of environmental challenge, the changes associated with it and the related ecological, social and economic consequences. While many international organizations, environmental activists, development specialists and even politicians have been taking note, raising awareness as well as taking actions to address problems associated with desertification, the general public is still not sufficiently informed and aware about the issues at stake.
The world's deserts are divided into four categories. Subtropical deserts are the hottest, with parched terrain and rapid evaporation. Although cool coastal deserts are located within the same latitudes as subtropical deserts, the average temperature is much cooler because of frigid offshore ocean currents. Cold winter deserts are marked by stark temperature differences from season to season, ranging from 100° F (38° C) in the summer to 10° F (–12° C) in the winter. Polar regions are also considered to be deserts because nearly all moisture in these areas is locked up in the form of ice.
There is a growing body of information available that specfically deals with desertification. Numerous organizations and agencies work on desertification issues and often they are dedicated to providing management support, tools and resources to local-level communities that need to deal with deserts at their doorstep.
----------------------------------------- Desertification, global change, and sustainable development are attended to internationally through the work of the UN Secretariat for the Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). UNCCD manages the Convention to Combat Desertification, which cannot be viewed in isolation from other efforts to promote sustainable development. The Convention text refers frequently to sustainable development, climate change, biological diversity, water resources, energy sources, food security, and socio-economic factors. The interactions between these issues and desertification are often not fully understood, but they are clearly important. The Convention therefore emphasizes the need to coordinate desertification-related activities with the research efforts and response strategies inspired by these other concerns. (See: http://www.unccd.int/main.php ) -----------------------------------------
This course section will present references and a selection of important information and knowledge about desertification. Understanding how deserts develop and recognising the environmental complexities involved is the first step towards effectively managing this highly fragile eco-system.
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