$$News and Reports$$

Oct. 21, 2020


The 2020 Drylands, Deserts & Desertification Conference (DDD) will tackle one of the most pressing issues worldwide "Feeding the Drylands: Challenges in a Changing Environment." More than 40% of the Earth's landmass is considered drylands, and that percentage rises every year.

This year, the world's largest desertification-focused conference will be held online on November 16-18, 2020. Registration is free.

The DDD Conference has become a seminal event for those interested in the practicalities and policies of combating desertification. Organized by the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research (BIDR) at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, the conference brings together the top researchers and practitioners in the field. The conference is affiliated with the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).

What is the connection between the climate crisis and desertification, and are humans solely responsible for the crisis? How does desertification affect the food on our plate, and will our nutrition change entirely in another 30 years? How is it that the Israeli Negev desert has turned out several world-class wines, especially during this crisis? What is the connection between desertification and the COVID-19 pandemic?

Can desertification, such as that which is expected to turn Southern Europe into drylands in just two decades, be stopped? What policies, technologies, and initiatives are needed?

More than 100 experts will discuss all this and more with an eye to the practical - strategies, technologies, information sharing, and partnership building.
Researchers.jpg
Above: BGU desert agriculture researchers and students

Prof. Noam Weisbrod, Director of the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, "The DDD conference, taking place for the 7th time at the BIDR, has quickly grown to be the most important and influential conference in the world to deal with sustainability, environmental issues, water scarcity and food security in drylands. In light of the severe global changes the world is facing and their dramatic influence on drylands in general and on the developing countries in particular, the DDD is more significant than ever before".

Prof. Shimon Rachmilevitch, DDD Conference Chair, "The causes and consequences of desertification affect every creature on the planet, from Acacia trees to the coronavirus, to people. The importance of researching and understanding desertification is part and parcel of understanding climate change. This international conference, sponsored by the UN, is the most important stage in the world to hear, be heard, learn, and draw conclusions which will benefit humanity and the planet."

Click here for the conference website.