WCC at the UNCCD COP17 2026

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How it spread - 27 original reports

1. Thu, 13 August 2026

   1 report
   • oikoumene.org09:00first to report
     WCC at the UNCCD COP17 2026

     URL changednow www.oikoumene.org/events/wcc-at-the-un-convention-to-combat-desertification-cop17

     Governments from 197 countries will meet in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, from 17-28 August 2026 for the 17th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17). UNCCD COP17 will run under the theme “Restoring Land, Restoring Hope.” The World Council of Churches (WCC) will take part throughout, across four public events and a daily quiet space inside the conference.

2. Fri, 14 August 2026

   2 reports
   • premiumtimesng.com04:12
     EXCLUSIVE: What Nigerian delegates, African Group of Negotiators will demand at COP17

     Nigeria and other African countries will push for a legally binding instrument on drought management and increased financing to tackle desertification, land degradation and drought at the 17th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17) in Mongolia.

   • AllAfrica07:09
     Africa: Exclusive - What Nigerian Delegates, African Group of Negotiators Will Demand At COP17

     [Premium Times] Nigeria and other African countries will push for a legally binding instrument on drought management and increased financing to tackle desertification, land degradation and drought at the 17th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17) in Mongolia.

3. Sun, 16 August 2026

   1 report
   • Anadolu Agency (AA)10:11
     COP17 in Mongolia: Why a lesser-known UN summit matters for land, water and food

     Up to 40% of the world’s land is degraded, affecting nearly half of humanity

4. Mon, 17 August 2026

   3 reports
   • Libération (France)04:00edited after publishing ×2
     COP17 sur la désertification : un sommet «primordial» pour restaurer les sols, notre «capital de résilience pour le futur»

     La communauté internationale est réunie en Mongolie depuis lundi 17 août pour tenter d’enrayer la dégradation des terres qui s’accélère partout sur la planète et met à mal la sécurité alimentaire mondiale. La France n’est pas épargnée.

   • Le Monde (France)04:00
     COP17 contre la désertification : pour le géographe Jean-Daniel Cesaro, « la sécheresse de cet été montre que nous devenons nous aussi vulnérables »

     Alors que 40 % des terres émergées, dont un quart des terres arables, sont dégradées, la 17ᵉ Conférence des parties à la Convention des Nations unies sur la lutte contre la désertification s’ouvre, lundi 17 août, en Mongolie. Dans un entretien au « Monde », le chercheur estime que la France, désormais frappée par le phénomène, devrait renforcer ses échanges pour enrichir son expertise.

   • Le Monde English05:01edited after publishing
     COP17 to Combat Desertification: Geographer Jean-Daniel Cesaro on why pastoralism matters

     previouslyCOP17 to Combat Desertification: Geographer Jean-Daniel Cesaro explains importance of focusing on pastoralism

     The UN conference on desertification opens on Monday, August 17, in Mongolia, as 40% of the world's land surface, including a quarter of arable land, is now degraded. In an interview with Le Monde, the researcher argues that France should expand its international exchanges to deepen its expertise.

5. Wed, 19 August 2026

   1 report
   • AllAfrica12:01
     Africa: How Degradation and Drought Are Threatening the Land That Feeds Us

     [RFI] Desertification is not the spread of deserts. It is the slow degradation of fertile land - a process that now affects 40 percent of the Earth's land surface and leaves around 100 million hectares of healthy land unproductive every year. As governments gather in Mongolia this week for the UN's Cop17 desertification summit, scientists say restoring soil health is becoming critical for food security, livelihoods and climate resilience.

6. Thu, 20 August 2026

   1 report
   • El País (Spain)03:30
     La crisis que pisamos: la degradación de los suelos del planeta pasa una factura de 780.000 millones al año

     La urgencia por restaurar las tierras centra la cumbre de la ONU contra la desertificación que se celebra en Mongolia, con el desafío de tener que producir un 50% más de alimentos de aquí a 2050

7. Fri, 21 August 2026

   2 reports
   • El País (Spain)03:30
     Claves de la COP17, la cumbre de tierras y sequías de la ONU: el suelo como aliado contra el cambio climático

     Ulán Bator acoge una cumbre que busca luchar contra la desertificación, origen de incendios e inundaciones provocados por el calentamiento global

   • Euronews10:40
     Mongolia hosts UN desertification summit as drought crisis deepens

     Mongolia is hosting the UN Convention to Combat Desertification’s COP17 in Ulaanbaatar from 17 to 28 August, bringing together representatives from 196 countries and the European Union to tackle land degradation, drought and desertification.

8. Mon, 24 August 2026

   1 report
   • AllAfrica05:50
     Nigeria: From Nigeria to Asian Steppes - Stories of Survival, Soil and Hope in Mongolia

     [Premium Times] Scientists working in the country are grappling with the degradation of more than 100 million hectares of rangeland and exploring ways to restore degraded ecosystems.

9. Tue, 25 August 2026

   4 reports
   • Emerging Europe05:45
     The other COP

     Two-fifths of the world’s land is degrading. The COP charged with halting it sits in Mongolia this month, starved of money and of attention. Think COP, think climate change, climate catastrophe, and the largely talking shop that is the annual United Nations summit where nearly 200 countries gather (often in some of the most fossil […] The other COP was originally published on Emerging Europe .

   • miragenews.com10:30
     Mongolia, ESCAP, TCS Launch Sandstorm Initiative

     The Government of Mongolia, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the Trilateral Cooperation

   • Euronews15:44
     Mongolia positions itself as Asia's next data centre hub

     During the COP17 conference in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia offered potential data centre investors tax relief, data security, cheap energy, land, and cold weather.

   • Anadolu Agency (AA)17:42
     At UN conference, Türkiye showcases policies to fight desertification and drought

     Türkiye highlights its policies and projects on desertification, drought, and sustainable land management at UN Convention to Combat Desertification conference in Mongolia

10. Wed, 26 August 2026

    4 reports
    • AllAfrica14:13
      Africa: UN Recognizes Restoration Initiative Feeding 4 Million Across the Sahel

      [UNEP] Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia -- A major revival of degraded land across Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger was recognized today by the UN as one of three new World Restoration Flagships. Since 2018, the Sahel Integrated Resilience Initiative has strengthened food security and livelihoods for more than four million people by rehabilitating over 335,000 hectares of land, helping improve agricultural production, livelihoods, and reduce humanitarian needs.

    • AllAfrica15:40
      Nigeria: Analysis - COP17: Top Issues Dividing, Shaping Ongoing Negotiations in Mongolia

      [Premium Times] As UNCCD COP17 enters its final days in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, negotiators remain divided over a proposed global drought instrument, finance for land restoration, rangeland management and the participation of Indigenous Peoples and local communities.

    • dailynews.co.tz19:24
      Tanzania pushes for sustainable land management to overcome drought, overgrazing, climate change threats

      ULAANBAATAR: TANZANIA is pushing for sustainable management of grazing lands and soil resources as growing pressure from drought, overgrazing and climate change threatens livelihoods and food security. Minister of State in the Vice-President’s Office (Union and Environment), Eng Hamad Yussuf Masauni, made the statement today, August 26, 2026, during a meeting on soil health and …

    • miragenews.com23:00
      New Land Models Address Livelihood Threats

      Promising efforts to restore degraded land are now in the spotlight at a time when 40 per cent of the world's land currently faces degradation and

11. Thu, 27 August 2026

    2 reports
    • miragenews.com05:45
      FAO Warns of Rising Soil Degradation at COP17

      ULAANBAATAR/ROME - Soil degradation is continuing to worsen in many parts of the world, while proven practices to protect and restore soils are still

    • Libération (France)06:08
      COP 17 désertification : les Etats-Unis bloquent les négociations à cause des mots «réchauffement climatique», «genre» et «peuples autochtones»

      A deux jours de la clôture du sommet sur la lutte contre la dégradation des sols, qui se tient en Mongolie, aucune décision n’a encore été adoptée ce 27 août. Les représentants de Donald Trump refusent certains termes qu’ils jugent contraires à leurs intérêts.

12. Fri, 28 August 2026

    1 report
    • Le Monde English01:10edited after publishing ×2
      Ulaanbaatar transformed by rural exodus as city's youth search for their place

      previouslyUlaanbaatar transformed by rural exodus as the city's youth search for their place, in pictures

      As the Mongolian capital hosts the UNCCD COP17, which began August 17, Le Monde is showcasing photographer Odhran Dunne's work. In 2025, he turned his lens on this rapidly changing city, capturing portraits of its youth while exploring their hopes and memories of the steppes.

13. Sat, 29 August 2026

    1 report
    • euronews.com13:54
      COP17 in Mongolia wraps up with 1.3 billion dollars of Green pledge

      Countries signatories of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification agree with banks and private investors on financing scores of projects in 23 countries across 5 continents.

14. Mon, 31 August 2026

    1 report
    • thebanker.com05:00
      Lack of bankable projects is holding back land restoration investment

      Financing tools were top of the agenda at the desertification COP in Mongolia

15. Tue, 1 September 2026

    2 reports
    • AllAfrica03:54
      Africa: Africa's Pastoralists Need More Than COP17's $1.2 Billion Rangelands Pledge

      [IPS] Dar es Salaam -- When the rains fail across Tanzania's northern Maasai Steppe, herders drive their cattle farther in search of pasture and water.

    • blueprint.ng06:40
      IUCN: Restoring 124m hectares of land with 2030 target

      A new global database shows progress concentrated in Asia and Africa, yet only 10 per cent of 1.2 billion hectares pledge achieved as deadline