Desire for Greener Land

Figure 1: Methodological framework of the DESIRE approach.
worldwide information on SLM approaches, SLM technologies,
and the areas they apply to. What’s more, WOCAT has
gathered this information using a standardised and internationally
recognised methodology that is easy to understand
and apply. This enables all SLM research projects to contribute
to, and benefit from, an ever-growing knowledge-base.
Aims and objectives
While maps of soil and land degradation exist at national or
regional level, the only global overview so far remains the
GLASOD map by ISRIC and UNEP from 1991. Maps on the
extent of soil and water conservation or sustainable land
management are seriously lacking. As a result, policy makers
and implementing institutions cannot have a good spatial
overview of their and others’ past and ongoing activities.
With this in mind, and being driven by the key questions
mentioned above, this initial stage of the methodology aims
to produce a series of desertification context maps, detailing:
1. current land degradation status;
2. future land degradation risk; and
3. existing sustainable land management strategies.
Mexico, Christian Prat Greece, Erik van den Elsen
10 DESIRE – WOCAT Desire for Greener Land