India’s Grasslands Guide & Open Natural Ecosystems | UNCCD COP17

Subject: GS 3: Environment

Context: India launched its first Guide to Grasslands and Other Open Natural Ecosystems at UNCCD COP17 in Ulaanbaatar on August 17, 2026.

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Guide to Grasslands and Other Open Natural Ecosystems of India

• The Guide recognises India’s grasslands, savannas, deserts, scrublands and other Open Natural Ecosystems (ONEs) as ecologically and socio-economically valuable landscapes requiring science-based conservation.
• Launched By: Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) in collaboration with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Centre of Excellence on Sustainable Land Management (CoE-SLM), Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE), and Space Applications Centre (SAC), ISRO.
• Key Highlights
• • Ecosystem Diversity: It covers ecosystems ranging from Himalayan and Terai grasslands to Thar, Banni, Deccan savannas, ravines and coastal ecosystems.
  • Community Linkages: It documents the relationship between ONEs and pastoral, livestock-based and agricultural livelihoods, including associated communities and tribes.
  • Scientific Approach: It emphasises landscape-level planning, improved land-degradation assessment, restoration, fire ecology and carbon sequestration.
  • Policy Resource: The Guide is intended to support policymakers, researchers, conservation practitioners and local communities in sustainable land management.

About Open Natural Ecosystems (ONEs)

• Definition: ONEs are naturally open landscapes dominated by grasses, shrubs or sparse vegetation rather than dense tree cover, including grasslands, savannas, deserts and scrublands.
• Key Features
• • Biodiversity: They support specialised flora and fauna, including species adapted to dry, semi-arid and open habitats.
  • Livelihoods: Grasslands and rangelands sustain pastoralism, livestock rearing and agriculture-dependent communities.
  • Carbon Storage: These ecosystems store significant carbon, particularly in their soils, and contribute to climate resilience.
  • Landscape Processes: They influence soil formation, water cycles, nutrient flows and ecological fire regimes.

UNCCD COP17

• COP17 is the 17th session of the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), focusing on translating land-restoration commitments into finance and action.
• Venue: Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
  • Mongolia has around 77% of its land affected by desertification and land degradation.
• Theme: “Restoring Land, Restoring Hope” emphasises accelerating land restoration and strengthening resilience against drought and desertification.
• Focus Areas
  • Land Restoration: Scaling up restoration of degraded land and mobilising adequate finance.
  • Rangelands: Strengthening sustainable management of rangelands and supporting pastoral communities.
  • Drought Resilience: Developing stronger international frameworks for drought preparedness, resilience and water security.
• Key Outcomes
  • Finance and Implementation: Countries are seeking mechanisms to convert land-restoration pledges into measurable action and financial support.
  • Drought Framework: COP17 revisits the unresolved issue of establishing a global drought-resilience framework.
  • Restoration Commitments: Countries have pledged to restore around 1 billion hectares, against an estimated 1.5–2 billion hectares of degraded land globally.

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About UNCCD

• The UNCCD is the sole legally binding international agreement specifically addressing desertification, land degradation and drought through sustainable land management.
• Origin: It was adopted in 1994 following the 1992 Rio Earth Summit and entered into force in 1996, with 197 Parties.
  • India signed the agreement in 1994, and completed ratification in 1996.
  • India hosted the COP 14 of UNCCD in 2019.
• Key Initiatives
  • Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN): LDN seeks to ensure that the quantity and quality of land resources necessary to support ecosystems and livelihoods remain stable or improve.
  • Great Green Wall: This African initiative aims to restore degraded land across the Sahel while supporting livelihoods and climate resilience.
  • G20 Global Land Initiative: It seeks international cooperation to substantially reduce land degradation and promote sustainable land management.

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