In the upcoming days, Joy van Breda and I will be in Paris to attend ChangeNOW – and we couldn’t be more excited! 🌍✨
We’re going with open minds and big questions: How can we connect science and systems thinking to stories that move people and shape policy? Where are the projects that make system transformation tangible – where research meets creativity, and knowledge meets action?
We’re coming to meet and collaborate with others working on bold solutions to the planetary crisis, especially those making the invisible visible and systemic change actionable.
🌾 One reason we are excited is that we have been invited to represent the Desertification Fresco as ambassadors and help introduce it to attendees.
We first came across the tool at UNFCCC COP28 (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change), during a talk by UNCCD COP15 (UN Convention to Combat Desertification) President Alain-Richard Donwahi. Afterwards, he personally invited us to become ambassadors, making it a key moment in our workshop facilitation journey.
Backed by the COP15 Presidency and CGIAR, this interactive, card-based workshop raises awareness about desertification, drought, and land degradation – helping build critical momentum to place land and food systems at the heart of climate and biodiversity action.
Through our work, Joy and I have explored how profoundly agri-food systems affect – and are affected by – the stability of Earth’s life-support systems. The recent PIK – Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research special report on land, “Stepping Back from the Precipice” (link to PDF), is crystal clear:
🌍 Agriculture and food systems… drive significant issues such as land degradation, deforestation and land-use change, exacerbating food insecurity, poverty and environmental degradation – p.42
🌳 Almost 90% of direct deforestation… is attributed to agriculture – p.24
💧 Agriculture accounts for 70% of the world’s freshwater use – p.47
Crucially, it also notes:
🐄 Animal-based foods contribute the most to dietary impacts on land-use boundaries – p.87
🌾 Food consumption significantly influences the EU’s carbon footprint, highlighting the urgent need for a 90% reduction in food-related emissions – p.87
This is why we advocate for a rapid and just transformation of food systems – one that protects and restores land and water ecosystems, adopts land management systems that work with nature rather than against it, reduces food waste from farm to fork, and manages demand-side pressures in line with planetary boundaries.
It won’t be easy, but it’s necessary.
These transformations are also deeply connected to the challenge of desertification and soil degradation, which undermine the ecological foundations of food production and wellbeing. This makes it exciting to contribute to the Desertification Fresco ahead of COP17 in Mongolia, where the urgency of land degradation and soil restoration takes centre stage.
If you’re working on any of the above, let’s connect at ChangeNOW 2025! 🌱
A huge thanks to Delphine Lahmar-Thery for preparing us well to facilitate a teaser session of the Desertification Fresco at ChangeNOW. We’re really looking forward to finally meeting the rest of the Desertification Fresco team in Paris – Léa Ovet & Firdaousse Aboumahd – let’s make it a good one! 🌍
PS: While we’re not officially presenting the Planetary Boundaries Fresco / Fresque des frontières planétaires this year, we’re always happy to talk about it. If you’re curious about the latest version or want to schedule a session, let’s chat during ChangeNOW – we’re around!
