A number of international initiatives that aim to address land degradation have emerged over the past years, such as the Bonn Challenge and the New York Declaration on Forests that aim to restore degraded and defor-ested land, and the Aichi Biodiversity Targets that, among other things, call for conservation and restoration of degraded ecosystems. They thereby contribute to land degradation neutrality, i.e. a world where the amount of healthy and productive land resources necessary to support ecosystem services remains stable or increases.
In 2015, land degradation neutrality is likely to become a global target through the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and the Sustainable Development Goals. While the role of business in helping achieve this target is recognized, there is still a need to articulate why and how business can contribute.
This publication aims to provide a first answer to these questions by increasing companies’ awareness and understanding of land degrada-tion and more specifically of the land degradation neutrality target. The publication also introduces simple and pragmatic indicators supporting restoration, rehabilitation and management to build land-based resilience. It is the first output of the WBCSD Restoring Degraded Land business solution, a private sector-led initiative that aims to mobilize the business community around the issue of land degradation so as to contribute to the achievement of land degradation neutrality.