Digging Deep – World Day to Combat Desertification & Drought
In 1995 the UN declared 17 June as ‘World Combat Desertification and Drought Day’. This year the day focuses on turning degraded land into healthy land. According to the UN, nearly three-quarters of the Earth’s ice-free land has been transformed, mainly to meet the demand for food, raw materials, and human settlement. A little closer to home, in the last 200 years, nearly 40% of Australia’s forests have been cut down, leaving behind fragmented landscapes.
