As global leaders convene at the Munich Security Conference 2025 (MSC 2025) to address pressing security challenges, land restoration is emerging as a crucial strategy for conflict prevention and long-term stability.
At the MSC 2025 session Conversation on Land Restoration and Security, hosted by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in partnership with Adelphi research, experts and decision-makers explored the role of land restoration in fostering resilience, security and transboundary cooperation.
UNCCD Executive Secretary Ibrahim Thiaw said: “Land degradation is not merely an environmental crisis—it is a critical security challenge. Over 3 billion people depend on land for survival, yet up to 40% of global land is already degraded, exacerbating food and water scarcity, economic instability and displacement. Governments, security organizations and financial institutions must recognize that restoring land is restoring peace. Without urgent action, competition over shrinking resources will continue to drive instability and displacement.”
The significance of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification today extends far beyond its original goal of combating desertification. As fertile soils become increasingly scarce and land rights are challenged globally, these issues threaten food security, biodiversity, and climate stability, said Jochen Flasbarth, the State Secretary in the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), adding that “Ultimately, they pose a serious risk to global peace and security. To effectively respond, the agenda on land, peace and security must be elevated on the global stage, with a strong emphasis on integrated cooperation at international, regional and national levels.”
Land Degradation: A Global Security Threat
As climate change accelerates desertification and depletes essential resources, competition over dwindling land intensifies, increasing the risks of conflict and forced migration. It is estimated that climate change could lead millions of people moving within their own borders by 2050.
The Ground for Peace report hightlights:
– Land degradation exacerbates conflict, intensifying competition over food, water and resources
60% of ecosystem services in conflict-affected regions have already been degraded, making recovery even more challenging
– Only 10% of global climate finance (2015-2024) has been allocated to land restoration, despite its role in reducing conflict risks
– The economic cost of land degradation is estimated at $6.3 trillion annually, significantly impacting global stability
– Environmental peacebuilding initiatives, such as transboundary land restoration, create shared incentives for cooperation and long-term stability.
– Strengthened governance and land tenure rights are essential to ensuring that land restoration contributes to lasting peace and resilience
“The Ground for Peace report presents compelling evidence from global research and real-world initiatives that restoring land and ecosystems is not just an environmental necessity—it is a strategic pathway to peace and security,” says Dr Beatrice Mosello, Senior Advisor at adelphi research.
“By demonstrating how sustainable land management reduces competition over resources and fosters cooperation, the report makes a strong case for integrating land restoration into global security policies. Urgent action is needed to scale up financing and policy support, ensuring that land restoration becomes a key tool for peacebuilding worldwide.”
The Role of Land Restoration in Global Security
Transboundary land restoration presents a critical opportunity for mitigating and resolving disputes over shared natural resources. By fostering cross-border collaboration, sustainable land management can serve as a confidence-building measure, equipping governments and marginalized communities with the tools needed for cooperative decision-making.
One such initiative is the Peace Forest Initiative (PFI), launched by the UNCCD in partnership with the Korea Forest Service. The PFI promotes cross-border cooperation in fragile and conflict-affected regions by restoring degraded lands and forests, reducing tensions, and fostering trust through shared environmental efforts.
Successful large-scale restoration projects further demonstrate the potential of land rehabilitation to strengthen regional cooperation and economic resilience. The Great Green Wall, which stretches across the Sahel, has shown how combating desertification can also enhance stability and livelihoods.
Similarly, the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA)—one of the world’s largest conservation zones—exemplifies how joint resource management can protect biodiversity while easing tensions over land and water access across Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. In Latin America, the Cordillera del Cóndor Transboundary Conservation Corridor, established as part of a peace agreement between Ecuador and Peru, underscores the role of environmental restoration in reconciliation and long-term stability.
However, the success of these initiatives depends on strong governance frameworks and sustained financial commitments to ensure their long-term viability and impact.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Affairs Minister of State Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir emphasized the far-reaching consequences of land degradation, stating:
“Land degradation leads to conflicts, leads to violence, leads to extremism, leads to terrorism, leads to migration, leads to political instability, and leads to all of us paying an extremely high price to deal with the consequences of an issue that, had we paid attention to at the outset, would have cost us a fraction of the resources.”
The Ground for Peace report calls for immediate investments in land restoration as a fundamental pillar of conflict prevention and peacebuilding. Scalable solutions—such as agroforestry, reforestation, and water conservation—must be expanded to stabilize fragile regions, reduce resource-driven conflicts and foster economic resilience.