There is great need to restore existing despoiled drylands and to combat increasing desertification. Restoring habitats improves biodiversity, increases carbon sequestration, enhancing the quality of life for people. An essential measure is the planting of and reestablishment of vegetation. The successful establishment of vegetation in arid areas is complex requiring the multi-disciplinary skills of arid land experts with various capabilities, in soils, hydrology, ecology, agronomy, land management etc. However, vegetation restoration techniques in arid areas require review and development. Information on restoration is highly dispersed and often difficult to obtain.The creation of the ?Drylands and Desert Restoration Hub? is thus aimed to bring together the expertise, knowledge and information on vegetation establishment and management that exists in the EU and around the world. The drylands and desert restoration hub provides a focus for information for all stakeholders.The Action is devised to provide the science and practical guidance for dryland restoration and combat of desertification through coordinated data-collection with an integrated database within a harmonized information hub of current and new methods and techniques of restoration, trials and field studies, assessment indicators, academic and practical publications, and tools to identify and support practical restoration projects and decision makers in planning and restoring drylands and the combat of desertification. The Action promotes open knowledge, innovation in procedures and methods for improved restoration in dry lands.The Action; Why and What?The reasons for setting up a ?Drylands and Desert Restoration Hub? are to:Collect,Store,Make Available and Disseminate data and methods, andInstigate new research regarding the practical methods of revegetating AND MANAGING drylandsInformation Exists BUT IT IS:Isolated;Hermetic;Hard to come by;Limited connections between fields;Limited connections between researchers and practitioners;Expertise in Europe with projects around the world but isolated;Europe could lead the fieldDesertification and the Combat of Desertification is an EU ISSUE; Mose EU countries have projects running in Africa; Denmark = Burkina Faso, Norway = Eritrea, Ethiopia = Germany = Namibia etcThe action is about practical solutions:the successful establishment of planting;the successful maintenance and management of planting for the long term to meet sustainable objectives for local people, the landscape, ecology and wildlife.=
- Title Original : Desert Restoration Hub: Arid Lands Restoration & Combat of Desertification: Drylands & Desert Restoration
- Website : http://desertrestorationhub.com/
- Project start : 2011
- Project end : 2016
- Contact Person : Dr Benz Kotzen, University of Greenwich
- Funding Agency : ESSEM COST Action ES1104
- Project Partners : 30 partners thoughout Europe and southern Africa.
- Project structure : Management Committe and five working groups