ABSTRACT
The single greatest challenge facing humanity is the management of natural resources in a manner that will prove to be sustainable in a rapidly changing global environment.
In 1992 the seminal United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro provided the first comprehensive overview of the problem. Chapter 12, ‘Managing Fragile Ecosystems: Combating Desertification and Drought’, recognised the need ‘to support local communities in their own efforts in combating desertification, and to draw on the knowledge and experience of the populations concerned, ensuring the full participation of women and indigenous populations’ (United Nations General Assembly [UNGA] 1992, art. 12.56[d]).
