SDG 15: Life On Land
Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss
Facts:*
13 million hectares of forests are lost every year.
Around 1.6 billion people depend on forests for their livelihood. This includes some 70 million indigenous people.
Forests are home to more than 80% of all terrestrial species of animals, plants and insects.
2.6 billion people depend directly on agriculture, but 52% of the land used for agriculture is moderately or severely affected by soil degradation.
Due to drought and desertification each year, 12 million hectares are lost (23 hectares per minute), where 20 million tons of grain could have been grown.
Of the 8,300 animal breeds known, 8% are extinct and 22% are at risk of extinction.
This time we are challenging you to take one (or more) of the actions below: 1. Go wild with wildflowers for butterflies & bees. Get some wildflower seeds & get planting. Here is your guide. 2. Let’s feed the birds. Whether you buy a bird feeder or get creative in making one, let’s keep our birds fed. Here is some creative ideas for homemade bird feeders. 3. GIY crops and herbs. No matter what your garden size is, everyone can grow something. Check out GIY for all your tips & tricks. 4. Last but not least... A bee hotel. We promise you will be buzzing after it. Here is your step by step guide.*
We've already recommended you the Earth Walk while speaking about SDG7, but... it's such a good one, we will recommend it again. ;) Have a look at the super detailed description prepared by Carmine Rodi and go for your own Earth Walk or (even better!) invite friends to join you.
Volunteer in an organic, sustainable farm for at least few days to understand how much effort is required to grow our food while preserving precious life on the land. You can easily find volunteering opportunities on websites like workaway.info or wwoof.net. If you wish, you can have a look on our tips on what is worth to check before your first volunteering adventure of this type.
More inspiration:
To read
Examples of different kinds of sustainable farms/communities we visited thanks to workaway.info:
1. Narkoy, organic farm in Turkey.
2. IVA, biodynamic farm in Serbia.
3. Eco-tourism project in Thai jungle.
4. The Fools, English teaching farm in Brazil.
To watch
1. Introduction to SDG15.*
2. This excellent 4-minute video brings you straight to the heart of what biodiversity really means. Want more? Head to Netflix to watch the entire #OurPlanet series.*
3. Permaculture is a set of design principles centred on whole systems thinking, simulating, or directly utilizing the patterns and resilient features observed in natural ecosystems. Gareth Conlon connects the dots between permaculture and development education. Check out his Ted Talk here.*
4. Videos from farms we visited:
Fazenda Santha Esther (ex-coffee farm in Brazil)
Tea farm in Sri Lanka
Coffee farm in Peru
For more info about other SDGs, have a look here.
* These information and calls to action come from the fantastic Development Perspectives material about SDGs. Have a look here to discover more.