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The report details the findings of a 16-month community environmental audit in Penhalonga, Zimbabwe, conducted between 2017 and 2018. It identifies significant legal and environmental violations by two gold mining companies: Redwing Mine, which is linked to air pollution from tailings dumps, water pollution from sewage and chemical runoff, and labor rights violations; and DTZ-OZGEO, which caused extensive degradation of the Mutare River, land abandonment, and cultural desecration. The document also notes a lack of transparency regarding new diamond mining prospects by the Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) and proposes specific environmental and social remedies.

The study finds that while population density is a strong and consistent predictor of armed conflict, the effects of land degradation and water scarcity are relatively weak or insignificant. Political and economic factors, particularly GDP and political instability, far outweigh local environmental stressors in determining conflict risk. Interestingly, the authors find that resource scarcity may matter less for conflict in low-income states than in wealthier states, challenging some neo-Malthusian assumptions.

The document evaluates Nigeria's macroeconomic recovery strategies following the COVID-19 pandemic, analyzing their compatibility with the nation's goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. While the National Development Plan (NDP) and Economic Sustainability Plan (ESP) include green initiatives—such as solar electrification and climate-smart agriculture—the author notes a lack of clear implementation tracking and a persistent reliance on oil-led growth. The brief recommends removing fossil fuel subsidies, expanding blended finance, and prioritizing gender-responsive climate-smart agriculture to ensure a sustainable green recovery.

The document advocates for replacing the 'linear economy'—characterized by resource extraction and waste—with a 'circular economy' that emphasizes recycling, reuse, and remanufacturing. It outlines the environmental and economic benefits of circularity, including significant potential cost savings in manufacturing and reduced greenhouse gas emissions. The briefing also highlights corporate examples from Philips, H&M, and Trina Solar, and details several Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) projects focused on circular procurement, plastic waste management, and sustainable production-consumption systems.

The Master Plan for the Pampa Huari River Basin (PDC-PH) provides a comprehensive strategy to address water scarcity, pollution from mining and urban waste, and land degradation in a semi-arid region of Potosí, Bolivia. Developed under the Bolivia WATCH program using a Robust Decision Making (RDM) framework, the plan integrates water supply (WASH) with basin-wide hydrology. Key findings highlight critical water quality issues, with several rivers classified as 'Class E' (unsuitable for human consumption) due to mining and urban sewage. The plan prioritizes three micro-basins—Kari Kari, Santa Lucia, and Villacollo—for environmental restoration and proposes five strategic lines focusing on ecosystem protection, sustainable water and sanitation, efficient agricultural irrigation, mining impact mitigation, and inter-institutional governance.

The report examines the energy-agriculture nexus in Africa, focusing on five case study countries: Cameroon, Mali, Sudan, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe. It develops three primary scenarios—Reference, Moderate Improvement, and Accelerated Growth—to project energy needs for on-farm activities, crop processing, and transport. The analysis highlights that while high-input mechanized farming significantly increases commercial energy intensity, food security gains in some contexts, such as Sudan, can be achieved without proportional increases in energy consumption. The document also explores the role of agro-industries and the potential for energy efficiency improvements in irrigation and crop curing.

The document argues that agroforestry provides a viable alternative to monoculture reforestation and intensified agriculture by creating multi-functional land-use systems. It highlights that 'land-sharing' through agroforestry can actually support 'land-sparing' by reducing the pressure to deforest for agricultural expansion. Using case studies from Sri Lanka and Vietnam, the brief demonstrates how home gardens and forest gardens increase tree cover and improve rural resilience. It also notes the success of nitrogen-fixing species in Africa and the use of rubber and cocoa agroforests in Indonesia and globally. The authors conclude that successful implementation requires secure land tenure, local context-specific choices, and inter-agency collaboration.

The report provides a global, map-based analysis of dryland ecosystems, examining their capacity to provide essential goods and services such as food, water, and carbon storage to support human livelihoods.

The document identifies agroforestry, conservation agriculture, rainwater harvesting, and integrated soil fertility management as key practices to combat land degradation and water stress in Sub-Saharan Africa's drylands. It argues that these practices increase crop yields, income, and climate resilience, and outlines seven strategic pathways—including policy reform, knowledge management, and private sector engagement—to accelerate their adoption.

In the semiarid Caatinga region of Brazil, farmers are adopting agroforestry by integrating native trees, specifically the umbu (Spondias tuberosa), into livestock pastures. This transition is driven by severe climate impacts, including a 50% decline in rainfall in the Jacuípe Drainage Basin since 1962 and increasing desertification. The establishment of the Ser do Sertão cooperative and its Delícias do Jacuípe factory has created a commercial market for umbu pulp, providing farmers with supplemental income that can exceed dairy revenues during the harvest season. Beyond economic gains, these practices help retain soil moisture and provide animal feed during droughts, offering a scalable model for restoring degraded landscapes and ensuring the livelihoods of subsistence farmers.

The World Resources Report 1990-91 provides data on economic, population, and natural resource factors for 146 countries. It includes a global climate change report featuring greenhouse gas emission rankings and policy options, as well as an overview of environmental problems in Latin America such as deforestation and land degradation.

The document argues that public economic incentives are essential to scale up land restoration in Latin America, as the up-front costs are otherwise prohibitive for smallholder farmers and the rural poor. It highlights that land degradation costs the region approximately US $52 billion annually, while restoring a single hectare can add $1,140 in economic value. The brief analyzes programs in Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico, and Peru, calculating payments per tree or hectare to help policymakers optimize these incentives for carbon sequestration, biodiversity, and food security.

Degraded lands comprise over 20 percent of forest and agricultural lands in Latin America and the Caribbean, with 300 million hectares of forests degraded and 350 million hectares deforested. The document identifies land degradation as a major driver of regional greenhouse gas emissions and suggests landscape restoration as a solution to pressures from the growing agriculture and forestry sectors.

The document argues that Ethiopia's efforts to combat land degradation and water insecurity are hindered by inadequate financing and unsustainable interventions. It proposes shifting toward nature-based solutions (NBS) funded by diversified sources, including public, philanthropic, and private capital. The paper specifically examines water funds, payments for ecosystem services, and debt-for-nature swaps as promising mechanisms to attract domestic and international investment and ensure long-term sustainability of watershed management.

The World Resources Institute (WRI) is implementing a three-year initiative (2022-2024) in the Tana Subbasin of Ethiopia, specifically within the North Mecha, Farta, and Dera woredas of the Amhara Region. The project aims to reduce water stress and increase climate resilience by strengthening data systems, analytical capacities, and cross-sectoral coordination. It employs an Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) approach to balance water demand with available supplies and protect the watersheds that support water provision. The project is structured around four objectives: building capacity for water-and climate-wise decisions, institutionalizing IWRM, implementing watershed restoration in the Koga micro-watershed, and advocating for these solutions nationally and internationally.

Initiative 20x20 is a regional partnership in Latin America and the Caribbean designed to restore degraded landscapes through reforestation, agroforestry, and silvopasture. The initiative has surpassed its initial goal of 20 million hectares and has earmarked US$2.4 billion for project financing. The program addresses the fact that at least 200 million hectares of land in the region are severely degraded and that 49% of regional emissions stem from land-use change, forestry, and agriculture.

The WRI Water Program in Ethiopia focuses on three strategic areas: analyzing water risk through modeling and mapping, promoting healthy watersheds via nature-based solutions, and enhancing urban water resilience in cities like Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa. The program collaborates with Ethiopian government entities, including the Ministry of Water, Irrigation and Energy, to integrate water and climate constraints into national development planning and to protect ecosystems that secure long-term water supplies.

The document argues that ecosystems are often managed for short-term gain because their non-marketed services—such as climate and water regulation—are treated as having no value. To address this, it outlines six pathways: mainstreaming ecosystem values in national economic accounts, improving local decision-making through an 'ecosystem service corps', scaling up natural infrastructure for water and coastal defense, increasing corporate investments in the food and beverage sector, using 'restoration bonds' for agricultural landscapes, and utilizing strategic communication following natural disasters to highlight community resilience.

The report argues that while land restoration offers high economic returns—estimated at $7 to $30 for every dollar invested—it remains severely underfunded with an annual gap of approximately $300 billion. It identifies seven systemic barriers to investment, including the lack of market value for public benefits and long investment horizons. The authors recommend a cross-sectoral government approach, the use of carbon taxes to fund restoration, and the implementation of risk-mitigation tools like first-loss guarantees and tax credits to attract private capital. The document also provides a framework for economic valuation to make the full suite of ecosystem services visible to decision-makers.

The Richtersveld region of South Africa faces severe biodiversity loss driven by extreme drought, sandstorms, diamond mining, and poaching, with some plant populations declining by 85%. To combat this, SANParks established an offsite plant conservation greenhouse ten years ago and constructed a second, larger 3,200 square foot facility in 2024 with support from the Wildlife Adaptation Innovation Fund. This new facility has re-homed 11,492 plants from 716 taxa, including over 400 threatened species. The project utilizes IUCN Red List assessments to prioritize species and collaborates with institutions like the Millennium Seed Bank and Kew Royal Botanic Gardens to ensure long-term genetic safekeeping through seed and specimen exchange.