From 17 to 28 August 2026, Mongolia will host the 17th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (COP17). AVSF and its partners will be delivering a key message: pastoralism, far from being a practice of the past, is a concrete response to today’s climate, environmental and social challenges.
In the face of land degradation, pastoralist communities play a key role in preserving pastures, biodiversity and soil fertility. However, their way of life remains under threat from climate change, reduced access to natural resources and mounting pressures on their territories.
With over 40 years’ experience supporting pastoralist communities in the Sahel, Mongolia, Peru, Bolivia and Iraq, AVSF will advocate at COP17 for the recognition of pastoralism as a sustainable solution to desertification.
Working alongside pastoralist communities
In the run-up to COP17, AVSF will accompany Senegalese herders to Mongolia as part of an exchange with Mongolian pastoralist communities. This meeting will be followed by the Global Gathering of Pastoralists, which will bring together more than 400 participants to develop joint messages to present to international decision-makers.
During COP17, AVSF will take part in several key events:
- Team France stand: working alongside French institutional and scientific partners – such as the French Embassy in Mongolia, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the IRD – to share experiences from the field and the solutions developed with pastoralist communities.
- Side events: co-organising, with CIRAD, the Mongolian Ministry of Agriculture and local partners, a number of discussion sessions on sustainable pasture management and services tailored to livestock farmers.
- Side event – 27 August (9.00–10.30 am, Ogedei Hall): AVSF will speak at the roundtable discussion ‘Sustainable Pastoralism and Livestock Systems’ with a presentation entitled ‘Bringing Animal Health to the Steppe: Community-Based Animal Health Workers as Drivers of Pastoral Resilience in Mongolia’, focusing on the role of community-based animal health workers in strengthening the resilience of pastoral communities in Mongolia.
- Advocacy for pastoralism: championing key priorities, including access to land, water and herd mobility; recognition of the role of pastoral communities in land management; and support for local solutions to restore pastures.
This COP17 is of particular importance as it is taking place during the International Year of Pastures and Pastoralists, proclaimed by the United Nations. It is a unique opportunity to highlight that pastoralist communities are not merely affected by desertification: they also actively contribute to the solutions.
