Global landscape restoration takes global commitment. One way to get every country on the same page: the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration that launched on June 5. Farmland, forests, grasslands, peatlands and mangroves are all at unprecedented risk of degradation. Together, governments and corporations, united through the UN Decade, have committed to restoring 350 million hectares of degraded landscapes, among other goals, by 2030. Learn more about the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration in this WRI Explainer.

Also, watch The African Green Up, a beautiful, new 22-minute documentary narrated by WRI’s Wanjira Mathai. The film profiles the work of the African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative (AFR100), an African-led initiative with which WRI is a partner.

Discover more about WRI’s restoration work:

• The Global Restoration Initiative monitors restoration efforts around the world. Read more.
• Global Forest Watch shows when and where trees are disappearing, ushering in a new era of radical transparency for the world’s forests. Read more.
• The Land Accelerator works with dozens of entrepreneurs in 23 countries to create jobs while restoring land. Read more.
• Faces of Restoration: Meet the people restoring native tree species in Brazil

Helen Mountford, WRI’s Vice President for Climate and Economics, welcomes a recent commitment by G7 environment ministers to establish concrete pathways to net zero emissions by mid-century. The commitment “raises the bar on climate action for all major economies,” she writes, but notes that there’s much more to do. A G7 meeting this month is a chance to push the cause forward.

“The G7 leaders meeting in June is the obvious moment for these countries to make a serious effort to close the finance gap,” she writes. “It’s not just about money, it’s about our survival, and it’s about trust, solidarity, and justice for the most vulnerable people on Earth.”

Read her full statement.