Not just forests: why grasslands also belong in national climate plans, PgII

Key Highlights:

• The United Nations declared 2026 as the ‘International Year for Rangelands and Pastoralists’.
• COP30 in Brazil focused on forests, overlooking the importance of grasslands in climate action.
• Grasslands are threatened by agriculture, invasive species, and suppression of indigenous land management.
• Cerrado grasslands in Brazil face twice the range loss compared to the Amazon rainforests.
• UNCCD COP16 recognized rangelands and called for policies to improve tenure security.
• A report highlighted the need to integrate grasslands in climate negotiations and NDCs.
• India can boost climate mitigation by recognizing grasslands as crucial carbon sinks.

Detailed Insights:

• Grasslands and savannahs are potentially better carbon sinks but have been overshadowed by forests in global climate negotiations.
• Indigenous communities like the Indigenous Desert Alliance (IDA) in Australia are working to protect grasslands through traditional burning and monitoring.
• The cerrado is crucial for Brazil's water systems, but faces threats from agriculture, mining, and toxic waste.
• Protecting the cerrado is a social justice issue, requiring recognition of territorial rights for indigenous peoples and Quilombolas.
• The UNFCCC COP focuses on carbon management, while biodiversity and land degradation are addressed by the CBD and CCD.
• Integrating grasslands into nationally determined contributions (NDCs) is essential for effective climate action.
• India's various ministries have competing interests regarding grasslands, hindering unified policies for their protection.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Rangelands: Grasslands, shrublands, and savannas used for livestock grazing and wildlife.
• Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs): National climate action plans under the Paris Agreement.
• Carbon Sink: A natural or artificial reservoir that accumulates and stores carbon dioxide.