The Bonn Challenge

The Bonn Challenge has set a global goal to restore 150 million ha of degraded and deforested landscapes by 2020 and 350 million ha by 2030. Launched by the Government of Germany and IUCN in 2011, the challenge surpassed the 150-million-hectare milestone for pledges in 2017. These pledges by countries, organizations and private entities are aimed at achieving ambitious targets to restore degraded and deforested lands. The challenge aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Aichi Biodiversity Targets (now Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework), the Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) goal, and the Paris Climate Change Agreement. The Bonn Challenge particularly relies on a forest landscape restoration (FLR) approach, which restores ecological integrity while enhancing human well-being. Under the challenge, regional political and technical cooperation, including by governments, has been fostered, along with spaces to share lessons learned and best practices. Initiatives forged under the challenge include the African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative (AFR100), Initiative 20×20 in Latin America and the Caribbean, ECCA30 in Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia, and the Agadir Commitment in the Mediterranean region.

UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration

The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration is a rallying call for the protection and revival of ecosystems all around the world, for the benefit of people and nature. It aims to halt the degradation of ecosystems, and restore them to achieve global Sustainable Development Goals. Only with healthy ecosystems can we enhance people’s livelihoods, counteract climate change, and stop the collapse of biodiversity. The UN Decade runs from 2021 through 2030, which is also the deadline for the Sustainable Development Goals and the timeline scientists have identified as the last chance to prevent catastrophic climate change. The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration has identified 10 first flagship initiatives that illustrate the breadth and promise of restoration work already underway.

The UN Decade Action Plan invites concrete action, including from local governments, to join forces and take leadership to achieve the objectives set by the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration up to 2030.

CitiesWithNature cities that have done work under the UN Decade banner include: