Around 1.2 billion jobs worldwide depend on healthy ecosystems, making land degradation and desertification not only environmental concerns but also significant threats to employment and livelihoods, particularly in rural and land-dependent communities, according to the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
The findings were outlined in the ILO’s policy brief, Just transition policy brief on decent work implications from land degradation and desertification, which examines the links between environmental degradation and the world of work.
The brief is the ILO’s first to explore these connections while positioning the concept of a just transition within efforts under the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) to address land degradation and desertification.
According to the ILO, declining land quality can reduce productivity and put jobs at risk across sectors that rely heavily on natural resources, including agriculture, forestry and fisheries. Communities whose incomes depend directly on land and natural resources can be particularly exposed to these impacts.
However, land restoration and sustainable land management can also create new employment opportunities and transform existing jobs. The transition could generate demand for new skills and occupations linked to restoration, conservation and sustainable resource management.
The ILO cautioned that these changes may also create workforce challenges. New jobs may emerge in different locations or sectors, require workers to develop new skills, or take time to materialise, potentially leaving some workers and communities vulnerable during the transition.
The policy brief examines how the ILO’s Guidelines for a Just Transition towards Environmentally Sustainable Economies and Societies for All can be applied to efforts addressing land degradation and desertification.
The document was highlighted in connection with the 17th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP17) to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, held in Mongolia from 17 to 28 August 2026.
The ILO emphasised the need to integrate employment and decent-work considerations into land restoration and environmental policies. It identified social dialogue, skills development, social protection, support for sustainable enterprises and respect for fundamental principles and rights at work as key elements of a just transition.
It also called for stronger participation from governments, employers’ organisations and workers’ organisations in policymaking around land degradation.
The ILO said bringing the world-of-work dimension into land restoration can help align environmental objectives with employment priorities, while protecting livelihoods, creating decent work and ensuring that vulnerable workers and communities are not left behind.