2026: The Year of the Pastures and the Livestock Farmers

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has launched the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP 2026) – a global campaign aimed at raising awareness and enhancing the vital contribution of rangelands and pastoralists to sustainable agri-food systems, biodiversity conservation, and climate change resilience, FAO writes on its official page. Rangelands cover about half of the Earth's surface in ecosystems such as grasslands, savannas, and shrublands, deserts, wetlands, or mountain regions. The steppes of Central Asia, the African savanna, the Alps and Pyrenees in Europe, the Andes in South America, and the Great Plains of the USA are examples of such landscapes. They harbor unique fauna and flora and provide essential services, including carbon storage and water regulation. Pastoralists are key stewards of these landscapes. They tend to around 1 billion animals worldwide – from sheep and goats to cattle, camels, yaks, horses, reindeer, and ...