Editing Desertification (section)

==Definitions==
Desertification is a gradual process of increased soil [[aridity]]. Desertification has been defined in the text of the [[United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification]] (UNCCD) as "land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid regions resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities."<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Hulme |first1=Mike |last2=Kelly |first2=Mick |date=1993 |title=Exploring the links between Desertification and Climate Change |url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00139157.1993.9929106 |journal=Environment: Science and Policy for Sustainable Development |language=en |volume=35 |issue=6 |pages=4–45 |bibcode=1993ESPSD..35f...4H |doi=10.1080/00139157.1993.9929106 |issn=0013-9157}}</ref>

Definition of Desert – That area of the earth where the sum of rain and snowfall is much less than other areas, where the annual average rainfall is less than 25CM. Definition by UNO (1995) – Land degradation in barren, humid and sub-humid areas due to climate change and human activities is called desertification.

As of 2005, considerable controversy existed over the proper definition of the term ''desertification'' with more than 100 formal definitions in existence.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Geist |first=Helmut
|url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781315240855/causes-progression-desertification-helmut-geist |title=The Causes and Progression of Desertification |date=2017-10-01 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-315-24085-5 |location=London |doi=10.4324/9781315240855}}</ref> The most widely accepted of these was that of the [[Princeton University]] Dictionary which defined it as "the process of fertile land ''transforming into desert'' typically as a result of [[deforestation]], [[drought]] or improper/inappropriate agriculture".{{citation needed|date=October 2023}} This definition clearly demonstrated the interconnectedness of desertification and human activities, in particular land use and land management practices. It also highlighted the economic, social and environmental implications of desertification. However, this original understanding that desertification involved the physical expansion of deserts has been rejected as the concept has further evolved since then.<ref name="EB2">{{cite encyclopedia
| title = Desertification
| first1 = John P.
| last1 = Rafferty
| first2 = Stuart L.
| last2 = Pimm
| encyclopedia =[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]
| url = https://www.britannica.com/science/desertification
| access-date = 2019-11-06
| date = January 26, 2023
| quote = The concept does not refer to the physical expansion of existing deserts but rather to the various processes that threaten all dryland ecosystems.

}}</ref>

There exists also controversy around the sub-grouping of types of desertification, including, for example, the validity and usefulness of such terms as "man-made desert" and "non-pattern desert".<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Geist |first1=Helmut J. |last2=Lambin |first2=Eric F. |date=2004 |title=Dynamic Causal Patterns of Desertification |journal=BioScience |language=en |volume=54 |issue=9 |pages=817 |doi=10.1641/0006-3568(2004)054[0817:DCPOD]2.0.CO;2 |issn=0006-3568|doi-access=free }}</ref>