The Asia Pacific School of Business Joins UNCCD Global Mechanism

Empowering Desertification Control through Education for International Cooperation 

Shenzhen, April 26, 2025

As a global educational institution committed to promoting inclusive higher education and sustainable development, the Asia Pacific School of Business (APSB) today announced its formal membership in the Global Mechanism (GM) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). This milestone marks a significant step in the School’s implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 15 on "Life on Land." By integrating the "Ordos Model for Desertification Control" into its core curriculum, APSB will establish the world’s first higher education framework focusing on "China’s Solutions for Global Desertification Control," collaborating with Chinese local governments and international organizations to cultivate sustainable development professionals for developing countries with both theoretical expertise and practical skills. 

  I. From Global Convention to Chinese Practice: A "Dual-Track Governance" Framework for Desertification Control 

Since its entry into force in 1994, the UNCCD has served as the central legal framework for 197 Parties worldwide to address drought, land degradation, and desertification, with a specific focus on ecological governance challenges in Africa and developing nations. As one of the first signatories (1994) and ratifiers (1997) of the Convention, China not only became the first country to achieve the Convention’s goal of "zero net land degradation" (as outlined in the State Council’s *National Plan for Sand and Desertification Control* in 2014) but also provided systematic solutions through localized practices such as the "Ordos Model" and "Kubuqi Model." 

The "Global Mechanism" joined by APSB is the Convention’s core body for resource mobilization and technical cooperation, aiming to facilitate knowledge sharing, technology transfer, and capacity-building between developed and developing nations. As the first member institution centering its curriculum on "Chinese防治模式" (Chinese prevention and control models), APSB will leverage its membership in the United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) and the Academic Council on the United Nations System (ACUNS) to develop a three-in-one teaching system of "policy analysis-technical transformation-community practice," focusing on China’s institutional innovations in desertification control, including: 

  Ecological Compensation Mechanisms: The principle of "those who govern, benefit" derived from the *Law of the People’s Republic of China on Sand Prevention and Control* (enforced in 2002); 

  Industrial Integration Pathways: Ordos City’s "ecological economicization" model, which drives eco-agriculture and cultural tourism through the cultivation of drought-resistant plants like sea buckthorn and licorice; 

  Technological Support Systems: Remote sensing for desertification monitoring and drought-resistant species breeding technologies developed in collaboration with the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute. 

  II. Inclusive Education and Global Governance: APSB’s Dual Mission 

As a non-profit institution dedicated to "providing quality higher education to low-income groups," APSB’s curriculum reform reflects its dual commitment to "educational equity" and "global governance." According to the School’s *2025 Sustainable Development Education White Paper*, the newly established "Desertification Control and Sustainable Development" program will feature three modules: 

1. Policy and International Governance: In-depth analysis of the UNCCD’s "Ten-Year Strategy" (2008–2018) and the "Zero Net Land Degradation in Drylands" goal (adopted at the 2013 COP), combined with China’s "14th Five-Year Plan" on comprehensive management of desertification, stone desertification, and soil erosion. It will also compare synergies between the *Paris Agreement* and UNCCD implementation; 

2. Technology Transfer and Local Practice: Joint training bases with the Ordos International Center for Desertification Control Technology Innovation offer hands-on courses like "Sandland Vegetation Restoration Engineering" and "Economic Evaluation of Solar-Powered Desert Control Technology," aligned with technical standards of China’s foreign aid projects in Africa and Central Asia; 

3. Community Empowerment and Inclusive Development: Incorporating "participatory community planning" theories to study the integration of China’s "targeted poverty alleviation" policies with desertification control—such as Inner Mongolia’s "ecological forest ranger" system, which achieves dual goals of "desert control" and "poverty reduction." This case has been included in the UNDP’s *2023 Global Poverty Alleviation Case Collection*. 

Notably, the project receives direct support from China’s National Forestry and Grassland Administration (NFGA). Under their memorandum of understanding, NFGA will ｇｒａｎｔ APSB access to the "National Desertification and Sandification Monitoring Database" and recommend industry experts to join the program’s academic committee. Committee Chair Liu Tuo, former Deputy Head of China’s Desertification Control Coordination Group, stated: "Translating China’s institutional innovations in desertification control into replicable educational resources is a vital practice for promoting green development along the Belt and Road." 

  III. From Regional Experience to Global Solution: Building a "Knowledge Community" for Desertification Control 

APSB’s initiative directly responds to the 15th Session of the UNCCD Conference of the Parties (COP15) in 2022, where China proposed three initiatives—"strengthening international cooperation, advancing green development, and improving international rules"—at the Leaders’ Summit on Drought and Sustainable Land Governance. The "Sustainable Development Talent Training Program" developed by APSB and the Ordos Innovation Center will enroll 100 full-scholarship students from Belt and Road countries in its first batch, with courses including: 

  Core Theory Module: *Dryland Ecosystem Services and Human Well-being*, aligned with the UNCCD Committee on Science and Technology’s assessment framework; 

  Chinese Case Module: Evaluation of the *Ordos Desertification Control Plan (2011–2020)*, analyzing the tripartite collaboration mechanism of "government leadership-enterprise participation-herdsmen benefit"; 

  Simulated Practice Module: GIS-based virtual sandland governance planning, following China’s *Desertification Control Engineering Design Specification* (GB/T 23416.1–2009). 

"We aim to teach not just technology, but a mindset of ‘compatibility between ecological governance and economic development,’" emphasized Dr. Sarah Chen, APSB’s Academic Dean. The curriculum includes analysis of "ecological product value realization mechanisms," such as how China’s pilot "forest carbon sink trading" provides market-based financing for desertification control—core innovations that distinguish the "Ordos Model" from traditional ecological projects. 

  IV. Policy Support and International Consensus: Injecting "Chinese Wisdom" into Global Actions 

China’s institutional innovations in desertification control have gained international recognition. A 2023 UNEP report noted that China’s desertified land area decreases by 2,424 km² annually, "setting a benchmark for global dryland governance." APSB’s curriculum systematically distills this "Chinese experience" across: 

  Legal and Policy Dimensions: Integration of key provisions from the *Land Administration Law of the People’s Republic of China*, *Sand Prevention and Control Law*, and the *Master Plan for the Protection and Restoration of Major Ecosystems in China (2021–2035)*; 

  Technical Standard Dimensions: Adoption of 12 national standards, including the *Technical Regulations for Ban protection fix* (LY/T 2581–2016), as operational guidelines for practical courses;

  International Cooperation Dimensions: Alignment with the "Global Partnership for Dryland Development" (GPDD) and the Belt and Road Desertification Control Cooperation Mechanism, analyzing adaptive improvements of solar desert control technologies in China’s "Ten Thousand Villages Connectivity" project in Africa. 

With global desertified land expanding at 70,000 km² annually (UNCCD 2024 report), the demand for specialized talent is urgent. APSB’s membership signals deep integration between UN mechanisms and Chinese local practices—through educational empowerment, transforming the "Ordos Model" from a regional experience into a globally replicable solution, and providing robust human capital for achieving the Convention’s goal of "zero net land degradation by 2030." 

"When desert governance meets higher education, what changes is not just the land, but also perceptions of sustainable development," as stated by Monique Barbut, GM Director of UNCCD, in her congratulatory letter. APSB’s practice demonstrates that education is not only knowledge transfer but a bridge for building a shared future for humanity. In this "global campaign" against desertification, such cross-sector collaboration is creating value beyond geographical boundaries. 

Background Links: 

1. UNCCD Official Documents: https://www.unccd.int

2. NFGA Desertification Control Policy Database: http://www.forestry.gov.cn

3. Ordos International Center for Desertification Control Technology Innovation Achievements: http://www.ordosdesert.com