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JORGE RESCALA PEREZ, DIRECTOR GENERAL, NATIONAL FORESTRY COMMISSION OF MEXICO
A healthy environment is a fundamental human right that means a binding responsibility with future generations.
Far from being a burden it should be seen as an opportunity to generate employment and value and, as a
consequence, economic development and poverty reduction.
Economic growth and sustainability are not conflicting tasks; instead, they should be complementary.
Consistent with its commitment to combat desertification and land degradation, Mexico was the first country
in the world to subscribe to and ratify the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in 1995,
one year after its adoption. Furthermore, Mexico was the first country to submit its Action Plan to Combat
Desertification in 1994.
At the Third Scientific Conference of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, hosted by
Mexico in 2015, experts from around the world gathered to discuss the role of science, technology and traditional
knowledge and practices to fight desertification and land degradation. They recognized that, due to the cross-
cutting nature of land degradation, climate change and biodiversity loss, there is a need to promote integrated
landscape management approaches to address those challenges simultaneously, supported by the generation,
diffusion and exchange of scientific, technical and traditional knowledge.
The Government of Mexico has established clear policies and is advancing to conserve soil and reverse land
degradation. In doing so it seeks to maintain the provision of a wide range of benefits such as fertility, the
productive capacity of soils, regulation of the hydrological cycle, control of floods and landslides, climate change
mitigation and adaptation, and the conservation of Mexican terrestrial ecosystems which are among the world’s
richest in terms of biological diversity.
To lead Mexico to its full potential, the Government is implementing political actions aimed to promote
and strengthen the sustainable use of its natural resources in order to contribute to poverty eradication,
maintain livelihoods of local communities and increase the quality of life of Mexico’s population while avoiding
environmental degradation.
Jorge Rescala Perez
Director General, National Forestry Commission of Mexico
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