Mongolian Herders Unveil Nomads' Red Line at COP17
Herders from Mongolia's Gobi region presented a community-led plan to protect pastureland and water at a UN biodiversity conference in Yerevan.
Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Botany
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Herders from Mongolia's Gobi region introduced the "Nomads' Red Line" initiative at the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in Yerevan, Armenia. The initiative seeks to safeguard pastureland, water sources, and seasonal migration routes from mining and infrastructure development.
Why it matters
Herders say they risk losing pastureland and water resources as mining and infrastructure projects expand across the Gobi. Their proposal asks that these areas be written into Mongolia's national biodiversity strategy.
The initiative was presented at the 17th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, and is based on herders' traditional knowledge combined with scientific research. Quantitative losses of pasture and water were not reported, and the herders have called for financial and technical support that has not yet been specified.
The players
Convention on Biological Diversity
The Convention on Biological Diversity is an international treaty adopted at the 1992 Earth Summit that governs global conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.
Global Forum of Local Communities
The Global Forum of Local Communities is an international network that supports community-led conservation and the exchange of knowledge among local and Indigenous groups.
The details
Herders from the Gobi region raised concerns over pastureland, water sources, seasonal migration routes, and traditional knowledge during the conference. They also established cooperation with the Global Forum of Local Communities and joined its international network for knowledge exchange.
Timeline
The Nomads' Red Line was presented at COP17 in Yerevan, Armenia, reported on November 3, 2026.
The initiative is planned to be piloted in Mongolia's Gobi region.
Global Context
The herders' proposal was presented within the Convention on Biological Diversity's Conference of the Parties, the treaty body that sets global biodiversity targets. It extends that process by bringing a community-led, pastoralist claim on pastureland and water into a formal international forum.
If adopted into national strategy, the herders' proposal could shape where mining and infrastructure projects may be sited across Mongolia's Gobi region. The planned pilot in the Gobi would test whether community-identified migration routes and water sources can be protected in practice.
The takeaway
Community knowledge of land and water use is being brought directly into international biodiversity policy. Tracking whether the planned Gobi pilot receives the support herders requested will show how such proposals fare in practice.
Further reading
For more on plant and land ecosystems, explore our Botany coverage.
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Should governments protect traditional land use from mining and development projects?
