Incheon's 19-year quest to halt desertification slowly transforms Mongolia's steppes
Nearly two decades ago, residents of Incheon — an industrial port city on Korea’s west coast — were growing increasingly weary of the toxic yellow dust storms sweeping in each spring from the Gobi Desert. Rather than simply issuing air quality alerts, local civic groups decided to trace the transboundary pollution to its roots hundreds of miles away. In 2008, citizens raised 335 million won…
Nearly two decades ago, Incheon residents were troubled by the frequent springtime dust storms originating from the Gobi Desert. Rather than just issuing warnings, local civic groups took action in 2008, raising 335 million won to plant trees on the devastated steppes of Mongolia. This grassroots effort has blossomed into a major transnational environmental collaboration.
The Incheon Forest of Hope initiative, now at the 17th UNCCD conference, showcases a global model for municipal climate action. Over 19 years, the project has turned 157 hectares of desert into a lush green belt, comparable to 220 soccer fields. More than 250,000 drought-resistant trees, including Scots pine and Siberian larch, have been planted.
Written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
