Why the world can’t agree how to tackle drought

The UN Cop17 summit in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, took place in August 2026. Susan Ann Samuel, CC BY-NC-ND Delegates from 196 nations plus EU officials have met in Mongolia to discuss how best to tackle drought and desertification. Often overlooked by the larger and busier climate summits, this small UN desertification summit, known as Cop17, felt more important than ever. Yet countries still could not agree on what needs to be done. Negotiations that were often inconclusive and frustrating…