Restoring and Rewilding: a Big Arabian Project is Underway

Efforts to rewild Saudi Arabia are underway, with the replanting of native trees, the restoration of vegetation, and a dramatic expansion of national parks within the country.

“As humans, we need to radically rethink our relationship with nature and other species. We must realize that having healthy ecosystems is vital for our survival and that protecting all life on Earth, from the soil and seabed upwards, is the only viable future,” says Doreen Lynn-Robinson, Director of Biodiversity and Land at the United Nations Environmental Program.

Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 goal is expected to greatly enhance the country’s land protection measures. So far, the country has protected 18 percent of its land, up from 4 percent. It has also increased the number of national parks to more than 400, up from 19. Other measures, such as the breeding, rearing, and releasing of endangered native species into the wild are also part of the plan. The plan is also largely designed to prevent the desertification of the country and falls under the larger United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration project.