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Desertification is a global crisis threatening the livelihoods of 3.2 billion people worldwide. In China’s Xinjiang, four decades of determined efforts have transformed the edge of the vast Taklamakan Desert, creating a 3,046-kilometer green belt. It’s one of many hopeful examples of human endeavor in restoring degraded lands and safeguarding the future of our planet.

In the heart of southern Xinjiang lies the Taklamakan Desert, a vast expanse known as the “sea of death” for its extreme arid and inhospitable conditions. Covering 330,000 square kilometers - an area almost the size of Finland - it is China’s largest desert and the world’s second-largest shifting desert. Here, dunes stretch endlessly, and sandstorm days comprise one-third of the year.

For generations, the Taklamakan Desert has threatened surrounding villages, farmlands, and transportation routes, squeezing the living space of those who dwell on its edges. Nearly 80% of the desert sands are in constant motion, while seasonal floods from melting snow on the mountains add further instability, leaving homes and livelihoods at risk.

The danger is long-term: at one point, the Taklamakan risked merging with the nearby Kumtag Desert, placing even greater pressure on human settlements.

How To Contain The Sands

Faced with the challenge, China launched an ambitious initiative: building a shield of vegetation to encircle the Taklamakan Desert, planting desert-tolerant species such as desert poplar, red willow, saxaul, and even roses.

This massive project took more than 40 years to complete. By the end of 2023, 2,761 kilometers (about 1,716 miles) of the belt had been established. A year later, the final 285 kilometers—the most challenging section—was closed through the dedicated efforts of 600,000 people.

On November 28, 2024, in Yutian County on the desert’s southern edge, the last seedlings were planted into the sands, completing a 3,046-kilometer green belt. This vast ecological barrier stabilizes the Taklamakan Desert’s edge, prevents sandstorms, and protects the fragile ecology. In addition, the green belt provides wild animals in the desert with safe conditions for survival, breeding, and migration.

A Bold Green Strategy Against Desertification

The Taklamakan Desert control project is a part of China's Three-North Shelterbelt Forest Program, or TSFP, the world's largest afforestation program aimed at curbing desertification.

Launched in 1978, this ambitious program seeks to slow the progress of desertification and reduce the frequency of sandstorms by planting vast stretches of trees and resilient plant species across the arid and semi-arid regions in northern China, where sandstorms pose a constant threat to local farmlands and residents.

Official data shows that forest coverage in areas covered by the TSFP has risen from five percent in 1977 to 13.8 percent today. More than 60 percent of regions prone to soil erosion have been effectively controlled, and 450 million mu of farmland—roughly 30 million hectares—have been safeguarded from desert expansion.

Turning Lands of Despair into Fields of Hope: Our Shared Mission

The challenges faced in northern China echo across the globe. From the Sahel in Africa to the Middle East and Central Asia, up to 40 percent of the planet’s land is degraded, threatening 3.2 billion people—almost half of the global population.

The encouraging news is that projects such as TSFP and Africa's Great Green Wall Initiative seem to demonstrate that humans have the know-how to turn degradation into restoration.

As Chief Scientist Lu Qi of the Chinese Academy of Forestry says, combating desertification is not about erasing deserts; rather, it is about understanding and protecting the integrity of their ecosystems and creating a better future for humankind.

The “sea of death” may never entirely vanish - and it does not have to. Yet if roses can bloom on its edge, perhaps deserts like the Taklamakan can also be transformed from symbols of despair into fields of hope.

Li Yi is, CGTN reporter

About the author: Li Yi is a CGTN reporter with nine years of experience in journalism. In 2021, she won the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU)-UNESCO Together for Peace Media Award for her feature reporting. Her current work focuses on social issues, in-depth features, and cultural reporting.

Photo: A tree and vegetation in the Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China. [Photo: VCG]