Drylands: Water, Strategy and Solutions

Drylands are expanding across the planet, putting pressure on water, food systems, and entire communities. In this Podcast, host Geoff Lawton, Eric, Ben and Sam draw on real-world experience from places like Jordan, Saudi Arabia, California, and Somalia to explore what actually works in arid and semi-arid landscapes.

Watch the video episode here.

Key Takeaways

00:00–03:00: Drylands are expanding fast, driven by climate instability, land misuse, and poor water strategy.

03:00–05:00: Techniques fail without timing and context. Strategy is what makes systems work.

05:00–07:30: Treating water as a commodity breaks dryland systems. Water must be managed as a cycle.

07:30–09:30: Large-scale infrastructure often creates dependency, not resilience.

09:30–11:30: Without shade, soil life collapses and water is lost to evaporation.

11:30–13:30: Cooling landscapes can be more powerful than adding more water.

13:30–15:30: Wind moves moisture and nutrients. Design decides whether it degrades or regenerates land.

15:30–18:00: Dust can build fertility when landscapes are structured correctly.

18:00–20:30: Catchment-scale thinking is essential for long-term success.

20:30–23:00: True water security is stored in soil and vegetation, not tanks.

23:00–26:00: Centralized water systems increase ecological and social fragility.

26:00–29:30: Somalia shows the real human cost of water system failure.

29:30–32:00: Land regeneration is long-term infrastructure, not charity.

32:00–34:30: Aid fails when it ignores how drylands actually function.

34:30–37:00: Traditional dryland cultures evolved strategies modern systems often overlook.

37:00–39:30: Stable food and water systems reduce migration and conflict pressure.

39:30–42:00: Agriculture can heal or destroy drylands — design determines the outcome.

42:00–44:30: Extractive thinking fails faster in drylands than anywhere else.

44:30–47:00: Soil carbon is the key to holding water in the landscape.

47:00–49:30: When strategy is right, drylands respond quickly.

49:30–52:00: Copying techniques without context leads to failure.

52:00–54:30: Designing for extremes matters more than designing for averages.

57:00–59:30: Drylands expose the fragility of modern systems everywhere.

62:00–66:00: Drylands are not doomed — with the right strategy, they can thrive.