As humans, we need food to survive. This is a basic need and desire and has always been achieved primarily by cultivating the land. That cultivated land requires sunlight, nutrients and fresh water. If one of these three criteria is missing, the soil is no longer capable of growing vegetation. The biggest problem we face here in Canada is desertification. This term means that lands classified as such are losing water due to drought or human causes. Desertification is a form of land degradation and is a problem worldwide. These arid lands not only affect a small percentage of people, but affect up to half of the world's population. This type of soil erosion is due to many factors. The largest is the latitude of the concentrated area. Naturally, the closer you get to the equator, the hotter and less precipitation will reach the earth and this also affects natural weather cycles. The sad thing, however, is that where there is desertification, poverty will not be far away. This makes sense because the reason we have poverty is because there are people without food and shelter. This links to the lack of vegetation as with desertification the necessary food and materials cannot grow to create a successful civilization. By looking at the causes of desertification we can at least try to reverse the results. Desertification is caused by human error caused by premature globalization. Arid lands are a previous phase to what the atrocity of desertification can develop. These plains of land lack moisture. These areas lose it both through evaporation and plant transpiration. Generally the land considered dry is still used by primitive technologies in the fields of pastoralism and agriculture. This weak earth is put on paper...to be good stewards of the earth. We have been so graciously given this tender land. It comes with easy to cultivate land and difficult to cultivate land. Each situation requires a different strategy. The fall into sin is what forces us to work the land so strenuously. It is a blessing, however, that we are given the technology and know how to make the best of the situation. It's not a simple task. You not only have to fight the harsh environment of the earth, but also the harsh environment of government organizations. The topic itself is simple, but it needs to be focused on, as it is a global problem that can have many side effects. The idea for a solution is simple but requires intense research and political policies. Of course the lists of land problems are endless, but desertification is one of the biggest and should be at the top of the government's to-do list.