Mobility is life for 500 million pastoralists worldwide

PATORALISTS' movement across 40% of the Earth’s land supports one of the planet’s most adaptive land-use systems

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WHAT IS MOBILITY MATTERS?

Mobility matters is a global campaign to protect and promote pastoralist mobility, a vital system that provides food, sustains livelihoods, restores ecosystems, and strengthens climate resilience.

Pastoralists – an estimated 500 million people worldwide – move with their livestock across rangelands, managing territories that cover more than 40% of the Earth’s land surface.

Pastoral mobility is not random

— pastoralists manage mobility in highly adaptive ways that respond to changes in weather, water, and environments.

The careful movement of livestock across landscapes by pastoralists provides for both people and the planet, with grasslands storing approximately 34% of carbon.

Yet across many regions, pastoralists’ rights to mobility are increasingly restricted, misunderstood, or excluded from policy. Mobility Matters is working to change that — by shifting narratives, influencing policies, and supporting collective action.

WHO

Mobility Matters is a collective, global effort led by the pastoralist members and partners of the International Land Coalition.

OUR COMMITMENT

The campaign is contributing to key global agendas, INCLUDING FOOD AND CLIMATE .

WHY NOW?

We are at a critical moment:

Climate pressures are intensifying – droughts, land degradation, biodiversity loss
Mobility is under threat – from land privatisation and fragmentation, restrictive policies, and competing land uses
Misconceptions persist – pastoralists are often seen as outdated, backwards, inefficient

At the same time:

2026 is the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP) – a unique global spotlight
Key global processes on land and climate are opening space for change

This is a window of opportunity that we cannot miss to reposition mobility

GOALS AND ASKS

Protect mobility. Recognise it. Invest in it.

RECOGNISE MOBILITY

INVEST IN MOBILITY

SHIFT THE NARRATIVE

WHAT YOU CAN DO

Three easy ways to engage

10-30 minutes

Amplify the movement

Share a post using #MobilityMatters2026
Use ready made content from the toolkit
Follow and amplify campaign partners
Sign up to the newsletter on the website to stay informed
Adapt campaign messaging to your context

1-2 DAYS + PREPARATION

Start the conversation where you are

Organise a community dialogue or small events
Develop online engagement through quizzes, photo contests, video messages
Use creative methods such as murals, street theatre, or other local art forms to publicly disseminate messages
Use ready made content from the toolkit

If you are interested in engaging in this step, please reach out to us to coordinate

Drive real change by running a national or regional campaign

Engage policy makers and institutions through dialogues
Organise community consultations
Prepare written submissions or petitions
Contribute to advocacy processes at national, regional and global levels (policy reviews, drafting of NAPs, NDCs, NBSAPs, International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists, COP17)
Pitch stories, publish ope-eds

If you are interested in engaging in this step, please reach out to us to coordinate

WHAT TO SAY

QUOTE BANK

COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS

Let’s de-bunk some myths!

Mobility is inefficient land use

FALSE!

Mobility is a productive way to manage rangelands as it allows rangelands to regenerate and livestock to access a variety of fodder sources

Pastoralists are backwards or outdated

FALSE!

Pastoralists are intelligent and careful stewards grounded in deep knowledge and promoting an evolving system adapted to changing environments

Settling pastoralists leads to development

FALSE!

Forced sedentarisation often increases vulnerability to climate change and conflict, and undermines livelihoods

Pastoralists are responsible for farmer-herder conflicts

FALSE!

Conflicts are driven by competition over land, weak governance and restricted mobility. When mobility is supported, routes are protected, it can reduce tensions and prevent conflict

There is no future for pastoralist youth

MAYBE

The risk is real, but it is driven by exclusion, negative perceptions and lack of investment, not by pastoralism itself. With the right support, pastoralism can provide sustainable livelihoods and leadership opportunities for youth

Mobility causes environmental degradation

FALSE!

Mobility is a productive way to manage rangelands as it allows rangelands to regenerate and livestock to access a variety of fodder sources

How to respond when challenged

Mobility is a thing of the past, why don’t people just settle!

Mobility isn’t a relic, it is a right. It must be protected as the foundation of pastoral livelihoods, culture and survival, without restriction or exclusion.

Mobility is just a cultural tradition, it’s outdated and not relevant for modern day society.

Mobility is the core productive technology that allows pastoralists to turn variable rangelands – often unsuitable for agriculture – into reliable food, income, and resilience.

Pastoralism destroys land, mobility leads to overgrazing and degradation.

Mobility makes the most out of variable environments. Pastoralists move in response to rainfall, drought, conflict, land-use change, and climate shifts. Policy must protect this adaptive capacity for long-term sustainability.

Why can’t pastoralists just stick to designated roots?

Mobility is only possible when pastoralists can negotiate access across private, communal, and state lands. Policies should ensure this flexibility.

Mobility needs stronger regulation, communities can’t manage it on their own.

Mobility is already governed by established pastoral institutions that allow communities to negotiate access and manage conflict. Policies should strengthen these institutions.

Engaging Policy and Decision-Makers

This section is designed as a practical guide. You don’t need to work at every level, start where you have access, and build outward.

STEP 1

Identify local decision spaces

STEP 2

Embed mobility into local land-use plans

STEP 3

Use evidence and best practices

STEP 1

Identify reform windows

STEP 2

Push for legal recognition of mobility

STEP 3

Integrate mobility across sectors

STEP 4

Use evidence and monitoring tools

STEP 5

Identify allies

STEP 1

Identify regional entry points

STEP 2

Promote cross‑border mobility frameworks

STEP 3

Facilitate regional learning

STEP 1

Anchor advocacy in global policy process and moments

STEP 2

Frame mobility as a global public good

STEP 3

Influence donor priorities

STEP 4

Build strong global narratives

Governments must recognise the right to mobility as central to pastoralist land tenure as a pathway to sustainable restoration and livelihood resilience.
Governments must expand legal frameworks to include pastoralists’ rights to land, territory and mobility, providing the flexibility to ensure collective, seasonal and time-bound use of land.
Governments and donors must respect landscape-level access arrangements that are flexible and negotiated.
Governments and donors should invest in pastoralist organisations and institutions, recognising that pastoral governance systems manage mobility, resolve conflict, and adapt effectively.
Governments must incorporate climate adaptation provisions explicitly into pastoral policy, acknowledging that policy frameworks must accommodate mobile, seasonal, and flexible use of landscapes as part of adapting to a changing climate.
Governments, donors and development institutions must recognise pastoralists as rights-holders and support their full participation in decision making spaces.

TOOLS & ASSETS

POWERFUL FACTS

Scale and significance

Almost 500 million pastoralists worldwide support the livelihoods of 2 billion people

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Rangelands cover over half of the planet

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More than half of rangelands systems are in arid areas, where crop farming is often not a viable option

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Efficiency and productivity

Pastoralism can be 2-10x more productive in drylands (than settled ranching industrial alternatives)

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Pastoralism contributes up to 57% of agricultural GDP in some regions (East Africa)

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In East Africa, pastoralism produces almost 90% of livestock products consumed

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Climate and ecosystem

Grasslands store around 1/3 of the world’s soil organic land-based carbon

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Land degradation has already released up to 28 billion tonnes of carbon globally

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Up to 70% of soil carbon is lost when rangelands are converted to agriculture

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This movement needs you. Start small, even from where you are!

CAMPAIGN BRANDING

DOWNLOAD FREE TEMPLATES AND ASSETS!

LOGO

Shepherds have traversed the land over generations. The Mobility Matters logotype – representing animal trails in the shape of an infinity symbol – evokes their continuous endeavour and the many possibilities it offers for people and the planet.

Please include the Mobility Matters logo in all materials related to the campaign.

Mobility Matters is an ILC initiative.
If you wish to feature the ILC logo along with the mobility Matters one, we have added an extended version of the logo, which includes ILC and IYRP 2026.

The folder includes logos for both light and dark backgrounds, please choose the most suitable for your use making sure not to alter the image in any way.

Logos should be sized appropriately so that they stay readable across all formats, screen resolutions and orientations.

COLOURS

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SOCIAL MEDIA ACTIVATION

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Mobility Matters because the future of rangelands — and our shared planet — depends on it

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