7th Oxford Interdisciplinary Desert Conference

The School of Geography and the Environment are pleased to announce the 7th Oxford Interdisciplinary Desert Conference, to be held on 20-21 March 2025.

The world’s drylands are dynamic landscapes that host interesting cultures, livelihoods, climates and environments. The great size and diversity of deserts create remarkable research opportunities for academics, publics and practitioners. Recognised for biodiversity, mineral wealth, geopolitics and population, drylands are at the centre of today’s global agenda. Research and knowledge are integral to creating awareness and understanding to address real-world challenges across arid lands. The United Nations identifies 2024 as the ‘Year of the Camelid’ and designates 2026 ‘Year of Rangelands and Pastoralism’. These signify the relevance of dryland research across disciplines, perspectives and geographies.

The 7th Oxford Desert Conference is a forum to exchange ideas, discuss and debate issues and meet new colleagues and friends. We welcome all who research, work and live across the world's desert and semi-desert regions: academics and non-academics, social and humanities researchers and physical scientists, observers and residents. The interdisciplinary event hosts two days of vibrant talks, presentations and panels, as well as informal time, conference dinner and Oxford locale. Over 15 years the conference series has developed lasting collaborations and international cooperation for a positive global impact.

A note from the organisers: 

Now in its fifteenth year, we feel exceptionally fortunate to host the 7th Oxford Interdisciplinary Desert Conference in the School of Geography and the Environment. The Conference continues to bring together scholars from across the world to discuss and debate dryland themes, to build new connections and to showcase the significance of cross-disciplinary and interdisciplinary engagement. For the 2023 conference, the range and depth of research featured in the talks and roundtables reflects the vibrancy and growing community of this field of scholarship. We are grateful for the active participation of scholars and practitioners from across the globe, who make this event one of the most exciting in Oxford.

To register, please sign up here and then pay your conference fee here (£85/40, meals included).

To see other events hosted by the team, see https://www.ppia.ouce.ox.ac.uk/news-and-events/ 

The conference takes place at the School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford. The School of Geography and the Environment is located in the University Science Area, South Parks Road, Oxford. For directions, please see the School's contact information.

For further queries please contact the Conference Team:

Dr Ariell Ahearn, Dr Troy Sternberg & Elizabeth Hempstead
Oxford Interdisciplinary Desert Conference
School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford
South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3QY, UK
Tel: +44 (0)1865 285070
Email: deserts@ouce.ox.ac.uk

• 6th Oxford Interdisciplinary Desert Conference 2023
• 5th Oxford Interdisciplinary Desert Conference 2021
• 4th Oxford Interdisciplinary Desert Conference 2017
• 3rd Oxford Interdisciplinary Desert Conference 2015
• 2nd Oxford Interdisciplinary Desert Conference 2012
• 1st Oxford Interdisciplinary Desert Conference 2010