Grasslands

Unlocking the value of grasslands

Grasslands cover 40% of Earth's land and deliver massive potential for carbon removal, biodiversity protection, water security, and rural economic development. Yet they remain critically undervalued and underprotected.

Wheat field

The world's most underrated ecosystem

Grasslands encompass savannahs, shrublands, steppes, rangelands, prairies, tundra, pampas and meadows. They range from the Great Plains of North America and the Pampas of South America to the Eurasian Steppes and East African savannas. These expansive, resilient landscapes are of significant importance yet are overlooked, undervalued, and underprotected.

Read this excellent report from the World Resources Institute, with data from the Land and Carbon Lab, revealing grasslands' extraordinary benefits, carbon storage potential, and ecosystem value - and why it's time we recognize and protect them.

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Hidden carbon sink

Grasslands store up to 34% of the world's terrestrial carbon. Unlike trees, grasslands store 90% of its carbon below ground in deep roots and soil organic carbon (SOC), earning them the nickname “inverted forests.”

Vital carbon store

Inverted forests

Source: World Resources Institute Global Carbon Storage Analysis, 2023. Data represents average carbon distribution across major terrestrial ecosystems.

Biodiversity

Crucial habitat for biodiversity

Global grasslands account for nearly a third (6.8 million square kilometers) of Key Biodiversity Areas globally. Grasslands are home to many important species including pollinators, birds, and large animals such as elephants and bison.

American Bison

Once nearly extinct, the bison is a keystone species that regenerates prairies and holds deep cultural significance for Indigenous peoples.

Seven-Spotted Ladybird

A beloved symbol of good luck, the ladybird is a natural pest controller and vital to sustainable agriculture across continents.

Greater Sage-Grouse

A sentinel of sagebrush ecosystems whose dramatic mating dances embody the unique wildlife heritage of the American West.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

This dazzling pollinator connects ecosystems across borders and inspires folklore from Mexico to Canada.

Monarch Butterfly

Renowned for its epic migration, the monarch is a pollination powerhouse and a cultural icon symbolizing transformation and resilience.

African Elephant

A powerful ecosystem engineer revered in African culture, elephants create grasslands by shaping vegetation and dispersing seeds.

Red-tailed Bumblebee

A charismatic pollinator crucial to wildflower and crop reproduction, featured in folklore and increasingly central to conservation efforts.

Black-footed Ferret

Once thought extinct, this stealthy predator helps balance prairie ecosystems by controlling prairie dog populations and symbolizes one of conservation's greatest comeback stories.

Impact

Valuable benefits to millions of people

Beyond carbon and biodiversity, grasslands are essential for improving water sheds, providing landscape resilience and livelihoods to rural communities.

Soil

Healthy soils have roots, microbes, and fungi that decompose and release nutrients, helping to reduce soil erosion and keep landscapes intact.

Water

Grasslands act as giant sponges, absorbing excess rainfall, reducing flood risk, and releasing water during droughts to stabilize regional water supplies.

Food

Sustainable grazing practices ensure food security for millions of people around the world.

Livelihoods

Over 800 million people globally depend on grasslands for their income, and grasslands are essential to the economy of rural communities.

Culture

Grasslands hold great cultural importance to land stewards whose cultural identities and way of life are connected to these landscapes.

Resilience

Healthy grasslands form natural barriers against wildfires, floods, and extreme weather events.

Report

Valuing grasslands

Discover why leading NGOs are calling grasslands one of the most undervalued and underlooked landscapes, fundamental to planetary and human health.

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Grasslands under threat

Grasslands face a triple threat: rapid conversion to agriculture, destructive overgrazing, and virtually no legal protection. We're losing one of our most undervalued ecosystem allies at an alarming pace.

%

Half the world's grasslands are already degraded or destroyed.

million

acres vanished from the Great Plains alone in just four years (2016-2020).

%

Less than 10% of grasslands have any formal conservation status.

Grassland regeneration in action

Cultivo is working hard with our amazing partners to regenerate grasslands at scale. Our pipeline of grasslands regeneration projects is growing significantly, and we are doing everything we can to return degraded grasslands back to healthy ecosystems.

Partner spotlight

The investment case for US grasslands

Octopus Energy Generation partnered with Cultivo to develop a pipeline of high-quality natural capital projects, using cutting-edge technology to ensure these will help the natural environment flourish and provide meaningful benefits to local communities that host them.

In the United States, Octopus Energy Generation's investment is funding the regeneration of thousands of hectares of grasslands and their naturally fertile soils through a variety of regeneration grazing practices, such as adaptive multi-paddock grazing or high-density short-duration grazing. All grazing practices are designed to balance social, environmental, and financial considerations.

Report

US grasslands regeneration

Grasslands-based projects are playing an increasingly important role in carbon sequestration and biodiversity preservation across the United States, and they blend building landscape resilience and adaptability with real-world economics.

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The project will mean more water in the soil, and more plants for the cattle. As the land gets healthier, everything will get better.

Rafael

Rancher

Cahuila, Mexico

Report

North Mexico grasslands

Regenerating degraded grasslands in Coahuila, a state in North Mexico, is essential to protect against desertification and protect the livelihoods of land stewards in the area. Read how Cultivo is helping to regenerate over 150k hectares of grasslands in North Mexico.

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Talk to our experts to discuss carbon removal credits from our grasslands regeneration today

Resources

Did you know?

Watch our short explainers to understand the science behind soil health, Soil Organic Carbon, and why grasslands are critical for our planet's future.

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A healthy planet depends on healthy soil.

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How soil pulls carbon dioxide out of the air and locks it into organic matter.

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Why the environmental importance of grasslands is sometimes overlooked.

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A bank account analogy for short-term and long-term grasslands carbon storage.

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An overview of biodiversity found in grasslands.

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Some techniques to regenerate grasslands.

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The many ecosystem services healthy grasslands provide.

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Why the ecological importance of grasslands is often misunderstood.

Rotational grazing

Rotational grazing imitates the actions of wild herbivores such as bison by continually moving herds of domesticated animals to new areas and giving grazed off vegetation a chance to recover and grow.

Let’s build a resilient future, together.