From N’Djamena to the Mongolian steppes, the voice of Fulani pastoralists is making its mark on the international stage.Ms. Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim arrived at the heart of the Mongolian steppes with a clear message: pastoralism must no longer be regarded as a marginal way of life or merely as a victim of climate crises, but as a major solution to land degradation and climate change.At the official launch ceremony of the celebrations marking the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP 2026), Ms. Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim took another major step in her long-standing advocacy for the recognition of the rights of Indigenous Peoples and pastoral communities.Originally initiated by Mongolia and proclaimed by the United Nations, IYRP 2026 provides a global platform for pastoralism.Against this backdrop, Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim’s intervention attracted particular attention, both for the strength of her advocacy and, above all, for the unprecedented mobilization of representatives of Fulani communities.Before international delegations gathered in Mongolia, ahead of the 17th Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17), Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim issued an urgent appeal to world leaders.In her view, efforts to combat desertification, land degradation and the impacts of climate change cannot deliver results commensurate with the scale of the challenges without courageous political decisions.Her message was unequivocal: international commitments must now be translated into concrete measures enabling pastoral communities to protect their territories, resources and way of life.One of the strongest points of her intervention focused on securing the land and territorial rights of pastoral peoples. Land, territories and mobility are at the heart of her advocacy.Faced with the shrinking of grazing areas as a result of urbanization, infrastructure development and certain forms of industrial exploitation, she stressed the urgent need to recognize and institutionalize the rights of mobile Indigenous Peoples to land, territories and transhumant mobility.For pastoralists, mobility is not simply a matter of moving from one territory to another. It is a genuine adaptation strategy in response to climate variability, resource availability and the ecological realities of different territories.Dressed in the traditional fabrics of her Mbororo community, Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim also brought a strong cultural dimension to her intervention, placing the Fulani at the heart of the Mongolian steppes.She recalled that pastoralists are not passive victims of climate change. On the contrary, they are actors, stewards and restorers of ecosystems, particularly in arid and semi-arid areas.Their strength lies in knowledge accumulated over generations: observing winds, birds, insects, grazing areas, water points and seasonal cycles. According to her, these ancestral knowledge systems can be combined with scientific and technological innovations to improve the sustainable management of territories.Through pastoralism, which she portrayed in her advocacy as a genuine climate shield, the Chadian activist seeks to change the way pastoralism is perceived.Pastoral livestock farming contributes to landscape management, biodiversity conservation and community resilience in the face of climate shocks. In many territories, it therefore represents a genuine and proven shield against the impacts of climate change.This approach has particular resonance in Mongolia, a country where pastoral traditions occupy a central place in the history, culture and economy of communities.But one of the most remarkable aspects of this mobilization remains Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim’s ability to bring together Fulani pastoralist delegations from more than a dozen African countries around the cause of pastoralism.This is where her effort to foster ownership of pastoralism by Fulani peoples appears to have succeeded. From the Sahel to Central Africa, this mobilization gives a pan-African dimension to advocacy for pastoralists.By bringing these different communities together in the heart of the Mongolian steppes, she has above all demonstrated that the challenges facing African pastoralists are not isolated. They echo those experienced by pastoral communities in Central Asia and other regions of the world.Pastoralism thus becomes a common language among peoples separated by thousands of kilometres but confronted with similar challenges: climate change, land pressure, water scarcity, land degradation and restrictions on mobility.This advocacy was welcomed by several international delegations attending the ceremony. Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim’s mobilization also received a strong cultural echo, notably through the tribute paid by Senegalese artist Baaba Maal, who is likewise committed to defending pastoral communities and restoring degraded lands.In her capacity as International Ambassador for Pulaku, the increasingly influential voice of Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim further confirms her role as a spokesperson for Indigenous Peoples and pastoral communities.Beyond her personal presence at this historic ceremony, the broader issue is that of pastoralism being claimed and owned by the people who practice it.By bringing Fulani representatives from more than ten African countries to Mongolia, Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim helped transform an individual advocacy effort into a collective force.Her ambition therefore appears to have succeeded: ensuring that pastoralists are no longer merely represented at major international gatherings, but that they themselves take the floor, defend their rights and participate directly in shaping the policies that will determine their future.In Ulaanbaatar, the voice of the Fulani peoples of the Sahel and Central Africa resonated with that of the pastoralists of the Mongolian steppes.This convergence gives IYRP 2026 a particular significance: making pastoralism not merely a heritage to be preserved, but a forward-looking response to the climate, environmental and food crises.Babaclimat – Journal Agropasteur