Introduction: Desertification in the Mediterranean Region: Linking Environmental Condition to Security. -- INTRODUCTION: DESERTIFICATION AND SECURITY Perspectives for the Mediterranean Region -- DESERTIFICATION – A NEW SECURITY CHALLENGE FOR THE MEDITERRANEAN? Policy agenda for recognising and coping with fatal outcomes of global environmental change and potentially violent societal consequences -- THE POSEIDON PRAIRIE Desertification, Environmental Stress, and the Euro-Mediterranean Space -- DESERTIFICATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL SECURITY. THE CASE OF CONFLICTS BETWEEN FARMERS AND HERDERS IN THE ARID ENVIRONMENTS OF THE SAHEL -- THE RELEVANCE AND CONSEQUENCES OF MEDITERRANEAN DESERTIFICATION INCLUDING SECURITY ASPECTS -- Mediterranean Regional Perspective on Assessment and Condition -- PROBLEMATIQUE DE LA DESERTIFICATION EN ALGERIE: ETAT ET MESURES DE LUTTE POUR LA PROTECTION DES RESSOURCES NATURELLES -- SECURITY IMPACTS OF DESERTIFICATION IN EGYPT -- THE CHALLENGES OF LAND AND WATER RESOURCES DEGRADATION IN JORDAN: DIAGNOSIS AND SOLUTIONS -- DRYLAND DEVELOPMENT, DESERTIFICATION AND SECURITY IN THE MEDITERRANEAN -- STATE OF NATURAL RESOURCES DEGRADATION IN MOROCCO AND PLAN OF ACTION FOR DESERTIFICATION AND DROUGHT CONTROL -- DESERTIFICATION, TERRITORY AND PEOPLE, A HOLISTIC APPROACH IN THE PORTUGUESE CONTEXT -- MIGRATION: AN IRREVERSIBLE IMPACT OF LAND DEGRADATION IN TURKEY -- Assessing Land Use Change Relative to Anthropogenic and Natural Cause -- DOES ANTHROPOGENIC ACTIVITIES OR NATURE DOMINATE THE SHAPING OF THE LANDSCAPE IN THE OREGON PILOT STUDY AREA FOR 1990-1999? -- URBAN GROWTH DYNAMICS (1956-1998) IN MEDITERRANEAN COASTAL REGIONS: THE CASE OF ALICANTE, SPAIN -- LAND USE CHANGE DETECTION AS A BASIS FOR ANALYSING DESERTIFICATION PROCESSES: A CASE STUDY IN TABERNAS (ALMERIA, SPAIN) -- CLIMATE CHANGE, LAND DEGRADATION, AND DESERTIFICATION IN THE MEDITERRANEAN ENVIRONMENT -- Regional Cooperation and Information Sharing -- THE ENVIRONMENT AND SECURITY INITIATIVE: TRANSFORMING RISKS INTO OPPORTUNITIES FOR CO-OPERATION -- Fostering networking and exchange of information in the Mediterranean region: The MEDCOASTLAND Thematic Network1 -- DESERTIFICATION IN THE ARID AND SEMIARID MEDITERRANEAN REGIONS. A FOOD SECURITY ISSUE -- Soil and Vegetation Monitoring -- MONITORING TOOLS TO ASSESS VEGETATION SUCCESSIONAL REGRESSION AND PREDICT CATASTROPHIC SHIFTS AND DESERTIFICATION IN MEDITERRANEAN RANGELAND ECOSYSTEMS -- USING A GIS FOR SUSTAINABLE USE AND MANAGEMENT OF AN IRRIGATION AREA IN THE SPANISH - PORTUGUESE BORDER THREATENED BY DESERTIFICATION -- RESTORATION OF BURNED AREAS IN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLANS -- IMPACT OF FOREST FIRES ON HYDROLOGICAL PROPERTIES OF A TYPICAL MEDITERRANEAN FOREST SOIL -- MANAGEMENT OF FOREST SOILS CONSIDERING WATER EROSION AS A CONTROL FACTOR -- Desertification Indicators and Forecasting Techniques -- ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE AREAS AND INDICATORS OF DESERTIFICATION -- DESERTIFICATION IN NORTHERN MOROCCO DUE TO EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON GROUNDWATER RECHARGE -- HYDROLOGICAL APPROACH FOR ASSESSING DESERTIFICATION PROCESSES IN THE MEDITERRANEAN REGION -- THE USE OF ALTERNATIVE FUTURES IN A STRATEGY TO ASSESS THE LIKELIHOOD OF LAND DEGRADATION LEADING TO INCREASED SUBSEQUENT POLITICAL INSTABILITY.