The Land Resilience project is part of the larger VLIR IUC institutional cooperation with Bahir Dar University in Ethiopia, and aims at improving the resilience of the land in the framework of building a climate resilient green economy in NW Ethiopia. With the Land Resilience project, we aim at strengthening knowledge on present and past land degradation processes and ecosystem functioning, focussing on the importance of ecologically connected forests in agricultural landscapes. Through capacity building and the involvement of stakeholders, we ultimately aim at improving food security and ecosystems functioning for better livelihoods. Four PhD students are currently involved in this project.