The Desert Research Institute is based in Nevada in the United States. Its principal research areas include atmosphere, water and land management – in the United States and in the developing world. The institute is engaged in a project to bring clean water and sanitation to communities in Ghana, Mali and Niger through the West Africa Water Initiative (WAWI). WAWI aims to do this before 2008.

Funded by the European Union, DESIRE is an international collaborative project aimed at establishing alternative strategies for using and protecting arid and semi-arid ecosystems under threat from land degradation and desertification. Field sites for testing new conservation techniques include areas in Africa, China and Latin America.

The DESIRE website publishes news and information about the project, highlights upcoming events and links to other relevant sites.

The DRFN provides research-based advice and training aimed at sustainable development policymakers in southern Africa. The organisation's areas of focus include managing rangelands and livestock, water, energy efficiency and combating land degradation and desertification. The DRFN also helps raise public awareness of deserts and desertification.