02179nas a2200265   4500000000100000000000100001008004100002260001200043653001900055653001000074653001500084653001400099653001300113653001600126653003000142100001600172700001900188700002100207700001900228245005700247856006200304300001100366490000800377520152800385       2022                            d  c12/202110aClimate change10aIndia10alivelihood10amigration10apandemic10arestoration10atransformative approaches1 aIndu Murthy1 aShalini Dhyani1 aHarini Santhanam1 aDhanya Bhaskar00aPost-pandemic recovery through landscape restoration  uhttps://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/rec.13617  ae136170 vn/a3 aLand degradation as one of the mega drivers of loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services has affected billions globally, resulting in rampant loss of livelihoods and accelerated distress migration. India, one of the land degradation hotspots in Asia, has also been reeling under the impacts of the ongoing climate and pandemic crises, which have seriously imperiled local livelihoods and human well-being. Boosting livelihood-based social support programs can be a transformative approach to scale up Nature-based Solutions to achieve Land Degradation Neutrality and to realize global restoration, climate, and biodiversity conservation goals. In this article, we provide evidence for enhancing landscape restoration success by creating green job opportunities to achieve post-pandemic recovery. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) was initiated as a poverty alleviation program in India and can be transformative approach to achieve global climate and sustainable development goals. We use cases from diverse ecological contexts of India to demonstrate the potential of MGNREGS. To revolutionize the process, we propose developing and mainstreaming national-level landscape restoration guidelines by using locally relevant knowledge for addressing critical gaps, identifying institutions and their roles, developing local capacity, leveraging technology to facilitate decision-making, encouraging multi-stakeholder involvement, and promoting inclusiveness and community participation.