 Land degradation and desertification have become increasingly important issues in recent years due to their potential impacts on human health, food security and economic growth. Remote sensing has emerged as a promising tool for detecting these changes, but there is still much debate about which methods should be used and how they should be validated. This paper reviews the existing literature on this topic, focusing on the use of multi-temporal analysis of vegetation index data. It identifies the need for further research into the development of reliable and accurate monitoring systems, including the validation of methodologies and the detection of degradation at minor intensities and magnitudes. This article was authored by Thomas P. Higginbottom and Elias Simeonakis.