Suchergebnisse

As part of a global effort that will inform how Feed the Future tracks CSA across the 19 focus countries (plus aligned) the CCAFS and USAID/BFS team selected five to carry out a deeper analysis of their portfolio. A visit in June 2015 by CCAFS to the Rwanda Mission highlighted the importance of addressing the effects of climate change in the agricultural sector and the current and potential benefits of CSA in Feed the Future. The five-day visit included a number of meetings with USAID Mission staff, Feed the Future implementing partners, Government of Rwanda partners, and other stakeholders, as well as a field trip to one Feed the Future project in the Southern Region. The process also included a review of documentation on the five current projects in the Feed the Future portfolio, shared in advance of the visit by USAID Rwanda staff. This report outlines the key findings of the visit and highlights some ways in which CSA can be further incorporated into the Mission's future programming

As part of a global effort that will inform how Feed the Future tracks CSA across the 19 focus countries (plus aligned) the CCAFS and USAID/BFS team selected 5 to carry out a deeper analysis of their portfolio. A visit in May 2015 by staff from CCAFS and USAID-BFS Washington to the Zambia Mission provided an opportunity to identify and discuss CSA-related activities within the country and the USAID zone of influence (ZOI). The five-day visit included a series of meetings with Mission staff, implementing partners of Feed the Future projects, agency personnel of the Government of Zambia, and the FAO-Zambia CSA specialist. The discussions were preceded by a document review of projects in the Feed the Future portfolio, shared in advance of the visit by the Mission, and other agriculture and climate change information available on the web. This report outlines key findings of the visit and suggests ways in which CSA can be further integrated into upcoming Feed the Future programming in Zambia. Although climate change has been a key theme in FtF, considerations are under way for CSA being an explicit cross-cutting theme. Five countries were selected for visits. Results from these inquiries will inform how FtF tracks CSA across the 19 focus countries, plus aligned countries.

As part of a global effort that will inform how Feed the Future tracks CSA across the 19 focus countries (plus aligned) the CCAFS and USAID/BFS team selected five to carry out a deeper analysis of their portfolio. In September 2015, CCAFS' visit to the USAID Honduras mission provided an opportunity to identify and discuss CSA-related activities within the country and the USAID zone of influence (ZOI), highlighting the importance of addressing the effects of climate change in the agricultural sector and the current and potential benefits of Feed the Future's presence for climate resilience. The visit included meetings with USAID Mission staff, Feed the Future implementing partners, and three government agencies. The process also included the review of Feed the Future strategy and project documents provided by the Mission, as well as a limited external literature review. This report outlines the key findings of the visit and highlights some ways in which CSA approaches can be further incorporated into the Mission's future programming.

Policy measures regarding adaptation to climate change include efforts to adjust socio-economic and ecologic systems. Colombia has undertaken various measures in terms of climate change mitigation and adaptation since becoming a party of the Kyoto protocol in 2001 and a party of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1995. The first national communication to the UNFCCC stated how Colombian agriculture will be severely impacted under different emission scenarios and time frames. The analyses in this document further support that climate change will severely threaten the socioeconomics of Colombian agriculture. We first query national data sources to characterize the agricultural sector. We then use 17 Global Circulation Model (GCM) outputs to quantify how Colombian agricultural production may be affected by climate change, and show the expected changes to years 2040–2069 ("2050") under the A2 scenario of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report on Emissions Scenarios (SRES-A2) and the overall trends in both precipitation and temperature to 2100. We then evaluate expected changes within different regions and measure the proportion of area affected within each crop's distributional range. By 2050, climatic change in Colombia will likely impact 3.5 million people, 14 % of national GDP corresponding to agriculture, employment of 21 % of the population, agro-industries, supply chains, and food and nutritional security. If no adaptation measures are taken, 80 % of crops would be impacted in more than 60 % of their current areas of cultivation, with particularly severe impacts in high value perennial and exportable crops. Impacts also include soil degradation and organic matter losses in the Andes hillsides; likely flooding in the Caribbean and Pacific coasts; niche losses for coffee, fruit, cocoa, and bananas; changes in prevalence of pests and diseases; and increases in the vulnerabilities of non-technically developed smallholders. There is, however, still time to change the current levels of vulnerability if a multidisciplinary focus (i.e., agronomic, economic, and social) in vulnerable sectors is undertaken. Each sub-sector and the Government need to invest in: (1) data collection, (2) detailed, regionally-based impact assessments, (3) research and development, and (4) extension and technology transfer. Support to vulnerable smallholders should be given by the state in the form of agricultural insurance systems contextualized under the phenomenon of climate change. A national coordination scheme led by (but not restricted to) the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MADR) with the contributions of national and international institutions is needed to address agricultural adaptation. ; Peer-reviewed

As part of a global effort that will inform how Feed the Future tracks CSA across the 19 focus countries (plus aligned) the CCAFS and USAID/BFS team selected 5 to carry out a deeper analysis of their portfolio. In July 2015, CCAFS' visit to the USAID Senegal mission provided an opportunity to identify and discuss CSA-related activities within the country and the USAID zone of influence (ZOI) highlighting the importance of addressing the effects of climate change in the agricultural sector and the current and potential benefits of Feed the Future's presence for climate resilience. The visit included meetings with USAID Mission staff, Feed the Future implementing partners, and three government agencies. The process also included the review of Feed the Future strategy and project documents, as well as a limited external literature review. This report outlines the key findings of the visit and highlights some ways in which CSA approaches can be further incorporated into the Mission's future programming.

Policy measures regarding adaptation to climate change include efforts to adjust socio-economic and ecologic systems. Colombia has undertaken various measures in terms of climate change mitigation and adaptation since becoming a party of the Kyoto protocol in 2001 and a party of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1995. The first national communication to the UNFCCC stated how Colombian agriculture will be severely impacted under different emission scenarios and time frames. The analyses in this document further support that climate change will severely threaten the socioeconomics of Colombian agriculture. We first query national data sources to characterize the agricultural sector. We then use 17 Global Circulation Model (GCM) outputs to quantify how Colombian agricultural production may be affected by climate change, and show the expected changes to years 2040 2069 ( 2050 ) under the A2 scenario of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report on Emissions Scenarios (SRES-A2) and the overall trends in both precipitation and temperature to 2100. We then evaluate expected changes within different regions and measure the proportion of area affected within each crop s distributional range. By 2050, climatic change in Colombia will likely impact 3.5 million people, 14 % of national GDP corresponding to agriculture, employment of 21 % of the population, agro-industries, supply chains, and food and nutritional security. If no adaptation measures are taken, 80 % of crops would be impacted in more than 60 % of their current areas of cultivation, with particularly severe impacts in high value perennial and exportable crops. Impacts also include soil degradation and organic matter losses in the Andes hillsides; likely flooding in the Caribbean and Pacific coasts; niche losses for coffee, fruit, cocoa, and bananas; changes in prevalence of pests and diseases; and increases in the vulnerabilities of non-technically developed smallholders. There is, however, still time to change the current levels of vulnerability if a multidisciplinary focus (i.e., agronomic, economic, and social) in vulnerable sectors is undertaken. Each sub-sector and the Government need to invest in: (1) data collection, (2) detailed, regionally-based impact assessments, (3) research and development, and (4) extension and technology transfer. Support to vulnerable smallholders should be given by the state in the form of agricultural insurance systems contextualized under the phenomenon of climate change. A national coordination scheme led by (but not restricted to) the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MADR) with the contributions of national and international institutions is needed to address agricultural adaptation.

The case for impending climate change is now proven. Governments can decide, by their action or inaction, to what extent the change will occur; the International Agriculture Research Community (IARC) will have no say in this whatsoever. It is up to the IARC to try to maintain objectives in the face of the possible scenarios. In this paper we discuss the various types of agricultural research projects in terms of their time to fruition and the expected longevity of their results. We look at the information requirements for ensuring that project products have the necessary lifetimes to justify the investments in the research. We show that strategies differ depending on the type of research that is undertaken. Basic research into genetic traits and capacities within the available germplasm has to be planned in the long term with outcomes in mind. The vulnerability of the populations and agricultural systems that use developments from this basic research now places its priority setting in a changing climate and world concept. Ensuring that the germplasm is available for use has taken on a critical new importance with recent studies. Germplasm banks comprise a small fraction of what we will be relying on for the future. Well over 90% of useful genetic variability may still be in the wild. This has to be considered carefully in setting out research objectives. Plant breeders, who will put together the results of the basic research into useful packages, now have an uncertain target to aim for when regarding future climate conditions. They may not be able to choose their testing sites in present climates to target agricultural populations that will be using their products in the future. Agronomic and agricultural development projects face the most difficult task. How do we develop stable farming systems in an environment that is not only unstable, but also changing so slowly that the farmers cannot see, or even envisage, the changes. These are some examples of the problem. The paper sets out to categorise the types of research and information that will be necessary at all levels. We draw on experience from the CGIAR system and from CIAT in particular. We show that a number of software tools have been developed that can address some of these problems. ; Peer-reviewed

Governments and conservation organizations have dedicated extensive resources to protect biodiversity, but their conservation strategies have largely been developed under an assumption of a static climate. These strategies may fail with changing climates, especially when combined with existing anthropogenic pressures. We designed a system to help conservationists plan for a dynamic climate: the Wallace Initiative.

Big data and mobile technology are widely claimed to be global disruptive forces in agriculture that benefit small-scale farmers. Yet the access of small-scale farmers to this technology is poorly understood. We show that only 24–37% of farms of 200 ha in size. Furthermore, croplands with severe yield gaps, climate-stressed locations and food-insecure populations have poor service coverage. Across many countries in Africa, less than ~40% of farming households have Internet access, and the cost of data remains prohibitive. We recommend a digital inclusion agenda whereby governments, the development community and the private sector focus their efforts to improve access so that data-driven agriculture is available to all farmers globally.

Big data and mobile technology are widely claimed to be global disruptive forces in agriculture that benefit small-scale farm-ers. Yet the access of small-scale farmers to this technology is poorly understood. We show that only 24–37% of farms of 200 ha in size. Furthermore, croplands with severe yield gaps, climate-stressed locations and food-insecure populations have poor service coverage. Across many countries in Africa, less than ~40% of farming households have Internet access, and the cost of data remains prohibitive. We recommend a digital inclusion agenda whereby governments, the development community and the private sector focus their efforts to improve access so that data-driven agriculture is available to all farmers globally. ; Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada ; Canadian Institutes of Health Research ; University of British Columbia ; Horizon 2020 ; Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada ; Peer Review

At the global, regional and national levels, governments, donors, research institutions, non-government organizations and private companies are more strategically linking climate change and agriculture development activities, through initiatives such as the Global Alliance for Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA). In this context, it is necessary to have robust metrics and indicators for measuring progress towards CSA-related goals. This requires strategic selection of indicators to assess the type of impact (negative/positive) of adaptation and mitigation activities on specific societal groups (e.g. ethnic groups, women, youth, etc.) to ensure livelihoods are positively impacted by CSA interventions. Gender, poverty, food security, nutrition and health indicators have not been extensively used in CSA programming and planning to date. In this paper, we review a range of gender, poverty, food security, nutrition and health indicators relevant for national planning processes for CSA promotion and scale out. We focus on the CSA CPs developed by the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) in collaboration with the CGIAR research program on Climate Change, Agriculture, and Food Security (CCAFS). The CSA CPs are being developed as an instrument to open dialogues on the baseline situation, identifying opportunities, and challenges for CSA in various countries. The CPs are generated by the CGIAR CCAFS program with national partners, especially those involved in CSA related planning processes, to feed into analytical multi-stakeholder processes to prioritize CSA investment portfolios for scale-up and scale out. Using a ranking system based on data relevance, availability, and applicability to multiple national contexts, we identified a set of indicators that respond to the need for better integration of gender, poverty, food security, nutrition and health concerns when approaching CSA. Strengthened integration of poverty reduction, food security and gender equality indicators into CSA assessments, including the CPs, has been identified by CCAFS as a priority to strengthen the focus on resilience/adaptation efforts, specifically highlighting evidences of gender differences. It can also serve to highlight potential gaps in availability of and access to resources and capacities to adopt CSA practices and technologies among different societal groups (women, men, youth, ethnic groups). Rather than re-invent new indicators, it is important that, where possible, existing national-level indicators can be repurposed for tracking CSA impacts over time on poverty reduction, food security and gender equality outcomes.

Agriculture is considered to be "climate-smart" when it contributes to increasing food security, adaptation and mitigation in a sustainable way. This new concept now dominates current discussions in agricultural development because of its capacity to unite the agendas of the agriculture, development and climate change communities under one brand. In this opinion piece authored by scientists from a variety of international agricultural and climate research communities, we argue that the concept needs to be evaluated critically because the relationship between the three dimensions is poorly understood, such that practically any improved agricultural practice can be considered climate-smart. This lack of clarity may have contributed to the broad appeal of the concept. From the understanding that we must hold ourselves accountable to demonstrably better meet human needs in the short and long term within foreseeable local and planetary limits, we develop a conceptualization of climate-smart agriculture as agriculture that can be shown to bring us closer to safe operating spaces for agricultural and food systems across spatial and temporal scales. Improvements in the management of agricultural systems that bring us significantly closer to safe operating spaces will require transformations in governance and use of our natural resources, underpinned by enabling political, social and economic conditions beyond incremental changes. Establishing scientifically credible indicators and metrics of long-term safe operating spaces in the context of a changing climate and growing social-ecological challenges is critical to creating the societal demand and political will required to motivate deep transformations. Answering questions on how the needed transformational change can be achieved will require actively setting and testing hypotheses to refine and characterize our concepts of safer spaces for social-ecological systems across scales. This effort will demand prioritizing key areas of innovation, such as (1) improved adaptive management and governance of social-ecological systems; (2) development of meaningful and relevant integrated indicators of social-ecological systems; (3) gathering of quality integrated data, information, knowledge and analytical tools for improved models and scenarios in time frames and at scales relevant for decision-making; and (4) establishment of legitimate and empowered science policy dialogues on local to international scales to facilitate decision making informed by metrics and indicators of safe operating spaces.