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CCAFS__ Research results put into action

Copenhagen, 29 Apr 2013.

ccafs-climate-logoRead about the results of the two-year-old CCAFS research programme to empower and build capacity among smallholder farmers to manage climate risks.


//  Outcomes of combined efforts

According to their 2012 annual report, the Commission on Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Change (CCAFS) has succeeded to define and implement an innovative and transformative research programme to address agriculture in the context of climate change:

  • Policy advances in climate change adaptation and mitigation in more than ten countries where research products from CCAFS have been used to inform decisionmaking processes
  • Key actors such as development banks have used CCAFS analyses to guide investment decisions about climate change adaptation
  • Southeast Asia and Latin America were added to CCAFS's regional portfolio
  • Integrated solutions to climate change trialed in "climate-smart villages" projects deliver results with little financial investment

 //  Turning research into action on the ground

The climate-smart villages provide an early example related to success of CCAFS in highlighting the inter-centre collaboration and synergies for addressing the agricultural problems.

The idea behind the climate-smart villages is to raise awareness among farming communities about various technological, institutional and policy-oriented options that have the potential to increase their climatic resilience, adaptation, agricultural productivity and income, while reducing emissions of greenhouse gases.

CCAFS climate-smart villages are very different from for example the UNDP millennium villages, which are based on a science-led partnership between academia, business and UN agencies to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. These villages were set up in Africa with considerable financial support. Instead, CCAFS climate-smart villages have as a key focus to enhance climate literacy of farmers in developing countries of South Asia and Africa, with little financial investment. 

//  Retrospective look on the CCAFS cooperation with the Platform

The CCAFS Commission on Susstainable Agriculture and Climat Change had been supported by the Platform to produce a clear set of policy recommendations to increase food production, decrease poverty and respond to climate change adaptation and mitigation goals. In June 2012 the CCAFS Commission presented its report "Achieving Food Security in the Face of Climate Change" at a Platform dialogue, which was held at Sida in Stockholm and focused on food security and climate change. The commission compiled a list of proposed actions specifically targeted at donors and multilateral agencies and launched an animated video entitled 'How to Feed the World in 2050', urging key actions for achieving food security in a changing climate.

In the meantime CCAFS has undertaken a great work to galvanise the progress in global policy bringing their findings into major international forums. Commissioners also found ways to infuse the recommendations into national policy development. Certainly, progress has been made since the launch of the report, and the global community of policymakers, agricultural producers, agribusinesses, global development partners, researchers and civil society are increasingly recognising their collective responsibility and power to shift policy, mobilise financial resources, gain on-the-ground experience, share knowledge and reshape supply chains and consumption patterns.

//  Talking climate-smart agriculture

Read CCAFS blog for more information about the climate-smart villages.

Various online interviews addressing climate-smart agriculture were organised by the Platform secretariat:

CCAFS Director Bruce Campbell on broadening the agenda for agriculture,

Molly Jahn on CCAFS recommendations on knowledge and information systems

Tekalign Mamo on implementing and monitoring CCAFS recommendations

UNFCCC Secretary Christiana Figueres on interlinkages between gender, climate, and water/energy/food security

Watch here more interviews on climate change impacts on agriculture and rural development 

//  Download

CCAFS 2012 Annual Report__ PDF

Achieving food security in face of climate change__ PDF

//  Source

CCAFS Blog

Platform dialogue


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SDN Forum__ Taking action on climate change

Washington, 7 Mar 2013.

WorldBankClimate change and the role that the World Bank could play in avoiding a '4 degree world´ were the focus of the World Bank SDN Forum 2013. The Platform secretariat was invited as an observer.


// SDN Forum 2013__ Solutions for a sustainable future

The Sustainable Development Network Forum presented current challenges to sustainable development and discussed the potential for inclusive green growth as well as risks and trade-offs. The Forum saw participants from 92 countries, most of them World Bank field staff and 80 guests from other organisations.

// World Bank urges action on climate change

Bold and fast changes were asked for by the organisation’s new leadership and the atmosphere was characterised by a clear sense of urgency vis-à-vis climate challenges. The World Bank report ‘Turn down the Heat: why a 4 degree warmer world must be avoided’ produced by the Potsdam Institute had been published in November 2012 and had received an unprecedented and unexpected 100 million hits and 5000 reviews. The climate-sensitive atmosphere was further enhanced by president Obama’s recent speech recognising the importance of tackling climate change issues amidst severe US budgetary constraints and harsh debates. World Bank leadership confirmed this and focused internal discussion around the first World Bank group strategy on the topic.

At the World Bank Group we are stepping up our mitigation, adaptation and disaster risk management work. I would welcome more attention from the G20 on what we need to do to face climate change, which is a very real and present danger.

World Bank President Jim Yong Kim at G20 meeting in Russia

// World Bank as a catalyst in avoiding '4 degree world'

At the SDN’s opening, World Bank Vice President for Sustainable Development Rachel Kyte set the scene by stressing that the Bank could be a catalyst in avoiding a ‘4 degree world’. Most important milestones for the World Bank could include:

  • Stable price on carbon
  • End to fossil fuel subsidies
  • Low carbon growth in cites
  • Progressive climate smart agriculture

It would not be easy to achieve, but the World Bank had more capacity than any other institution to work towards a renewable energy-driven future and to build consensus, taking into account the needs and concerns of governments, combining international expertise with local knowledge and committing to long-term support.

// Need for cross-sectorial approach

Speakers from different countries stressed the importance for governments to engage across sectors to identify and implement solutions for a sustainable future and acknowledged the World Bank’s leading role. Kristie Ebi of Stanford University and Roger Pielke of the University of Colorado saw the need to revise traditional planning processes and to develop a cross-sectoral approach towards climate change risk assessment that would support a robust decision making process.

//  Climate change efforts are essential for increasing food production

Juergen Voegele, World Bank Director Agriculture and Environmental Services (AES), pointed to the importance of fighting climate change to reach global food security. He reminded that a one degree increase of world temperature equaled a five per cent lower yield and caused natural resource depletion. These factors contributed to food price volatility, which had recently become “the new normal”. Since agriculture alone was responsible for 20 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, it was necessary to raise investments in climate-smart agriculture and food security -- and this would be the only way we could double food production and productivity and thus strengthen resilience in poor countries.

// Downloads

Turn down the heat__ PDF

// Sources

World Bank Sustainable Development Network


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CCAFS commission recommendations__ Roles for donors

Copenhagen, 13 Feb 2013.

ccafs logo_feb2013What roles can donors play in fulfilling and supporting the seven recommendations of the CCAFS Commission on Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Change? The commission has produced a list of proposed actions specfically targeted at donors and multilateral agencies.


//  CCAFS commission__ Mandate

The mandate of the Commission on Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Change, in the framework of the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), was to develop a set of science-based policy recommendations for achieving food security in the context of climate change and to build awareness and uptake of these recommendations among policy makers, global donors, scientists, practitioners and business people.

In addition to its recommendations the commission so far has engaged in substantial media outreach, produced visuals for communicating key messages and held side events at multiple international fora. Platform members have contributed technical and policy expertise and the Secretariat has assisted with outreach activities.

//  CCAFS recommendations__ What donors can do

Read below what main actions the commission proposes for donors regarding each of the its seven recommendations.

#1:Integrate food security and sustainable agriculture into global and national policies

Fragmentation of issues across multiple policy platforms and narrowly bounded institutional mandates encourages unilateral, single-sector responses, discourages innovative leadership and inhibits policy informed by the full complexity of food security, sustainable agriculture and climate change.

  • Global donors can support national level research on vulnerability of agriculture to climate change, adaptation and mitigation options and outcomes under a broad range of potential policy mechanisms.
  • Global donors can articulate the practical meaning of agriculture within the Green Growth agenda (e.g. as a source of income, food and resilient landscapes) with emphasis on reducing poverty and food insecurity within the context of the planet's boundaries. 
  • Global donors can develop platforms for coherent dialogue and policy action related to climate change, agriculture, crisis response and food security at global, regional and national levels.
  • National ministries can finance "early action" to drive agricultural systems towards increasing resilience and sustainability and support multi-government initiatives that leverage national and private sector investments (e.g. Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases, CAADP). 

#2: Significantly raise the level of global investment in sustainable agriculture and food systems in the next decade

Sustainable agricultural practices that improve adaptation, mitigation and livelihoods vary by region and by farming system. Some are yet to be invented, brought into general awareness or implemented at scale. Global investment in sustainable agriculture and food systems needs to increase across local, national, regional and international organisations to combat food insecurity and civil unrest.

  • Global donors should use L'Aquila as a cornerstone for increasing investment in sustainable agriculture and organise financing around nationally owned frameworks and governance structures for private sector engagement in R&D (i.e. shared risk and return, open access to publicly sponsored innovation).
  • Multilateral agencies can increase effectiveness and reduce gaps by harmonising and streamlining developing country governments' access to diverse funding mechanisms.
  • Development banks can prioritize agriculture projects with food security and environmental co-benefits, where investments can be linked clearly to sustainable growth in regional markets.
  • Global donors can support rural advisory services and communities of practice that address existing and emerging challenges (e.g. climate change) and facilitate linkages among farmer innovators.

#3: Sustainably intensify agricultural production while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other negative environmental impacts of agriculture

When implemented appropriately, sustainable intensification increases production per hectare, without negative environmental consequences on or off site. Understanding of GHG, productivity and economic implications of alternative farming practices must inform guidelines and policies. Timeframe for return-on-investment, access to financing, risk perception and social acceptance influence farmer uptake.

  • Global donors can support research on multi-benefit farming systems that enable more productive and resilient livelihoods and ecosystems, with emphasis on closing yield gaps, improving nutrition and testing incentives for sustainable agricultural practices and productive community asset-building.
  • Global donors can support projects that increase awareness of the central role of women in the food system, strengthen community-level organisations and deliver training.

#4: Develop specific programmes and policies to assist populations and sectors that are most vulnerable to climate changes and food insecurity

Smallholder farmers are frequently locked into unsustainable production systems due to limited access to knowledge resources, assets and markets; gender inequalities, established power relationships; and insecure tenure rights. We need to reshape supply chains and improve local and regional infrastructure and markets to deliver economic well-being to all food suppliers.

  • Global donors can design large-scale programs to increase incomes and market access for poor agricultural producers and local participatory programs that respond to the needs of poor rural people based on their local knowledge, customs and priorities.
  • Through public-private partnerships, global donors can test funds that respond to climate shocks, such as "index-linked funds" that provide rapid relief when extreme weather events affect communities.
  • Global donors can create platforms for coordinating global donor policies and programs and systematically integrating climate change and nutrition considerations.

#5: Reshape food access and consumption patterns to ensure basic nutritional needs are met and to foster healthy and sustainable eating patterns worldwide

Undernutrition including micronutrient deficiency is prevalent. "Western" eating patterns have become a major stress to food security and public health. In emerging and urbanising economies, dietary patterns are shifting away from cereals, roots, tubers and pulses to livestock products, vegetable oils, fruits and vegetables. Tightening quality and safety standards increase vertical integration of food systems.

  • Global donors can harmonize development policy and regional programs to improve livelihoods and access to services among food-insecure communities and address health threats that can compound undernutrition.
  • Global donors can support research on the variety of food combinations that can deliver a nutritionally appropriate and environmentally low-impact diet as well as strategies to promote sustainable diets (e.g. economic interventions, retailers’ purchasing guidelines, social marketing) and diversification of small-scale production.
  • Global donors can encourage development of coherent, holistic global sustainability standards (including environmental, social and governance issues), which build on diverse voluntary standards and apply across private and public sectors.

#6: Reduce loss and waste in food systems, targeting infrastructure, farming practices, processing, distribution and household habits

Reducing food loss and waste in low-income countries requires improvement in infrastructures; packaging, transportation and marketing; and disease control and harvesting. Loss and waste at distribution and final consumption points are driven by many factors and reduction may require profound changes in food consumption patterns and more nuanced food safety regulations.

  • Global donors can promote dialogue and convene working partnerships to understand the causes of food loss and waste and to improve coordination across globalised food supply chains to increase connectivity between producers and consumers.
  • Global donors can support experimentation with loss and waste reduction strategies, including infrastructure investments (e.g. storage and cooling) and capacity building (e.g. post-harvest handling practices).

#7: Create comprehensive, shared, integrated information systems that encompass human and ecological dimensions

Policy, investment and management decisions are inadequately supported by evidence and analysis. We need place-specific understanding of benefits, trade-offs and limits, anchored in human and ecological dimensions and linked to information on regional and global impacts and drivers.

  • Global donors can support investments in a globally integrated system for regular monitoring (on the ground and by public domain remote sensing networks) to track changes in land use, food production, climate, the environment, human health and well-being at scales that are relevant to land management, including smallholder agriculture.
  • Multilateral agencies and national ministries can engage with scientific institutions to incorporate existing and new information assets into decision-making pathways (e.g. early warning systems) and to harmonise biophysical knowledge (on agriculture, forestry, fisheries and climate change) with socioeconomic and policy contexts.

//  Source

CCAFS commission


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ALL 5 Day__ Summary of outcomes

Doha, 12 Dec 2012.

ardd2012 all5dayOutcomes from Agriculture, Landscapes and Livelihoods Day 5 are available in videos, slides and blog posts. The discussions continues online after over 500 agriculture experts convened at ALL 5 Day, held in conjunction with the United Nations Climate Talks UNFCCC COP18.


//  Solutions for people in drylands and beyond__ No change in climate change agenda

Global agricultural leaders and practitioners came together in Qatar to share best practices and build consensus on policy recommendations from the sector at Agriculture, Landscapes and Livelihoods Day, held in parallel with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Some attendees lamented the lack of progress regarding the inclusion of agriculture in the climate change negotiations, such as director of the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) Bruce Campbell:

//  Summary of outcomes__ Discussion on adaptation vs. mitigation

"Extreme weather, water scarcity and increased pest pressure were identified as key gaps in research", the wrap-up of ALL 5 Day reads. Based on these areas for further work, some priorities of actions includesmart public subsidies, new risk management tools and promoting sustainable growth.

The ongoing discussion about whether to focus on climate change adaptation or mitigation slowed the negotiation process. Yet, "adaptation and mitigation cannot be considered separately and synergies must be identified", according to the ALL 5 Day organisers. "The notion that the two are dichotomous was debunked by panellists."

Read the full-length summary of outcomes on the ALL 5 Day blog.

//  Videos from ALL 5 Day__ Ideas marketplace

Recap the specific proposals presented at the ideas marketplace to address climate change in agriculture. You can also vote on the best idea. The following projects are presented:

  1. Sustainable palm oil on degraded land
  2. Strengthening evidence-based climate change adaptation policies
  3. Livelihoods and REDD+ in the Kalimantan forests
  4. Changing outlooks on food, fuel, fiber & forests
  5. Farmer-led approach to scaling up climate smart agriculture
  6. Put climate information in farmers' hands
  7. Kenya's climate-smart Kericho-Mau landscape
  8. Bamboo household energy for Africa
  9. Global organic research platform for smallholders

More videos:

//  Videos from Forest Day 6

//  Platform interview with Bruce Campbell ahead of ALL 5 Day

In an interview with the Platform, Bruce Campbell, director of the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), pointed out that a four degree warmer world is likely without any interference. He added in an official statement that "ALL 5 Day is about convening the people best equipped to get action going on the ground immediately to protect our environment and food supply".

Read the transcript.

//  Call-to-action__ Development of a work programme on agriculture

Nineteen organisations involved with the event issued a call-to-action for negotiators to further consider a Work Program on Agriculture, the adoption of which would advance scientific and technical understanding and inform decision-making on agriculture's role in addressing future food security and climate change challenges.

"According to experts, yields in food-insecure continents such as Africa and South Asia could decrease by 15 percent and 18 percent respectively, due to climate change", said Dyborn Chibonga, CEO of the National Smallholder Farmers Association of Malawi (NASFAM) and Farming First spokesperson. "Solutions already exist for countries such as my own that rely on rain-fed agriculture for their food, but they must be supported by a United Nations framework in order to be scaled up and brought to those most in need."

The call-to-action includes an infographic titled "The Story of Agriculture and Climate Change: The Road We've Traveled", presented in the video below.

//  Social media online discussion

Using the hashtag #ALLForest, you can tweet about ALL 5 Day and continue the discussions online at twitter.com/AgricultureDay. View photos on Flickr.

//  Downloads

Strategies for Combating Climate Change in Drylands Agriculture__ PDF

The Story of Agriculture and Climate Change: The Road We've Traveled__ JPG

//  Sources

ALL 5 Day

ALL 5 Day blog

ALL 5 Day and Forest Day 6 videos

Forest Day 6

Forest Day 6__ Last installment this year, broader approach for next COP

AlterNet__ Blog post on the results of COP18


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Study__ ADB guidelines for climate proofing investments

Manila, 3 Dec 2012.

ADB-logoIn order to be able to incorporate climate change considerations into all investments, the Asian Development Bank has designed "climate proofing" guidelines for agriculture and rural development projects.


//  Strengthening climate resilience

Recognising that climate change has profound impacts on Asia and the Pacific, the ADB attempts to integrate actions on climate change into all aspects of development planning and investment. "Particularly, ADB is seeking to assist its DMCs to enhance the climate resilience of vulnerable sectors such as transport, agriculture, energy, water, and health by "climate proofing" investments", the Platform member states in a publication.

The report entitled "Guidelines for Climate Proofing Investment in Agriculture, Rural Development, and Food Security" is part of a technical resource package to assist both ADB staff as well as member countries. It draws on lessons learned from past and present projects and presents a methodological approach "to assess and incorporate climate change adaptation measures into agriculture, rural development and food security investment projects."

//  Focus on irrigation

As 55 per cent of ADB's 2011 investments in the agriculture sector concerned irrigation infrastructure and agriculture production projects, these types of investments are the focus of the report. Furthermore, the study does not only address the project level: The country level should also incorporate climate change considerations into agriculture planning.

//  Climate change and agriculture

In the study, several concrete examples are presented regarding the effects of climate change on agriculture - from rising sea levels over higher temperatures to the proliferation of weeds. Adapting to these changes can take the form of engineering options, non-engineering options, biophysical options or a "do nothing" approach. The methodological framework presented in the report lays out six sets of activities with 20 specific steps to take in order to "climate proof" investments. The six sets of activites are:

  1. Project risk screening and scoping
  2. Impact assessment
  3. Vulnerability assessment
  4. Adaptation assessment
  5. Implementation arrangements
  6. Monitoring and evaluation

Following such a climate change assessment, three decisions are possible in the end:

  1. Invest in climate proofing now
  2. Do not invest in climate proofing now but ensure that the project is designed so that climate proofing is possible later
  3. Only invest in climate proofing if it becomes necessary later

The report details the steps and the circumstances for each of the decisions and therefore provides an instruction manual on when to use climate proofing.

//  Downloads

Report__ PDF

ADB Strategy 2020__ PDF

Addressing Climate Change in Asia and the Pacific: Priorities for Action__ PDF

//  Source

ADB


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