The CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) marshals the science and expertise of CGIAR and its partners to catalyse positive change for climate-smart agriculture (CSA). CCAFS positions CGIAR - the world's largest agricultural research partnership - in play a major role to bring to scale the practices, technologies and institutions that enable agriculture to meet triple goals of food security, adaptation and mitigation. CCAFS' work is carried out with the kind support of the CGIAR Trust Fund donors, as well as through bilateral funding agreements. Find out more about our donors.
Partnerships
No single research institution working alone can address the critically important issues of global climate change, agriculture and food security. The CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) seeks to address the increasing challenge of global warming and declining food security on agricultural practices, policies and measures through strategic, broad-based global partnerships. Read more about our partners.
Governance and management
The governance and management of the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) is based on lessons learned by CGIAR in other initiatives involving multiple Research Centers and partners, including other CGIAR Research Programs (CRPs).
All CGIAR Research Centers have a stake in CCAFS, and numerous Research Centers have considerable climate change expertise and activities. CCAFS is made up of the following bodies, each playing a specific governance role:
- Independent Steering Committee (ISC), with both scientific and development expertise
- Lead Center, the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and its Board
- Program Director and a Program Management Committee
- A Program Management Unit, based at Wageningen University & Research and CIAT
- Flagship Leaders and Regional Program Leaders, who are responsible for aspects of CCAFS implementation
- CGIAR Climate Change Contact Points at each CGIAR Research Center, will help ensure CCAFS is appropriately linked to all Centers and CRPs
Climate-smart agriculture
CCAFS uses the concept of climate-smart agriculture to structure its approach to climate-responsive options.
Climate-smart agriculture is an integrative approach to address these interlinked challenges of food security and climate change, that explicitly aims for three objectives:
- Sustainably increasing agricultural productivity, to support equitable increases in farm incomes, food security and development;
- Adapting and building resilience of agricultural and food security systems to climate change at multiple levels; and
- Reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture (including crops, livestock and fisheries).
Climate-Smart Villages
A major challenge of CSA is to identify the context-specific technologies and supporting measures that may be needed; and the trade-offs and co-benefits that different combinations of options will deliver for different stakeholders including women. CCAFS proposes to address the fundamental questions via participatory research at Climate-Smart Villages (CSVs), sites ranging from village to district scale at which portfolios of CSA interventions are tested in a globally comparable manner with farmers, development agencies and the private sector.
Planning, Monitoring, Learning and Evaluation
CCAFS’ Monitoring, Learning and Evaluation (ML&E) system provides practical mechanisms and tools to ensure balanced quantitative and qualitative monitoring. The system is made up of a forthcoming set of modules, elaborated in an online ML&E Support Pack. Read more about our planning, monitoring, learning and evaluation approach.
Key documents
CCAFS has a complication of key documents related to each of the three phases of CCAFS' operations from its inception as a Challenge Program, through CCAFS Phase I and the Extension Phase, and into the current Phase II. Read the key documents here.
To view planning documents and annual reports for each year, visit the planning and reporting page.
CCAFS Phase I
Up until 2015, the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) was structured around four closely inter-linked global Research Themes. These themes included: Linking Knowledge with Action, Gender and Equity, Future Scenarios, Policy Analysis, Data and Tools. They provide the foundations upon which the Research Flagships structure is based.
CCAFS Phase II
The full proposal for CCAFS Phase II was submitted to the CGIAR System Organization in July 2016 and CCAFS Phase II was approved (2017–2022) in November 2016. The content and structure of the future program have been developed using the comments of the ISPC, the Joint System Management Board/Centers/System Council Working Group and external partners. A full set of supporting annexes is included, covering areas such as partnerships, gender, intellectual assets, open access and data management, results-based management, communications and more.
Download:
Branding and publishing guides
The Branding and publishing guides have been developed for researchers and staff working within CCAFS and can be shared with partners.