Nouvelles

Communicating climate change with greater impact: Next steps for Southeast Asia

The workshop brought together leaders of the CCAFS program: (L-R) Dindo Campilan, director for Asia of CIAT; Sonja Vermeulen, CCAFS head of research; and Leo Sebastian, program leader of CCAFS-SEA.

Effective partner engagement and strategic communication offer an opportunity to amplify CGIAR’s initiatives to help farmers adapt to and mitigate the effects of climate change in agriculture.

The Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security Regional Program for Southeast Asia (CCAFS-SEA) recently concluded a collective engagement and communication program workshop at the Agricultural Genetics Institute in Hanoi, Vietnam on 29-30 May.

The workshop participants drew insights from best practices of CGIAR member-centers, developed a roadmap to actively engage partners, and draw an overall communication plan to support the implementation of CCAFS research agenda and priorities. 

“Results of this communication workshop will feed into the overall CCAFS regional impact pathway, which will be finalized in a workshop to be held on October 2014,” said Leo Sebastian, CCAFS-SEA’s regional program leader. The workshop output will also serve as the platform for information sharing and communication engagement on climate change issues among the centers.

CCAFS Southeast Asia Regional communicators

Members of the CCAFS Southeast Asia regional communications network

Participants included heads and senior communication staff from the International Center for Tropical Agriculture, Center for International Forestry Research, International Potato Center, World Agroforestry Centre, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, International Water Management Institute, International Rice Research Institute, CCAFS staff, and selected media partners in Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Vietnam and the Philippines.

CGIAR communication specialists shared their experiences and lessons from ongoing knowledge sharing initiatives, and suggested how the CCAFS program could harness these to achieve outcomes in the region.

CCAFS-SEA, the newest region of the CCAFS global network, provides a platform for credible and authoritative scientific information, and knowledge and tools on agriculture and food security in the context of climate change. 

Bernadette Joven is a communication specialist at CCAFS-SEA.