What next for agriculture after Durban climate talks?

Last month’s UN climate conference in Durban achieved only modest progress for food and farming. Now, a group of international agriculture experts say this is is not enough, given the crucial role of agriculture in feeding people and sustaining livelihoods and economies worldwide, not to mention helping millions to adapt to a changing climate.

In an article published last Friday in Science, top agricultural scientists have outlined how the research world can develop the knowledge needed to support inclusion of agriculture and food security in climate change policies, and get agriculture at the top of the climate agenda.

The analysis, What Next for Agriculture After Durban?, was co-authored by a group that includes members of the Commission on Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Change, chaired by Sir John Beddington; many of the recommendations are informed by the Commission’s seven key actions for Achieving Food Security in the Face of Climate Change released in November. The Commission was set up by the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS - that's us) to provide concrete policy options for food security in a changing climate.The authors highlight how scientists can build agreement on practical definitions of "climate-smart agriculture" and "sustainable intensification" as well as adaptation and mitigation strategies that span agriculture and forestry. They point to the need for geographically-explicit information systems that enable policy makers to evaluate risks and benefits of a range of policy options as well as more integrated research on what works in different regions, farming systems, and landscapes.

Research program rising to the challenge

Much of the research from the CCAFS program is geared towards resolving some of the issues highlighted in the Science analysis, for example work on climate change emissions and livelihoods at the forest-farm interface and better tools to assess impacts of climate change on different land use systems such as global rangelands. CCAFS is also organizing Agriculture and Rural Development Day this June in Rio de Janeiro; this major event will bring together key players in climate change and and food security to share success stories, best practices and chart the way forward for agriculture in a changing climate.

Global coverage

The Science story was picked up by media outlets worldwide, and many of the co-authors were interviewed:

The New York Times Green Blog spoke to Prof. Molly Jahn, University of Wisconsin-Madison, to revisit the issue of Agriculture and Climate Change; Prof. Jahn also spoke to Voice of America on Agriculture as a Major Player in Climate Change.
Carlos Nobre of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, Brazil, spoke to Deutsche Welle Brazil on the urgent need to integrate agriculture in climate policy.
In South Africa, Bob Scholes of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) highlighted how research produce a better scientific understanding of link between climate change and food security.
Dr. Megan Clark of Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) spoke to The Age on Getting food on the (climate negotiators’) table

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