FAO in North America

Adapting to grow

Submitted by Rachel Friedman on November 15, 2011

In light of the 17th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP17) at the end of this month in Durban, South Africa, considerable attention is focused on measures to mitigate the effects of rising atmospheric greenhouse gases. But many people, particularly farmers, are already experiencing the impacts of increasing temperatures and changes in precipitation.

Oxfam International (as part of its GROW campaign) and Kulima Integrated Development Solutions conducted a survey of farmers in Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi and South Africa about their observations of changes in climate. Presented in a new policy-practice report, the results highlight the elevated risk of poor yields and crop failures that farmers in Southern Africa now face. At the same time, farmers are being “as resourceful, enterprising and experimental as possible” to change agricultural practices and diversify livelihoods in order to respond to these climatic and other associated environmental and economic stressors. The report offers recommendations in terms of policy, funding, and technical capacity for COP17 and beyond.

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Ideas to end world hunger

Submitted by Rachel Friedman on November 14, 2011

Trickle Up recently held a panel event on ideas to end world hunger. A dozen recommendations surfaced during the discussion by four well-known experts in the field. These ideas included increasing research and development into appropriate new technologies, increasing local, rural capacity, and empowering women.

For more detail and to listen to the podcast, check out their website.

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Do forest pests bug you?

Submitted by admin on November 10, 2011

A new guide released today by FAO aims to help countries prevent forest-damaging pests from spreading to new areas. The Guide to implementation of phytosanitary standards in forestry responds to risks posed by increased international trade and is the result of significant international collaboration, says Kerry Britton of the U.S. Forest Service, one of the specialists who coordinated development of the publication. (Read more.)

Not only that, but it may be the only publication on the subject whose rollout includes a rap video:

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Weighing in on food security and nutrition

Submitted by Rachel Friedman on November 8, 2011

This month the Global Forum on Food Security and Nutrition (FSN) Forum is calling for perspectives on measuring food security and nutrition. Participants’ experiences will contribute to a symposium to be held in January 2012 at FAO headquarters in Rome. Questions of interest include:

  • Which food and nutrition security indicators do you most commonly use in your work? Why?
  • How do you use these indicators in your work? (e.g. for targeting,  monitoring, evaluation etc.)
  • Do you ever create new or modified indicators for food and nutrition security analysis for your operational purposes? If yes, please describe.
  • What are some of the challenges that you have faced using food and nutrition security indicators? How have you overcome these limitations?

To contribute, visit the online forum.

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Cultivating young leaders in agriculture

Submitted by Rachel Friedman on November 8, 2011

The Inter-American Institute on Cooperation in Agriculture (IICA) celebrated ‘IICA Day’ 2011, focusing on youth and innovations in agriculture in Latin America. Senior Programme Specialist of UNESCO’s Regional Office for Science in Latin America and the Caribbean, Ernesto Fernandez Polcuch, spoke to the need for education in order to achieve innovations in agriculture. Specifically, he argued that linking youth, innovation and agriculture will contribute to sustainable development and a green economy, alluding to the relevance of this discussion to the United Nations Rio + 20 Conference on Sustainable Development that will be held in Brazil from June 4 to 6, 2012.

Agronomist Gustavo Manrique, President of SAMBITO, SA (Total Environmental Solutions), continued this theme of sustainable solutions in agriculture pioneered by youth. He highlighted three actions that are having an impact on agriculture in Latin America, and in which youth are playing a leading role:

  • promotion of urban agriculture;
  • reducing greenhouse gas emissions to move towards carbon neutrality; and
  • building a stronger connection between the field and the city.

A panel discussion followed the two presentations, bringing together four speakers involved in youth activities in agriculture. The overarching message from the event was the critical importance of engaging and training young leaders as “agents of change in the planet’s sustainable future.” For additional information, take a look at the press release and video of the full event.

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New gender in agriculture website

Submitted by admin on November 4, 2011

©FAO/Alessandra BenedettiThe World Bank has just launched a new website aimed at providing access to resources, tools and information to help efforts to incorporate gender into agricultural development.

Designed as a forum for the sharing of analytical and advisory services on a wide range of gender-related topics, Genderinag.org provides a single source for specialists, practitioners and academics to exchange ideas and lessons from efforts to cut poverty through sustainable rural development.

The site, produced in collaboration with FAO and IFAD, was developed thanks to the Bank’s Gender Action Plan, established in 2007 to improve women’s economic opportunity by increasing access to land, labor, agriculture and financial services, and by ensuring that women’s needs for infrastructure are better served.

FAO’s latest State of Food and Agriculture report estimates that closing the gender gap in access to agricultural resources could reduce the number of hungry people worldwide by 100 to 150 million.

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Gates, Brazil team up to boost agricultural productivity in Africa, Asia

Submitted by Steve Hirsch on November 3, 2011

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation this week announced a partnership with Brazil to improve productivity among small farmers in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

According to the foundation, the memorandum of understanding with the Brazilian Agency for Cooperation (ABC) will lead to collaboration on potential projects such as developing more productive and nutritious staple crops, improving soil and water management techniques and reducing crop loss after harvest. The agreement follows the recent announcement of the foundation’s partnership with China’s Ministry of Science and Technology to support research and development and manufacturing of new products for global health and agriculture.

Meanwhile, the foundation also announced a $2.5 million grant to the Africa-Brazil Agricultural Innovation Marketplace, developed by the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation to promote African development through agricultural innovation.

Sam Dryden, director of agricultural development for the foundation cited Brazil’s expertise in tropical agriculture and its success in designing programs for smallholder farmers, saying they put the country “in a great position to work closely with developing countries to reduce poverty and achieve food security.”

Minister Marco Farani, the director of ABC, called the partnership with the foundation “a breakthrough.”

“Through joint activities focused on capacity building, applied research and technology transfer, our aim is to improve the productivity of small-scale farming and reduce hunger and poverty in sub-Saharan Africa and southern Asia,” he said.

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Animating agriculture in a ‘Green Economy’

Submitted by Rachel Friedman on November 3, 2011

A new animated short film from Farming First describes how agricultural production practices can be integrated into a vision for a ‘Green Economy’ and illustrates steps forward in terms of supporting agricultural development.

According to Farming First, a coalition of organizations working to promote sustainable agricultural development worldwide, “We need to make the global economy green. Agriculture provides significant opportunities for growth, investment and jobs to help make this happen.”

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