CGIAR News

UK boosts commitment to curtail agricultural emissions and reduce climate-induced loss and damage.

Glasgow, UK (November 8, 2021) – CGIAR urged global leaders today to ensure the 500 million smallholder farmers responsible for up to a third of global food production can adapt to climate change-induced loss and damage while curbing their greenhouse gas emissions. Innovations are needed that can both reduce the contribution of global agriculture to climate change, and adapt to its increasingly evident consequences while also supporting livelihoods, nutrition and equality.

Many smallholders reside in agriculture-dependent regions such as sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia and face a rising tide of climate threats including increased drought, flooding and water scarcity. The climate crisis is exacerbating the degradation of food, land, and water systems, impacting productivity, viability and resilience.

The call comes as the United Kingdom pledged $55 million over two years to boost commitments to CGIAR research from a steadily growing global coalition to surpass $1 billion. The new pledges will contribute to an accelerating of research and innovation to confront rapidly intensifying climate challenges that could upend the global fight against hunger and poverty.

UK Environment Secretary George Eustice said: “To keep 1.5 degrees alive, we need action from every part of society, including an urgent transformation in the way we manage ecosystems and grow, produce and consume food on a global scale.”

“This is not an either/or scenario where it’s adaptation or mitigation,” said Claudia Sadoff, Managing Director, Research Delivery and Impact at CGIAR. “For agriculture to become a more sustainable and nature-positive sector, we have to provide tools that allow farmers to rebalance the relationship between agriculture and nature while building resilience to climate change.”

One example of work that CGIAR will undertake as part of new commitments is an initiative to develop climate-smart crop seed varieties, such as drought-tolerant wheat or rice that is adapted to grow in water affected by saline intrusion from rising sea levels. CGIAR will lead the ‘innovation sprint’ on Fast Tracking Climate Solutions from Global Germplasm Banks as part of the new United States and United Arab Emirates Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate or AIM4C launched by President Biden at COP26.

See: https://www.cgiar.org/news-events/news/call-for-climate-protection-for-smallholders-that-produce-one-third-of-global-food