Actions for Transformation
Nothing short of a transformation is required if we are to meet global targets for agriculture, food systems and climate change. But where, in the complexity of food systems, are the most strategic levers for change?
This initiative aims to identify the high priority actions that we must collectively take now. Building on extensive consultation with a wide range of stakeholders, a comprehensive literature review, and commissioned background papers, we propose 11 transformative actions across 4 action areas: reroute, de-risk, reduce, and realign.
Learn more about how you can take action in our flagship report.
farming and rural livelihoods to new trajectories
Most agricultural expansion in carbon-rich landscapes is driven by only a few market commodities. Multiple initiatives already exist to hold investors and purchasers of these commodities accountable to zero deforestation, regulate land use, and reduce pressures for land-use change. Building on these efforts to more comprehensively include all high-carbon landscapes will enable more rapid and ambitious mitigation to be achieved.
Full ReportPersistent yield gaps, poverty and climate vulnerability are apparent in much of sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia and Central America. There are many well known climate resilient practices that would improve productivity, but adoption is low. Market-based approaches can provide incentives to adopt, if producers see the benefits to their livelihoods. The high risks to production and marketing, including climate risks, need to be overcome. Such approaches will also have winners and losers. Those unable to engage markets need to be targeted for livelihood security. Advancing gender equality and youth opportunities is a priority.
Full ReportCommon trends in rural areas include: diversification of rural livelihoods, increased agricultural and non-agricultural wage labor, and temporary and permanent migration to new livelihood options. The challenge is to create attractive rural livelihoods, in or out of agriculture, and to build skill levels and opportunities so that exiting agriculture is a viable and better option. This may involve the development of new industries and jobs, and/or integrated landscape approaches that increase productivity, enhance resilience and maximize the value of ecosystem services. Migration, and the remittances that result from it, can help improve livelihoods, for both migrants and the relatives who remain behind.
Full Reportlivelihoods, farms and value chains
In 2019, according to the FAO, of the 113 million people in the world suffering acute hunger, 74 million suffer due to conflict and insecurity, 10.2 million due to economic shocks, and 29 million due to natural disasters. Increasing emergency preparedness and improving early response systems has proven to be a cost-effective way to improve resilience in these complex situations. Major investments in proactive climate risk management strategies, including early warning and adaptive safety net programs, have the potential to secure more resilient livelihoods for millions of farmers in low- and middle-income countries.
Full ReportThe knowledge, tools, and technology to enable farmers to make better, climate-smart choices exist, and have been amply demonstrated in limited settings. The challenge is to make these resources available at scale, and equitably, to meet the needs of diverse beneficiaries (across gender and socioeconomic status) throughout the most vulnerable regions of the world. The challenge includes capacity, technical, and institutional elements. Successful delivery of services at scale requires fully leveraging ICTs and other digital technologies, and the support of public-private partnerships.
Full Reportemissions from diets and value chains
Consumption of beef and dairy is the largest single driver of agricultural greenhouse gases globally. Beef production contributes 41% of total agricultural emissions, while dairy contributes about 20%. The primary targets for reducing consumption-related emissions are those high- and middle-income countries where meat and dairy consumption is or will be high. In low-income countries, livestock will continue to play important social, economic and nutritional roles.
Numerous opportunities for reducing food loss and waste—as well as the associated unnecessary emissions—exist. Following SDG 12.3, we set the target at 50% reduction and focus on five major supply chains where both greenhouse gases and loss or waste are high: bovine meat, vegetables, fruits, dairy, and roots and tubers. Industrialized Asia, and South and Southeast Asia are priority regions.
policies, finance, support to social movements, and innovation
Private sector action is fundamental to the “Rerouting,” “De-risking” and “Reducing” action areas above. Thus, public subsidies to incentivize private sector investment can be a game changer in financing the transformation of the rural world. At the same time, the global food system has come to be dominated by a small number of very large companies and thus policy actors need to address issues of power, and how those issues impact producers and consumers. This also means a focus on local power dynamics related to gender, social inclusion and youth.
Full ReportGlobal food systems will need to produce food more efficiently and sustainably to feed a growing population, achieve the SDGs, and meet the 2°C climate commitments of the Paris Agreement. Governments, food and agriculture companies, and public and private investors need to better identify and address the numerous climate-related risks they face. However, this can also be an inflection point to take advantage of new investment opportunities that the transformation to sustainable, low-carbon and resilient food systems presents. Addressing core market failures to move sustainable land-use financing into the mainstream will be required to unlock the private investment needed.
Full ReportLarge-scale behavioral change, by producers and consumers alike, is necessary for transformation. Social movements have the power to trigger transformation, spurring change by businesses. At the same time, policies can promote changes in consumer habits. This action is about linking science to social movements to support transformation, e.g. using behavioral science to design interventions, translating scientific knowledge for a broad audience, communicating messages in innovative ways, bringing youth into the discussion, and improving education to raise awareness.
Globally, over US$30 billion a year is spent on agricultural research and development. These resources drive growth in the agricultural sector and have the potential to catalyze innovation for a transformation in food systems under climate change. However, to achieve this impact, research needs to be better linked to societal needs and aimed at delivering end-to-end solutions for actors in food systems. This will require rethinking how research and innovation can be part of a wider systemic change.
Full Report