Blogs
Systems thinking at work in South Asia’s food production
Environmental health and biodiversity
New blog published by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs argues that balancing food security, rural livelihoods, water for agriculture and air quality need not be a zero-sum game.
One-minute science: Suchismita Mondal on breeding resilient wheat
Climate adaptation and mitigation
Breeders are developing wheat varieties that have stable grain yield under low-water and high-temperature conditions.
In new hostile climate, drought-tolerant crops, systems needed on unprecedented scale
Climate adaptation and mitigation
Source: SciDev.Net (12 Mar 2020)
Agricultural science offers solutions to deal with consequences of extreme weather.
Africa’s devastating locust outbreak exposes need for crop science on all fronts
Nutrition, health and food security
Source: Thomson Reuters Foundation (9 Mar 2020)
Effective pest management is the responsibility of farmers and scientists.
For a food system at risk, women are key yet often overlooked
Gender equality, youth and social inclusion
Our climate change-ravaged food systems cannot wait for the gradual progress of gender quality.
Equal and climate-smart
Climate adaptation and mitigation
Women in Malawi are inspiring the next generation of smallholder farmers to adopt climate-smart technologies.
Why heirloom tortillas are an endangered species
Environmental health and biodiversity
Source: Maclean's (6 Mar 2020)
Preserving ancient maize landraces in Mexico is key for biodiversity, food security and future sustainability.
Four ways of strengthening gender equality in the agricultural sector in the MENA region
Gender equality, youth and social inclusion
Experts note that policies alone are not enough — they need to go hand in hand with strong initiatives to make agriculture a safer, more equal and respectful space for both women and men.
One-minute science: Trent Blare and blue maize products
Environmental health and biodiversity
Consumers near Mexico City perceived blue maize tortillas to taste better. They were willing to pay up to a third more to buy them for special family events or to consume them in restaurants.
Moving out of poverty or staying poor
Gender equality, youth and social inclusion
Is it up to the village men? Or women, too?
With 30,000 surveys, researchers build the go-to dataset for smallholder farms
Innovations
Source: Phys.org (3 Mar 2020)
Survey tool can help farmers face challenges of climate change, food security, nutrition, farm productivity and social inclusion.
Breeder friendly phenotyping
Innovations
Modern phenotyping tools are crucial for crop improvement and breeders can profit much more from them.
What will be the new face of European agriculture in the coming years?
Climate adaptation and mitigation
Source: EuroNews (2 Mar 2020)
Rising temperatures pose risk for agriculture in Europe — but adaptation is under way with the help of climate data.
Spraying locusts before they can fly key for effective control
Stephen Njoka and Hugo de Groote share insights on the current locust invasion, effective control measures and how we can prepare for future outbreaks.
Pests and diseases and climate change: Is there a connection?
Climate adaptation and mitigation
Although farmers have been battling pests and diseases since the dawn of agriculture, experts warn that climate change could accelerate or expand their spread.