Adapting to climate change to sustain food security

Abstract

Climate change poses considerable challenges to food security. Adapting food systems both to enhance food security for the poor and vulnerable and to prevent future negative impacts from climate change will require attention to more than just agricultural production. This article surveys the multiple components of food security, particularly those relating to access and utilization, which are threatened by the complex responses of food systems to the impacts of climate change. Food security can only be ensured and enhanced with a suite of interventions across activities, ranging from production to distribution and allocation. Although many studies have demonstrated the importance of policy and institutional interventions for ensuring food security after a shock, the climate change impacts and adaptation community have been slow to pick up on these lessons. This article pulls together lessons from the literature on the type of institutional interventions that could be strengthened to enable adaptation in the food system to buffer against climate change at multiple levels, from the local to the global level. 

Food security in the context of climate change and bioenergy production in Tanzania: methods, tools and applications

“…More frequently occurring extreme weather events have led to yield losses and decreasing cattle populations-aggravating an already precarious situation and leading to critical food shortages. Food security is a function of food availability, food accessibility, food stability and food utilisation (FAO 2002;Ziervogel and Ericksen 2010). Climate change and population growth are seen as key drivers of food insecurity severely affecting farming systems Haberl et al 2011, Strengers et al 2010, as well as the global energy demand and therefore induced biofuel production (Von Braun 2007a), changing trade patterns through liberalisation and globalisation (Von Braun 2007b;Lotze-Campen et al 2010), and the state of health of the population (10-20 % AIDS rate in East Africa).…”

“…Climate change and population growth are seen as key drivers of food insecurity severely affecting farming systems Haberl et al 2011, Strengers et al 2010, as well as the global energy demand and therefore induced biofuel production (Von Braun 2007a), changing trade patterns through liberalisation and globalisation (Von Braun 2007b;Lotze-Campen et al 2010), and the state of health of the population (10-20 % AIDS rate in East Africa). Causeeffect chains, in which food security is involved (droughtsdiseases-health-human capital), are also drivers over large regions (Ziervogel and Ericksen 2010). Most of these drivers do not only lead to a productivity decline, but also often result in a degraded natural resource base and declining soil fertility (Graef et al 2000).…”

“…To cope with the changing conditions in Tanzania, profound knowledge of the local and regional environmental and socio-economic systems is required for decision-making, for instance, on long-term conservation of natural resources (König et al 2012), and on adequate technologies and strategies to ensure food security (Graef and Haigis 2001;Waha et al 2013;Ziervogel and Ericksen 2010). Trade-off food system analysis of the limited resources and human factors testing site-specific approaches are therefore one requirement for mid-and long-term improvement in the livelihoods of food-insecure Tanzanians.…”

“…Trade-off food system analysis of the limited resources and human factors testing site-specific approaches are therefore one requirement for mid-and long-term improvement in the livelihoods of food-insecure Tanzanians. Here a vital element is the participatory involvement of existing local knowledge on good practices in a people-centred approach with both local population and institutions (König et al 2012;Reidsma et al 2011;Ziervogel and Ericksen 2010). At the same time, it needs to be combined with the major national Tanzanian political programmes on food security-the Agricultural Sector Development Strategy (ASDS), the Agricultural Sector Development Programme (ASDP), the overall National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty (NSGRP)-and with international African political and/or development programmes such as the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD).…”

Le rôle des forêts et des arbres dans l’adaptation sociale à la variabilité et au changement climatiques

“…Décider quelle approche est appropriée dépend du contexte social et biophysique 59 . Dans l'ensemble, assurer la sécurité alimentaire dans un contexte climatique changeant exige une adaptation à tous les niveaux, des systèmes de production, de distribution et de répartition jusqu'aux institutions locales, régionales et mondiales 60 . L'agroforesterie visant à accroître la résilience à la variabilité climatique est un bon système lorsqu'elle est suffisamment bon marché et souple pour que les communautés puissent la tester, transmettre leur savoir et diffuser les innovations, comme dans le cas du programme FMNR 23,61 .…”