FAO's publication, the State of the World's Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture, will be launched on Friday 22 February 2019 at 10:00 CET. The publication presents the first global assessment of biodiversity for food and agriculture worldwide, including the use of incentives to support smallholders overcome adoption barriers to implement sustainable practices.

Prepared through a participatory, country-driven process, the report draws on information from 91 country reports to provide a description fo the roles and importance of biodiversity for food and agriculture, the drivers of change affecting it and its current status and trends. It describes the state of efforts to promote the sustainable use and conservation of biodiversity for food and agriculture, including through the use of incentives to overcome adoption barriers, and the development of supporting policies, legal frameworks, institutions and capacities. It concludes with a discussion of needs and challenges in the future management of biodiversity for food and agriculture.

The report was prepared through a participatory, country-driven process under the guidance of FAO’s Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. It details the many benefits biodiversity brings to food and agriculture; examines how farmers, pastoralists, forest dwellers and fisherfolk have shaped and maintained biodiversity; identifies major drivers of both positive and negative trends, and presents trends in biodiversity-friendly production practices, including the use of incentives to support and promote sustainable use and conservation of biodiversity.

The event will be webcast here.

Further information about the publication can be found here.