This brief has been prepared for the UN Convention on Climate Change meeting in Copenhagen, December 2009, to raise awareness of the imminent impacts of climate change on food security in Pacific island countries and territories and to urge participants to consider the importance of mainstreaming food security in climate-related policies, strategies and programmes.By providing a snapshot of the imminent impacts of climate change on food security in Pacific Island Countries and Territories, this report illustrates the need to mainstream food security within climate change policies, strategies and programmes and the need to combat climate-related vulnerability through the effective implementation of National Adaptation Programmes of Action. It also advocates “climate proofing” existing food security initiatives and broadening the NAPA process to include all PICTs as further steps to improve food security and combat the impacts of climate change in the region.

Farming practices, which capture carbon and store it in agricultural soils, offer some of the most promising options for cost effective, early action on climate change in developing countries. These practices are already available and can have multiple benefits for climate change mitigation, adaptation, sustainable development and food security. To accelerate mitigation and adaptation action, climate financing mechanisms need to target agriculture, reward synergistic action and leverage investment for up-scaling. Opportunities exist to build confidence, capacity, and commitment for early action on agricultural mitigation and adaptation in developing countries, while meeting development and food security requirements.