FAO and Italian Research Institutions discuss challenges facing agrifood systems in the context of increasing climate change and drought
In June 2023, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with Italian Research Institutions (IRIs), namely the Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR), Consiglio per la ricerca in agricoltura e l’analisi dell’economia agraria (CREA), Agenzia Nazionale per le nuove tecnologie, l’energia e lo sviluppo economico sostenibile (ENEA) and the Istituto superiore per la protezione e la ricerca ambientale (ISPRA) co-organized a hybrid event on “Innovation for drought and agriculture” to celebrate “World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought,” which takes place every year on 17 June.
The hybrid event, facilitated by Selvaraju Ramasamy, Senior Officer in FAO’s Office of Innovation (OIN), brought together nearly 200 experts to discuss and exchange views on the challenges facing agrifood systems in the context of increasing climate change and drought impacts, as well as the role of innovation in supporting and disseminating adaptation and drought management strategies.
In their welcoming addresses, Vincent Martin, Director of FAO's Office of Innovation (OIN), Piero Genovesi, Head of the Wildlife Coordination Service at ISPRA, Massimo Iannetta, Head of Biotechnology and Agroindustry at ENEA, Giorgio Matteucci, Director of the Bioeconomy Institute at CNR, and Filiberto Altobelli, Senior Researcher at CREA, emphasized that the drought situation in agriculture is worsening in many parts of the world. The causes are a multifactorial combination of extreme climate events, socio-political and socio-economic crises and conflict. There is a sense of urgency to find solutions and a need to mobilize science, research and innovation to try to adapt or mitigate the problems caused by droughts in agriculture. In this context, innovation was mentioned as one of the most important tools to address the challenges.
Presentations by Stefania Giusti (FAO), Gianfranco Diretto (ENEA), Stefano Mariani, Martina Bussettini and Giovanni Braca (ISPRA), Massimiliano Pasqui (CNR), and Marika Ferrari (CREA) further highlighted the importance of accessing reliable data, sharing knowledge, methodologies, best practices and lessons learned. The development of tools, such as platforms, and the advancement of new biotechnologies, climate forecasts and integrated drought management were identified as key topics to support farmers, researchers, decision makers and other stakeholders in identifying solutions to be applied or replicated according to the different contexts.
Furthermore, experts at the event agreed that adaptation and drought management strategies should constantly be developed as the effects of droughts and climate change are in a continuous transformation process, which implies changes at different levels. For instance, the study of diets targeting Sustainable Development Goal 12 (Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns) was presented as one of the potential strategies to cope with droughts and climate change, as it studies the consumption and production of products with a lower impact on natural resources.
The experts also emphasized that the increasing impacts of climate change and droughts are important factors which can exacerbate the effects of economic and social crises. In conclusion, to avoid or mitigate such scenarios, the panelists stressed the key role of knowledge dissemination and information in support of a sustainable and equitable development, the need for continuous advancement of adaptation and integrated drought management strategies across all the aspects of agri-food systems. The standardization and access to reliable data, as well as the importance of technology development and co-creation of innovative solutions to optimize the use of natural resources were also highlighted during the event.
