The Side event took place on the 14th of April 2005. It was Co-organized by the Rural Institutions and Participation Service (SDAR) and the Resources and Strategic Partnerships Unit (TCDS), sponsored by the SARD Initiative and the FAO Livelihood Support Programme, and funded by the Governments of Italy, Norway, the United Kingdom, and FAO’s Rural Institutions and Participation Service (SDAR). It focused on i) local successes fostering sustainable livelihoods, sustainable intensification of rural production systems and integrated natural resources management as a means to SARD and ii) the need for mobilizing the capacity of different stakeholders to scale up successful practices in order to influence policy changes that can rapidly reduce poverty and hunger while protecting the environment.

The Side Event’s objective was to offer an opportunity to voice commitments, advocate priority areas and identify strategic partners for the SARD Initiative, underscore the importance of collaborative efforts to implement SARD, achieve the Millennium Development Goals, and promote people-centred approaches to scale up local level successes. The moderator was Peter Kenmore, Coordinator Global Integrated Pest Management Facility, FAO. The event was organized as a debate with many interventions from the audience.