In a groundbreaking moment, the 20th Session of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (CGRFA), held at FAO headquarters in Rome from 24 to 28 March 2025, marked a historic step toward inclusive participation of Indigenous Peoples in global governance for agricultural biodiv...

Join the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations for the launch of the Second Report on the State of the World’s Forest Genetic Resources. 
This significant publication highlights the crucial role of genetic resources in maintaining the resilience and productivity of fores...

Genetic diversity is key to creating more resilient agrifood systems that withstand challenges such as shifting climate patterns. Since 80 percent of the food we consume is plant-based, preserving a wide range of genetic materials allows farmers to grow crops and varieties suited to their local e...

Rome – The Twentieth Regular Session of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, which is taking place from 24 to 28 March in Rome, will see the launch of two publications in the Commission’s series of global assessments of biodiversity of importance to ag...

The launch of the Third Report will take place during a side-event at the Twentieth Regular Session of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. At the event, a summary of the key findings will be presented. Subsequently, a panel discussion, comprising diverse stakeholders, wi...

Plant genetic resources for food and agriculture (PGRFA) refers to any genetic material of plant origin of actual or potential value for food and agriculture.

The official launch of the Cali Fund at COP16 in Rome marks the beginning of a new era for the equitable distribution of benefits derived from the use of data about the natural world. Manoela Pessoa de Miranda, Secretary of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, emphasizes ...

Unfinished biodiversity negotiations are back on the table.  After a groundbreaking session in Cali, Colombia, delegations are reconvening in Rome to tackle unfinished business that will be critical for biodiversity action – with transforming agrifood systems emerging as a central element fo...

Pulses bring diversity to our agrifood systems in multiple ways: on the farm, in our diets and through value-added products. They boost biodiversity on farms by enriching cropping systems with more species. With more than 100 types of pulses available, farmers have many options for crop rotations...

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has helped 22 countries unlock $68 million in financing from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) to address biodiversity loss, groundwater management,  climate change, land degradation, and pollution.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has welcomed a decision to hold at its headquarters in Rome, Italy the resumed sessions of the UN Biodiversity Conference, including the Sixteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP16) from 25 to 27 February 2025.

Thursday, 5 December 2024 14:00-15:30 UTC+1 (Paris time).

This webinar aims to report the literature review and interviews carried out by a group composed of researchers from INRAE, Idele (France) and BOKU (Austria) to write a section on how to scale up breeding programmes in challengin...

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has unveiled two new online resources to support countries and stakeholders in restoring degraded ecosystems. An interactive digital version of the Resource Guide to Target 2 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework an...

The International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (International Treaty), in collaboration with the CGIAR Initiative on Genebanks and the Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT), held a...

It’s the crack of dawn. Magnolia Ordoñez leaves in a small boat along with her husband - the captain- and her colleagues— all women. Their task: to find and collect pianguas, a type of saltwater clam, that lives buried within the roots of mangrove trees in the Pacific region of Colombia.

A recently launched technical brief from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) underscores the critical role of primary forests in combatting climate change and halting biodiversity loss as crucial discussions take place at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) in B...

A new analysis from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) finds that almost all countries identify agrifood systems as a priority for climate change adaptation (94 percent) and mitigation (91 percent) in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). This highlights...

At the 16th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP16), held in Cali, Colombia, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean underscored the crucial role of food systems in tackling climate c...

As FAO marks the closure of UN Biodiversity Conference (COP16), and looks forward to the start of UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) in ten days time, it has launched a new publication on Biodiversity and agrifood systems in nationally determined contributions. Its analysis of actions included ...

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concluded its impactful participation in the 2024 UN Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP16) in Cali, Colombia, where its central message—agrifood systems play a critical role in achieving biodiversity goals—reverberated throughout the...