Amongst human activity, industrial agriculture is a primary cause of biodiversity loss and climate change, reducing the land’s suitability for agriculture. This reduces global food security, increasing the pressure for food production which further exacerbates forest and land degradation. Agroforestry emerges as a promising solution by leveraging nature-based approaches to...

In this self-paced online course, you will learn the fundamentals of gender and social inclusion in forest landscapes restoration (FLR). The course focuses on gender inequalities, gender-differentiated impacts and opportunities to address inequalities for more equitable and sustainable FLR, to build the abilities and understanding of diverse stakeholders on the...

Burkina Faso faces accelerated degradation of its natural resources as a result of the combined effects of natural and human-caused factors (inappropriate farming practices, bush fires, wood cutting, extension of agricultural areas, etc.). The province of Passoré, in the Nord Region of thecountry, is in an arid zone and regularly...

There is very limited access to finance for rural communities comprising smallholders, family farmers and Indigenous Peoples. Smallholder and family farmers comprise 90% of the total farms worldwide, and account for an estimated 80% of world food production. The finance gap hinders these rural communities’ effective action on climate, nature,...

Forests harbour a large proportion of the Earth’s terrestrial biodiversity, which continues to be lost at an alarming rate. Deforestation is the single most important driver of forest biodiversity loss with 10 million ha of forest converted every year to other land uses, primarily for agriculture. Up to 30 percent...

Access to external finance for smallholder forest and farm producers is limited, hindering their effective action on climate, nature, livelihoods and food security. However, forest and farm producer organisations (FFPOs) can mobilise internally-generated finance.  This briefing maps three stages and 11 steps that FFPOs use to establish savings groups and larger...

In Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) we find ourselves in a paradox. On the one hand, the region boasts 40% of the worlds biodiversity, half of the worlds tropical forests, the largest reserve of freshwater, 12% of the worlds mangroves and six of the most megadiverse countries. On the...

In 1992 the United Nations committed to promoting a gender perspective in all environmental and development programs and to establishing mechanisms for assessing the impact of environmental policies on women. However, 30 years later most countries acknowledge that they have not integrated that perspective into policy assessments. This paper provides...

The scope and complexity of international forest-related governance have expanded tremendously over the last decades. As many as 41 ‘institutional elements’ were counted by scholars (from UNFF to UNFCCC to SDGs). The questions of how these governance arrangements ‘perform’, for what purpose and for whom are widely contested between scholars...

Alternative farming systems have developed since the beginning of industrial agriculture. Organic, biodynamic, conservation farming, agroecology and permaculture, all share a grounding in ecological concepts and a belief that farmers should work with nature rather than damage it. As ecology-based agricultures rely greatly on soil organisms to perform the functions...

Ce carnet relate la démarche suivie par le Gret pour faciliter l’émergence d’une gouvernance partagée du service d’eau potable dans la région de Saint-Louis, au Sénégal, dans le contexte d’une réforme nationale de délégation de service public. Dans la continuité d’un accompagnement de plus de quinze ans, l’adoption d’une approche par...

Les agriculteurs confrontés à l’étalement urbain sont diversement en phase avec les demandes des citadins en services et produits alimentaires locaux. Notre étude de la plaine Ouest de Montpellier, en France, ville côtière méditerranéenne particulièrement attractive, révèle le maintien d’une base agricole viticole coexistant avec de nouvelles formes d’agriculture. Des...

The agricultural and rural development policy seeks to facilitate the transition towards environmentally sustainable and climate-neutral agricultural practices, with a focus on human capital, knowledge, and innovation. Gender equality can play a significant role in promoting environmentally sustainable practices in the agricultural sector, particularly through the adoption and implementation of...

Soils are critical for agriculture and natural ecosystems and need protection, and adherence to nature's principles. The objective of this work is to understand how nature manages resources and describe management of the 'living soil’ and its soil productivity and use nature's laws as guidelines for the management. These guidelines provide the...

What is the future for family farming? This was the question posed in a technical discussion bringing together family farmers, representatives of governments, researchers, and experts from FAO and IFAD held at FAO headquarters in January. The “Future of Family Farming” meeting was held within the framework of the UN Decade...

The impacts of the climate and biodiversity crises on people’s livelihoods and opportunities differ greatly based on their gender and other intersecting identity factors. Populations that face systemic marginalization and discrimination are often disproportionately affected.  International actors and scientific bodies, such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the Intergovernmental...

In this 6th factsheet in the series on ultra-processed food (UPF) in Africa, the African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) briefly discuss how UPF is impacting ecological health and functioning, and driving the interconnected biodiversity, climate, and pollution crises on the continent. Over the last two decades, food systems have undergone massive transformations. It...

In this series focusing on ultra-processed food (UPF) on the African continent, the African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) explore the impacts of shifting dietary patterns, with increasing reliance on low-cost, ultra-processed foods (UPFs) globally, and in Africa in particular, in the context of an urgent call for a just, agroecological...

Small-scale fisheries (SSF), including fishers and fishworkers together with their communities and organizations, are among the world’s most effective contributors to safeguarding aquatic resources and environments. Living near to, and relying on, freshwater and marine aquatic species and environments, small-scale fisheries are at the heart of environmental conservation and stewardship...

Seed embodies life, power, and culture. From Africa’s deserts and drylands to its mighty river systems and tropical forests, from those growing a multiplicity of grains, legumes, and vegetables, to others struggling to produce enough to feed their families, seed provides the mainstay for the continent’s 500 million small-scale farmers...