Sustainable and circular bioeconomy for food systems transformation

Bioeconomy Talks: Bioeconomy and climate risks with Jorge Alvar Beltrán, Arianna Gialletti and Riccardo Soldan

Article

The Bioeconomy Talks series features interviews with experts on bioeconomy themes that are linked to agrifood systems transformation.

Jorge Alvar Beltrán holds a Ph.D. degree in climate resilient crops in hotspot regions of climate change (University of Florence). Arianna Gialletti has an MSc in climate change and environmental policy (University of Leeds). Riccardo Soldan holds a Ph.D. degree in interdisciplinary bioscience (University of Oxford). All three are part of the FAO Climate Risks team, working on risk identification at early stages of the project cycle, particularly for FAO Green Climate Fund (GCF) and Global Environment Facility (GEF) projects.

First things first, what do we mean by climate risks?

Climate risks are the result of the compound effects of hazards, exposure, and vulnerability. These elements can accumulate to a point where they cause danger, harm, or loss. In brief, weather, climatological and hydrological hazards are driven by the likelihood of occurrence and the boundary of coverage. For a hazard to become a risk, the physical (geographical) exposure of a system is necessary. Based on the hazard probability and the physical exposure, the magnitude to which a system may be adversely affected depends on how it can cope, in other words its vulnerability. We can alter climate hazard probability by cutting down greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; and modulate hazard-related exposure and vulnerability by strengthening the capacities of a system to absorb, adjust and recover. We refer to this as adaptive capacity, which is an important component of climate resilience.

Why is managing climate risks important for agrifood systems?

Climate risks are present at all stages of an agrifood system. For example, while heat-stress conditions may result in food losses at production stage, weather-related hazards such as landslides caused by heavy rains may affect road infrastructure, thereby hindering transportation and resulting in food spoilage. This is just one illustration of how climate risks can threaten food security and livelihoods and explains why FAO works with governments and partners to identify climate risks, assess the potential magnitude of such risks, and mitigate their impact. FAO considers weather and climate services as vital instruments to strengthen adaptive capacity, as they provide populations with early warning information for early action. These services help reduce climate risks, support livelihoods, protect assets and improve food security and nutrition. That’s why FAO is proud to be a part of the Early Warning for All initiative announced by UN Secretary-General at COP 27.

What is FAO doing to support countries and farmers in managing climate risks?

There are many individual measures available to reduce climate risks in food and agriculture, but it’s important to consider the agrifood system as a whole. FAO, which has a global mandate to reduce hunger and poverty, strives to identify and promote climate actions with the highest societal, environmental, and economic benefits. For example, FAO has developed a geospatial framework (the Climate Risk Toolbox) within the Hand in Hand Initiative to support climate-focused decision-making through the visualization of climate risk hotspots and the identification of tailored climate resilient practices. This means project formulators can embed climate risk management from the off, ensuring that the most appropriate climate adaptation and mitigation actions are systematically integrated into agricultural investment projects, policies, and programmes. In our jargon, we call it climate proofing. A good example of this is a recently approved FAO-GCF project in Cambodia.  

Where does bioeconomy fit in?

Bioeconomy has a potentially huge role to play in how we manage climate risks. This is increasingly being recognized on the global stage – bioeconomy featured more prominently at COP 27 than at any previous climate change COP and was also high on the agenda at the biodiversity COP 15. As outlined in a recent FAO publication, bioeconomy offers opportunities to cut GHG emissions (i.e. reduce climate hazards) along the agrifood system by replacing fossil-based resources and processes with biological ones, from microbiome innovations, biofertilizers and biopesticides, to novel foods, bio-based plastics and textiles, and biological waste management. The linkages between climate risks and bioeconomy are also reflected in an FAO publication on climate resilient practices.

To give a concrete example, let’s look at drought. Biological solutions to manage drought abound, from stimulating the soil microbiome and selecting drought tolerant plants, to using biofertilizers that boost soil and plant nutrition. Applying such bioeconomy solutions can improve drought resistance and water retention, creating a positive feedback loop whereby soils progressively become healthier, more fertile and productive, and more climate regulating at a micro-climatic level.

Do you think there are untapped areas of the bioeconomy that can enhance our climate risk management?

Absolutely! The exciting thing about bioeconomy is that it can tie together many strands of sustainable development, from climate change mitigation and adaptation, and ecosystem restoration, to food security and nutrition, and rural livelihood opportunities. For example, greater access to more accurate and on-time weather advisories can help farmers reduce use of fertilizers and pesticides, thereby limiting environmental and human health impacts associated with agrochemical misuse. But there is as much untapped potential in “old” solutions as in new ones. Indeed, several bioeconomy strategies explicitly recognize the role of indigenous and local knowledge, which is of immense importance in building an accurate, context-specific picture of climate risks (though often neglected in policy and research). Indigenous and local knowledge represents a valuable resource in the circular and sustainable management of agrifood residues, which can be used for a range of bio-based products including biofertilizers, bioenergy feedstock and bio-based plastics. Extracting the full value from food, feed, wood, and other bio-resources means protecting livelihoods and food security, wasting less, and cutting GHG emissions – in short, reducing climate risks while providing many other co-benefits!

World Metereological Day is celebrated each year on 23 March. In the image from left: Jorge Alvar Beltrán, Riccardo Soldan, Arianna Gialletti.

 

Links

FAO sustainable and circular bioeconomy (website)

Sustainable and circular bioeconomy in the climate agenda: Opportunities to transform agrifood systems (publication)

FAO launches new bioeconomy publication at COP 27 (article)

Climate risk toolbox (publication)

Climate risk toolbox (dataset)

The Climate Risk Toolbox on the Hand-in-Hand Geospatial Platform (video)

FAO climate resilient practices (publication)

22/03/2023