Solution Forum 4: Energy, Climate Change and Food Security

Recent projections by the FAO indicate that the expanding world population will require global agricultural production to grow by 70 percent by 2050 in order to feed an additional 2.3 billion people. Projections indicate that most gains in production will be achieved by increasing yield growth and cropping intensity on existing farmlands rather than by increasing the amount of land brought under agricultural production.

This is particularly true for land-scarce countries where almost all growth would need to be achieved by improving yields - a challenge made more pressing by the adverse agricultural effects of climate change. As such, there is critical need to push the agricultural technology frontier outwards on several fronts.  Boosting agricultural production to the levels needed to feed an expanded world population will require sharply increased public investment in research and development and widespread adoption of new technologies, farming techniques and crop varieties. Of particular importance are “climate smart” technologies – agricultural advances that sustainably increase productivity and resilience to environmental pressures, while at the same time reducing greenhouse gas emissions or removing them from the atmosphere.

The Solution Forum will aim to present development solutions relevant to food security as a result of climate change and depleting energy sources. The results-based presentations and scalable solutions are designed to support families and societies in coping with the adverse effects of climate change.  More specifically, panelists will:

• feature successful technologies and techniques for increasing Southern agricultural yields, including conservation agriculture, zero-tillage techniques and innovations in plant breeding;
• present innovative policies, institutional responses and solutions to health issues related to food insecurity, including outreach and delivery mechanisms, bio-agricultural health products, and;
• showcase approaches and measures for transforming agriculture and shifting the use and management of land, agriculture, and food systems towards a paradigm that integrates environmental, human well-being, and economic values.