In recent years, especially with the approach of the 21st Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris in late 2015, the number of publications, conferences and meetings on climate change has been growing exponentially. Yet uncertainties remain concerning rural tropical areas where models are forecasting the onset of multiple disorders and trends are unclear. Meanwhile, the impact of climate change on the poorest communities is regularly documented, often prompting alarmist reactions. How can food security be achieved while adapting to and mitigating climate change? What are the main threats to agriculture in developing countries? How do farmers in these countries cope with the threats? What does agricultural research propose? What options have yet to be investigated? A broad scope of scientific research is underway to address these challenges. Diverse solutions are available, including new agricultural practices, water management, agricultural waste recycling, diagnosis of emerging diseases, payment for ecosystem services, etc. Gaining insight into the financial and political mechanisms that underlie international climate negotiations is also essential to design practical ways to deal with climate issues and meet sustainable development requirements in collaboration with farmers. This book pools the wealth of experience of dozens of researchers and development officers from a range of disciplines. We have focused on making it detailed, accurate and hopefully easy to read for researchers, students and all other informed readers.

Farming for Our Future examines the policies and legal reforms necessary to accelerate the adoption of practices that can make agriculture in the United States climate-neutral or better. These proven practices will also make our food system more resilient to the impacts of climate change. Agriculture's contribution to climate change is substantial--much more so than official figures suggest--and we will not be able to achieve our overall mitigation goals unless agricultural emissions sharply decline. Fortunately, farms and ranches can be a major part of the climate solution, while protecting biodiversity, strengthening rural communities, and improving the lives of the workers who cultivate our crops and rear our animals. The importance of agricultural climate solutions can not be underestimated; it is a critical element both in ensuring our food security and limiting climate change. This book provides essential solutions to address the greatest crises of our time.

How will global warming affect developing countries, which rely heavily on agriculture as a source of economic growth? William Cline asserts that developing countries have more at risk, such as their production capacity, than industrial countries as global warming worsens. Using general circulation models, Cline boldly examines 2071–99 to forecast the effects of global warming and its economic impact into the next decade. This detailed study outlines existing studies on climate change; Cline finds the Stern Report for the UK government's estimates most reliable; estimates projected changes in temperature, precipitation, and agricultural capacity; and concludes with policy recommendations. Cline finds that agricultural production in developing countries may fall an average of 16 percent, and if global warming progresses at its current rate, India's agricultural capacity could fall as much as 40 percent. Thus, policymakers should address this phenomenon now before the world's developing countries are adversely and irreversibly affected.

Roughly a billion people around the world continue to live in state of chronic hunger and food insecurity. Unfortunately, efforts to improve their livelihoods must now unfold in the context of a rapidly changing climate, in which warming temperatures and changing rainfall regimes could threaten the basic productivity of the agricultural systems on which most of the world’s poor directly depend. But whether climate change represents a minor impediment or an existential threat to development is an area of substantial controversy, with different conclusions wrought from different methodologies and based on different data. This book aims to resolve some of the controversy by exploring and comparing the different methodologies and data that scientists use to understand climate’s effects on food security. In explains the nature of the climate threat, the ways in which crops and farmers might respond, and the potential role for public and private investment to help agriculture adapt to a warmer world. This broader understanding should prove useful to both scientists charged with quantifying climate threats, and policy-makers responsible for crucial decisions about how to respond. The book is especially suitable as a companion to an interdisciplinary undergraduate or graduate level class.

Originally published in 1990, this book analysed the sensitivity of the world food system and looked at the variety of ways in which it would be affected by climate change. It describes the effects of climate change on agriculture, estimates the impacts on plant and animal growth and looks at the geographical limits to different types of farming. It also considers the range of possible ways to adapt agriculture and so to mitigate the disastrous consequences of climate change.

The effects of climate change can already be felt around the world, and they will likely impact all facets of human civilization—from health, livelihood security, agricultural production, and shelter to international trade. Since anthropogenic factors are mainly to blame for the current trends in global warming, human intervention will be necessary to mitigate it. With 17 authoritative chapters, Combating Climate Change: An Agricultural Perspective outlines a framework for preparing agriculture for climate change, presenting the causes and consequences of climate change and possible remediation measures. With contributions from internationally recognized scientists, the chapters cover global food security, adaptation of agriculture to fulfill its greenhouse gas emissions mitigation potential, economic aspects of climate change, the soil organic carbon pool, the need for agroecological intelligence, and the development of nutrient-use-efficient crops. The text also addresses genetic mitigation of climate change effects through the development of climate-resilient crops and the use of genetic and genomic resources to develop highly productive crop cultivars, as well as the conservation of native agroecosystems. Expert contributors discuss the impacts of climate change on plant pathogens and plant disease as well as on insects and crop losses. They address abiotic stress resistance, conservation tillage as a mitigation strategy, and more. The final chapter demonstrates the practical use of the WorldClim and DIVA software for modeling current and future climates, using Timor Leste and India as examples. Covering a broad range of issues related to climate change and agriculture, this book brings together ideas for environmentally friendly technologies and opportunities to further increase and stabilize global agricultural productivity and ensure food security in face of mounting climate challenge.

Ô. . . this book is a very useful resource for the lawyer. . . makes a good start by presenting a wide-ranging portfolio of multidisciplinary research that will assist in progressing the task, challenging though it may be.Õ Ð Chris Rodgers, Environmental Liability This book explores the interaction between climate change and the agriculture sector. Agriculture is essential to the livelihood of people and nations, especially in the developing world; therefore, any impact on it will have significant economic, social, and political ramifications. Scholars from around the world and from various fields have been brought together to explore this important topic. The contributions found here analyze direct agronomic effects, the economic impacts on agriculture, agricultural impacts on the economy, agricultural mitigation, and farmer adaptation. The authors argue that climate change is likely to have an extensive impact on agriculture around the world through changes in temperature, precipitation, concentrations of carbon dioxide, and available water flows. This thorough and timely volume is an invaluable resource for anyone interested in exploring the impacts of climate change in arguably the most important sector of the world economy. Economists, agronomists, and climate modelers in academia and the public sector, policy analysts and development agency staff, and graduate/postgraduate students will find this remarkable volume a welcome addition to their collection.