In other news…

Dr. Viola Prifti, Postdoctoral Researcher at HTW Berlin, explores the transformative potential of smart farming practices and how open data can help overcome ownership barriers. Transformation is at the heart of agriculture. Hunting, domestication of wild crops, the Green Revolution and most recently agriculture 4.0, are all phases of agricultural evolution. Yet our food system remains fragile, and it is clear that achieving food security for all in line with the Agenda 2030 goals demands further transformation towards sustainable agriculture. The post Transforming Agriculture Through Smart Farming: From Data Ownership to Open Data appeared first on Farming First.

Liam Condon, member of the Board of Management for Bayer AG and President of the Crop Science Division, discusses new techniques and approaches for empowering farmers to reduce the sector’s contribution to climate change. He is speaking about agriculture’s potential for carbon sequestration and the rise of carbon markets at this week’s 2020 Borlaug Dialogue, hosted by the World Food Prize Foundation. Dr. Rattan Lal, renowned soil scientist and this year’s World Food Prize Laureate, has pioneered groundbreaking research in The post A Carbon-Zero Future: Agriculture’s Role in Mitigating Climate Change appeared first on Farming First.

Meron Yomcwiny, Project Coordinator at Farm Africa, explains how the Livestock for Livelihoods project is empowering pastoralist women in rural Uganda and Ethiopia to earn their own incomes and better support their families. Across pastoralist areas in rural eastern Africa, it is traditionally a mother’s role to ensure that there is enough food for the family and that children have clothing, go to school and can access medical services when they are sick. However, all these basic human needs cost The post How Livestock are Improving Women’s Livelihoods in Eastern Africa appeared first on Farming First.

Actions to strengthen Africa’s food systems in the aftermath of the Covid-19 crisis underpinned discussions at this year’s African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF). Held in a virtual format for the first time this year due to the ongoing pandemic, the theme of the 2020 Summit was ‘Feed the Cities, Grow the Continent: Leveraging Urban Food Markets to Achieve Sustainable Food Systems in Africa’. The event highlighted how the plight of urban areas has become tangible during the pandemic, as food The post Food systems resilience tops agenda at AGRF Summit appeared first on Farming First.

Lynn Brown, Director of Alliances and Policy at HarvestPlus, explores the importance of strengthening nutrition resilience amongst vulnerable populations to protect against future food system and income shocks. A version of this article originally appeared on Devex. Building resilience is a priority across multiple global development sectors, including health, climate adaptation, disaster preparedness, livelihoods, and more. But relatively little attention has been paid to nutrition resilience – more specifically micronutrient resilience. This is the ability to withstand dietary diversity shocks, The post Building Nutrition Resilience in the Covid-19 Era appeared first on Farming First.

J. Nicolas Hernandez-Aguilera, Postdoctoral Research Scientist at the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI), Columbia University, explores how digital tools can empower farmers in developing countries with information and support, and the role that researchers, governments and the private sector can play in bridging digital divides. The digital age of farming is within reach. Among the poorest 20 per cent in low and middle-income countries, 70 per cent of people have access to a mobile phone and one The post Harnessing Digital Tools for Climate and Agriculture appeared first on Farming First.

Robynne Anderson, President of Emerging Ag Inc, explores how innovative technologies are helping agri-value chain actors in developing countries through the COVID-19 crisis, and the role that digital agriculture can play in rebuilding more sustainable food systems post-pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a tremendous impact on nearly every facet of life, and food systems are no exception. The disruptions and dislocations caused by the virus have rocked each link in the global food chain from farming, to processing, to The post Digital Agriculture: Strengthening Food Systems Through the Pandemic and Beyond appeared first on Farming First.

Giulia Di Tommaso, President and CEO of CropLife International, discusses the prevailing importance of the Sustainable Development Goals in tackling global issues including hunger, poverty and climate change, and explores how the private sector – and the plant science industry in particular – can play an active role in helping society achieve these Global Goals. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were designed to be the blueprint to adapt to twenty first century challenges and achieve a better and more sustainable The post Why the Sustainable Development Goals Matter to the Plant Science Industry appeared first on Farming First.

James Jenkin, CEO, and Alethia Kang, Director, Business Development at Acceso, explore how strengthening local food systems from end to end can alleviate the poverty, market limitations and economic injustices that many smallholder farmers face globally. We have always considered it a matter of economic injustice that smallholder farmers around the world are often excluded from formal domestic markets – yet millions are. In many developing countries, the poor – mostly involved in agriculture – are concentrated in rural areas, The post Investing in Robust Local Food Systems for a More Resilient Post-Covid Future appeared first on Farming First.

Kindra Halvorson, Chief Transformation Officer at TechnoServe, explores how Covid-19 is affecting farmers, food processors and other small businesses within Africa’s complex food systems and how these can be strengthened through coordinated support.  Phillip Nderitu’s small corner store in Kenya is far removed from any Covid-19 hotspots, but he is still feeling the impact of the global crisis. “The Covid-19 pandemic has been a blow to our shop,” he explains. “Sales have reduced significantly. Prices of items have skyrocketed, reducing The post Helping Africa’s Food Systems Respond to Covid-19 appeared first on Farming First.