Climate protection in agriculture: a risk for smallholders?

in: Rural 21 48 (2), 4-5

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It is uncontested that many agricultural management practices may create synergies between reducing emissions and adapting to the impacts of climate change as well as ensuring food security. However, NGOs and African governments among others highlight the drawbacks that may emerge from such a development particularly for smallholder farmers in developing countries. These drawbacks could become particularly relevant if offset certificates from agricultural activities can be used in carbon markets such as the European Emissions Trading System.
These challenges were discussed during a side event on “Reducing emissions from agriculture while improving food security: what role for UNFCCC?”, organized by the DIE together with MISEREOR and Bread for the World during the negotiations of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which took place in June in Bonn. The event was a follow-up to a German expert workshop in February that had been attended by representatives from politics, science and civil society.
The presentations and discussions in both events made clear that most people present object to including agriculture in carbon markets and that because of the manifold functions of agriculture emission reductions must not be the chief benchmark for agricultural projects. All presenters and the audience rather stressed the central importance of food security and adaptation. However, potential synergies between mitigation and adaptation should be identified in order to create additional benefits for the global climate and through this process possibly also generate additional funds for a sector that has been neglected for a long time.