5
1.2 Overview of the Chapters
The 25 chapters in this book have been divided among 5 themes. Four chapters
explore issues around climate change, including impacts and risks. Six investigate
mechanisms in seed and crop germplasm delivery systems. Six examine various
perspectives and lessons learned on technologies and practices through a CSA lens.
Five more examine the resilience to climate change of value chains; and four look
at financing, extension and other mechanisms to reach scale. Each chapter reflects
on a fundamental question: how to make complex crop and livestock systems more
climate-smart? Each chapter ends with messages on the implications for development practitioners to inform future decision-making.
The chapters that explore climate change, along with its impacts and risks,
include one on future projections, two on impacts and one on systems. Girvetz et al.
investigate the certainty and uncertainty of future climate change in sub-Saharan
Africa. This involves longer term and near-term predictions of traditional indices,
such as temperature and precipitation, as well as new bioclimatic indicators that
help make forecasts relevant to the risks faced by agricultural systems. The authors
use a freely accessible online tool known as Climate Wizard (www.climatewizard.
org), which is available to practitioners to help them incorporate climate information in programme and policy design. Bett et al. describe two cases of how predicted
climate change will affect the occurrence of livestock pests and diseases that already
cause significant damage to livelihoods and economies. The authors’ concrete recommendations around mitigating future impacts support the notion of taking action
today to prepare for the challenges of tomorrow. Hunter and Crespo analyse the
climate risks and impacts for both staple (maize and cassava) and cash (coffee)
crops at the subnational level in Angola. The authors’ findings demonstrate a clear
need for future investments—for example, in long-lived coffee—despite the inherent uncertainty in climate models. Lastly, Masikati et al. look at the likely responses
of maize and groundnut under climate change using common crop models. Their
findings suggest that improved soil management can help mitigate future negative
Table 1.1 (continued)
Land
use
Intervention
Climate hazard
Temp Water Variability Flooding
M
Alter system integration: alter animal species and
breeds, alter the ratio of crops to pasture, or crops
to livestock and/or to fish
√
√
C P
M
Use of weather information: seasonal forecasts for
agricultural planning, and short-term forecasts for
early warning of extremes such as high
temperatures and heavy rainfall
√
√
√
C P
M
Index insurance for crops and livestock
√
√
√
C cropland, P pastureland, M cropland and pastureland
Source: CCAFS and GCF (2018)
1 An Introduction to the Climate-Smart Agriculture Papers
1.2 Overview of the Chapters
The 25 chapters in this book have been divided among 5 themes. Four chapters
explore issues around climate change, including impacts and risks. Six investigate
mechanisms in seed and crop germplasm delivery systems. Six examine various
perspectives and lessons learned on technologies and practices through a CSA lens.
Five more examine the resilience to climate change of value chains; and four look
at financing, extension and other mechanisms to reach scale. Each chapter reflects
on a fundamental question: how to make complex crop and livestock systems more
climate-smart? Each chapter ends with messages on the implications for development practitioners to inform future decision-making.
The chapters that explore climate change, along with its impacts and risks,
include one on future projections, two on impacts and one on systems. Girvetz et al.
investigate the certainty and uncertainty of future climate change in sub-Saharan
Africa. This involves longer term and near-term predictions of traditional indices,
such as temperature and precipitation, as well as new bioclimatic indicators that
help make forecasts relevant to the risks faced by agricultural systems. The authors
use a freely accessible online tool known as Climate Wizard (www.climatewizard.
org), which is available to practitioners to help them incorporate climate information in programme and policy design. Bett et al. describe two cases of how predicted
climate change will affect the occurrence of livestock pests and diseases that already
cause significant damage to livelihoods and economies. The authors’ concrete recommendations around mitigating future impacts support the notion of taking action
today to prepare for the challenges of tomorrow. Hunter and Crespo analyse the
climate risks and impacts for both staple (maize and cassava) and cash (coffee)
crops at the subnational level in Angola. The authors’ findings demonstrate a clear
need for future investments—for example, in long-lived coffee—despite the inherent uncertainty in climate models. Lastly, Masikati et al. look at the likely responses
of maize and groundnut under climate change using common crop models. Their
findings suggest that improved soil management can help mitigate future negative
Table 1.1 (continued)
Land
use
Intervention
Climate hazard
Temp Water Variability Flooding
M
Alter system integration: alter animal species and
breeds, alter the ratio of crops to pasture, or crops
to livestock and/or to fish
√
√
C P
M
Use of weather information: seasonal forecasts for
agricultural planning, and short-term forecasts for
early warning of extremes such as high
temperatures and heavy rainfall
√
√
√
C P
M
Index insurance for crops and livestock
√
√
√
C cropland, P pastureland, M cropland and pastureland
Source: CCAFS and GCF (2018)
1 An Introduction to the Climate-Smart Agriculture Papers