Page 106 - FAO-IPCC Expert meeting on climate change

Appendix 01: Speakers’ summary notes
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Theme 5.
Policies for land use, sustainable food production, consumption and climate action
Building the Sustainability Bridge: Policy Considerations
ROBERT WALKER
PLENARY SESSION 9:
THE FUTURE OF FOOD SYSTEMS UNDER CHANGING CLIMATE AND SUSTAINABILITY CONSTRAINTS: RETHINKING OUR ECOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC “TOOLBOX” FOR THE FUTURE OF FOOD AND LAND USE
Introduction
Food systems, and especially their agricultural components, represent a critical nexus between human welfare and our ecological support system. That said, there is growing concern that the heavy ecological footprint of contemporary agriculture may not be sustainable over the long-run. This concern is pronounced in an age of climate change, given future uncertainties in production and the increased stress that ecosystems are likely to suffer. If we are to sustain
both ecosystems and food security through the 21st century, we face two challenges, namely to (1) adapt agriculture
to a changing climate, and to (2) practice it in an environmentally conscientious manner. In this document, I address the second challenge involving agricultural land use and ecosystems. Specifically, I consider how to shape policy for building a “sustainability” bridge, capable of providing an ecological transition to environmentally-sound production systems that can provide food security in the face of climate change. In the discussion that follows, I take agriculture as a broad category comprising crop production, livestock operations, and forestry.
Many have risen to the agriculture-ecosystem challenge, and one oft cited approach involves finding the “right type” of agriculture, an ecologically-based “magic bullet” that achieves both human welfare and environmental objectives simultaneously. In this regard, we often hear reference to the potentials of agroforestry, landscape-based agriculture, polyculture, and organic farming, to name just a few. It is also critical to consider forestry management in this context, given the magnitude of ecological impacts associated with timber extraction. It should come as no surprise that the exploitation of non-timber forest products, in place of wood, is regarded as key to sustainability, and recently attention has turned to the ecosystem services that forests provide, such as carbon sequestration, biodiversity maintenance, and climate and hydrological regulation. Note that ecologically-based systems are nothing new, and we need not look far to find examples in the form of shade coffee (and cocoa), diversified smallholder farming, and the extraction of natural rubber and Brazil Nut. Unfortunately, over the long run, input-intensive agriculture -- with a much heavier ecological footprint -- has gained the upper hand, which indicates sharp institutional and technological barriers to the “magic bullet” of low impact crop production, livestock operations, and forestry.
Agriculture and Ecosystems: Competitors for Land
Discussions of the ecological impact of agriculture often overlook the fact that “natural” systems are land demanding, which puts them into competition with agriculture for the use of land. Formulating the ecological problem in terms of land reveals policy types capable of encouraging the identification and practice of sustainable agriculture. Specifically, policy can limit the supply of land, reduce its demand (i.e., land “sparing”), or integrate agriculture and ecosystems in a mutually beneficial manner (i.e., land “sharing”). I now consider each of these briefly, pointing out both limitations and potentials.
Limiting the Supply. Limiting the supply of land available for agricultural use comprises both the setting aside of land and the designation of use restrictions on private holders. Set-asides include the designation of protected areas such as parks, forests, and wildlife refuges, while use restrictions typically involve zoning. Depending on the jurisdiction, supply limitations may apply at local scale (e.g., municipal) as well as national. Limiting land supply represents an age-old approach to protecting ecological features deemed of societal value, and to reducing environmental hazards. Supply limitations can be difficult to maintain with poor, high-density, rural populations.
FAO-IPCC Expert meeting on climate change, land use and food security