Transformative adaptation: From climate-smart to climate-resilient agriculture

In response to the climate crisis, there has been much focus on climate-smart agriculture (CSA); namely, technologies and practices that enhance adaptation, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and contribute to food security; the so-called triple win. Success has tended to be measured in terms of the n...

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Main Authors: Hellin, Jonathan, Fisher, Eleanor, Taylor, Marcus, Bhasme, Suhas, Loboguerrero Rodriguez, Ana María
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Springer 2023
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/131688
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author Hellin, Jonathan
Fisher, Eleanor
Taylor, Marcus
Bhasme, Suhas
Loboguerrero Rodriguez, Ana María
author_browse Bhasme, Suhas
Fisher, Eleanor
Hellin, Jonathan
Loboguerrero Rodriguez, Ana María
Taylor, Marcus
author_facet Hellin, Jonathan
Fisher, Eleanor
Taylor, Marcus
Bhasme, Suhas
Loboguerrero Rodriguez, Ana María
author_sort Hellin, Jonathan
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description In response to the climate crisis, there has been much focus on climate-smart agriculture (CSA); namely, technologies and practices that enhance adaptation, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and contribute to food security; the so-called triple win. Success has tended to be measured in terms of the number of farmers adopting CSA with less focus given to the impacts especially on human development. CSA can inadvertently lead to ‘maladaptation’ whereby interventions reinforce existing vulnerabilities either by benefitting powerful elites or by transferring risks and exposure between groups. Such maladaptive outcomes often stem from overly technical adaptation programming that is driven by external objectives and discounts the social and political dynamics of vulnerability. Increasingly a more nuanced picture is emerging. This reveals how a failure to contextualize CSA in relation to the structural socio-economic dynamics associated with agricultural systems that render some categories of farmer especially vulnerable to climate change, undermines CSA’s contribution to reducing rural poverty and increasing equity. In response, there is a growing focus on transformative orientations that pursue a more deep-seated approach to social, institutional, technological and cultural change in order to address the structural contributors to vulnerability and differential exposure to climate risk. Addressing these questions requires a robust consideration of the social contexts and power relations through which agriculture is both researched and practiced. For agriculture to be transformative and contribute to broader development goals, a greater emphasis is needed on issues of farmer heterogeneity, the dangers of maladaptation and the importance of social equity. This entails recognizing that resilience encompasses both agro- and socio-ecological dimensions. Furthermore, practitioners need to be more cognizant of the dangers of (i) benefiting groups of already better off farmers at the expense of the most vulnerable and/or (ii) focusing on farmers for whom agriculture is not a pathway out of poverty. The success of these approaches rests on genuine transdisciplinary partnerships and systems approaches that ensure adaptation and mitigation goals along with more equitable incomes, food security and development. The greater emphasis on social equity and human well-being distinguishes climate-resilient from climate-smart agriculture.
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spelling CGSpace1316882024-03-06T10:16:43Z Transformative adaptation: From climate-smart to climate-resilient agriculture Hellin, Jonathan Fisher, Eleanor Taylor, Marcus Bhasme, Suhas Loboguerrero Rodriguez, Ana María climate change adaptation climate-smart agriculture resilience transdisciplinary research interdisciplinary research transformation equity climate resilience adaptation In response to the climate crisis, there has been much focus on climate-smart agriculture (CSA); namely, technologies and practices that enhance adaptation, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and contribute to food security; the so-called triple win. Success has tended to be measured in terms of the number of farmers adopting CSA with less focus given to the impacts especially on human development. CSA can inadvertently lead to ‘maladaptation’ whereby interventions reinforce existing vulnerabilities either by benefitting powerful elites or by transferring risks and exposure between groups. Such maladaptive outcomes often stem from overly technical adaptation programming that is driven by external objectives and discounts the social and political dynamics of vulnerability. Increasingly a more nuanced picture is emerging. This reveals how a failure to contextualize CSA in relation to the structural socio-economic dynamics associated with agricultural systems that render some categories of farmer especially vulnerable to climate change, undermines CSA’s contribution to reducing rural poverty and increasing equity. In response, there is a growing focus on transformative orientations that pursue a more deep-seated approach to social, institutional, technological and cultural change in order to address the structural contributors to vulnerability and differential exposure to climate risk. Addressing these questions requires a robust consideration of the social contexts and power relations through which agriculture is both researched and practiced. For agriculture to be transformative and contribute to broader development goals, a greater emphasis is needed on issues of farmer heterogeneity, the dangers of maladaptation and the importance of social equity. This entails recognizing that resilience encompasses both agro- and socio-ecological dimensions. Furthermore, practitioners need to be more cognizant of the dangers of (i) benefiting groups of already better off farmers at the expense of the most vulnerable and/or (ii) focusing on farmers for whom agriculture is not a pathway out of poverty. The success of these approaches rests on genuine transdisciplinary partnerships and systems approaches that ensure adaptation and mitigation goals along with more equitable incomes, food security and development. The greater emphasis on social equity and human well-being distinguishes climate-resilient from climate-smart agriculture. 2023-08-28 2023-08-30T20:37:49Z 2023-08-30T20:37:49Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/131688 en https://doi.org/10.1088/2752-5295/ac8b9d Open Access Springer Hellin, J., Fisher, E., Taylor, M., Bhasme, S., Loboguerrero, A.M. 2023. Transformative adaptation: From climate-smart to climate-resilient agriculture. CABI Agriculture and Bioscience 4: 30. https://doi.org/10.1186/s43170-023-00172-4
spellingShingle climate change adaptation
climate-smart agriculture
resilience
transdisciplinary research
interdisciplinary research
transformation
equity
climate resilience
adaptation
Hellin, Jonathan
Fisher, Eleanor
Taylor, Marcus
Bhasme, Suhas
Loboguerrero Rodriguez, Ana María
Transformative adaptation: From climate-smart to climate-resilient agriculture
title Transformative adaptation: From climate-smart to climate-resilient agriculture
title_full Transformative adaptation: From climate-smart to climate-resilient agriculture
title_fullStr Transformative adaptation: From climate-smart to climate-resilient agriculture
title_full_unstemmed Transformative adaptation: From climate-smart to climate-resilient agriculture
title_short Transformative adaptation: From climate-smart to climate-resilient agriculture
title_sort transformative adaptation from climate smart to climate resilient agriculture
topic climate change adaptation
climate-smart agriculture
resilience
transdisciplinary research
interdisciplinary research
transformation
equity
climate resilience
adaptation
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/131688
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