For the Climate Conference in November, we want to get sustainable agriculture higher on the agenda. That's why we will send this letter with your signatures to minister Zakia Khattabi, head of the Belgian COP delegation. Help us emphasize that the agroecological transition cannot wait!
* The letter below is an accessible version of a document with technical policy recommendations that will be negotiated during the Climate Conference.
What will be decided during the Climate Conference?
From 7 to 18 November 2022, the 27th Climate Conference takes place in Egypt. The governments of the UN countries come together to agree on collective actions to fight climate change. The agenda includes:
- Boosting emission reduction measures
- Developing resilience strategies
- Increasing the transparency and accessibility of climate financing
We are demanding:
- The inclusion of agriculture and food systems as fully-fledged themes in the process of the Climate Summit. The Koronivia Joint Work on Agriculture, the UN program that links agriculture and climate change, must become a decisive committee.
- The recognition of agroecology as one of the solutions to global warming. (We follow this framework of agroecology)
- The improved financing of small-scale agro-ecological farmers and grassroots organizations.
Why now?
As we witness extreme drought, floods and forest fires, it has become impossible to ignore the imminent impact of climate change. The impact on agriculture and access to food cannot be underestimated.
The latest report by the IPCC (the scientific body of the Climate Summit) points out the looming loss of livelihood for farmers, the growing food insecurity for large parts of the population and the drastic decline in biodiversity.
This year alone, 800 million people suffered from hunger; not only due to the covid-crisis, the war in Ukraine and ongoing global inflation, but also as a systematic consequence of our failing food system (more info here).
Why agroecology?
Scaling up agroecology creates food systems that emit less carbon and help preserve biodiversity and our access to food. Making sure that everyone in the world has access to food is the core mission of Solidagro.
The agro-industrial (as opposed to agro-ecological) contributes massively to the emission of greenhouse gasses. However, it only produces 30% of our food, while small-scale farmers with limited resources and little land ownership are responsible for 70% of food production. Yet, climate disasters, soil erosion and desertification mainly affect small-scale farmers. In the fight against climate change, it is therefore important to support them and help them increase their resilience.
This is possible through agro-ecological practices adapted to local circumstances, the food economy and the capacity of ecosystems. Agroecology is a way of farming that creates resilient and fertile soils by planting a wide diversity of crops. This way the soils can absorb more carbon from the atmosphere and store it.
Moreover, agroecology focuses on the efficient reuse of water and natural manure to stimulate pollination which leads to an increase of crop yield.
Additional advantages of agroecology are:
- It provides healthy nutritious food.
- It increases the autonomy of farming communities and strengthens the position of marginalised groups such as indigenous peoples, young people and rural women.
- It stimulates the local economy, poverty reduction and fair pricing.
Why should I sign?
Sign our open letter and let minister Zakia Khattabi know that an agroecological transition is needed to reduce carbon emissions from agricultural and food systems. Let’s build a climate proof future together with farmers like Lucie, Saad, Kat and Isabelle & Richard!
