Structural adjustment, liberalisation and the pressures of technological change are having major impact on the institutional organisation of the agro-industrial sector. In industrialised countries, the private sector is positioned to play the vanguard role in the next generation of agricultural technologies. Thus, the ability to promote and sustain new patterns of co-operation in research and development between the private and the public sectors will be a key determinant of future patterns of competitiveness.

This briefing note has been produced Forests and Climate Change Programme (FORCLIME), which is bilateral initiative implemented jointly by Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the Indonesian Ministry of Forestry. It outlines the concept of Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) and makes the case for the use of PES on Borneo island.

Although it is not possible to state with confidence how climate change may alter precipitation patterns in Rwanda, it is clear that this process will affect the management and generation capacity of its hydroelectric sector in the future. The Government of Rwanda sought to restore the degraded Rugezi-Bulera- Ruhondo watershed by halting on-going drainage activities in the Rugezi Wetlands and banning agricultural and pastoral activities within and along its shores, as well as along the shores of Lakes Bulera and Ruhondo.

This fact sheet describes lessons learnt from the development of Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) benefit distribution systems (BDSs) in Viet Nam. The fact sheet is a clear and concise resource for policymakers and REDD+ stakeholders.

Climate change is set to have a significant impact on climate-sensitive sectors of national economies, such as agriculture. This report, published by the World Agroforestry Centre, discusses the challenges that climate change brings to smallholder farmers in Southeast Asia, and outlines adaptive measures that can be taken. It begins with a brief general discussion of climate change and moves on to describe the likely impacts for farmers. The following section highlights adaptive strategies available to small-scale farmers in the region.

This policy brief discusses the issue of food security in relation to trade and the anticipated impacts of climate change within Southeast Asia. It begins by contextualizing the debate before examining the manner in which trade, climate change and food security are interlinked within the Mekong region. The brief goes onto examine Cambodia as a case study in order to establish lessons for other countries in the region.

The Asia-Pacific Regional Human Development Report (APHDR) focuses on the need for the region to find ways to continue to grow economically, while reducing poverty and tackling climate change and environmental concerns. The report addresses climate challenges facing small island developing states (SIDS) in the region with special attention given to the least developed countries (LDCs), including Kiribati, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

This policy-brief examines a two year moratorium on new permits for primary natural forest and peat land that came into force in Indonesia on May 20th 2011. The brief aims to inform a range of decision-making actors in developing countries about the nature of improved forestry management in the face of a changing climate. It is asserted that the moratorium demonstrates progress in the areas of: data transparency, industry buy-in, political support and institutional co-ordination.

This regional report by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) highlights that, although urban slums are decreasing and urban innovations are being introduced, the Arab region still faces major challenges, including high youth unemployment rates and climate change. The report argues that climate change can increase competition over scarce resources, decrease food security, increase poverty and social instability, and accelerate environmental migration and militarisation over natural resources in the area.

Current land management approaches focus on achieving ecological resilience for natural resources and biological diversity, and socioeconomic resilience for the people who depend on the land for their livelihoods and wellbeing. In the Hindu Kush Himalayan region, landscapes extend across national boundaries and their effective management requires cooperation among the countries sharing the transboundary area, particularly in light of the impacts being experienced from a wide range of drivers of change, including climate change.

This ‘Inside story on climate compatible development’ by the Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) presents Ecuador’s Socio Bosque programme as a successful example of a voluntary incentive-based scheme with combined environmental and socioeconomic targets. It engages the poorest private and communal forest landholders and, through conservation agreements, offers them annual per-hectare payments in return for maintaining forest cover.

This collection of analyses spotlight cases and interviews with prominent women activists involved in natural resource management in Nepal, Indonesia, the Philippines and China to better understand the diverse challenges faced by Asian women in relation to limited rights and insecure tenure. Despite contextual differences, the studies identify a number of similarities and trends.