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SGRP is collaborating with Bioversity International and
others to create a global Platform for
Agrobiodiversity Research to support actions aimed
at stemming the loss of biodiversity in and around
areas of agricultural production and developing a
more sustainable agriculture.
Why agrobiodiversity matters
Agrobiodiversity comprises all of the components of
biological diversity relevant to food and
agriculture present in agro-ecosystems, including
microbes, insect pollinators, and the hedgerows that
support soil stability and provide a home to
wildlife. It holds the key to enhancing food
security and improving human well-being.
Present day food production is highly vulnerable, depending
on a perilously narrow range of crops and farm
animals. Over 60% of food energy comes from just
three crops – maize, rice and wheat; and five types
of domestic animal – cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and
poultry – provide the vast majority of animal
products consumed.
This is just one aspect of the narrowness of the diversity
underpinning agriculture. Within the crop and
livestock species themselves, diversity is being
diminished under pressure for uniformity, and
agricultural systems are being simplified causing a
serious loss of the wild diversity that coexists
with domesticated species. Wild diversity is
directly useful providing medicines, fuel and
building materials, and contributes to the ecosystem
services that underpin environmental stability and
sustainability of agricultural production.
Healthy, diverse agro-ecosystems will be able to respond to
pressures such as climate change and help
communities sustain and improve food production into
the future. In this way, agrobiodiversity is a vital
tool in the challenge to meet the Millennium
Development Goals. Yet there are enormous gaps in
our understanding of the nature and functioning of
agrobiodiversity and the causes and effects of its
loss.
Working towards a solution
The knowledge gaps handicapping the conservation and use of
agrobiodiversity have been highlighted in
international fora such as the Fifth Conference of
the Parties to the
Convention on Biological
Diversity (CBD) in 2000. A
concrete step forward in addressing this problem was
taken through the organizing of the International
Workshop on Managing Agricultural Biodiversity for
Sustainable Development in 2003. Convened by SGRP
and Bioversity International, the workshop
recommended the establishment of a Platform for
Agrobiodiversity Research. The Platform would
provide a framework for collaboration and
cooperation for all those working in the different
aspects of agrobiodiversity. Through a facilitation
unit mechanism, existing initiatives and
organizations would be linked and new partnerships
created through networking. The Seventh Conference
of the Parties to the CBD in 2004 welcomed the
proposal as a contribution to the Convention’s
programme of work on agricultural biodiversity.
Managing the Platform
Bioversity International agreed to take the Platform
proposal forward with the support of SGRP, and
currently hosts a small Secretariat.
Whilst responding to major international agendas such as
developed by the CBD and
FAO Commission on Genetic
Resources for Food and Agriculture,
the Platform is independent of other organizations
and able to bring together a wide range of partners
on shared concerns.
The work of the Platform is overseen by a Steering
Committee selected by Platform partners. The first
stakeholder meeting of the Platform was held at
Bioversity International in 2006. The stakeholders,
drawn from international organizations, networks,
national research centres, universities, civil
society organizations and the private sector,
discussed the Platform’s objectives, mode of
operation and programme of work. See
report of stakeholder meeting
(456KB).
Objectives
The Platform has three overarching objectives:
1. To support the development of an adequate
agrobiodiversity knowledge base
through collating, synthesizing and disseminating
agrobiodiversity knowledge, making available the
relevant tools and practices that support improved
use of agrobiodiversity, and identifying areas where
information is lacking and new knowledge is needed.
2. To identify ways in which agrobiodiversity can
contribute to addressing some of the major global
challenges faced today (e.g.environmental degradation, poverty alleviation, climate change,
water quality and scarcity, and new global disease
threats) by making available information and options
that ensure the contribution of agrobiodiversity in
these areas.
3. To identify and facilitate relevant new and
innovative research partnerships
that strengthen multidisciplinary and participatory
agrobiodiversity research, involve work on different
agro-ecosystem components (such as livestock, crops,
soils, pollinators, etc.) and contribute to building
agrobiodiversity research capacity, particularly in
the developing regions.
The programme of work
The work of the Platform will be guided by principles to
ensure that it adds value to global efforts in
creating an agrobiodiversity knowledge base, and
increases support for the conservation and
sustainable use of agrobiodiversity to improve the
welfare of people and their environments around the
world. The principles will define the Platform’s
strategic role, the range of partnerships that it
will engage in, and the research that it will
undertake. With emphasis on complementarity to
existing efforts, the Platform will be particularly
concerned with research that:
-
Increases knowledge of agrobiodiversity as an essential
resource in sustainable development
-
Has potential to be of global significance
-
Addresses more than one component, level or element of
agrobiodiversity
-
Reflects the importance of wild species in agricultural
landscapes
-
Involves farmers and local communities, respecting and
strengthening their customary knowledge systems
-
Links custodians, managers and beneficiaries of
agrobiodiversity within ecosystems, across
sectors and ecoregions, and between developed
and developing countries
-
Integrates global issues emphasizing shared
responsibilities
-
Can be used in global fora to raise awareness of trends,
challenges and opportunities for conservation and
use of agriobiodiversity.
The detailed content of the Platform’s programme of work is
evolving over time. Priority areas are likely to
include topics of world-wide importance such as the
ways in which agrobiodiversity management policy and
practice can address hunger, malnutrition,
desertification, climate change and emerging
diseases of global significance.
The programme of work will recognize the importance of
working with farmers and is likely to include issues
such as the conservation and use of agrobiodiversity
under intensification, support to farmers adapting
to market-oriented production systems, provision of
tools and methodologies for improved management and
sustainable use of agrobiodiversity, and the sharing
of responsibilities and benefits.
The importance of cross-cutting issues is likely to be
reflected in research that explores ecosystem
approaches, develops improved valuation methods,
develops an understanding of the role of
agrobiodiversity in resilience, stability and
adaptability in production systems, and bridges the
gap between traditional conservation approaches and
approaches that optimize conservation and use for
meeting human and environmental needs.
The Platform will organize conferences and stakeholder
consultations to involve partners in debate and
decision-making on Platform activities. It will aim
to reach a wide community of stakeholders with its
information products and will develop
awareness-raising materials that target users
including farmers, the public, and policy and
decision-makers. Its website will be a key
instrument for communicating with partners,
particularly to facilitate access to information
resources and provide a framework for sharing
experiences, knowledge and practice.
Immediate priorities for 2006 include engaging the
agrobiodiversity research community and involving it
in developing the Platform’s work programme,
establishing the Platform Web site and initiating
Web discussions on crucial issues, identifying
priority research areas and resourcing them, and
presenting the Platform at key meetings.
For more information about the Platform for
Agrobiodiversity, see the brochure
Platform for Agrobiodiversity
Research or
contact the
SGRP Secretariat. |
