Search Climate Insights Directory
179 results
California Water Supply and Demand: Technical Report
The California Water Supply and Demand Model (CWSD) assesses how climate change affects water availability and usage in California, focusing on the energy, urban, and agricultural sectors. The model evaluates scenarios with no adaptation, slow adaptation, and fast adaptation across different climate projections (B1 and A2). Key findings indicate that without adaptation, agricultural water demand will rise due to higher temperatures, particularly in the San Joaquin Valley. While slow adaptation may only marginally reduce use, fast adaptation—driven by higher water prices and technological efficiency—could significantly decrease demand. The report also extends its agricultural analysis to other Western U.S. states, noting a general increase in water demand by 2100.
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Document type: Report
Riego con agua subterránea y sobreexplotación de acuíferos
The document highlights the critical need for municipal-level data in managing Mexico's water resources, particularly in arid and semi-arid northern regions where commercial agriculture relies heavily on groundwater. It notes that Mexico uses 29 km3 of groundwater annually, with over two-thirds dedicated to agriculture. The text explains that while the National Water Commission (CONAGUA) manages resources at the larger scale of river basins and aquifers, municipal-scale analysis reveals significant variations in exploitation levels. This granularity allows policymakers to distinguish between areas where demand must be reduced and areas where water can be reallocated or substituted between surface and groundwater sources to prevent irreversible aquifer degradation and ensure intergenerational equity.
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Document type: Fact sheet
L’investissement étranger au service du développement durable
The report analyzes the surge in foreign acquisitions and long-term leases of agricultural land and water, driven by food and energy security concerns and the 2008 food crisis. It highlights a critical lack of transparency and public contracts, which obscures the impact on local communities. The authors argue that a complex interplay between national laws, investment contracts, and International Investment Agreements (IIAs) often prioritizes foreign investor protections over the rights of local users and the regulatory autonomy of host states, potentially hindering sustainable development and public health measures.
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Document type: Report
Opportunities for Agricultural Water Management interventions in the Nariarlé watershed in Burkina Faso
The document evaluates AWM strategies in the Nariarlé watershed, finding that improving rainfed agriculture and expanding gardening wells offer the broadest benefits. While small reservoirs have improved production, they face siltation and lack coordinated watershed-level governance, which is further complicated by the urban expansion of Ouagadougou.
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Document type: Policy brief
Rapport sur les techniques de captage de leau des pluies au Niger
The report details rainwater harvesting techniques in Niger, categorizing them into individual (Zaï, demi-lunes, manual trenches) and collective (mechanical trenches, banquettes, spreading sills, mini-dams) methods. It assesses the effectiveness of these technologies in increasing crop yields, such as millet and sorghum, and identifies significant barriers to adoption, including extreme poverty and lack of equipment. The document also examines the role of various stakeholders, from state services to NGOs, and briefly discusses ex situ rooftop harvesting, which is less common in Niger than in neighboring Burkina Faso.
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Document type: Report
The Southern African Response to Food Security and the Global Food Crisis
The report argues that the 2006–2008 global food crisis was a spike in a long-term trend of food insecurity in Southern Africa. It highlights the Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Program (CAADP) as the primary framework for coordinated regional responses, emphasizing long-term structural improvements over short-term reactionary measures. The analysis covers specific SADC and COMESA initiatives, the role of strategic grain reserves, and the impact of international trade subsidies on African agricultural productivity.
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Document type: Report
Environmental Concerns in Water Pricing Policy: an Application of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA)
The research evaluates irrigation water pricing policies in Puglia, Italy, using a two-step process: simulation via mathematical programming and efficiency analysis via Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). The study compares technical efficiency with 'eco-efficiency,' which simultaneously considers economic outputs and environmental externalities. Results indicate that volumetric pricing methods are generally the most efficient, while inefficiency in other options is primarily driven by technical factors, specifically labour use, rather than environmental concerns like nitrate surplus or pesticide risk.
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Document type: Research paper
Carbon Footprint of Agricultural Development: the Potential Impact of Uptake of Small Electric and Diesel Pumps in Five Countries in Sub Saharan Africa
The study finds that carbon emissions from smallholder irrigation pumps in five Sub-Saharan African countries are currently a negligible fraction of national agricultural emissions and are unlikely to become significant even under high-adoption scenarios. However, the study warns that increased pump uptake may pose a more immediate threat to local water resources, particularly in semi-arid regions like Burkina Faso.
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Document type: Research paper
Global potential increase in crop production by vapour shift and water harvesting
The study finds that a moderate water management scenario—reducing evaporation by 25% and collecting 25% of runoff—could increase global crop production by 19%. While such strategies could buffer the projected 9% decline in global crop production caused by climate change by 2050, the study concludes that water available on current cropland will be insufficient for a population of 9–10 billion, even when combining water management with the benefits of rising atmospheric CO2.
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Document type: Research paper
Agriculture: Future Scenarios for Southern Africa - Food Production in Mozambique and Rising Global Food Prices
The document identifies a significant gap between Mozambique's agricultural potential and its actual production, attributed to a lack of public investment following Structural Adjustment Programs and a restrictive land ownership regime. While the government has introduced a Green Revolution strategy involving tariff reductions and strategic reserves, the briefing argues that private sector investment is essential, requiring improvements in infrastructure, credit markets, and land tenure transparency.
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Document type: Briefing
Adapting to Future Weather Insights from Alberta Agricultural Producers
The document outlines the experiences of 40 agricultural producers and organizations in the Coaldale and Foremost regions of southern Alberta between November 2007 and February 2008. It details how these producers managed extreme weather events—including droughts in 2000, 2001, and 2007, and flooding in 2002 and 2005—through a combination of short-term financial tools and long-term land management practices. The report highlights the role of irrigation in Coaldale and the reliance on financial soundness and input cost reduction in Foremost, while identifying common aiding factors such as research, networking, and government programs.
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Document type: Report
Agriculture: Future Scenarios for Southern Africa
The document examines Namibia's agricultural sector, highlighting how a conservative pricing agreement between producers and millers mitigated the impact of global food price spikes. It details the vulnerability of urban dwellers compared to subsistence farmers and outlines government initiatives, such as the Green Scheme and the Emergency Management Unit, to address climate-induced food insecurity. The briefing also discusses Namibia's trade position within SACU and the WTO, specifically its status as a net food-importing developing country.
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Document type: Briefing
Agriculture: Future Scenarios for Southern Africa – The Livestock Sector in Zambia and Rising Food Prices
The report analyzes the Zambian livestock sector, noting that rising prices are driven by fuel costs, imported feed inputs, climate change, and economic pressures. It highlights a divide between a thriving poultry sector and a struggling beef sector plagued by disease and poor infrastructure. The document argues that while liberalization was intended to modernize the sector, it lacked the necessary socioeconomic safety nets and technical support, leaving small-scale farmers vulnerable. It recommends strengthening research, improving irrigation, and expanding government disease control to stabilize prices and enhance food security.
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Document type: Report
Food Production in Mozambique and Rising Global Food Prices
The document examines how Mozambique's reliance on food imports and historical underinvestment in agriculture have made it vulnerable to global price spikes, particularly for rice and wheat. It details the transition from state-supported agriculture to neoliberal structural adjustment programmes in the 1990s, which led to a decline in the use of fertilizers and pesticides. To counter current food insecurity, the government has introduced the 'Green Revolution' strategy and the 2008–11 Food Production Action Plan (FPAP), increasing the agricultural budget to 10% of the state budget and reducing import tariffs on staples from 25% to 2.5%. The author argues that long-term success depends on improving infrastructure, resolving land tenure conflicts, and attracting private sector investment.
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Document type: Research paper
Agriculture: Future Scenarios for Southern Africa
The document analyzes the decline of Zimbabwe's agricultural sector and its resulting food insecurity, identifying structural failures, hyperinflation, and land reform as primary drivers. It evaluates domestic support programs and trade policies, concluding that while Zimbabwe has the potential for self-sufficiency, it requires comprehensive reforms in infrastructure, technology, and regional cooperation to overcome current supply-side constraints.
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Document type: Case study
Review of Agricultural Water Management Intervention Impacts at the Watershed Scale: a Synthesis Using the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework
The review finds that AWM interventions generally produce positive impacts across five capitals—financial, natural, social, physical, and human—with projects employing multiple interventions yielding more positive results. However, it highlights a critical lack of systematic monitoring and evaluation, particularly regarding negative externalities and long-term sustainability.
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Document type: Report
The Nile: Is it a curse or blessing?
The document examines the hydropolitics of the Nile Basin, focusing on the tensions between upstream states, particularly Ethiopia, and downstream states, Egypt and Sudan. It argues that colonial-era agreements and Egypt's pursuit of 'prior appropriation' rights have created an inequitable distribution of water, hindering development in upper riparian states. The author suggests that cooperation through frameworks like the Nile Basin Initiative and the adoption of the Helsinki Rules for equitable sharing are necessary to avoid future conflict and ensure food and energy security.
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Document type: Research paper
Greening the Namibian Desert: An African Success Story
The document details how entrepreneur Dusan Vasiljevic established a table grape industry in Namibia's arid coastal regions starting in 1988, leveraging a specific climatic window to supply European markets. It describes the transition from a single farm, Aussenkehr, to a broader industry involving government parastatals and black empowerment corporations. The text highlights the importance of the Fourth Lomé Convention for EU market access and the challenges of meeting stringent quality certifications and US quarantine requirements. By 2003, production grew to over 12,000 tonnes, creating thousands of jobs in the Karas Region and expanding into the South Central region via the Hardap irrigation scheme.
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Document type: Case study
Producer Coping and Adaptation Responses to Weather Shocks and Stresses in Southern Alberta
The study identifies common extreme weather events in Southern Alberta, including the 2001 drought, 2002 flooding, and 2007 extreme heat. It analyzes short-term coping mechanisms, such as water diversion and crop insurance, and long-term adaptation strategies, including no-till farming, crop rotation, and technological upgrades. The report also highlights non-weather stresses like the BSE crisis and rising input costs, while noting a general dissatisfaction with government programs like CAIS.
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Document type: Research paper
Watering Scarcity
The report highlights that global water demand exceeds renewable supplies, with agriculture accounting for over 70% of withdrawals. It argues that increasing crop water productivity through mature technologies and improving policy incentives creates a significant opportunity for private capital investment, despite potential disruptions from the 2008 financial crisis.
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Document type: Report