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The report argues that the USDA has a "long and painful history of racism and discrimination" that has led to massive land loss for Black, Indigenous, Latino, and Asian American farmers. To fulfill the mandates of Executive Order 13,985, the authors propose structural reforms including the creation of an Equity Action Plan, the establishment of an interagency task force, and the implementation of legislative set-asides for BIPOC groups. Key recommendations include increasing land access through subsidized sales and loans, improving protections for farmworkers against pesticide exposure and heat stress, and reforming the USDA's civil rights office to ensure prompt resolution of discrimination claims. The document also calls for reducing the funding of Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) due to their disproportionate impact on communities of color and expanding eligibility for federal nutrition programs.

The Municipality of Rosario, Argentina, established the Urban Agriculture Program (PAU) in 2002 to combat food scarcity and unemployment following the 2001 economic crisis. The program provides low-income residents access to underutilized land for agroecological production, creating livelihoods for nearly 300 urban farmers, 65% of whom are women. Beyond social benefits, the program reduces greenhouse gas emissions by localizing food production and improves urban resilience to flooding by enhancing soil absorbency. The initiative has been institutionalized through the 2015 Green Belt Project, which designated 800 hectares of peri-urban land for agriculture, and is integrated into the city's strategic and environmental plans.

The project aims to mitigate the impacts of increasing temperatures and decreasing rainfall in Southern Madagascar, which have led to frequent droughts and food insecurity. It proposes a paradigm shift from focusing solely on water supply infrastructure to adapting the underlying water resources system. Key strategies include managed aquifer recharge (MAR) to store wet season surpluses, expanding hydro-meteorological monitoring networks, and developing community-based drought adaptation plans. The project targets 24 communes with approximately 553,240 direct beneficiaries, utilizing a combination of GCF grants and co-financing from the World Bank and UNICEF.

The report examines how the fishmeal and fish oil industry in West Africa, particularly in Mauritania, Senegal, and The Gambia, diverts critical protein sources from local human consumption to feed aquaculture and livestock in Europe and Asia. It highlights the ecological collapse of sardinelle and bonga stocks, the socio-economic marginalization of local fish processors (primarily women), and the role of European feed giants and retailers in driving this demand.

The World Climate and Security Report 2021 assesses how climate change acts as a threat multiplier for global security, emphasizing the urgent need to move from strategic planning to concrete implementation. It introduces a new Climate Security Risk Matrix to evaluate comparative risks among countries and presents a risk perception survey where experts predict severe-to-catastrophic risks by 2031. The report details regional vulnerabilities, specifically in sub-Saharan Africa and the European Union, and analyzes the role of militaries as first responders and contributors to emissions. It concludes with recommendations for updating international law regarding the law of the sea and geoengineering governance, and calls for deeper integration of climate security into UN and EU institutional frameworks.

The interim evaluation of the Climate Resilient Integrated Water Management Project (CRIWMP) in Sri Lanka indicates that while progress is satisfactory for irrigation and forecasting outputs, drinking water solutions have faced significant setbacks. The project employs an innovative river-basin approach to integrate village irrigation system (VIS) rehabilitation, climate-smart agriculture (CSA), and early warning systems. Key achievements include the rehabilitation of 131 VISs and the installation of 3,112 rainwater harvesting systems. However, the project has struggled with low mobilization of government co-financing, infrequent Project Board meetings, and a critical baseline shift in water source availability for drinking water, which has led to a proposed restructuring to reduce the number of beneficiaries. The evaluation highlights a strong commitment to gender equality, with women making up over 50% of beneficiaries, though gender balance remains poor within project governance and staff.

The IAI Scientific Agenda, adopted in June 2021, establishes a framework for scientific research on global environmental change (GEC) in the Americas. It defines the primary objective of the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) as advancing comparative studies that exceed national program scopes to improve the region's ability to sustain itself and cope with GEC. The agenda is structured around four interrelated research themes—human dimensions, climate variability, ecosystems/biodiversity, and atmospheric/oceanic modulations—and is designed to be revised every 3-6 years in alignment with the IAI's Strategic Plan.

The document examines the role of nuclear science and technology in Africa, highlighting the use of 10 research reactors for education and medical/environmental research. It emphasizes the critical need for radiotherapy machines to combat rising cancer rates and the use of nuclear techniques in agriculture to ensure food security and manage zoonotic diseases. The brief outlines the legal framework for peaceful use, including the Pelindaba Treaty and the NPT, and identifies challenges such as public skepticism, financial instability, and safety risks. It recommends expanded continental training and continued cooperation with the IAEA and AFCONE.

The report estimates that 1.2 billion tonnes of food are wasted on farms annually, representing 15.3% of global production. This waste contributes 2.2 gigatonnes of CO2 eq, approximately 4% of all anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. The analysis reveals that high- and middle-income regions contribute a disproportionate share of harvest waste per capita. The document argues that farm-stage waste is driven not only by direct biological or technical factors but by indirect systemic drivers, including market power imbalances, rigid retail specifications, and the diversion of edible food to animal feed. It calls for a 50% reduction target from 'farm to fork' by 2030 and a shift toward holistic interventions involving governments, retailers, and citizens.

The programme addresses the dual threat of coral reef degradation, which reduces local food security, and the eastward migration of tuna stocks, which threatens the government revenues of tuna-dependent Pacific Island nations. It proposes two main components: scaling up National Fish Aggregating Device (FAD) programmes to help coastal communities transition from reef fishing to tuna fishing, and developing an 'advance warning system' (AWS) using genetic population analysis and modelling to predict tuna redistribution. This AWS is intended to empower nations to negotiate for the retention of historical fishing rights in international waters. The total indicative cost is USD 120,945,000, with USD 70,245,000 requested from the Green Climate Fund.

The document argues that the responses of interdependent countries to climate risks can be as impactful as the initial climate events themselves, using the 2007-8 global food price crisis as a case study to illustrate how climate impacts can trigger systemic disruptions far from their origin.

The 'Resilient Recovery Rapid Readiness Support in Lesotho' project seeks USD 300,000 from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) to ensure that Lesotho's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic accelerates its climate goals. The initiative focuses on creating a National strategy for resilient recovery, including an investment plan, and developing two concept notes for climate-resilient agriculture and food security. The project is led by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) under the guidance of the Lesotho Meteorological Services, which serves as the National Designated Authority (NDA). It aims to address the socio-economic shocks of the pandemic—which increased vulnerable households by 50%—by integrating climate adaptation and mitigation into economic stimulus and recovery planning.

The study identifies a critical need for integrated attention to food, water, forest, and energy security in East Africa to achieve sustainable development goals, noting that high reliance on agriculture makes the region vulnerable to climate change. A primary obstacle is the lack of current and comprehensive data, particularly regarding water and energy indices, with some available data dating back to 2016.

The document outlines the evolution of modern biotechnology and the subsequent development of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to protect human health and biodiversity from the adverse effects of living modified organisms (LMOs). It details the Protocol's operationalization of the precautionary approach, its mechanisms for transboundary movement—such as the advance informed agreement (AIA) procedure—and its relationship with trade agreements like the WTO SPS Agreement. The brief also discusses the 2010 Nagoya-Kuala Lumpur Supplementary Protocol on Liability and Redress and highlights the ongoing challenges posed by emerging technologies like synthetic biology and gene drives.

The IAI Directorate reports that while COVID-19 delayed some actions requiring international travel, activities remain aligned with the Strategic Plan. The document introduces a comprehensive framework of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and leading/lagging metrics to measure organizational performance across themes such as fundraising, open data, capacity building, and science priorities. It also recommends delaying the triennial revision of the Strategic Plan to the 2023-2024 intersessional period to coincide with the term of a new Executive Director.

The document examines the state of agricultural value chains in the SADC region, noting that while the sector was minimally affected by COVID-19 compared to others, the pandemic exacerbated existing vulnerabilities. Key challenges identified include a heavy reliance on subsistence farming, food insecurity, and the impact of climate change. The brief argues for a 'dual approach' that supports both small-scale and large-scale commercial farming, the adoption of climate-smart technologies, digitalization of value chains, and the full implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to enhance regional trade and food security.

The document examines how climate change increases post-harvest losses in Kenya and Uganda through heightened pest and disease pressure, and proposes hermetic storage technologies (HSTs) as a solution to improve food security and farmer livelihoods.

The report argues that effective implementation of the SDGs in Canada requires a multi-tiered measurement approach that moves beyond national averages to identify and monitor vulnerable groups. It identifies key marginalized populations—including Indigenous Peoples, recent immigrants, and people with disabilities—and highlights the systemic data gaps that hinder targeted interventions. The authors advocate for the use of complementary community-driven data sources and investments in data interoperability, specifically through mission-oriented data ecosystems, to ensure that those 'furthest behind' are accurately captured and supported.

The document analyzes the vulnerability of sub-Saharan African food systems during the COVID-19 pandemic, noting a heavy reliance on global imports and a lack of fiscal capacity for social protection. It details how governments primarily used interventionist market, trade, and production policies, while highlighting severe disruptions in input supply, labor, and logistics. The authors argue for a shift toward more agile governance, investment in infrastructure, and the effective implementation of regional trade agreements to build future resilience.

The report finds that SDG implementation in Sri Lanka is highly synergistic, with only 2% of direct interactions between analyzed targets being restricting. Key 'accelerators' with the highest outward influence include policy coherence, reducing corruption, and climate change capacity. Conversely, targets like drinking water and housing show the lowest outward influence due to potential trade-offs with environmental and resource management. The study emphasizes that because targets are closely intertwined, Sri Lanka requires cross-sectoral collaboration rather than siloed approaches.