Structural Change Productivity And Climate Nexus In Agriculture

This monograph addresses the methodological and empirical issues relevant for the development of sustainable agriculture, with a particular focus on Eastern Europe. It relates economic growth to the other dimensions of sustainability by applying integrated methods. The book comprises five chapters dedicated to the theoretical approaches towards sustainable rural development, productivity analysis, structural change analysis and environmental footprint. The book focuses on the transformations of the agricultural sector while taking into account economic, environmental, and social dynamics. The importance of agricultural transformations to the livelihood of the rural population and food security are highlighted. Further, advanced methodologies and frameworks are presented to fathom the underlying trends in different facets of agricultural production. The authors present statistical methods used for the analysis of agricultural sustainability along with applications for agriculture in the European Union. Additionally, they discuss the measures of efficiency, methodological approaches and empirical models. Finally, the book applies econometric and optimization techniques, which are useful for the estimation of the production functions and other representations of technology in the case of the European Union member states. Therefore, the book is a must-read for researchers and students of agricultural and production economics, as well as policy-makers and academia in general.

Agriculture is highly dependent on and sensitive to weather. Warming effects result from greenhouse gas emissions and aerosols from a small number of countries but its impact will be felt on a global scale. So far, agricultural productivity growth has sustained the continuous global supply of food but will this continue into the foreseeable future with the incidence of climate change? The effects of climate change on crop yields have been the focus of several studies. However, the sensitivity of agricultural productivity (measured as Total Factor Productivity-TFP) to climate change is not well understood. The first essay examines how historical changes in temperature and precipitation have affected the evolution of agricultural total factor productivity (TFP) while accounting for the short and long term impact. A fixed effect regression model for 128 countries for a period of 1961 to 2014 was employed to exploit yearly changes in temperature and precipitation as the identification strategy. Results show that precipitation has a significant effect on TFP growth in Sub-Saharan Africa, tropical and low income countries. Global short term temperature effect is offset in the long run showing that farmers adapt to reduce the effects of temperature in their behavioral decisions. Irrespective of the impact of climate change, there have been calls for an increase in agricultural productivity due to uncertainty and a global decline in Research and Development (R&D) expenditures. Previous literature accounts for the effect of global TFP growth on global food security and the environment. My second essay estimates the impact of TFP growth in different regions on global food security and the environment using a partial equilibrium model. To construct comparable TFP shocks across regions, I consider three TFP shock scenarios: (i) a uniform 100 percent increase in TFP growth in each region, (ii) TFP growth in each region that gives the same decrease in global commodity price, and (iii) TFP growth in each region resulting from the same increase in R&D expenditure. Results show that a 100% increase in TFP in the US & Canada increases agricultural carbon emission within the US & Canada by 16.9% but with a net global decrease in agricultural carbon emissions by 4.27%. In addition, a 100% increase in TFP in the US & Canada decreases global food security (malnutrition) by 13.09%. These results provide justification to support increasing R&D expenditures in developed regions. Overall, TFP growth is most effective in Sub-Saharan Africa as it gives the largest reductions in malnutrition and carbon emissions.

The edited book provides a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of scientific developments in agricultural sustainability under changing climate conditions. It focuses on the linkages among soil, water, and crops and their management options to maintain soil health and ensure a sustainable crop production environment. The book addresses the scenarios and challenges of agricultural sustainability in the face of climatic change. With increasing pressure on our limited land and water resources to produce higher crop yields for a growing global population, the efficient use of soil, water, and fertilizers is crucial for achieving most of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The book presents climate change mitigation and adaptation options to help achieve these SDGs. It highlights the impact of climate variability on agricultural production and the functions of ecosystems, emphasizing the importance of developing climate-resilient agriculture to sustain food production and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The book explores the soil-water-plant nexus and its response to changing climate, characterizing seasonal and inter-annual climatic variability in crop growth and yield. Different chapters evaluate the effects of climate change on soil health degradation, depletion of soil nutrients and carbon contents, and crop responses to climate variability. This book is of interest to academicians, researchers, scientists, capacity builders, and policymakers. Extension personnel will benefit from its insights, and it serves as valuable supporting material for graduate students of agriculture, forestry, ecology, soil science, and environmental sciences in understanding and designing their own research.

Explore the Relationship between Crop and Climate Agricultural sustainability has been gaining prominence in recent years and is now becoming the focal point of modern agriculture. Recognizing that crop production is very sensitive to climate change, Climate Change Effect on Crop Productivity explores this timely topic in-depth. Incorporating contributions by expert scientists, professors, and researchers from around the world, it emphasizes concerns about the current state of agriculture and of our environment. This text analyzes the global consequences to crop yields, production, and risk of hunger linking climate and socioeconomic scenarios. Addresses Biotechnology, Climate Change, and Plant Productivity The book contains 19 chapters covering issues such as CO2, ozone on plants, productivity fertilization effect, UV (ultraviolet) radiation, temperature, and stress on crop growth. The text discusses the impact of changing climate on agriculture, environment stress physiology, adaptation mechanism, climate change data of recent years, impact of global warming, and climate change on different crops. It explores the overall global picture in terms of the effect of crops to climate change during abiotic stress and considers strategies for offsetting and adapting to ongoing climate change. Details how and why climate change occurs and how it effects crop productivity and agriculture Considers what measures should be taken to mitigate the effect of climate change on agriculture Highlights the effect of climate change on crop productivity, the invention of new technology, and strategies for agriculture practice to adapt to climate change Provides an analysis of the global warming effect on crop productivity due to climate change and long-term agriculture technique development Confirms the asymmetry between potentially severe agricultural damages such as the effect on crop yield due to variation in temperature Reports on the results of experiments to assess the effects of global climate change on crop productivity An asset to agriculturists, environmentalists, climate change specialists, policy makers, and research scholars, Climate Change Effect on Crop Productivity provides relevant information and opportunities for productive engagement and discussion among government negotiators, experts, stakeholders, and others concerned about climate change and agriculture.

According to the United Nations, the world’s population will grow by 2 billion people over the coming decades to reach 9.7 billion by 2050 (UNDESA-DP 2019a). The dignity and life prospects of those additional 2 billion people will depend on their ability to meet basic needs, such as food, clothing, and shelter, and their access to adequate employment. The most pressing need for jobs will be felt in those regions and countries that have not yet gone through the demographic transition, and where the cohort of young people is growing rapidly. The challenge will be compounded by an increasingly crowded, more competitive world with fewer natural resources per capita, and by the threat of climate change, which is projected to affect every sector of the economy (Arent 2014).

The book 'Climate Change and Agricultural Food Production: Impacts, Vulnerabilities and Remedies' provides an overview of climate change impacts on all agricultural food producing sectors (agriculture, livestock and fisheries), food contamination, and food safety (microbial pathogens, toxic biological & toxic chemical contaminants), food security and climate change adaptation and mitigation measures to counteract or minimise or reduce the effects of climate change on agriculture, livestock and fisheries. It reviews and summarizes research results, data and information from the world including Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America, North America, Polar Regions and Small Island Nations. The book has been structured as textbook, reference book and extension book and written in simple and plain English with key facts and acronyms and glossary provided in each with tables and figures to benefit a wide range of readeThe key data and information provided in each are highlighted below:

Climate change (CC) is currently an unquestionable phenomenon. If not stopped, it will be catastrophic for life on earth. Scientific evidence shows that human activities are the primary driver of CC tendencies since the industrial times. In this book, we present the relationship between development and CC, with special reference to agriculture, the rural sector, and policies aimed to promote sustainable development. We also give special attention to the situation in low- and medium-income countries particularly rural households and small farmers in these countries.The study of agriculture, CC, and sustainability requires consideration of natural resources and their uses (land, freshwater, forests, etc.), as well as the rural sector since land for agricultural production often expands at the expense of forests. In addition, the use of water for agricultural production affects the availability of this resource for other uses in the urban, industrial, and service sectors. Consequently, sustainable agricultural development under CC requires an interdisciplinary or at least a multidisciplinary approach. In this book, we do our best to deal with this challenge by focusing on issues and topics related to agriculture and its use of natural resources in the context of CC, but without ignoring the interrelations of these phenomena with further aspects of sustainability beyond agriculture.

This book is based on the outcomes of a Turkish-Japanese bilateral project dealing with the impacts of climate change on basin agro-ecosystems. The book is unique in showing an up-to-date knowledge for the developing world. The chapters are related to: a) the development and improvement of a regional climate model for a more accurate prediction with higher resolution of future changes in regional climate, b) the structure of land and water management in agricultural production systems in arid areas, especially to quantitatively evaluate the relationships among cropping systems, hydrological cycle and water balance in farmland and its environments, c) the assessment of the impact of climate change and its adaptation on agricultural production systems, mainly on the aspect of land and water management, and d) the vulnerability of agricultural production systems from natural changes and the measures for enhancing sustainability of agriculture. This book elaborates on the methodologies for the assessment of climate change impacts on agricultural production and adaptationIn this book, the concepts and processes of an integrated approach are outlined, and its application in a case project is introducedThe approaches described in the chapters would be applicable in different situations and could be improved with experience and the introduction of advanced techniques

Climate change threatens our ability to ensure global food security, eradicate poverty and achieve sustainable development. About 736 million people live in extreme poverty, and the global response to climate change today will determine how we feed future generations. By 2030, UN member countries have committed to eradicating extreme poverty and hunger for people everywhere. As ending poverty and hunger are at the heart of FAO’s work, the organization is helping countries develop and implement evidence-based pro-poor policies, strategies and programmes that promote inclusive growth and sustainable livelihoods, as well as to increase the resilience, adaptive and coping capacity of poor and vulnerable communities to climate change. In order to achieve this, FAO encourages an integrated Climate-Poverty Approach to support policy development and action by policymakers, government officials, local-level institutions, communities, researchers, and development and humanitarian agencies worldwide. The Approach has been developed with insights from many perspectives, and includes not only climate and poverty aspects, but also indigenous, gender, food security, disaster response, resilience, SIDS and coastal community perspectives, among others. With a series of policy recommendations and tools to improve the design, delivery, and results of synergies and linkages between climate mitigation and adaptation, poverty reduction and food security actions, these synergies and linkages can make significant contributions towards achieving both the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Paris Agreement targets.

Roughly a billion people around the world continue to live in state of chronic hunger and food insecurity. Unfortunately, efforts to improve their livelihoods must now unfold in the context of a rapidly changing climate, in which warming temperatures and changing rainfall regimes could threaten the basic productivity of the agricultural systems on which most of the world’s poor directly depend. But whether climate change represents a minor impediment or an existential threat to development is an area of substantial controversy, with different conclusions wrought from different methodologies and based on different data. This book aims to resolve some of the controversy by exploring and comparing the different methodologies and data that scientists use to understand climate’s effects on food security. In explains the nature of the climate threat, the ways in which crops and farmers might respond, and the potential role for public and private investment to help agriculture adapt to a warmer world. This broader understanding should prove useful to both scientists charged with quantifying climate threats, and policy-makers responsible for crucial decisions about how to respond. The book is especially suitable as a companion to an interdisciplinary undergraduate or graduate level class.