1409. Looking Back on 2025

Thank you for visiting JIRCAS Pick Up in 2025.

Recently, AI has made remarkable advances, allowing us to instantly summarize information on the web by simply entering various keywords without having to refer to original sources. For Pick Up articles, search traffic to past articles on current topics was prominent.

Amid this, the topic of rising global average temperatures once again attracted attention this year. Following 2023, 2024 was the hottest year on record due to an El Niño event. January 2025 was the warmest January on record globally, starting at 1.75°C above pre-industrial levels, but the progression of the La Niña phenomenon has put a pause on the streak of record-breaking temperatures. While 2025 may not see temperatures exceeding 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, it is predicted to exceed 1.5°C for the first time in the three-year observation period from 2023 to 2025. 
1174. 2024 – The Hottest Year in Recorded History

1192. Monthly Temperatures in January 2025 were 1.75°C Higher than Pre-industrial Levels
1290. Report on the June 2025 Heat Wave in the Northern Hemisphere
1357. Third-warmest September on Record amid Persistently High Ocean Temperature
1398. 2025 Expected to be Second- or Third-Warmest Year on Record
 

2025 will be a historic year of change in international development. The multilateral consensus on climate change, biodiversity, and other issues that had been gaining momentum through 2024 has faced headwinds. As a result, timely discussions on international cooperation generally seemed lackluster.

Even in this climate, the international trend toward food system transformation remains strong. While food systems are recognized as the single greatest factor in exceeding planetary boundaries, ensuring sustainable development that leaves no one behind requires providing nutritious food to all. Addressing various challenges around the world requires a forum for international collaboration to build scientifically based approaches and share best practices. Based on UN Secretary-General Guterres' belief that a shift to sustainable food systems is essential to achieving the SDGs, the second UN Food Systems Summit +4 Stocktaking Moment (UNFSS+4) was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from July 27 to 29, 2025. The meeting reviewed the progress of each country's commitments, strengthened cooperation, and held discussions on activating finance and investment to accelerate the transformation of food systems. 
1300. UN Food Systems Summit +4 Stocktake (UNFSS+4)
 

JIRCAS also held an in-person side event with national research institutes, government agencies, and NGOs from Japan, Ethiopia, Vietnam, and Uganda, as well as internationally active companies and UN agencies. Speakers from a wide range of fields, including agricultural research institutes, government ministries, international organizations, private companies, and NGOs from Asia and Africa, participated, providing a forum for dialogue on the science-policy interface and public-private partnerships. 
1308. Report on UNFSS+4 Side Event
1341. Report on the Side Event of the Follow-up Meeting of the UN Food Systems Summit
 

Leveraging the momentum of the UNFSS+4, the JIRCAS International Symposium 2025 was held under the theme of " Accelerating Application of Agricultural Technologies in the Asia-Monsoon Region: Taking Stock and the Way Forward for Enhancing Production Potentials and Sustainable Food Systems." The symposium shared the results and lessons learned from the "Green Asia Project," which aims to accelerate technology adoption through international cooperation, and discussed the future direction of international collaboration with experts. 

1373. JIRCAS International Symposium 2025 Held
 

JIRCAS will continue to disseminate information on scientific discussions and international policy trends surrounding food system transformation. Pick Up is scheduled to resume on January 5, 2025. 

Contributor: Miyuki IIYAMA, Information Program