Information Analysis
Search Information Analysis
Pick Up
412. Status and Trends of Climate Change Adaptation in Africa
On October 26, the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) released a report on the status and trends of climate change adaptation in Africa. One in five people in Africa faced hunger in 2020, twice as many as in other regions. Climate change is expected to cause major changes in areas suitable for agriculture, and agricultural systems, food production and import dependency could change beyond imagination. The report states that the benefits of adaptation measures over the next 20 years will greatly outweigh their investment costs by a factor of five or more.
Pick Up
411. Climate Change Awareness
The 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is currently being held in Glasgow, UK. The recent increase in awareness of climate change has led to the current global decarbonization initiative. However, in order to actually lead to policy and individual action, it is necessary to provide information to the wider community about proposals based on scientific insights.
Pick Up
410. The 15th TARF Open House ―Online Event from November 8 (Mon) to 14 (Sun), 2021―
The JIRCAS Tropical Agriculture Research Front (TARF) will hold the 15th Open House from November 8 (Mon) to 14 (Sun), 2021, as part of its public relations activities for this fiscal year and to introduce its research activities to the general public. For the first time, we will be holding this event online, and we have organized various exhibitions and interactive activities that everyone from children to adults and from anywhere in the world can enjoy.
Pick Up
409. Towards Sustainable Food Systems in the Asian Monsoon Region
JIRCAS will hold an international symposium on the realization of a sustainable food system in the Asian monsoon region on November 17, 2021. Today's Pickup summarizes the characteristics of the Asian monsoon region and the state of agriculture in the region.
Pick Up
408. Net Zero Concept
The term "net zero" has become a hot topic in the international debate on climate change. Just at the end of October last year, the Japanese government announced its goal of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Net-zero is understood to mean that for every ton of carbon emitted from the use of fossil fuels, one ton of carbon from the atmosphere will be absorbed and fixed through afforestation. However, it is impossible to keep converting rocks into trees forever, and we need to reduce the use of fossil fuels while preserving nature, including the biosphere.
Pick Up
407. Record High Greenhouse Gas Concentration and Temperature in Asia in 2020
On October 25, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) announced that the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere reached a new record high in 2020. Then on October 26, it released the "State of the Climate in Asia 2020", reporting that Asia has its warmest year on on record in 2020. Improving the food and nutrition security situation in Asia will require innovations that are resilient to extreme weather risks and mitigate climate change. In particular, innovations must be adapted to local conditions to enable reductions in greenhouse gases from agricultural sources while maintaining food productivity.
Pick Up
406. The Concept of Food Sovereignty
Food sovereignty is often contrasted with food security. As the definitions of the two have changed, they have become non-conflicting concepts, but the difference is that food security is an explanatory concept and tool for understanding hunger and malnutrition, while food sovereignty involves political strategies.
Pick Up
405. Limiting Global Temperature Rise to 1.5°C
The Paris Agreement, and also COP26, which will be held from October 31, discusses limiting the increase in average temperature to well below 2°C compared to pre-industrial levels and within 1.5°C as much as possible. According to the IPCC 1.5°C Special Report published in 2018, in a 1.5°C warming world, climate-related risks would be higher than today, but lower than in a 2°C-warming world, allowing more time to develop adaptation measures. A rapid and widespread system transition in energy, land use, cities, infrastructure, and industry will be required to avoid exceeding 1.5°C.
Pick Up
404. JIRCAS International Symposium 2021 ― Program and Start of Registration
Registration is now open for the JIRCAS International Symposium 2021 to be held on November 17, 2021. The theme of this year's symposium is “The Role of Science, Technology and Innovation in Achieving Sustainable Food Systems in the Asia Monsoon Region: A Platform for International Collaboration” with the aim of contributing to the ‘Strategy for Sustainable Food Systems, MeaDRI’ and to provide a forum for discussion with various stakeholders from research institutes, universities as well the general public towards the realization of sustainable food systems.
Pick Up
403. Impacts of Climate Change in Africa
On October 19, 2021, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) released the State of the Climate in Africa 2020 report. Weather and climate change in Africa is increasing, causing disturbances in economic, ecological and social systems. One of the most symbolic effects of climate change is the melting of glaciers, which at the current rate could disappear by the 2040s. It is important for Africa to aim for a sustainable and green recovery from the effective pandemic of climate change.
Pick Up
402. Contribution of Fruits and Vegetables to Improved Nutrition and Challenges in the Food System
This year is the International Year of Fruits and Vegetables as designated by the United Nations. According to a study on the state of vegetable and fruit consumption in low- and middle-income countries conducted by researchers from Wageningen University & Research (WUR), millions of people in Asia and Africa are suffering not from food insecurity, but from a lack of healthy food, mainly because vegetables and fruits, though nutritious, are expensive and not readily available. In addition, agricultural and development policies have focused on cereals and vegetables such as onions and tomatoes, and not much attention has been paid to healthier leafy vegetables.
Pick Up
401. Elucidating the Unique Reproductive Behavior of Desert Locust Leads to Reduction in Use of Pesticides
Desert locusts are found in semi-arid regions from West Africa to India, where they often cause serious agricultural damage. JIRCAS is conducting research to develop efficient control technologies based on the ecology of desert locust. In this article, we introduce our research on the reproductive behavior of the desert locusts, which can lead to environment-friendly pest control that does not require the use of pesticides more than necessary.
Pick Up
400. Earth System, Food Systems and Innovation
October 16 was World Food Day which provided an opportunity to remind us that the way we produce, consume and waste food is taking a heavy toll on our planet. To mark our 400th blog, today’s Pick Up briefly features Prof. Ruth DeFries’ argument on the relation between the earth systems, food systems and innovation.
Pick Up
399. Development of New Production Technology for Larval Shrimp～Balancing Basic and Applied Research～
There are many species of shrimp, but the most widely farmed shrimp in the world is the whiteleg shrimp of the family Penaeidae. The current production methods that support the huge shrimp farming industry are not very efficient and place a heavy burden on the parent shrimp. Based on biological findings, JIRCAS is promoting research to develop a new maturation promotion technology that is friendly to shrimp and efficient.
Pick Up
398. Agriculture IoT Solution Expected to be Used in Developing Countries
In order to solve food problems caused by climate change and constraints on the agricultural workforce in developing regions, there are growing expectations for smart agricultural technologies that enable labor-saving, reduced workload and increased efficiency in agriculture through the use of advanced technologies and digital information.
Pick Up
397. International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction 2021: International Cooperation for Developing Countries
The United Nations has designated October 13th as "International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction" to promote global risk-awareness and disaster reduction. Disasters have a significant impact on food and nutrition security through their impact on agriculture. This year’s theme is “International cooperation for developing countries to reduce their disaster risk and disaster losses”.
Pick Up
396. JARQ Special Issue on the Scientific Contributions of Japan and Japanese Researchers to CGIAR
The CGIAR is an international organization established in 1971 for the purpose of improving the productivity and technological development of agriculture, forestry and fisheries in developing countries. The 15 CGIAR research centers (as of 2020) function as independent institutions and have contributed to solving global food and environmental problems as a frontier of international agricultural research, covering a wide range of topics such as crops, livestock, forests, fisheries, and natural resource management. On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the CGIAR in 2021, a special issue of the Japan Agricultural Research Quarterly (JARQ) focuses on the scientific contributions of Japan and Japanese researchers to CGIAR and their major achievements.
Pick Up
395. Alliance of the UN Food Systems Summit and Tokyo Nutrition Summit 2021
The “Nutrition for Growth Year of Action” was launched in December 2020. As we have reported in the past, the UN Food Systems Summit was held in September this year. And in December, the Tokyo Nutrition Summit 2021 will be held. Together, these two summits address the need for all stakeholders to unite and actively participate in the mission to ensure that all people have access to safe, affordable and nutritious food by 2030.
Pick Up
394. Practical application of global research results and establishment of a model platform for promoting private-sector research collaboration and creating new business ventures (Research applications/ventures)
Up until the present, research results/technologies generated by JIRCAS have been mainly disseminated and established by research organizations and government agencies in the relevant target countries. In this way, examples of institute researchers directly utilizing their research results to contribute to their rapid development and dissemination have been limited. In the “Research applications/ventures” project, JIRCAS will take up the challenge of establishing a business model for the first time, in order to create a platform for disseminating research results and revitalizing research activities. Such activity will serve to refine JIRCAS-generated technologies in context of the needs of the relevant target countries and regions, and optimize their usage through various collaborations with domestic/overseas organizations and the private sector.
Pick Up
393. Prepare for the Looming Water Crisis
Floods and droughts due to climate change and changes in rainfall patterns at the global and regional levels due to rising temperatures are having a major impact on food security and human well-being through changes in the agricultural season. On October 5, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) released its white paper, 2021 State of Climate Services: Water, stressing the urgent need for policy development and investment in sustainable development goals, climate change adaptation, and disaster crisis mitigation.