Nicaragua

This report assesses women’s and men’s participation in coffee and cocoa value chains in Latin America in order to identify key considerations and next steps for the development of research, policy and practice on value chain upgrading for enhanced smallholder prosperity. In particular, the report analyzes the differential roles that women and men play and the benefits they perceive from their participation in coffee and cocoa value chains. »

This report by IFAD shows how drylands support important ecosystems and a great variety of biodiversity, as well as their vital role in the livelihoods and cultural identity of many smallholders. It reveals the crucial role the world’s drylands play in buffering the negative impacts of climate change, land degradation and drought. »

This literature review by CGIAR summarizes the research published about gender in the cattle sector in Central America. This includes the findings that (1) women lack access to and control over productive resources in the cattle sector and (2) extension services and training do not focus on women, likely because women’s contributions are undervalued. There is an urgent need to fill the enormous knowledge gap on gender dynamics in the dairy and cattle production value chains in the Central America region. »

This article published by the Climate Change Journal addresses the potential impact of climate change on suitability for major crops and adaptive capacity using indicators of basic human needs, as well as resources for innovation and action framed in a livelihoods approach. The article add to the mounting evidence that rising temperatures and longer, more intense dry seasons could redraw the agricultural map of Central America. »

This article in the Agronomy for Sustainable Development Journal, conceptualizes scaling processes as an integral part of a systemic approach to innovation, to anticipate on the possible consequences of scaling efforts. The authors propose a method that connects the heuristic framework of the multi-level perspective on socio-technical transitions (MLP) to a philosophical ‘modal aspects’ framework, with the objective of elucidating the connectedness between technologies, processes and practices. »

This issue explores innovative ways to demonstrate that agroecology provides critical solutions to the challenges of our time. Agro-ecology is gaining recognition for its potential to address climate change, biodiversity loss and malnutrition, and many successful examples exist. However, to garner the necessary support in policy and practice, looking differently at ‘progress’, ‘performance’ or ‘success’ of farming and food systems is key. »