COP 21 and the global horticulturist: the way to climate smart horticulture

By the end of the century, changes in temperature and rainfall, rising sea levels and the likely increase in extreme weather events will have a considerable impact on horticulture. Globally, agriculture, deforestation and other land uses are responsible for about 25% of greenhouse gas emissions. Faced with these changes, ensuring food security for all, especially for the poorest, is a major global challenge for horticulturists. Farmers from all around the globe will have to adapt to new contexts and this requires profound changes. The concept of climate-smart agriculture is based on the premise that it is possible to ensure production meets the needs of farmers while adapting to and mitigating climate change. CSA refers to agricultural systems that increase food security in the face of climate change, enhance adaptive capacity of farmers to the impacts of climate change, and mitigate climate change where possible. CSA has quickly been integrated into the global development agenda; it is not a new set of practices to be promoted to farmers, but rather an integrated approach to the implementation of agricultural development policies and programmes that strives to improve food security, livelihoods, and resilience under the realities of climate change, while at the same time capturing mitigation co-benefits where possible.