Call for Papers: Transitioning to Climate Resilient and Decarbonised Agrifood Systems in Southeast Asia – Workshop and Compendium

Southeast Asia (SEA) is among the regions hardest hit by climate change. The region is projected to face increasingly frequent and destructive storms, floods, heatwaves, floods, droughts, and other unpredictable weather events, which will impact food production. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) estimated that the region’s GDP could decline by 11 percent by the end of the century due to a decline in agriculture, fishing, and tourism. This would affect one in three people living in SEA who are employed in the agriculture sector (or approximately 190 million people). The volatility in food supply would also lead to higher food prices, greater food insecurity and potentially, create social instability.

Aside from being affected by climate change, food production also contributes to carbon emissions. One-third of global greenhouse gas emissions are from food and agriculture. With the exception of Brunei and Singapore, agriculture is among the top GHG sectors which requires climate mitigation action. Rice production is among the highest contributors to methane emissions globally. SEA produces 30 percent of the global supply of methane.

Decarbonising agriculture and the food system is thus crucial for a sustainable food future. Challenges faced impeding this transition include a lack of finance, slow uptake of technologies, inconsistent and obstructive regulatory frameworks, unbalanced allocation of funding, poor governance, and lack of prioritisation.

Against this backdrop, we would like to invite policymakers, practitioners, and scholars to contribute to a multi-disciplinary social, political, environmental and/or economic analysis of options for transitioning to climate-resilient and decarbonised agrifood systems in SEA.

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