CLIMATE: HOW EGYPT’S FARMERS ARE TACKLING CLIMATE CHANGE WITH COMEDY AND COMMUNITY
MENNA A FAROUK, of Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports from Egypt…
Funding injection needed to stop poor farmers’ climate pain spreading
RomeThomson Reuters Foundation A doubling of international funding for agricultural science is needed to help half a billion small farmers cope with climate change – or the world risks mass migration and widespread instability, said the head of a major farm research network. Investment is “woefully short” of the amounts required for farmers to adapt […]
Tech entrepreneurs seek to shatter stereotypes about women in farming
Rome, ItalyThomson Reuters Foundation When Oluwayimika Angel Adelaja-Kuye started Nigeria’s first vertical farming company she already had years of experience advising governments under her belt – yet as a woman, she still struggled to be taken seriously. “In the beginning, even my staff, when they first come on board, are more likely to listen to […]
Next UN food chief must tackle hunger “emergency”
RomeThomson Reuters Foundation As candidates jostle to head the United Nations’ multibillion dollar food agency, experts called on Thursday for a strong leader to tackling rising hunger and climate change threats. Levels of hunger have grown for the past three years, with one in nine people – or 821 million – worldwide without enough to […]
FOOD SECURITY: WITH FARMS ATOP MALLS, SINGAPORE GETS SERIOUS ABOUT FUTURE FOOD
RINA CHANDRAN, of the Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports on how Singapore is ensuring its food security into the future…
Breakthrough in plant engineering could boost productivity, feed millions more
Thomson Reuters Foundation The yield of many staple crops could be boosted by 40 per cent by a new process that adjusts the way they turn sunlight into energy, potentially feeding hundreds of millions of more people, American researchers said on Thursday. Crops such as rice, wheat and soybeans, as well as fruits and vegetables […]
With sensors and apps, young African coders compete to curb hunger
Thomson Reuters Foundation From an app to diagnose disease on Zambian farms to Tinder-style matchmaking for Senegalese land owners and young farmers, young coders have been finding solutions to hunger in the first Africa-wide hackathon on the issue. Eight teams competed in the hackathon, organised by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization and a Rwandan […]
MIGRATION: REFUGEES SOW CROPS WITH KENYAN HOSTS AND REAP INTEGRATION
ISAIAH ESIPISU, writing for the Thomson Reuters Foundation, reports on 14 year project that aims to provide refugees with sustainable livelihoods through agriculture, while helping them integrate with the local Kenyan community…
Almost four land activists killed per week in deadliest year on record – campaigners
Thomson Reuters Foundation Nearly four land and environmental activists were killed each week last year, murdered for opposing large-scale agriculture and mining projects in the deadliest year on record, a campaign group said on Tuesday. In 22 countries surveyed by UK-based Global Witness, at least 207 activists were killed, making 2017 the deadliest year since […]
Can WhatsApp and motorbikes protect Africa’s food security?
Thomson Reuters Foundation A motorbike and reliable connectivity to watch football and chat on WhatsApp are the key to keeping young Africans in farming, a senior United Nations official said, as large-scale urban migration threatens food production on the continent. Africa already spends $US35 billion a year on importing food for its growing population despite […]