Since international climate change negotiations began in the early 1990s, agriculture has been largely overlooked. This omission was perhaps understandable, given the knowledge of the time. Now, it no longer is. A growing body of evidence shows that the world’s farmers can play a significant role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and thus contribute to […]
AFA, as a regional farmers’ organization, and 3 member organizations from Southeast Asian countries participated in the negotiations on the “Medium Term Cooperation Programme with Farmers’ Organizations in the Asia and the Pacific Region” held last May 12-13, 2009 at the FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific Region in Bangkok, Thailand. Esther Penunia […]
Farmers claim to be stewards of the environment, some would say it’s best friend; others, its worst enemy. The truth is we can be both. Humans have never left a small footprint, we have always tried to shape the environment to suit our needs. Initially farming had one purpose, food; farming provided a more stable […]
Our unsustainable way of life is causing a crisis in our environment at a global scale. Climate change is threatening the future of our planet. The crisis is largely our own doing, and we also have the means to solve it, if we are willing to act on it. Farmers, fishers, and indigenous peoples, who […]
By Elenita Dano and Juan Hoffmaister THE current thematic cycle of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) could not have come at a more opportune time. As the world faces perhaps the most serious convergence of crises in food and finance, climate change, environment and energy, the 17th session of the CSD will tackle […]
“We did not know much about the situation of farmers before, but after this internship in AFA, we now understand the problems that they are facing and how farmers’ organizations like AFA are working to help improve their condition.” This was one of the insights by Samuel Reddy and Jyothirmai Paritala, 2 MA students from […]
Landlessness, poverty, unjust and unfair trade — these are just some of the problems faced by small scale men and women farmers in Asia. In this video entitled “Farmers’ Rights, Farmers’ Lives,” AFA leaders share similar situations of farmers — their struggles and their dreams for a better life for those who form the majority […]
More than half of the world’s 6 billion people eat rice as their staple food. Global rice prices have been rising since early 2003. Moderate increases of 9 per cent in 2006 and 17 per cent in 2007 were recorded, but since the beginning of 2008 international rice prices have shown a steep upward trend, […]
