Land and Water Solutions blog posts

How can investors in climate resilience know whether their support is having the intended effect? In an attempt to provide answers, WLE scientists have reviewed a suite of existing tools designed to assess livelihood resilience in the face of climate change.

In rural settings, women are not typically seen as political activists or public figures involved in front-line negotiations. Yet, a new CGIAR study shows they help resolve potential conflicts around land and water use.

Although the total number of water-insecure countries in Asia has reduced from 38 to 29 in the last five years, water demand is going to increase by 100 percent by 2050. A new report from the Asian Development Bank, presented this week in Stockholm, outlines the implications.

A recent research publication covering two similar catchments in upland Laos and upland Vietnam found a striking different hydrological situation in each place. What accounts for the difference, and what are the implications for forest management policy?

Debates on the best way to sustainably intensify agriculture have thus far focused on the constraints to adopting new farming technologies. Refocusing research on the actions of farmers could provide a clearer picture of the complex, context-dependent preconditions for sustainable intensification in specific places.

Agriculture has changed significantly in the last few decades, making farmers' lives easier and allowing massive increases in production. However, these changes have come at environmental and social costs: collaborating directly with farmers must be a prerequisite for sustainable intensification.

New research for development is revealing how small-scale irrigation may have benefits that reach far beyond food security alone.

Sub Saharan Africa is facing a food crisis due to drought. In the face of water and climate uncertainty, is groundwater irrigation the key to ensuring food security in the region?

The government of Tigray, a region home to a growing population of over 4.5 million farmers, continues to promote food security through improved production and expanding land use for agriculture.

Cacti could be the new jatropha. There is a buzz in some biofuel circles that these desert succulents are set to become the next wonder energy crop -- yielding prodigious quantities of biomass for biogas fermentation to generate electricity in the semi-arid lands of Africa and elsewhere.  

Just one week before World Wetlands Day, at a meeting in Myanmar, Environment Ministers of the Greater Mekong Subregion reaffirmed their commitment to “green” economic growth. The challenge they recognized is ensuring not only sustainable growth but also inclusive and shared growth.