The 2024 UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) occurred this year from Monday, November 11 to Friday, November 22, 2024, in Baku, the capital city of Azerbaijan. Dr. Rattan Lal felt honored to join his colleagues at the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), and the Coalition for Soil Health (CA4SH) for several programs. He particularly enjoyed the pleasant weather while he was there, which ranged from 40oF in the morning to 50oF during the day.
On the opening day of COP29, Dr. Lal joined a panel hosted by IICA with partner Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE) and RCC Caribbean, which serves small island states particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. In a discussion moderated by Muhammad Ibrahim, Director of Technical Cooperation of IICA, Dr. Lal deliberated potential solutions to the that challenges agriculture the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) faces. In particular, he emphasized the imporance of paying farmers properly to motivate them to adopt climate positive land management practices. Fellow panelists José Abelardo Mai, Minister of Agriculture, Food Security and Enterprise of Belize; Roberto Azevedo, former Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and member of the Group of Producing Countries of the Southern Cone (GPS); Luis Pocasangre, Director General of CATIE; Alejandro Martínez, Director of Water-Smart Agriculture for the Catholic Relief Services agency; Clifford Martínez, Coordinator of Water Management in the Ministry of Agriculture of Belize; and Manuel Otero, Director General of IICA brought up similar points. Their insights included the importance of leveraging agriculture as a solution to the climate crisis because agriculture is the only sector that can provide a sink for carbon, and how critical it will be to implement these climate solutions on a wide scale across the world. It was also discussed how the area needs to develop programs tailored to each individual region, and called on the world to provide support to the vulnerable LAC region and protect its vital natural resources. Please explore this important event in depth below:
Again the Home of Sustainable Agriculture of the Americas, which was the IICA pavillion at COP29 on November 14th, Dr. Lal joined IICA Director Dr. Manuel Otero; Ignacio Lorenzo, the Director of Climate Action at CAF-Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean; José Abelardo Mai, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security of Belize; and Andrea Porro, the Secretary General of the World Farmers’ Organization (WFO) in a discussion moderated by IICA Deputy Director General, Lloyd Day.
Dr. Otero eluciated his vision going forward for management of IICA overall and emphasized that the next 25 years would be the most important years for agriculture since its inception. Dr. Lal expanded on their mutual goals, discussing the scientific priorities and implementation. He called for proritizing the rehabilitation soil and expressed his gratitude that the future of agriculture in Latin America is in such competent hands. Learn more in the link below:
On November 14th, with his colleagues at FAO and CGIAR, Dr. Lal discussed the important subject of Mitigating N2O emissions by bio-inputs and biological N fixation and Challenges to be addressed for commodification of C in land-based sinks. The event discussed first decade of the "ABC" Plan, designed to encourage farmers to adopt biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) techniques. These techniques work in harmony with natural processed to provide a more climate positive alternative to synthetic fertilizers. Already showing positive results, implementation of the Plan is contributing to the reduction of nitrous oxide emissions. As the Plan is scaled up and provides support for more adoption, it will build systems for more climate resilient agriculture and mitigation of climate change. Read more here:
Finally, on November 15th, Dr. Lal joined the CA4SH coalition to discuss The role of CA4SH in harnessing the land-based C sinks. Dr. Lal deeply appreciates all the important efforts of his fellow scientists, policymakers, and private sector colleagues who work hard to build a more sustainable future for everyone.