Climate Resilient Food Systems: An agroecological approach to Climate Resilient Pathways

Sammanfattning: Human interference with the climate system imposes a significant threat to the future capacity of ecosystems to sustain ecosystem services vital for food production. Agroecology is increasingly seen a way to meet these challenges. The aim of this study is to investigate if the IPCC conceptual model of Climate Resilient Pathways (CRP) could be adapted to a food system context, by illustrating an agroecological approach to climate resilient development. Furthermore, the purpose is to create a new combined framework for assessing climate resilience in different agricultural systems and food system structures. To do this a literature study and a database search were conducted, investigating the agroecological approach to development of climate resilience in food systems. The results of the literature study motivated the use of Gliessman’s (2015) Levels of conversion to illustrate the agroecological approach to climate resilient development. A new adapted model was then created by combining Gliessman’s Levels of conversion with IPCC’s Climate Resilient Pathways. In this study I argue that the combination of these two concepts can form a new conceptual framework, illustrating the relationship between agroecological integration and climate resilience in food systems, while taking into account climate change complexity where actions and consequences are often separated in both time and space. I also argue that this new framework could be used to facilitate strategic management and choices concerning food system development. The new model could be used to evaluate current state of development, and to create new strategies for the future. It could also be used by farmers and farmer networks to communicate the significance of their work and their need for support from the wider community, as well as the importance of agroecology to build resilience for a sustainable future. Key words: adaption, agriculture, agroecological integration, agroecology, climate change, climate resilient pathways, food security, food system, levels of conversion, mitigation, resilience, transformation.