Shocks and Crisis in the Andes

Aug 11, 2020 | Andean Initiative and International Potato Center
online
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Andean food systems and livelihoods are vulnerable and exposed to shocks and crises. Today the Andes faces unprecedented accelerated changes and extreme events. The climate crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic and internal (reverse) migration have multiple impacts on production and the economy. For sustainable development, it is extremely important to diversify the portfolio of adaptation options for family farming, as well as the livelihoods that depend on it, in the face of the effects of shocks and crises. In parallel, it is necessary to strengthen the social, ecological and economic resilience of the most vulnerable communities.

Historically, Andean communities have developed an important portfolio of adaptation strategies and practices to confront production risks and instability. These includes the simultaneous management of common and private goods, the management of high levels of agrobiodiversity, social mechanisms of reciprocity, techniques for mitigating the effects of biotic and abiotic stress on production, and the diversification of the family economy. Some of them are continuous and widely practiced (e.g., the use of mixed portfolios of crops and varieties) while others are rapidly changing and debilitated (e.g., the collective management of common goods such as land and water). At the same time, new opportunities have emerged to stimulate adaptation: the use of digital tools, access to information and climate adapted technologies (e.g., resistant varieties, water harvesting techniques).

Topics of discussion

  • The drivers, inhibitors and trends for adaptation to shocks and crises
  • The role of science and innovation in strengthening adaptive capacity
  • Different dimensions of resilience in the Andes from a social, ecological and economic point of view
  • Adaptation and resilience in a context of inequality (gender, ethnicity and youth)
  • The most effective processes and / or modalities of collective action
  • The role of information and communication technology

Who: Andean Initiative; CIP

Where: Online

When:  11 August 2020    Time: 10:00 AM (Peru time)