Towards Climate Resilient Farming (Des jardins partagés d'atténuation et d'adaptation aux changements climatiques)

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Walter Leal
• Subject Area: Empirical Social Research
• Term: since 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 539520648

In Morocco and Benin, scarcely mechanized poor agricultural companies suffer the impacts of droughts and weakened ecosystems, which destroy harvests and threaten food security and income. In Canada, many farms are already dealing with drought, hail and ice storms. The project aims at assessing the vulnerability of small farms and devising mitigation and adaptation options, by providing famers tools to reduce climate related risks. Our initiative involves 400 farmers, 15 farms and 10 researchers in different fields (engineering, economics, hydrology, agricultural sciences, biology, geography, education). Guided by design thinking, a participative approach centered on user needs, the farmers in Morocco, Benin and Canada will share, in targeted groups (women, men, youth) their vulnerability and adaptation solutions already implemented. The farmers in the three countries will then, in collaboration with the scientific team, look for solutions to become more resilient. Digital tools will facilitate this process: Facebook groups (for exchanging solutions and experiences), webcams (for observing local situations), drones and GIS (Geographic Information Systems; for monitoring nutrient deficiencies, water stress…), “immersive” serious games (for simulating possible adaptation strategies on a smartphone). Solutions such as heat resistant and carbon capturing crops, increasing biodiversity, and novel irrigation techniques will be shared among the participants and scientists of the three countries. Adaptation and mitigation measures integrating the best solutions identified will be experimented on 15 locales plots (“shared orchards”) then discussed among the participants internationally. A multi-criteria evaluation matrix co-constructed with the companies will evaluate the measures implemented and the “The Most Important Change” technique (Davies and Dart, 2005) will detect improvements in skills and practices. Adaptation and mitigation measures tailored to the context of small farmers will emerge from the project, which is innovative through the use of design thinking, the co-construction of solutions, a structured evaluation matrix and the use of contemporary technologies (Facebook, webcams, drones, GIS, serious games). In order to share winning solutions, in collaboration with government organizations, education programs will be offered to agricultural associations. Finally, participants will talk about agricultural policies with local elected representatives.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Canada
• Cooperation Partners: Professorin Diane Pruneau, Ph.D.; Professor Dr. Sebastian Weissenberger