Farming ABSYS Design Symposium:Designing Climate Smart Agricultural ABSYSs for a Sustainable Transition in Farming ABSYS Design: The Agri-food ABSYSs of the Dry Areas

Dry regions are known to be the most impacted by the effects of climate change and socio-economic uncertainties. Various international initiatives have increasingly incited the governments of these countries (notably those of the Middle East and Africa) to innovate and develop adaptation strategies for their agri-food systems. This implies the improvement of farmland fertility and water productivity using agro-ecological practices, reducing CO2 emissions and sustainably protecting the means of subsistence of farm households. The protection of natural resources from the effects of climate change and of a rapidly growing population will also be key, notably water, soils and pollinators. This also implies strengthening the innovation systems in order to sustain a transition towards a climate smart and nutrition-sensitive agriculture. In the dry regions many trade-offs need to be documented and many synergies developed, provided an integrated (multi-scale, multi-criteria and multi-stakeholder) approach is implemented.
In this context the CIHEAM Montpellier, ICARDA and IRESA-Tunisia have combined their efforts, with the implication of UMR-System, UMR-Innovation and UMR-MOISA, to organize the 7th Farming System Design Symposium from March 22nd to 24th 2021 in Tunis.