CA16233 - DRYLANDS FACING CHANGE: INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH ON CLIMATE CHANGE, FOOD INSECURITY, POLITICAL INSTABILITY (DFC)

Drylands and their inhabitants are facing complex challenges regarding the development of their economies and productive agricultural systems in the face of climate variability and future climate change, adverse market conditions and political instability. They are the most insecure areas in the world and are home to vast numbers of malnourished people who lack basic services such as education, health care, energy supplies and market access to. Many of these areas are experiencing violence and political instability, and have malfunctioning political institutions that prevent dryland inhabitants from creating their own path to development. As a result many people are on the move to look for a better existence.

The main objective is to achieve better research coordination between disciplines (natural sciences, agriculture, environmental sciences, social sciences, political sciences, geography), and across institutional boundaries – European, International and African institutions – in order to create research networks that work together on strategic research agendas to develop long-term solutions for problems in dryland areas.

This will be achieved through four thematic Working Groups: 1) The climate – food security – population nexus; 2) The conflict – institutions – natural resource governance nexus; 3) Human development; 4) Insecurity – youth – global-local linkages in policymaking. Working Group 5 will coordinate and safeguard interdisciplinarity.

The Action will produce short- and long-term policy briefs and state-of-the-art reviews of the identified domains. It will exchange with policy-makers and target strategic research actions for the future. The Action will organize training schools for junior researchers and it will form strategic research coalitions for further collaboration with European and international partners.