Background
The landscape of agricultural research for development is evolving rapidly. The world faces new, more complex, and more interrelated challenges, such as achieving food security in the face of climate change; meeting the growing global demand for agricultural commodities while reducing deforestation, biodiversity loss and water scarcity; creating meaningful employment for a rapidly growing youth population; and producing not only more food, but more nutritious food, in rapidly globalizing agri-food markets serving increasingly urbanized populations. There is pressing need to respond to these new challenges and develop new solutions.
In this context, the ISPC is conducting a comprehensive foresight exercise to inform the strategy of the CGIAR, and to provide context and emerging insights as a basis for system level prioritization of research.
Find out more about previous workshop on Global Agri-Food Systems to 2050: Threats and Opportunities (7-8 April 2017) including workshop report and programme.
Objectives of the Workshop
- Take stock and synthesize the recent foresight activities and findings in CGIAR research
- Discuss the outcomes (synthesis) of the independent foresight assessment led by ISPC in 2017 on the futures of global agri-food systems, and how they relate to the state of foresight in CGIAR
- Agree on major drivers and trends that must be considered in developing scenarios for CGIAR foresight work at system level – taking into account current CGIAR foresight work and the ISPC independent foresight exercise.
- Develop an initial plan for CGIAR system-wide work on foresight.
Expected Outputs of the Workshop
- Summary of current state of foresight capacity and focus in the CGIAR
- Group consensus on the key drivers and trends that must be considered in developing participatory scenarios for the CGIAR system
- Plan of action for taking forward foresight work in CGIAR system including next steps in planning the CGIAR system scenario building workshop in November.
