Regions:
Asia, Europe and Eurasia, Global, Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa, US and Canada

Related Key Topics:
Capacity Building, Climate Change, Food Security, Gender, Health and Nutrition, Innovation, Markets, Natural Resource Management, Policy, Productivity

The Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Collaborative Research on Adapting Livestock Systems to Climate Change (Feed the Future Livestock-Climate Change Innovation Lab) seeks to strengthen livestock production systems and increase the resilience of livestock producers in regions where agricultural systems are changing, available resources are shrinking, and climate is having an impact. The Livestock-Climate Change Innovation Lab supports research that helps smallholders expand and diversify income opportunities, access markets, make decisions that lead to sustainable livelihoods, and adapt to their changing environments. The program is active in six countries facing climate-change related issues in South Asia (Nepal), East Africa (Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania), and West Africa (Mali, Senegal).

Partnering with leading scientists and institutions the Livestock-Climate Change Innovation Lab’s multi-disciplinary approach seeks to increase the resilience of livestock producers through four thematic areas at the system and field levels. Through climate analyses the Innovation Lab investigates how climate extremes and long-term change impact livestock production. The Innovation Lab investigates the intersection between animal health and human’s livelihoods. Partnering with the U.S. Geological Survey, the Innovation Lab assesses the resilience of socio-ecological systems by predicting the effect of climate change and land-use patterns on key resources. Increasing pastoralists’ access to market chains in remote areas is also a priority of the Livestock-Climate Change Innovation Lab. This is achieved by determining how herders access markets chains, which producer groups benefit from different markets, and analyzing how weather-related risks affect market access.

Through its projects the Livestock-Climate Change Innovation Lab strengthens relationships between US and host country researchers and institutions, building institutional and human capacity. Working with the Regional Innovation Consortium in South Asia the Innovation Lab connects with a diverse set of actors including researchers, university students, extension agents and development networks to boost research capacity, spur research innovation, transfer results and ensure sustainability. The program also supports degree training for students from around the world including the US in fields that can contribute to research on the adaptation of livestock systems to climate change.

The Innovation Lab’s innovative approaches to food security; animal, human, and environmental health; and institutional and human capacity building align with the priorities of Feed the Future. All of the Livestock-Climate Change Innovation Lab’s projects are carried out in Feed the Future priority countries.

The Livestock-Climate Change Innovation Lab is led by Dr. Richard Bowen. The Management Entity is based at Colorado State University.