Background
In order to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, including a climate-neutral world, a profound transformation of agricultural and food systems through ambitious adaptation and mitigation is imperative. Specific measures, for example, in the field of agroecology offer a particular potential to achieve these goals and enable a just transition in agricultural and food systems. Against this backdrop, AJusT aims to promote agroecological measures based on Indigenous and traditional knowledge not only for promoting climate adaptation but also to achieve multiple development goals. More specifically, climate resilience, mitigation (e.g. through carbon sequestration in soils), biodiversity conservation and gender equality are taken into consideration.
Project approach
The project thus seeks to develop and provide enhanced information and recommendations on the potential and effectiveness of different agroecological practices under various conditions. Methodologically, biophysical and socioeconomic analyses will be combined for a comprehensive evaluation of projects focused on the transformation of agricultural and food systems. This is accomplished by combining future local risks (given by models) with ex-post impact assessments (e.g. quasi-experiments, RCTs and participatory surveys) and observational data into ex-ante effect studies (e.g. integrated models and climate forecasts). This approach can provide information for different time and planning horizons, while also reflecting both socioeconomic and biophysical decision criteria and dynamics.
Project objectives
AJusT aims to provide scientific evidence along three key areas:
- Integrate socio-economic data (census, household surveys etc.) with process-based models to evaluate the potential of agroecological practices to contribute towards different developmental goals, such as climate resilience, mitigation, biodiversity conservation and gender equality, with a specific focus on Indigenous knowledge.
- Examine the role of traditional and Indigenous farming communities to transform agricultural and food systems, with a specific focus on gender.
- Identify policy recommendations for just and climate-resilient agricultural and food systems, which are aligned with global policy frameworks including the Paris Agreement, NAPs and SDGs.
News from the project
In May 2025, the project team traveled to India to meet with local partners supporting agroecology. This visit included exchanges on data that is needed for the modelling exercises in AJusT and field trips to experience first hand how Indian smallholder farmers implement agroecological practices on their farms.
Field visit around Guntur, Andhra Pradesh
Duration: January 2025 - December 2027
Funding agency: German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
Contact: Prof. Dr. Christoph Gornott (gornott@pik-potsdam.de) and Dr. Lisa Murken (murken@pik-potsdam.de)
