Emmanuel Torquebiau, Climate Change Officer at the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) says there was some progress at the November 2013 UN climate talks in Warsaw, Poland (COP 19) in relation to incorporating agriculture.

“The mere fact that agriculture was part of the talks is progress in itself,” says Torquebiau in an interview posted on CIRAD’s website.

While agriculture is likely to be significantly affected by climate change, it also accounts for between 20 and 34 per cent of that change.

There was significant debate during the climate talks on how to simultaneously account for adaptation and mitigation in agriculture and how the 2 should be integrated, such as through climate-smart agriculture.

“Scientists now recommend taking a "landscape" approach, in which agriculture and forests should be taking into account simultaneously,” explains Torquebiau. He believes there was enough momentum generated on these ideas that they could be introduced into future debates and talks.

During COP 19 ‘emerging’ countries were differentiated from developing countries, and called on to adopt farming practices that sequester carbon such as agroforestry and conservation agriculture.

In relation to developing countries, “they feel that their current practices, which already do not cause much in the way of emissions, do not leave them any room for further mitigation.” Farming methods they have developed to ensure food security and adapt to climate change – such as agroforestry – already provide a dual benefit by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

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