Scaling-out knowledge: how the pandemic helped spreading the voice for a more sustainable cattle sector

The adaptation to the restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic included considering new approaches, such as a broader use of information and communication technologies (ICTs). The Colombian Roundtable for Sustainable Cattle (MGS in Spanish) is a multi-actor platform supporting the transformation towards a sustainable cattle sector. The MGS mainly focused on face-to-face activites, such as meetings for information exchange or capacity building events in the field, which had to be stopped once the pandemic had started in Colombia. In order to mitigate the related negative impacts during the strict lockdown, four MGS member institutions (FAO, National University of Colombia, CATIE and Alliance Bioversity-CIAT) decided to organise a virtual seminar series on sustainable beef and dairy systems and value chains. The objective of this article is to describe this effort, its reach and importance for the sector, its viral spread, as well as the lessons learned. The event was comprised by four modules, each with a weekly seminar during four weeks: i) greenhouse gases; ii) biodiversity, landscapes, and ecosystem services; iii) markets and consumers, and iv) agricultural extension. Each module invited experts from different institutions/sectors, to present their (scientific) advances and approaches. Initially aimed at the 53 MGS member institutions in order to keep the exchange active and build capacities, the initiative had an outstanding record of assistance, by reaching an average of 1,300 views/week. The importance of the topics and the viralisation of the initiative gathered people from 23 countries. The feedback received was very positive, and the attendees rated the presenters regarding clarity, level of expertise, time management, and if the goals were reached. About 30% of the audience were cattle producers, reaching a key stakeholder and contributing to strengthening their capacities regarding the implementation of sustainable production technologies. Other participants came from academia, NGOs, governmental institutions, and private companies. With these promising results and a big database of people interested in sustainable cattle production, the MGS could strengthen its role as actor for a regional dialogue, and contribute to the strengthening of the public policy framework and the formulation of high impact projects for sustainable intensification

Tropical Forages – an interactive selection tool. 2020 Report.

In August 2020, the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) released the second, revised edition of Tropical Forages: an interactive selection tool. Originally launched in 2005, the tool aims at promoting adoption of a large suite of grasses and legumes to be used as livestock feeds and for ecosystems services e.g. to help curb greenhouse gas emissions and reverse land degradation. Tropical Forages is available at www.tropicalforages.info. This report provides a brief overview on the tool, its development and release in 2020, user statistics, dissemination efforts and future maintenance and development needs

The Colombian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef and Dairy: 2020 activities

Despite the restrictions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, CIAT extended its strong involvement in the Colombian Roundtable for Sustainable Cattle Production (Mesa de Ganadería Sostenible, MGS) during 2020 – although in a different, virtual format. Apart from joining the regular meetings, CIAT co-organized a virtual 5-month seminar series on sustainable cattle production, which attracted several thousand participants from all over the globe. A national level policy for sustainable cattle production in Colombia was submitted to the Colombian Ministry of Agriculture for evaluation and, as a result of the pandemic, is still under review. We are confident that the policy will be released during 2021. In addition to the involvement in the Colombian Roundtable for Sustainable Cattle Production, CIAT became one of the leading institutions for the Colombian cero-deforestation agreements, in particular for the dairy and beef value chains

Herramientas y Métodos para la Planeación y Toma de Decisiones en Agricultura y Cambio Climático

El sector agrícola de América Latina está siendo afectado por los impactos cada vez más frecuentes del cambio y la variabilidad climática, por ello hay una gran demanda por parte de los gobiernos e instituciones de planificación para fortalecer su capacidad en el uso de herramientas y metodologías que apoyan la planeación y los procesos de toma de decisiones. Los gobiernos, tanto a nivel nacional y local, son conscientes de la importancia de priorizar la planificación, el diseño de políticas y la asignación de inversiones para el sector agrícola, especialmente cuando los cultivos de seguridad alimentaria y la estabilidad de la población se ven amenazados por la alta vulnerabilidad a la variabilidad climática y a eventos climáticos extremos. En aras de cumplir este propósito, gobiernos, academia, centros de investigación, entre otros actores, han desarrollado diversas herramientas y metodologías para apoyar la formulación de políticas, la planeación estratégica y los procesos de toma de decisiones buscando beneficiar a los sectores más vulnerables debido a su baja capacidad de adaptación; sin embargo, muchos de estos métodos y herramientas, son a menudo desconocidos por sus potenciales usuarios. Con el objetivo de visibilizar estas herramientas, El Programa de Investigación de CGIAR en Cambio Climático, Agricultura y Seguridad Alimentaria (CCAFS) presenta esta breve guía que describe algunas de las principales herramientas desarrolladas por el programa y sus socios, así como experiencias exitosas de implementación en algunos países de América Latina, para contribuir a mejorar, a mediano y largo plazo, la formulación de políticas, implementación y procesos de toma de decisiones en la región

ICTs in agriculture: State of the art tools for broader access to tropical forage knowledge

The development of information technologies and internet connectivity strongly increased access to scientific knowledge. However, this also comes along with e.g. quality issues, affordability (restricted access to publications, download payments) and increasing numbers of “predatory” publishers. To provide stakeholders with high-quality tropical forage knowledge, various research institutes (CSIRO, QDPIF, CIAT, ILRI), with funds from ACIAR, BMZ/GIZ, DFID and CATAS, developed two tools: 1) Tropical Grasslands-Forrajes Tropicales (TGFT), a bilingual peer-reviewed open-access journal, indexed in the most recognized databases/journal directories (www.tropicalgrasslands.info). Since its inception in 2013, TGFT has shown sustained growth, reaching in 2019 >228,000 visits, and >492,000 abstract and >696,000 PDF/eBook downloads, respectively. Its main metrics are JCR Impact Factor (0.441), CiteScore (0.80), Journal Rank (0.28) and i10-index (38). It is a RoMEO Green Journal with Gold Open Access status. TGFT provides access to all papers published in the former journals Tropical Grasslands (1967‒2010) and Pasturas Tropicales (1979‒2007). 2) Tropical Forages, a tool for selecting forage species for local conditions, launched in 2005 (www.tropicalforages.info). It is among the most widely used (~250-480k annual visits) and cited (450 citations) tropical forages databases and provides information on >170 forage species with potential for use in animal production, identified and characterized by leading tropical forages researchers, including e.g. information on morphology, agronomic management, nutritional value, productive potential or promising accessions. A set of 17 variables allows users filtering through the species and refining a shortlist for their specific local conditions. Seed samples can be requested from the linked CGIAR genebanks. It is a valuable information source for e.g. researchers, extension services or farmers seeking to improve animal productivity and sustainability, which is evidenced by constantly increasing pages visits (2018-2019: from 798k to 1,414k). Both tools have promising outlooks: TGFT’s goal is to become a global benchmark in forage research, supporting the publication of results from the global tropics by following rigorous scientific standards. Tropical Forages is in the process of finalizing its first major update and will be relaunched in 2020, with content updates and notable technical improvements, such as a revamped interface responsive to multiple devices, a mobile application and automatic translation

50 years publishing on tropical forages - from Tropical Grasslands and Pasturas Tropicales to Tropical Grasslands-Forrajes Tropicales

Preamble of the Volume 9, Issue