Leveraging food system transformation in Latin America through scaling high impact business models

Key messages: 1) A framework was developed and applied to identify Climate-Smart Food Systems (CSFS) business models in the Latin America (LATAM) region with the potential to implement and scale climate mitigation and resilient practices across several food production systems. 2) Through the analysis, a pipeline of eight high-impact potential companies were identified to facilitate matchmaking with private sector investors. 3) Selected CSFS companies include agroforestry (i.e., coffee and cocoa), regenerative livestock production and silvipastoral systems, with positive impacts on social (e.g., gender and youth) and economic aspects. 4) Some of the most important challenges identified for implementing and scaling CSFS include: 1) access to capital, especially for long-term projects; 2) access to information and technical assistance; and 3) market validation for some products, especially fruits. 5) Regarding technical assistance, focus should be on implementing measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) of emissions, accessing carbon markets and providing guidance for adoption of CSFS practices and project review and discussion for up- and middle-stream companies. 5) The CIAT-CCAFS Impact Assessment Tool showed potential for evaluating CSFS performance of companies (i) potential impact assessment and (ii) additionality of investments regarding mitigation, adaptation and productivity

An Analysis of Oil Combustion on Snow

In an effort to understand the possible outcomes of in-situ burning on snow and ice in Arctic regions, an experiment to study the effect of oil and snow in various conditions was proposed, conducted, and analyzed. Experiments were conducted with various ratios of oil to snow and with different spill diameters, while recording the snow packing densities. The influences of each of these three parameters were characterized and the groundwork for further investigation was drafted

Effective Communication of Bushfire Risk in the Urban-Parkland Interface

Australia is one of the most bushfire-prone areas in the world. Initial reports by fire authorities show communities around urban parklands are unaware of the bushfire risk they face. This project was commissioned by the Bushfire CRC to serve as a pilot program for the study of bushfire communication in communities within the urban-parkland interface. Through literature review and interviews with community members and officials in Blackburn, we found current communication campaigns to be ineffective. We generated a series of recommendations to improve the effectiveness of communication around the City of Whitehorse with specific goals for communication in Blackburn