Alliance Research Lever 8: Performance, Innovation and Strategic Analysis for Impact
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Item Building resilience: Over 550 Ethiopian wheat producers enabled with bundled sustainable agroecological innovations(Case Study, 2025) Mockshell, Jonathan; Tibebe, Degefie; Balcha, Yodit; Ngige, Chris Mwangi; Ibrahim, Mohamed; Ritter, Thea; Ogutu, SylvesterEthiopian wheat producers lack access to affordable fertilizer and seeds. A TRANSITIONS Private Sector Incentives and Investments (PSii) sustainability project provided bundled agroecological solutions, including faba bean and wheat crop rotation to enhance nitrogen fixation and biodiversity. In addition to training wheat producers in Doyogena, the project provided subsidized inputs and enhanced partnerships between producer organizations, district agricultural offices, seed breeders, and other stakeholders in the wheat value chain. Immediate outcomes include increased awareness, the adoption of farm-level agroecological solutions, and increased empowerment.Item Bundled agroecological cacao production practices: fertilizer and sustainable practices training benefits over 200 organic producers.(Case Study, 2025) Mockshell, Jonathan; Ritter, Thea; Blanco, Maria Alejandra; Ngige, Chris Mwangi; Mosquera, Leslie Estefany; Sanchez, Jose Gerardo; Ivanova, YovitaOrganic fertilizers boost yields, yet according to our research, most cacao producers in Ucayali region do not use fertilizers year-round, due to limited finances and knowledge. We trained 69 organic cacao producers, who are now adopting innovative bundled agroecological practices to significantly enhance their productivity. Bundles of practices include preparing and applying organic fertilizers to improve managing solid organic waste generated from cacao production. Expected scalable outcomes include enhanced soil health, recycling, cacao production, and incomes.Item Reimagining gender in food systems: A feminist perspective(Brief, 2025-02-01) Ambikapathi, Ramya; Urbani, IlariaGender dynamics in food systems research are often fragmented and inconsistently integrated across disciplines. This study applies a feminist lens to review 1,221 studies from low- and middle-income countries, assessing the use of five feminist principles. Findings reveal critical gaps, including limited attention to urban food systems, inconsistent gender definitions, and methodological shortcomings. To foster more inclusive research and policy, we propose integrating feminist approaches, strengthening collaborations, and addressing policy gaps with intersectional perspectives. This review highlights the need for a paradigm shift to ensure diverse voices shape food systems research and policy.Item Living labs for people in Kenya: Outcomes of participatory action research in Nandi County(Report, 2024-12) Reyes, Byron; Camilo, KarenThe Low Emission Food Systems Initiative (also known as Mitigate+) focused on three main aspects: reducing food systems (FS) emissions and the predicted consequences of climate change on future generations, sustainable development, and social equity. Through its work, the initiative ensured that civil society, multilateral, government, academic, and private sector actors in its four targeted countries (Colombia, Kenya, China, Viet-Nam) have the knowledge, information, and tools necessary to make robust evidence-based decisions as they confront challenges in FS discourse, policy development, and implementation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) contributions. The initiative aimed to promote inclusive approaches for low-emission FS transformation using a framework denominated Living Labs for People (LL4P). This report focuses on the results of a process evaluation conducted on the LL4P approach, in Kenya. For this, key informants data and secondary data were used. The evaluation allowed us to identify the outcomes that have been achieved as a result of the Initiative, and highlighted that these align perfectly with the conceptualization of a LL4P, as one of the main outcomes was the establishment of the LL4P as a framework that is inclusive, appropriated (co-owned) by stakeholders, and autonomous. Further, the LL4P is fully operational in an autonomous way; it has a board that is inclusive towards gender and youth, and representative of the diverse set of stakeholders in the county; and in 2024, it was able to launch a call for innovations and identify six innovations to receive funding for scaling. The Initiative has contributed by facilitating a space for stakeholders to identify and scale new innovations, using funding that is managed by the LL4P.Item Comparative profitability of agroecological practices in Ethiopian wheat farming(Journal Article, 2025-01-30) Ng-Ang-A, Stanley Karanja; Ogutu, Sylvester Ochieng; Tibebe, Degefie; Akinyi, Devinia; Mockshell, JonathanIntroduction Agroecology is increasingly promoted as a pathway to sustainable food production, aiming to maximize natural resource use while minimizing external inputs with harmful environmental effects. Agroecological practices can enhance farm productivity while ensuring environmental sustainability. However, these practices often require higher initial investments compared to business-as-usual (BAU) practices, and their profitability and relative risks are not well studied. This research evaluates the profitability and risk of adopting agroecological practices among wheat farmers in Ethiopia. Methods We conducted a deterministic cost-benefit analysis (CBA) incorporating sensitivity and scenario analysis to evaluate the profitability and relative risks associated with three agroecological practices: certified wheat seed, optimal site-specific inorganic fertilizer application rates, and drainage of waterlogged soils. The analysis considered yield uncertainty, market price fluctuations, and implementation variability to provide robust insights for decision-making. Results The deterministic CBA revealed that among the three practices, the use of certified seeds was the most profitable, with a net present value (NPV) of US$ 2,531 ha –1 . This was followed by optimal site-specific inorganic fertilizer application, with an NPV of US$ 2,371 ha –1 . Drainage of waterlogged soils yielded the lowest profitability, with an NPV of US$ 2,099 ha –1 . Discussion The results indicate that certified seeds and optimal fertilizer rates offer higher financial returns, making them attractive investments for wheat farmers. However, profitability alone does not guarantee adoption. Other factors, including social and behavioral aspects, influence farmer decisions. Future research should integrate these dimensions to develop comprehensive strategies for promoting agroecological practices. Conclusion Adopting agroecological practices has clear economic benefits for Ethiopian wheat farmers, with certified seeds emerging as the most profitable option. These findings provide evidence for stakeholders to design targeted interventions that maximize returns while addressing barriers to adoption.Item Informing food system transformation with foresight: Partners adopting the use of foresight and metrics tools(Video, 2024-04) Mohan, Anisha; Anisimova, Evgeniya; Wolday, TsegaBetter-informed national policy choices – Governments and other decision makers in at least five countries contribute to and use foresight analysis to better reflect climate and other risks in policy dialogues and decision-making, including policies and investments designed to make food, land, and water systems more resilient, while recognizing synergies and trade-offs with other goals relating to nutrition, livelihoods, equity, and the environment. The videos are the result of three years established partnership with technical partners in three regions and six countries. The videos showcase on how the partnership established over the years have yielded the outcome expected. Together with these partners we have co-created and scaled our tools that are now widely used by the partners. In April 2024, the CGIAR Initiative on Foresight and the Institute for Integrated Development Studies (IIDS, Nepal) held the Foresight Partnership Forum and Training in Kathmandu, Nepal. The four-day event brought together key Initiative partners from across Asia, Africa, and Latin America to share insights on the multifaceted challenges affecting food, land, and water systems and strengthen local foresight and policy modeling capacity. During the event, we interviewed the Foresight Initiative partners from Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, and South Africa and asked them to answer two questions: “Why did you join the Foresight Initiative and how is this partnership helping you in addressing the food systems issues in your countries?” and “How is the use of Foresight models helping you in advancing/informing strategies in your country?” *The letter of agreements with our partners can be available upon request.Item Reporte de incentivos e inversiones del sector privado para una transición agroecológica en la región Ucayali(Report, 2024-11-30) De Los Ríos Dantas, Augusto Rafael; Saavedra Barria, Tranquilino; Guillén Guevara, José; Transitions Program; Ivanova, Yovita; Mosquera Escobar, Leslie Estefany; Blanco Garcia, Maria Alejandra; Mockshell, JonathanEl presente informe/reporte ha sido elaborado por Augusto Rafael De Los Ríos Dantas, de Ucayali Eco Plus EIRL, en el marco de su consultoría Evaluación de las necesidades de desarrollo de capacidades de los actores del sistema agroalimentario, para permitir las transiciones agroecológicas del sector privado en la Región de Ucayali, financiada por el proyecto PSii del programa de Transiciones Agroecológicas ‘TRANSITIONS’, y revisada por Yovita Ivanova, Leslie Mosquera, María Blanco y Jonathan Mockshell. El proyecto Incentivos e Inversiones del Sector Privado (PSii) contribuye al programa de Transiciones Agroecológicas TRANSITIONS y tiene como objetivo el desarrollo de estructuras de incentivos inclusivas para los actores de los sectores público y privado, así como la movilización de inversiones que apoyen las transiciones agroecológicas en múltiples niveles. Un ecosistema dinámico de los sectores público y privado plantea probablemente algunos retos, pero también ofrece nuevas oportunidades para acelerar las transiciones agroecológicas mediante la creación de incentivos y la movilización de inversiones, la aplicación de métricas transparentes y holísticas y el desarrollo de capacidades para contribuir a unos sistemas alimentarios más eficientes desde el punto de vista económico, más equitativos a nivel social y más respetuosos con el medio ambiente.Item Ecosistema financiero: Iniciativa agroecología en la región Ucayali - Perú(Report, 2023-12) Torres, Nelson; Gonzalez, CarolinaItem Residuos a riqueza: Mejorando la salud del suelo con Bocashi en la Transición Agroecológica Ucayali(Video, 2024-12-18) Blanco Garcia, Maria Alejandra; Araujo De Lima, Silvia; Mosquera Escobar, Leslie Estefany; Varon Molina, Adriana Patricia; Marulanda Duran, Luis Alejandro; Mockshell, Jonathan YawEl Bocashi, un fertilizante orgánico rico en nutrientes ofrece una solución accesible y eficiente para mejorar la fertilidad del suelo. Elaborado mediante la fermentación de materiales secos de fácil obtención, este abono enriquece el suelo con nutrientes esenciales, estimula la actividad microbiana y favorece el desarrollo de bacterias y hongos beneficiosos que descomponen la materia orgánica. Como parte del componente de fortalecimiento de capacidades del proyecto Sector Privado, Incentivos e Inversiones (PSII), especialistas del Instituto Nacional de Innovación Agrícola (INIA) lideraron una formación teórico-práctica con productores de la cooperativa Colpa de Loros. En estas sesiones, los participantes aprendieron de manera práctica al preparar una pila demostrativa de Bokashi. Este video, producido por el proyecto Agroecological TRANSITIONS-PSII en Perú, muestra los pasos prácticos para la elaboración del Bokashi y subraya la importancia de una gestión integrada de la fertilidad del suelo como base para lograr prácticas agrícolas sostenibles. Palabras clave: Agroecología, fertilizantes orgánicos, salud del suelo, desarrollo de capacidades, agricultura sostenible, prácticas agroecológicas.Item Applying the Most Significant Change (MSC) methods: A case study using the Business Acceleration for Youth Project in Malawi(Brief, 2024-12) Mzumara, Grace; Ngige, Chris; Nkhambule, Emily; Sheriff, Ramadhan Kadammanja; Slane, DavidItem Advancing Ethiopia’s agricultural transformation: A consultative workshop on developing the National agroecology strategy(Blog Post, 2024-12-18) Balcha, Yodit; Degefie, Tibebe; Adimassu, Zenebe; Mockshell, Jonathan; Endalkachew, Wolde-MeskelAs part of the Private Sector Incentives and Investments project (PSii), activities under the Agroecological TRANSITIONS program are being implemented in Ethiopia by the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT. The PSii project team presented and showcased the need for the development of Ethiopia's National Agroecology Strategy (NAES) through their participation in the consultative workshop organized by the Ministry of Agriculture on November 26th, 2024 in Addis Ababa.Item Agroecological TRANSITIONS for our future(Infographic, 2025-01-15) TRANSITIONS Program; Ricci, Fabio; Araujo De Lima, Silvia; Shelton, Sadie; Geck, Matthias; Wollenberg, Eva Karoline; Mockshell, Jonathan; Crossland, MaryThis infographic was produced by the 3 projects' managers and communication officers of the TRANSITIONS Program (Agroecological transition programme for building resilient and inclusive agricultural food systems) funded by the European Union and managed by IFAD. The TRANSITIONS program aims to identify, test and scale up highly effective catalyzers of agroecology-driven food system transformation by means of three key actions: Agroecological transitions are complex and can take multiple pathways! We can view them as a subway network... different stations and lines leading toward a UNIFIED GOAL: sustainable, resilient and healthy food, and agricultural systems. Follow the different lines to see where the TRANSITIONS program works and how it aims to foster agroecological conversion through specific milestones! 1. The development and implementation of holistic performance metrics for agriculture across scales 2. Inclusive digital resources to support climate resilient agroecological transitions 3. Innovative pathways for long-term incentives and private and public investmentItem CGIAR Agroecology Initiative Outcome Identification Workshop Makueni ALL(Report, 2024-09-30) Korir, Hezekiah; Ngige, Chris; Adoyo, Beatrice; Anyango, Edith; Onyango, Kevin; Bolo, Peter; Gumo, Pius; Njeri, Rhoda; Fuchs, Lisa ElenaSince 2023, the Agroecology Initiative has engaged with diverse stakeholders in Makueni ALL to co-design and implement innovative agroecological practices in three priority areas: soil, water, and integrated pest management. To assess the Initiative's impact on various food system actors, an outcome evidence workshop was held on September 3, 2024, at DNRC, Makueni. This workshop involved 35 participants from diverse sectors, including farmers, government officials, and the private sector, agro-input service providers, NGOs, implementing organizations.Item Accelerating innovativeness: The Alliance bean program & Pan African Bean Research Alliance (PABRA) accelerate innovation through recalling successes and identifying opportunities to expand and strengthen existing partnerships and innovations(Brief, 2024-10) Schutz, Tonja; Poulos, Allison; Sharkey, Rowan; Rubyogo, Jean Claude; Onyango, PatriciaItem How efficient are our partnerships? Pabra after 25 years: Taking a critical look at its partnerships’ efficiency(Brief, 2024-10) Schutz, Tonja; Poulos, Allison; Sharkey, Rowan; Rubyogo, Jean Claude; Onyango, Patricia AtienoItem Linguistic diversity, climate shock, and farmer-herder conflicts(Presentation, 2024-08-01) Song, Chun; Petsakos, Athanasios; Gotor, ElisabettaItem Ficha técnica de yuca de mesa en Colombia(Brief, 2024-12) Taborda Andrade, Luis Alejandro; Tran, Thierry; Dufour, Dominique; Rosero, Amparo; Contreras, Katia Vanesa; Londoño, Luis; Ospina, Maria Alejandra; Moreno, Jhon Larry; Luna, Jorge Luis; Duarte Osorio, Cristian; Andrade, Robert; Newby, JonathanLa yuca de mesa, comúnmente conocida como yuca dulce, constituye el mercado más grande y significativo en términos de producción y consumo de yuca en Colombia, desempeñando un papel central en la dieta del país. Con el propósito de profundizar en las preferencias de los consumidores dentro de este mercado, se llevó a cabo una encuesta dirigida a una muestra representativa de consumidores colombianos, en la cual se indagó sobre las características que consideran más relevantes al momento de adquirir y consumir yuca. Adicionalmente, se realizaron análisis de calidad de las principales variedades de yuca dulce presentes en el mercado colombiano, cuyos resultados se sintetizan en las fichas de perfiles de calidad que se exponen en este documento. Estos esfuerzos proporcionan una base sólida para futuras investigaciones y para el desarrollo de nuevas variedades en los programas de mejoramiento de yuca, tanto en Colombia como a nivel global, al tiempo que permiten una comprensión más detallada de las características demandadas por losconsumidores en el mercado de yuca de mesa.Item Innovation inventory 2021: Bean program & Pabra at 25 prioritizing innovations and areas of growth(Brief, 2024-10) Schutz, Tonja; Poulos, Allison; Sharkey, Rowan; Rubyogo, Jean Claude; Onyango, PatriciaItem Ucayali outcome evidencing report(Report, 2024-12) Ortiz, Daniel; Blundo Canto, Genowefa; Orjuela, GuillermoItem Spatial downscaling of future food demand(Presentation, 2024-11-22) Song, Chun; Yego, Francis; Petsakos, Athanasios; Gotor, Elisabetta