Agriculture is one of the sectors most vulnerable to climate change. Shifts, instability, and extremes of temperature and precipitation directly impact its productivity. Agriculture is also one of the main sectors responsible for climate change. The OECD reported in 2019 that between 2007 and 2016, it contributed approximately 12% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. To protect against and mitigate climate change while producing more food for growing populations, the adoption of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) must be accelerated. In practice, CSA involves all aspects of agricultural materials and methodologies such as selection of crops and varieties, adjusting water requirements, preparation of land, selection of culture practices, and management of fertilizer and pesticide use.

To help participants from APO members contribute to meeting the UN SDGs via Green Productivity, the APO organized a virtual workshop on Climate-smart Agriculture Techniques and Practices, 26–28 April, in cooperation with the Development Academy of the Philippines. This workshop covered the global and regional status of CSA as well as national progress in CSA in Japan, the Philippines, and Thailand. It also involved group work for participants to share challenges, possible solutions, and national needs concerning CSA.

Forty participants from 13 member economies attended the workshop, with 25 from the public sector, 13 from academia, and two from the private sector. Five resource persons from Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, and Thailand gave presentations and facilitated the group work session.