July
2008: The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and IUCN
have published a report entitled “Agricultural Ecosystems, Facts and Trends.”
The Report presents facts and figures on trends in agricultural production and
consumption to help governments, farmers, consumers and industry better
understand the challenges facing the sustainable management of agricultural
ecosystems, such as meeting demands from a fast-growing world population,
adapting to climate change impacts, and managing the natural resources of an
increasingly depleted planet.

On
climate change, the report notes that while agriculture is directly affected by
changing temperatures, rainfall and the spread of invasive species, it is also
a major source of greenhouse gas emissions originating from fertilizer use,
livestock and wetland rice production, burning of agricultural residues, or
conversion of long-term grassland. According to the report, the challenge is
thus “to adapt agriculture fast enough to a changing climate, and to shift
production practices to reduce and preferably mitigate the carbon footprint of
the food production system.” [WBCSD press release] [The report]