Adapting Australian Farming Systems to Climate Change: a Participatory Approach
Past studies have shown that Australian farming systems are highly vulnerable to climate changes that are likely to happen over the next few decades. These studies have focused on either cropping or grazing systems and have used general and simple representations of both systems rather than portraying real systems which require more complex decision making. In the few studies where the benefits of adaptations have been quantified, the adaptations studied have been a simple subset of those likely to be used and there has been no farmer input in their practicality or utility.
Supported by the Australian Greenhouse Office, this project is a collaboration between BCG, CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems, Mingenew Irwin Group (WA), Brigalow Jimbour Floodplain Group (Qld) and RMCG Consulting. The project is exploring options to increase the resilience of mixed farming systems across Australia to climate change. It is assessing how a range of scenarios of possible climate change will affect farming systems in the three regions, how the systems are vulnerable and identifying feasible adaptation options to these changes.
The project was completed in April 2008, read the final report Adapting Australian farming systems to climate change: a participatory approach (pdf 1.76MB)
An interim article was published in the 2007 Season Results Book, see 'On- farm management in a changing climate: A participatory approach to adaptation'.
An early the article 'On-farm managment in a variable and changing climate: A paticipatory approach to adaptation' was published in the 2006 Members manual.
View the poster presented to farmers in the Mingenew-Irwin region of WA 'Adapting Australian farming systems to climate change: a participatory approach'.