Food Security on a Warming Planet

As this century progresses, the issues of climate change and food security intensify and become more intertwined. This was a major talking point at the United Nations Climate Summit 2014: Catalyzing Action. As the effects of climate change become more and more severe, the ability to grow, harvest, and produce sufficient food supplies becomes more unstable. The U.S. Global Change Research Program reported a huge disruption to agriculture directly as a result of climate change. With climate change showing no signs of slowing down, these problems are projected to continue and worsen in the future. The effects of climate change will have huge impacts on food security locally and internationally.

The American Midwest is one of the world's largest growers of food.  Recently, it has been experiencing increasingly severe droughts, which have negative effects on the yields. Because of the global nature of humanity's food system, the poor harvests in areas like the Midwest can directly harm those in less affluent countries who are already unable to meet their domestic nutritional needs. In another part of the world, similar droughts have wreaked havoc. In parts of sub-Saharan Africa, food productivity relies heavily on large quantities of rainwater, thus further destabilizing the food situation. Food shortages historically have contributed to civil unrest as well.

Members of the UN have responded by suggesting the implementation of "climate-smart agriculture" to produce more robust yields in the face of a changing climate.  "Sustainability" seems to have been the buzz word for years, and when it comes to food security, it could not be more important.

In addition to the UN's emphasis on improving agricultural techniques, it might also be wise for governments to contribute more to research for stopping, or even better, reversing the effects of climate change. Primarily, this would involve searching for cleaner, sustainable sources of energy for transportation fuel and electricity.  If the world is going to continue to advance technologically and allow individuals around the world to enjoy its benefits, significant scientific effort must be placed in ensuring the sustainability of this progress.

<http://thehill.com/opinion/op-ed/218562-food-security-is-in-jeopardy>