By: Trina Pauline Baclayo and Perlyn Pulhin

In keeping with its mission of strengthening institutional capacities toward inclusive and sustainable agricultural and rural development (ISARD) in Southeast Asia, the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), in partnership with the OML Center will hold the three-day “Regional Knowledge Sharing Writeshop on Climate Change Adaptation in Inclusive and Sustainable Agricultural and Rural Development” at SEARCA, College, Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines on April 15-17, 2015.

The activity will be conducted in recognition not only of the severe impacts of climate change in agriculture and rural development but more so of the latter’s contribution in climate change adaptation (CCA) and mitigation if appropriate practices are to be done in an inclusive and sustainable manner. Climate change adaptation practitioners, researchers, experts and scientists, and other relevant stakeholders from neighbouring Southeast Asian countries will gather for the exchange of lessons and experiences as well as the identification of opportunities for collaboration and networking. The Writeshop also aims to contribute to the construction of an enabling policy platform and technical capacity to support the implementation of applicable, effective and successful adaptation measures in the region. Expected outputs include (1) a documentation and synthesis of adaptation practices, options, lessons, and coping mechanisms, including synergies with mitigating the impacts of climate change, in the context of ISARD, and (2) an initial sourcebook volume on CCA in the context of ISARD.

The programme for the event has four sessions that will be facilitated by experts in each field: (1) selected sub-regional and national initiatives, (2) tools and approaches for CCA, (3) selected community-level adaptations, and (4) selected farm-level adaptations. These are to be complemented by breakout sessions and opportunities for discussion to build on the skills, capacities, and relationships of and among the participants for the achievement of objectives and the continuous improvement of the rural and agricultural sector.