The IPM Toolbox: "Cornell's Climate Smart Farming Program" - Webinar Recording

September 20, 2018.

Allison Morrill Chatrchyan, Director, Cornell Institute for Climate Smart Solutions; Senior Research Associate, Departments of Development Sociology and Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Cornell University

Description

The Cornell Climate Smart Farming (CSF) Program (climatesmartfarming.org) brings together world-class researchers, resources, and highly-trained extension specialists to help farmers in New York and the Northeast respond to the challenges of increased extreme weather and changing climatic conditions. The goals of the program are to increase farm resiliency to extreme weather and climate variability through adoption of best management practices for climate change adaptation; reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural production through adoption BMPs, increased energy efficiency, and use of renewable energy; and increase agricultural productivity and farming incomes sustainably.

The CSF website provides powerful, free, and user-friendly decision tools, resources, and videos. The CSF decision tools combine historical climate data with weather and climate projections and agricultural models to give the farmer a sense of how crops are responding to the changing climate. These practical decision tools help farmers make more informed decisions about their production systems and reduce risks. The CSF website also includes links to information and guidelines on increasing resiliency on their farm (for example, by improving soil health and utilizing cover crops), as well as links to the Climate Smart Farming Extension team in New York. By using these tools, farmers around the Northeast will be better prepared to handle climate-related risks, and able to take advantage of new opportunities in the future.

About the Presenter

Allison Chatrchyan’s work focuses at the interface between social, environmental, and agricultural systems. She works to facilitate interdisciplinary research and Cooperative Extension teams that are developing resources and tools for climate change adaptation and mitigation. Trained as a social scientist, her research focuses on assessing stakeholder beliefs and actions, climate change adaptation policies and local climate action plans, and the effectiveness of climate change policies and governance mechanisms.

Download presentation slides (PDF)