Tackling regional climate change and food security issues: An introduction

Abstract

Regional organizations are central to effectively addressing the current and future impacts of climate change and food security issues. Climate change and food security issues can only be dealt with through extensive policies that adopt a multi-sector, multi-stakeholder approach. An examination of three regional organizations (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the Pacific Islands Forum, and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) can provide new insights into current climate change mitigation policies that will ensure food security for future generations. This opening chapter thus begins with the premise that regional organizations are optimally positioned to address climate change and food security issues while actively engaging global partners to reverse current trajectories. Although many regional organizations acknowledge that climate change and food security are of utmost importance, they face multifaceted obstacles that impede the region’s ability to effectively cope with these problems. This chapter briefly reviews current initiatives undertaken by regional organizations such as ASEAN, PIF, and SAARC; analyses these initiatives according to five criteria, showing how regional cooperation may contribute to climate change and food security initiatives; and highlights impediments to the formulation of progressive policies in the future. It draws connections between the efficacy of policies and the politico-economic processes that impact the development, cooperation, and execution of regional policies. The remaining part of the chapter highlights methodology used in this book, organization of chapters, and implications of the book for the political economy of food and climate change in the age of vulnerability.