Climate change will mean more malnourished children

John Vidal in the "globaldevelopment" blog at the Guardian (UK): Food prices will more than double and the number of malnourished children spiral if climate change is not checked and developing countries are not helped to adapt their farming, food and water experts warned on Tuesday at the UN climate talks in Doha.

As the UK energy secretary, Ed Davey, and ministers from 194 countries arrived for the high-level segment of the talks, the UN's Committee on World Food Security said the world would need a 75-90% increase in food production to feed the extra 2 billion people expected to be alive in 2050. But climate change could reduce yields worldwide by 5-25% over the same period.

"The poor are especially vulnerable. Climate change will increase the number of malnourished children substantially. Smallholder farmers will be particularly hard hit," said Gerald Nelson, a spokesman for the high-level panel of experts convened by the committee to report on food prospects in the coming 30 years.

Research from Oxfam suggests rice, maize and wheat prices could rise by up to 177% in the next 20 years if climate change is not checked. A combination of extreme events like the drought that affected North America this year and the Russian heatwave in 2008 could raise prices further than two decades of long-term prices, it said...

Teniers, David the younger, 1610-1690

International NGOs launch child-centered climate change adaptation project in the Philippines

Philippine Information Agency: Save the Children, in partnership with Plan International and Institute for Sustainable Futures of the University of Technology Sydney, yesterday launched its 30-month "Child-Centered, Community-Based Climate Change Adaptation" project in Aurora .

William Azucena, Save the Children program manager, said “the project aims to prepare households on what to do and how to reduce risks of earthquakes, tsunamis, typhoons and floods through a localized information, education and communication campaign that will make it comprehensible to children - who are the most vulnerable in times of disasters.”

It will cover 30 barangays from the municipalities of Baler, Maria Aurora, Dipaculao and Dinalungan benefitting over 9,500 kids and 1,900 households.

“Small grants will also be made available for child-centered and/or child-led local initiatives on climate change adaptation in partnership with schools, local government units and other community partners to ensure sustainability,” Azucena added....

Filipino children, US Navy photo