Impacts of social and environmental change on agriculture
Image: Smallholder vegetable production in Northern Ghana
Summary
Rural livelihoods around the world are highly dependent on agriculture. Understanding and assessing risks to crop production – both biophysical and socio-economic – therefore is an important to help to address challenges of rural food insecurity, poverty and economic development. Our research work in this area is currently focused on two main topics: (1) effects of monsoonal rainfall variability on agricultural production in the tropics, including interactions with additional social, economic and technological factors (e.g., labour constraints, high input costs) affecting household and farm decision-making, and (2) impacts of groundwater depletion and aquifer heterogeneity on agricultural productivity and profitability, in particular how aquifer storage loss affects resilience to drought. Through this work, we are helping to generate empirical evidence about evolving risks to agriculture posed by environmental and social change in order to help decision-makers to design of effective policies and strategies to enhance resilience and improve livelihood sustainability.
Related outputs
Oldekop, J., Horner, R., Hulme, D., Adhikari, R., … Foster, T., … et al. (2020). COVID-19 and the case for global development. World Development, 134, 105044.
Rad, M. R., Brozovic, N., Foster, T., & Mieno, T. (2020). Effects of instantaneous groundwater availability on irrigated agriculture and implications for aquifer management. Resource and Energy Economics, 59, 101129.
Parkes, B., Higginbottom, T. P., Hufkens, K., Ceballos, F., Kramer, B., & Foster, T. (2019). Weather dataset choice introduces uncertainty to estimates of crop yield responses to climate variability and change. Environmental Research Letters, 14(12), 124089.
Foster, T., Brozovic, N., & Butler, A. P. (2015). Why well yield matters for managing agricultural drought risk. Weather and Climate Extremes, 10, 11-19.
Foster, T., Brozovic, N., & Butler, A. P. (2015). Analysis of the impacts of well yield and groundwater depth on irrigated agriculture. Journal of Hydrology, 523, 86-96.
Foster, T., Brozovic, N., & Butler, A. P. (2014). Modeling irrigation behavior in groundwater systems. Water Resources Research, 50(8), 6370-6389.
Rad, M. R., Brozovic, N., Foster, T., & Mieno, T. (2020). Effects of instantaneous groundwater availability on irrigated agriculture and implications for aquifer management. Resource and Energy Economics, 59, 101129.
Parkes, B., Higginbottom, T. P., Hufkens, K., Ceballos, F., Kramer, B., & Foster, T. (2019). Weather dataset choice introduces uncertainty to estimates of crop yield responses to climate variability and change. Environmental Research Letters, 14(12), 124089.
Foster, T., Brozovic, N., & Butler, A. P. (2015). Why well yield matters for managing agricultural drought risk. Weather and Climate Extremes, 10, 11-19.
Foster, T., Brozovic, N., & Butler, A. P. (2015). Analysis of the impacts of well yield and groundwater depth on irrigated agriculture. Journal of Hydrology, 523, 86-96.
Foster, T., Brozovic, N., & Butler, A. P. (2014). Modeling irrigation behavior in groundwater systems. Water Resources Research, 50(8), 6370-6389.
