Blog

  • Three changes needed to pull off COP26 forest and land use pledges

    Forests did go to the COP26 ball. They grabbed more attention at the annual U.N. climate conference than ever, with new funding and a commitment “to…

    Three changes needed to pull off COP26 forest and land use pledges
  • Addressing economic empowerment of Kenyan smallholder tea farming families

    In most productive sectors in Kenya, especially in agriculture, women provide a significant amount of the on-farm labour. Despite their contribution, only a small percentage of these women have ownership…

    Addressing economic empowerment of Kenyan smallholder tea farming families
  • Keep focusing on the big picture of improving wages

    The issue of living wages evokes strong emotions. Most people agree that decent work should be remunerated with wages that provide a decent livelihood. Advocates for a living wage in…

    Keep focusing on the big picture of improving wages
  • The way towards living wages and incomes in the food system 

    Not only is food a necessity of life, it is also a source of livelihoods for millions. However, many people working in the agricultural sector struggle to get by…

    The way towards living wages and incomes in the food system 
  • NKG BLOOM Lays the Foundation for Living Income in coffee

    Neumann Kaffee Group began the roll out of their NKG BLOOM program in 2017 targeting smallholder coffee farmers looking to maximize the potential of their coffee plots and increase their…

    NKG BLOOM Lays the Foundation for Living Income in coffee
  • COP26 Nature Day – a reason for cautious optimism and renewed commitment to smallholder support

    Working towards a living income for smallholder farmers is critical to halting and reversing global deforestation. IDH has been convening a group of senior stakeholders to discuss this topic as…

    COP26 Nature Day – a reason for cautious optimism and renewed commitment to smallholder support
  • Cocoa agroforestry – a win-win production activity for resilient food systems

    Cocoa agroforestry – a win-win production activity for resilient food systems
  • Payments for Environmental Services

    Payments for Environmental Services
  • Why we are reviving lowland rice production in Liberia – Silas Siakor

    Lofa, where we work in Foya, used to be regarded as the breadbasket for Liberia. They used to produce large volumes of rice, year in year out, and everybody knew them for the volume of rice coming out of that region. The lowlands were developed with canals, dams, everything needed to store water throughout the year. They were able to farm and harvest three times a year. However, after forty years of civil war, total disrepair and lack of maintenance, those dams could no longer function properly and the canals were all closing up.

    Why we are reviving lowland rice production in Liberia – Silas Siakor
  • Reducing the cattle deforestation risk in the Brazilian Amazon

    A couple of weeks ago my Brazilian colleague Daniella Mariuzzo ventured out to a supermarket for the first time in 18 months. With a mixture of trepidation and elation she left the safety of her family bubble to purchase one of the first packs of verified 100% deforestation-free Brazilian Beef from a Carrefour store in Sao Paulo. It was a big moment for both the Brazilian cattle sector and for all of us who want to stop illegal deforestation in the Amazon.

    Reducing the cattle deforestation risk in the Brazilian Amazon
  • Private sector priorities at the UN Food Systems Pre-Summit

    At IDH – the Sustainable Trade Initiative, we bring all the parties in a value chain – public, private, but also civil society and knowledge institutions – to find the solutions together because we know that with incremental change we won’t get there.  

    Private sector priorities at the UN Food Systems Pre-Summit
  • Merging the social and environmental agendas – Blog

    Recently, several court cases have kept a lot of minds in our sectors busy. They show how strongly society is involved in the transformation and the necessity of creating positive…

    Merging the social and environmental agendas – Blog
  • Artificial intelligence as an extension of farm intelligence

    Applications in smallholder farmer water management Promotional adverts about technology in agriculture depict AI as sci-fi made real – Drones target diseased crops for pesticide spraying…

    Artificial intelligence as an extension of farm intelligence
  • Why forest-based carbon trading is poised to go mainstream

    Ten years after it dropped off the sustainability radar, voluntary forest-based carbon trading is finally poised to get off the ground for real. We believe it can have a key role in safeguarding the future of our planet.

    Why forest-based carbon trading is poised to go mainstream