3/22/2010
This post was written by Dan Grifen who is doing a guest post for Energy Related Issues. We thank him for taking the time to visit our blog and hope we get to work with him in the future. You can check out Dan’s blog at
http://everythingleft.wordpress.com
Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)
Global Warming is regularly discussed as a serious problem in the developed world, but where climate change inflicts most damage is actually in the undeveloped world. Worldwide poverty-stricken communities are hit hardest by the rapid change in weather. Farmers’ crops, along with their livelihoods, can be destroyed in an instant by a massive flood or drought, both of which not only affect the farmers’ income, but also their lives and the lives of their communities. Philanthropic support delivered to these areas is important during times of disaster, but must be readily available) for optimal community sustainability.
The Clinton Global Initiative (2005) is an international aid based, charitable organization started by former President Clinton, alongside counselor Doug Band. The CGI is working in Southern Asia to help the neediest and most effected by Global Warming and climate change. These people consist of local rice farmers and the rice consuming communities. Working with the IRRI (the International Rice Research Institute), the CGI has come up with a solution to the effect of Global Warming on these farmers, their product, and their livelihoods.
One of the biggest non-profit research centers in Asia, the International Rice Research Institute will work with former President Clinton, Doug Band, and the rest of the Clinton Global Initiative to commit to developing rice plants throughout Asia. Not only will these plants create rice that can survive in the current globally changing environment, but will actively improve the lives of local farmers in the area.
Floods in South Asia caused by the changing climate eliminate most (if not all) of a local rice farmer’s crops, and negatively influence the well-being of their entire community. Floods lead to a loss of crops, consequently leading to food shortages in the area that have a profound effect on children and women. This shows that climate change affects the livelihood of these undeveloped communities. Creating a new type of rice plant that can last for weeks after multiple floods subsequently helps bring profit to the struggling rice farmers and improves the standard of living.
The International Rice Research Institute and the Clinton Global Initiative both understand that Global Warming is an issue that affects the entire world, but concerns the poorest of communities the most. Through their work in Southeast Asia, the two organizations have developed a way for communities to support themselves through the ever changing climate, and helped areas that are in most need. Rice farmers in South Asia once had to base their lives around the unforeseeable force that is Mother Nature, but with such advances, the issue at hand could someday become less pressing. Now, communities based on the production of rice and rice farming can feel somewhat more secure even if the darkest of clouds are on the horizon.
