Photo by AIM for Climate. Pictured left to right: Petter Østbø, Founder/CEO Atlas Agro; Ismahane Elouafi, Executive Managing Director, CGIAR; Gina Yum, Student, Pomona College, California; Thomas J. Vilsack, Secretary, U.S. Department of Agriculture; Her Excellency Dr. Amna bint Abdullah Al Dahak, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, United Arab Emirates, and John Tauzel, Senior Director, Global Agriculture Methane, Environmental Defense Fund
The Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM for Climate), a joint initiative by the United States and the United Arab Emirates to address climate change and global hunger, celebrated its progress at COP29 and presented a roadmap for the future. AIM for Climate co-leads U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and UAE Minister of Climate Change & Environment, Her Excellency Dr. Amna bint Abdullah Al Dahak, announced that since COP28 in December 2023:
- AIM for Climate’s investment in climate-smart agriculture and food systems innovation has risen significantly from $17 billion to $29.2 billion
- Innovation sprints, initiatives led and funded by partners to accelerate agricultural and food systems innovation, have increased from 78 to 129. These sprints cover AIM for Climate’s four focal areas of methane reduction, emerging technology, smallholder farmers in low and middle-income countries, and agroecological research
- AIM for Climate’s worldwide partners have grown from 600 a year ago to 800; 56 countries have joined to support the initiative
The Road Ahead
The Third AIM for Climate Ministerial, co-hosted by the U.S. and UAE, highlighted AIM for Climate’s legacy and ongoing momentum by presenting an AIM for Climate report first published in September. Developed in collaboration with the United Nations Foundation, the report outlines four recommendations for partners to ensure continued progress. These range from enhancing the inclusion of climate-smart agriculture and food systems innovation in the design and implementation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to building global partnerships to overcome challenges and scale agricultural innovation.
“USDA has served as a global leader through AIM for Climate by significantly increasing investment and support for climate-smart agriculture and food systems innovation, said Secretary Vilsack. He stated that USDA will continue to support AIM for Climate by investing $4.3 billion in Innovation Sprints. This investment includes a $80 million commitment to Atlas Agro North America Corporation through the Fertilizer Production Expansion Program aimed at increasing nitrogen fertilizer availability in the United States without adding to agriculture’s carbon footprint.