Poster by Laura Cramer, CCAFS Science Officer for the Priorities and Policies for CSA Flagship. It was presented during the 5th Global Science Conference on Climate-Smart Agriculture in Bali on 8-10 October 2019. The poster presents research related to a systematic review of the effects of climate change on nutrition and equity carried out by CCAFS with IFPRI/A4NH.

1. INTRO
• Climate change is affecting patterns of
inequity and inequality. People will experience
climate change differently not only because of
where they live, but because of who they are –
because they grew up in poverty, or because of
their gender, caste, ethnicity, age, sexuality or
disability.
• The climate crisis will continue to increase
malnutrition among vulnerable populations via
several pathways.
• This research examines how climate change
will affect malnutrition and inequity through
the dimensions of fairness, justice and
inclusion.
METHODS
1. Systematic search in PubMed, Web of Science
and CABI abstracts databases.
2. Search results (n=5,304) screened by title
and abstract against eligibility criteria. 320
studies screened at a full text level. 47 studies
included.
3. Information extracted: study design, climate
change component, nutrition outcomes,
pathways of interaction, and sources of
inequity. The studies were scored on a scale
of 0 to 3 on the three equity dimensions.
Title:
Subtitle
Leeroy Jenkins, author2,
author3, author4
Equity is a key mediator of climate
change’s effects on nutrition. We
need to expand the thin evidence
base of equity dimensions.
How Climate Change Interacts with Inequity
to Impact Nutrition
Leah Salm, Nicholas Nisbett, Laura Cramer*, Stuart Gillespie, Philip Thornton
Fairness Justice Inclusion
Definition
Distribution of causes, outcomes, costs or
benefits (including of attempted policy
solutions) differing by socio-economic
category (e.g. the PROGRESS+ categories)
Norms, beliefs, institutions via
which inequity occurs or is
perpetuated over time
Representation in different forms of
decision making, particularly of groups
listed in PROGRESS+ categories
(including policy processes at local,
national and international levels,
traditional forms of government, civil
society strengthening).
Examples
1 (outcomes) agricultural productivity effects
are greater on poorer groups, greater still on
those with poor market access and/or in
ecologically geographically marginal areas.
2 (causes) lack of access of particular socio-
economic groups to goods and services known
to shape nutritional pathways (e.g. health
services, social protection, decent
employment)
3 (policy effects) mitigation measures such as
land use management having costs locally for
particular groups in terms of land access that
were not anticipated in policy
1 Gender/patriarchy/ assumptions
about women’s roles, work caring
practices etc.
2 racism, policy/ political/resource
favouritism of particular ethnic
majority groups or traditional
holders of power
3 regard or disregard for forms of
locally held beliefs, knowledge,
practices (e.g. agricultural
practices)
1 participatory planning in climate
adaptation initiatives
2 strengthening parliamentary or local
council representation of minority
groups
DISCUSSION
• Equity mediates the negative impacts of climate change on nutrition outcomes. The literature we
retrieved most often considers inequity in terms of the unfair distribution of vulnerability.
• Less attention is given to how injustice and exclusion perpetuate inequity. This is an important gap to
fill to broaden our understanding of deep-rooted inequities and how to reorient research and resources
for equitable adaptation and mitigation action.
• This work maps a linear pathway from GHG emissions to nutrition outcomes. In reality, these
relationships are more complex, with multiple feedback loops connecting food production, diet, and
coping strategies to further climate pressure. Improved understanding of these relationships should be
a priority for future research.
0
5
10
15
20
25
Low income Lower-middle
income
Upper-middle
income
High income Global
Number of studies Avg equity total score
Number of papers by country income group and average
equity score per group
0 5 10 15 20
East Asia and Pacific
South Asia
North America
Latin America and the Caribbean
Sub-Saharan Africa
Middle East and North Africa
Europe and Central Asia
Global
Undernutrition Micronutrient deficiency Overweight/ obesity
Diet-related NCDs Diet quality/ diversity
Included papers by nutrition outcome of focus
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Fairness Justice Inclusion
Equity scores for each included paper
P R O G R E S S +
Place of
residence
Race/
ethnicity/
culture/
language
Occupation/
Livelihood
Gender Religion Education Socioeconomic
Status/ Poverty
Social
Capital
+ Personal
Characteristics
(age, disability,
sexual
orientation etc)
CLIMATE CHANGE AND NUTRITION META-FRAMEWORK
*Presenter, contact info: l.cramer@cgiar.org
A full paper is under preparation for submission to a peer-reviewed journal