Which crops hold the key for climate change adaptation? A global survey
Many traditional crops are tolerant of drought, flooding, pests or other stressful conditions so they are valuable food sources when other crops fail. Such crops are becoming more important with climate change but we need your help to document them.
There are thousands of edible plant species cultivated and collected by farmer communities worldwide but research and development have tended to focus only on a narrow selection of staple and commodity crops. Many traditional crops are tolerant of dry conditions, heat, flooding, pests or other stressful growing conditions.
These hardy crops are valuable sources of food when other crops fail and could become more important in farming systems and livelihoods as the weather becomes more harsh and unpredictable under climate change.
To draw greater attention to the role of traditional crops in climate change adaptation, we are conducting a global survey on which crops are stress tolerant and have potential to improve the livelihoods of farmers and communities.
If you are an agricultural researcher, someone working with farmer communities, a farmer, or a gardener, please take a few minutes to share your insights.
The survey is available at the following link: 
Climate Change Crop Survey
Deadline January 31st 2014.
Photo: Trail plots of taro growing in Papua New Guinea as part of climate change adaptation initiative, Seeds for Needs. Credit: Bioversity/P. Mathur