Last month CDKN had the pleasure of attending a learning review of the Step Change initiative which brought together multiple project partners to reflect on progress, surface synergies and outline pathways for collaboration between projects to amplify impacts across research, policy and practice.  

Back in 2022, the Step Change programme was co-designed to accelerate equitable and locally-led adaptation in the Global South. The programme supports a diverse array of projects that are geared towards moving knowledge into action. Reflecting on the work of the project partners over the last two years, many synergies have emerged that point to the importance of strengthening food systems and supporting enhanced water security through ecosystem-based approaches.  

Harnessing the power of nature to support development has multiple co-benefits. It can improve and diversify livelihoods, conserve biodiversity, strengthen resilience capacities, and surface ways to unlock appropriate and accessible finance mechanisms and evidence, informed by diverse knowledge systems.  

Each project has a different entry point for supporting innovative and locally-led approaches. Some focus on mobilising innovative agroecological techniques through surfacing and synthesising Indigenous, local and scientific knowledge, and associated practices and metrics.  Others focus on exploring important enabling mechanisms linked to finance and supportive governance and policy options that are informed by the latest available knowledge and evidence. However, all share a common feature. They emphasise the importance of locally-led evidence-based knowledge co-production and exchange, which is often referred to as ‘knowledge brokering’.  Their work is also grounded in a commitment to enhance gender equity and social inclusion in all activities, across scales.  

In reflecting on the work of the initiative, several key themes stood out that show early signs for transformative potential. 

Empowering marginalised smallholder farmers with agroecological innovations 

Smallholder farmers are at the heart of food systems across Africa and the Global South, yet they face increasing pressures from shifting environmental conditions, soil degradation, social inequities and market challenges. In Step Change, the SCALE project in Nigeria and Senegal, CRAKS project in Uganda and PIEGIS-2AC project in Burkina Faso address these challenges by enhancing the capacity of  key knowledge holders in food systems, including extension services, to support local farmers in adopting sustainable agroecological practices These include, improving soil health through crop rotation, companion planting, using biopesticides and supporting community seed banks of diverse drought resistant crop varieties. 

By assessing the needs of diverse farmers and extension workers operating in diverse social-ecological systems, especially those living and working in marginalised contexts, these projects co-develop tools, knowledge and training programmes that ensure knowledge-sharing platforms are accessible and equitable.  

Harnessing the power of community radios, WhatsApp groups and other forms of peer-to-peer learning, such as farm visits and intergenerational discussions and focus groups, deepens opportunities for co-learning and building on existing evidence. This allows for contextual scaling of the initiatives in terms of scaling up (activity is embedded in policy), scaling out (initiatives are adapted for local contexts and implemented in other regions/sites) and scaling deep (activities seek to shift unsustainable and unjust values, norms, relationships and beliefs).  

Strengthening food systems through innovating sustainable practices 

For millions, livestock are a crucial source of nutrition, culture and income.However, conventional livestock management can lead to resource depletion and wildlife conflicts, and is vulnerable to climate and other changes.  

Step Change projects are exploring innovative ways to improve livestock and pastoral practices while reducing environmental impacts. For example the NAPO project, supported by CDKN, seeks to enhance the inclusion and meaningful participation of Indigenous community members in the planning, management and monitoring of the Mount Marsabit forest. It enables the validation and signing of a participatory forestry management plan, supporting communities to implement locally-adapted restoration techniques, and equipping local herders with the technical skills and technology to enable them to monitor restoration progress.  

SCALE is piloting ‘push-pull’ agroecological and fodder methods that involve companion planting (e.g. using Desmodium to repel pests and Napier grass to attract them away from food crops), thus protecting food crops while providing additional fortified fodder for livestock when harvesting the push-pull crops. These approaches not only improve agricultural quality but also reduce the need for chemical pesticides, are more drought resistant and can enhance biodiversity while providing a cost-effective solution for small-scale farmers. Similarly, community-led seed banks for fodder plants are being established to ensure year-round access to high-quality animal feed – an initiative that particularly benefits women-led farming initiatives. 

Access to appropriate finance for ecosystem-based approaches 

One of the key barriers to scaling up ecosystem-based initiatives, and securing resilient water and food systems, is access to appropriate finance, particularly for smallholder farmers and community-based initiatives.  

Step Change projects such as BRIDGE, CDKN and DEFOCLIM are working to address this challenge by focusing on creating equitable financial mechanisms that allow communities to access funds for supporting knowledge brokering and ecosystem-based activities. By ensuring that financial resources reach the people who need them most, BRIDGE empowers local actors to implement sustainable food production strategies that enhance long-term security. Similarly, DEFOCLIM is pioneering decentralised funding models that channel resources directly to communities implementing ecosystem-based approaches. By removing bureaucratic barriers, this approach enables more efficient investment in contextually-relevant activities such as agroforestry, soil restoration and water conservation efforts. 

Enhancing water security through ecosystem-based approaches 

Water security is a fundamental component of resilient food systems. CDKN has been working to improve access to clean and reliable water supplies by supporting Water Funds in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. These funds bring together public and private stakeholders to invest in upstream watershed conservation, ensuring long-term water availability for both rural and urban communities. This innovative form of collaborative water governance is co-developing locally appropriate metrics and indicators. These simultaneously measure biodiversity and water gains, and the inclusivity (in terms of gender, equity and social inclusion) of ecosystem-based adaptation outcomes that are linked to enhanced water quality and quantity.  

By implementing ecosystem-based approaches such as reforestation, wetland restoration and sustainable land management practices, Water Funds help to regulate water flows, reduce sedimentation and enhance groundwater recharge. These efforts not only safeguard water resources but also provide economic opportunities for local communities engaged in conservation activities.Local knowledge can guide ecosystem-based approaches to food and water security 

As environmental pressures increase on food systems in the Global South and it becomes more critical to protect watersheds and provide clean and reliable water supplies, it is important to draw on the knowledge and capacity of local communities. The Step Change programme recognises this by supporting projects that integrate local knowledge around ecosystem-based approaches into food and water security strategies. These projects are helping to shape relevant, appropriate and sustainable agricultural, water management and ecological practices that are based on lived experiences, traditional knowledge and social context.