Livestock Data for Decisions

Livestock data community deliberates strategies for impact

April 1, 2020April 2, 2020vanessasebi

Report back from LD4D meeting, 4-6 February 2020

by Vanessa Meadu and Karen Smyth (SEBI)

As a global community of practice, Livestock Data for Decisions (LD4D) operates mostly virtually, but the community really comes to life at our annual face to face meeting. This year’s meeting took place in Rome mere weeks before the COVID-19 pandemic was declared. The focus question was how to improve the use of livestock data for a healthier, more resilient and more sustainable livestock sector. The meeting was a unique opportunity to share best practices, reflect on challenges, hear feedback, and propose solutions that can be carried forward by LD4D working groups.

We were fortunate to be able to meet in person, and look forward to carrying out next steps through virtual collaboration.

It’s time to zero in on the gender gap in livestock data

March 6, 2020March 13, 2020vanessasebi

On International Women’s Day we call for gender equality in livestock data, and outline key actions to close the gap

By Vanessa Meadu and Isla MacVicar, SEBI

Livestock farming offer a ‘pathway out of poverty’ for hundreds of millions of people in low and middle-income countries, but the lack of data about this sector is preventing governments and funders from making evidence-based policies and investments, explained Bill Gates at an event in Edinburgh in 2018. This livestock data gap is slowly narrowing, thanks in part to initiatives supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), but an enormous chasm still exists for data around women in livestock. This missing data around women in livestock is hindering essential progress.

Stand out from the herd: get to know the data behind your livestock facts

November 25, 2019January 29, 2020vanessasebi

It pays to know the age, accuracy and scope of your livestock facts say the authors of a new publication that explores the data behind popular livestock figures

by Vanessa Meadu and Gareth Salmon

The role of livestock in supporting human well-being is increasingly contentious. News outlets carry divisive messages about the environmental, economic and social aspects of livestock and animal-based products. Critics and advocates toss around ‘facts’ and ‘evidence’ to make their claims, but these facts are often divorced from their data sources and may be intended for a different purpose. In a new paper investigating the origins of popular livestock facts, the authors call upon advocates and researchers to recognise the context, accuracy and age of the evidence they use in discussions the future of livestock.

Humans, Machines and Ecosystems: can big data disrupt livestock development?

October 29, 2019October 30, 2019vanessasebi

Report back from the 2019 CGIAR Big Data in Agriculture Convention

By Vanessa Meadu

How can Big Data approaches like artificial intelligence, machine learning and text mining help researchers generate insights that conventional data collection and analysis cannot? Members of the LD4D Community of Practice attended the recent CGIAR Big Data in Agriculture Convention to gain new insights, share experience and connect with researchers and industry experts working on livestock, fish and crops.

This year’s Convention on the theme Trust: Humans, Machines & Ecosystems was hosted by The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) in Hyderabad, India. The booming city of Hyderabad – also known as Cyberabad – is a hotbed for the tech sector, and home to countless startups, innovators and disruptors. And India, which is home to nearly 18% of the world’s population (and growing), faces very real food security challenges. It was an appropriate setting to explore potential solutions to feed the future – “byte by byte”.

Ruminating on a sustainable future for livestock

October 23, 2019October 23, 2019vanessasebi

Report back from the 9^th Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock meeting

By Gareth Salmon, SEBI

The sustainability of livestock production is a hot topic of discussion and a very real global challenge. Livestock sustains the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of smallholder farmers as well as feeding people and economies in the global North. But livestock production also contributes to climate change, environmental degradation and other harmful impacts. In response, the Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock (GASL) convenes public and private sector actors, intergovernmental organizations, academia and research, social movements, NGOs and donors to develop solutions. To date, 111 official partners including 20 governments have joined the agenda to share good practices and policies, and champion the principle that all livestock production systems can be more sustainable, no matter where they are.

On behalf of the Livestock Data for Decisions (LD4D) Community of Practice, Karen Smyth and I attended the 9^th partnership meeting, hosted by Kansas State University (USA).

Video: Can we feed the planet, and stay within planetary boundaries? With Professor Mario Herrero

October 18, 2019December 4, 2019vanessasebi

In this seminar, Professor Mario Herrero addresses the key messages of the EAT Lancet Report, including the role of livestock in sustainable and healthy diets.

Earlier this year, the EAT–Lancet Commission released a report addressing how to feed a growing global population a healthy diet while also defining sustainable food systems that will minimise damage to our planet.

Professor Mario Herrero, a contributor to the EAT-Lancet report and SEBI collaborator, gave a seminar on the realities of navigating these issues, including the role of livestock in sustainable and healthy diets.

WATCH NOW:

Click to watch Prof Mario HErrero discuss the Eat-Lancet Planetary Boundaries Diet. — *Click to watch the video. It will open in a new window*.

A streamlined tool for rural household surveys – Q&A with Jim Hammond on RHoMIS – the Rural Household Multi-Indicator Survey

July 17, 2019August 19, 2019vanessasebi

Interviewed by Vanessa Meadu

There are great opportunities to improve the process of gathering information from farming households, particularly in Low and Middle-Income countries where development projects depend on solid data for their success, and existing data resources are scarce.

Enter RHoMIS – the Rural Household Multi-Indicator Survey, which aims to reduce the costs, time requirements and reporting burdens for those who carry out household surveys. The development team have built and used a bank of survey questions based on internationally recognised indicators, covering all aspects of farming systems, including livestock. The database contains a wealth of information that may unlock important solutions to livestock challenges.

We spoke with Jim Hammond, a scientist based at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), who co-leads the RHoMIS team, about how RHoMIS could help close livestock data gaps and uncover new insights.

Vanessa Meadu: How can RHoMIS help improve the reliability of data on livestock and rural livelihoods in Low and Middle-Income Countries?

Report back from LD4D meeting, 4-6 February 2020

It pays to know the age, accuracy and scope of your livestock facts say the authors of a new publication that explores the data behind popular livestock figures

Report back from the 9th Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock meeting

In this seminar, Professor Mario Herrero addresses the key messages of the EAT Lancet Report, including the role of livestock in sustainable and healthy diets.

WATCH NOW:

Report back from the 9^th Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock meeting