Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN

Topic I: Livestock Systems at the Crossroads of Food Security and Climate Governance

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is a biennial conference that brings together government delegates, ministers of agriculture, civil society organizations, and private-sector actors to advance global efforts to eradicate hunger and strengthen food security. Since its founding in 1945 at a historic meeting in Quebec City, Canada, the FAO has served as the central UN forum for coordinating international food and agriculture policy, with 194 member states and the European Union convening at its headquarters in Rome, Italy. While the FAO’s mandate has long focused on increasing agricultural productivity and improving nutrition, recent conferences have increasingly grappled with the growing intersection between food systems and climate risk. The 44th session of the FAO Conference emphasized innovation, sustainability, and climate resilience, reflecting mounting concern over the vulnerability of global food systems to environmental stress. At SECSY, delegates will engage with these challenges through the lens of livestock governance, developing strategies that balance nutrition, rural livelihoods, and climate resilience while addressing the outsized role livestock systems play in both food security and greenhouse gas emissions, particularly in regions most vulnerable to climate instability.