Key points
Imagine a food basket full of grains from an oasis in the desert, potatoes from 4,000 meters above the Andes in Peru or a remote part of an archipelago in Chile, and rice from the steep hillside terraces of China or the Philippines. All of this food comes from GIAHS. They are systems that lived millions of years ago in difficult and isolated lands, and in a harsh climate, all thanks to the knowledge of the indigenous people. FAO has identified nearly 200 such systems around the world, welcoming their contributions over thousands of years and supporting them to ensure that this knowledge is passed on to future generations. These special food systems contribute to local food security, the management of natural resources, and the conservation of genetic diversity. Unfortunately, the survival of this knowledge is jeopardized by modern life. But when FAO considered these systems to be agricultural heritage systems of global importance, it raised its profile, gave them more respect, and helped its survival.
It has now been about 12,000 years since man abandoned the method of hunting and gathering. This man embraced the idea of storing seeds and planting them from season to season, which meant that instead of constantly searching for food, he could settle in one place. He was able to focus on building his local communities, and at the same time devise agricultural systems that fit the local climate that allowed him to survive and even thrive in the lands on which he settled. With the improvements each generation made over the previous generation, these simple systems brought indigenous knowledge with them through the centuries.
Today, these simple farming systems dating back to the first centuries can be found on all continents of the world. But - far from falling into the trap of the past - these globally important agricultural heritage systems have made the world of agriculture that exists today. Despite the similarities here with the World Heritage sites established by UNESCO, the difference is that these sites are considered monuments that must be preserved, while these agricultural heritage systems are living systems that will continue to develop in order to meet the needs and demands of those who own them, i.e. smallholders, and farming families and indigenous people who are often among the poorest of the poor.
A legacy for the future
FAO estimates that around 500 million hectares worldwide are dedicated to agricultural heritage systems, still maintaining their unique traditions that combine social, cultural, ecological and economic services that benefit humanity. Philippine farmers have devised hillside irrigation systems that allow them to share water from field to field. Potato farmers in the Peruvian Andes learned to dig trenches around their fields, then fill them with water that warms in the sun during the day and releases warm fumes that protect the potato crop from frost at night. The floors benefit from the shade of palm trees to grow the fruits, vegetables and grains on which the inhabitants of this country eat.
These traditional systems, which exist in both developed and developing countries, are both efficient and simple. Otherwise, it would not have survived and had the support of so many generations with the most primitive tools. However, today most of the time it does not receive recognition for what it has done. As with many agricultural systems, these systems stand up to rapid development, globalization, urbanization, natural disasters, and the effects of climate change. It also has to fight the idea that traditional systems are not compatible with efficient modern agricultural production.
Nineteen GIAHS sites in 14 countries have been recognized by FAO since this partnership began in 2004, in a process that some countries themselves have requested to join. Applications that are approved are evaluated by a scientific committee through an international steering committee set up by FAO.
Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems introduce dynamic systems for conservation and livelihood sustainability
Choosing GIAHS goes beyond identifying GIAHS and turning them into attractive shots. Rather, it celebrates heritage, and the locals feel proud when a system that they have inherited from their ancestors and are still embracing, is chosen to become a GIAHS.
In one of the rice and fish farming sites in China, the farmers there, under the auspices of these agricultural heritage systems, increased their income from marketing their products, and tourism increased from 2,000 visitors in 2004 to 25,000 visitors in 2010. The celebration of these systems by the local government has been that they established A marble monument to a fish at the entrance to the village. In Algeria, the job opportunities created by the project brought young farmers back into the oasis system. The number of young people working and investing in these oases has increased from 2 percent to 23 percent.
However, in addition to increased incomes, farmers who follow these systems can benefit from this increased recognition in order to preserve their way of life, their lands, knowledge systems and agricultural biodiversity. FAO provides additional support at the government level by encouraging policies and incentives that support conservation.
Working with GIAHS is referred to as “dynamic conservation”. Rather than preserving these sites as monuments to the past, their evolution and change continues, including the holistic vision of "agricultural culture". Local communities and institutions can benefit from the ancient traditions and uniqueness of agricultural heritage systems by promoting, marketing and adding value to the goods and services they produce. But at the same time, those who inherited these systems can continue to incubate them, improve them, and pass them on to future generations.