Since 2014, the CGIAR research program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security has collaborated with different stakeholders to implement climate change adaptation approaches and practices in critical locations in the Central American Dry Corridor. A new university course for professionals in the Dry Corridor aims to scale these approaches and practices. This article presents the core elements of the course, summarizes the main results, and offers recommendations for future editions. It was observed that the different trajectories and experiences of professionals participating in the first edition of the course facilitated a lively exchange of knowledge, the integration of local experiences in teaching, and the integration of learning in follow up proposals of governmental and non-governmental organizations. The following aspects should be central in future course editions: diversity of participants, adaptation of didactic strategies to the needs of different users, and follow-up support, as well as the integration of course concepts and practices in the actions of different organizations. The latter requires strong organizational commitment.

Climate extremes are one of the main drivers of acute food insecurity. In Guatemala, acute food insecurity reaches alarming levels when the usual dry period during the bimodal rainy seasons is extended or starts earlier than expected. Drought has a slow-onset which theoretically leaves sufficient lead-time for addressing impacts on food security. In practice, emergency response to drought is often reactive and arrives late, starting when the crisis is already evolving. Climate services and food security information systems are key ingredients for integrated climate risk and food security management worldwide. In Guatemala, stakeholders broadly agree on the usefulness of this type of information for decision-making and direct significant efforts towards improving information availability and quality. But the impact of agro-climatic and food security information on decisions is ad hoc or not systematic. Through a mix of qualitative, ethnographic, and participatory methods, we investigated why this situation occurs. We found that different aspects lead to this phenomenon: the impact of drought on food security is mediated by different socio-economic, political, and institutional factors that tend to differ strongly between regions or even communities across the country. This puts special requirements on information provision for decision-making. Information use patterns can be explained by technical, data-related aspects as reliability, timeliness, or accessibility. But only by considering the institutional and organizational context we get a complete understanding on what frames the information-use patterns in climate and food security management in Guatemala. Our research shows that investments in technical aspects of data provision and infrastructure for increased climate and food security management need to address institutional and organizational challenges in order to be effective.

Increased interannual climate variability affects agricultural livelihoods throughout the world. In many regions, climate services support decision-makers in their adaptation efforts. The range of these services and the number of associated information products have increased dramatically in recent years. However, the relationships between these products and their use and usability for targeted decision-making have rarely been systematically evaluated. Here, we report on the development of a systematic and user-centered approach to assess climate information products and networks of products; and apply it to products covering the nexus of climate, agriculture, and food security in Guatemala and Colombia. Across both countries, we assessed 28 products used for agricultural decision making, outreach, planning research, and design of emergency responses. While climate-only information products play a central role in each network, information products intended to support agriculture and food security need to integrate information from different themes or disciplines and sources at different scales. We find that major improvements in the credibility, legitimacy, scale, cognition, procedures, recommendations, and content of most existing products are required. Brevity and clarity of language are highlighted as desirable in both countries, as well as use of trusted and publicly-available data, and non-paper-based delivery formats. The approach and methodology are valuable for facilitating the prioritization of actions for improvement and/or the development of new products, thereby helping climate services for agriculture and food security to realize their true potential.

hurricanes and the El Niño-southern oscillation (ENSO) phenomena (CEPAL 2011).As a result, three countries in the region rank in the top 10 of the Global Climate Risk Index (Kreft and Eckstien 2013) based on the impacts of extreme weather events between 1993 and 2012.Much of the regional economy is based on agriculture.In Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, more than two thirds of the population depends on agriculture.This agricultural base is often intimately tied to ecosystems, especially in diverse farming systems of smallholders.But it is increasingly threatened by climate variability and change (Bouroncle et al. 2016;Baca et al. 2014), which are inducing changes in areas suitable for crops and leading to high yield variability.Storms, floods and droughts have had the greatest impacts on agriculture in Central America over the last century (Guha-Sapir et al. 2014).This special issue addresses the adaptation challenges facing smallholders, ecosystems and ecosystem services in the region.In this introduction, we review the literature on regional climate and its drivers, climate change projections, impacts on agriculture and ecosystems, and information management for adaptation in the region.Short descriptions of the special issue contributions are provided throughout the text. Weather and climate in Central AmericaThe topography of Central America is a complex of coasts, plains and high mountains that determine its climate (Taylor and Alfaro 2005).The main topographic feature of the region is the Central American Cordillera on the Pacific coast with plains running to the Atlantic.Precipitation in the region is seasonal, controlled by the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and the North Atlantic trade winds interacting with the Cordillera (Nieuwolt 1977).A dry arc, the corredor seco, starts in the north of Costa Rica and extends into Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala on the Pacific side and also includes a portion of the central Pacific coast of Panama (known as arco seco).The region has a wet season from June to September which is punctuated by a short dry spell, or canicula, and an extended dry season between November and May.On the Caribbean coasts of Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama, rainfall occurs throughout the year, especially from October to December and, to a lesser extent, between January and April (Magaña et al. 1999).Inter-annual variability is high for both the Caribbean and Pacific watersheds with near decadal cycles of extreme precipitation (Hastenrath and Polzin 2013).Over most of Central America the bimodal rainfall distribution determines the onset of the rainy season and the length and dryness of the canicula (dry period), which sets the agricultural calendar.The historical record indicates that when the sea surface temperature (SST) of the tropical Atlantic is warmer than usual, early-season rainfall is above average over much of Central America, while when SST is cooler the early-season rainfall is below average (Alfaro 2007a).Moreover, when the SST of the Pacific is warmer than usual and the Atlantic cooler than usual, late-season rainfall on the Pacific slopes of the Central America Cordillera is below average, and the reverse is also true.3 What drives weather and climate in Central America?The dominant large-scale influence on weather and climate in Central America is the subtropical high of the north Atlantic, a semi-permanent system over North America (Taylor and Alfaro 2005;Amador et al. 2006).During winter (December-March), it spreads over North America and the cold ocean, causing the dry northeast trade winds that bring little moisture to

Climate change is one of the main threats to rural livelihoods in Central America, especially for small and medium-sized farmers. Climate change vulnerability assessment (CCVA) integrates biophysical and socioeconomic information to support policy decisions. We present a CCVA of agricultural livelihoods of four countries in Central America, at the municipality level. We use the IPCC definition of vulnerability, and address the potential impact of climate change on suitability for major crops and adaptive capacity using indicators of basic human needs, as well as resources for innovation and action framed in a livelihoods approach. Adaptive capacity was estimated using ranking techniques for municipalities and descriptive multivariate analysis. Projected changes in climate suitability for crops show a wide variation between Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua, and within each country. Cluster analysis of adaptive capacity values shows a gradient between higher values close to urban areas and lower values in agricultural frontier areas and in those prone to drought. Municipalities with a high proportional area under subsistence crops tend to have less resources to promote innovation and action for adaptation. Our results suggest that a full spectrum of adaptation levels and strategies must be considered in the region to achieve different adaptation goals. They also show that the adaptive capacity ranking and characterization are complementary and support geographical prioritization and identification of adaptation strategies, respectively.

Climate change will have serious repercussions for agriculture, ecosystems, and farmer livelihoods in Central America. Smallholder farmers are particularly vulnerable due to their reliance on agriculture and ecosystem services for their livelihoods. There is an urgent need to develop national and local adaptation responses to reduce these impacts, yet evidence from historical climate change is fragmentary. Modeling efforts help bridge this gap. Here, we review the past decade of research on agricultural and ecological climate change impact models for Central America. The results of this review provide insights into the expected impacts of climate change and suggest policy actions that can help minimize these impacts. Modeling indicates future climate-driven changes, often declines, in suitability for Central American crops. Declines in suitability for coffee, a central crop in the regional economy, are noteworthy. Ecosystem models suggest that climate-driven changes are likely at low- and high-elevation montane forest transitions. Modeling of vulnerability suggests that smallholders in many parts of the region have one or more vulnerability factors that put them at risk. Initial adaptation policies can be guided by these existing modeling results. At the same time, improved modeling is being developed that will allow policy action specifically targeted to vulnerable groups, crops, and locations. We suggest that more robust modeling of ecological responses to climate change, improved representation of the region in climate models, and simulation of climate influences on crop yields and diseases (especially coffee leaf rust) are key priorities for future research.

Peru is a megadiverse country, with richness in life zones (84), climates, and genetic diversity of wild and agricultural species. Development and scaling out of CSA practices that focus on research and recovery of this richness and dissemination of traditional crops would build resilience of agricultural systems, improve productivity, and contribute to nutrition and food security. The preservation and transference of ancestral adaptation practices for soil conservation (e.g., platforms, terraces) and water retention (e.g., canals, ponds) are important for mainstreaming CSA.

Water is a key limiting factor for the development of Sinaloa’s agricultural sector, and recent struggles with drought threaten the state’s position as Mexico’s leading tomato producer. Practices that increase water-use efficiency and management are needed. Drip irrigation has proven to be both economical and productive in tomato, maize, and chickpea systems, increasing water-use efficiency and promoting resilience to climate change.