Global studies
Our first truly global coordinated SRM study was launched in 2026, focusing on staple crops.
For the first time, research teams in nine developing regions, plus China and the Global North, will use the same data, the same research protocols, and the same scenarios to explore how warming and SRM could affect staple crops.
This is the first in a planned series of global studies on issues most impacted by climate change. Agriculture was chosen as the first topic after consultation with researchers and policymakers across the Global South, who highlighted the pivotal role of staple crops in supporting livelihoods and food security.
Projects
South America
- Principal Investigator: Andrés Aguilar Ariza, Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT
- Host country: Colombia
- Crops: maize and rice
Central America & Caribbean
- Principal Investigator: Roxann Stennett-Brown, University of the West Indies
- Host country: Jamaica
- Crops: cassava and maize
Southeast Asia (2 projects)
- Principal Investigator: Heri Kuswanto, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember
- Host country: Indonesia
- Crops: palm oil, coffee
- Principal Investigator: Tao Li, International Rice Research Institute
- Host country: Philippines
- Crops: rice
Pacific Islands
- Principal Investigator: Viliamu Iese, University of Melbourne
- Host country: Solomon Islands / Australia
- Crops: taro and cassava
East Africa
- Principal Investigator: Franklin Joseph Opijah, University of Nairobi
- Host country: Kenya
- Crops: maize and sorghum
Southern Africa
- Principal Investigator: Chris Lennard, University of Cape Town
- Host country: South Africa
- Crops: maize and cassava
West Africa
- Principal Investigator: Vincent Olarenwaju Ajayi, Federal University of Technology Akure
- Host country: Nigeria
- Crops: maize and sorghum
Middle East & North Africa
- Principal Investigator: Victor Ongoma, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University
- Host country: Morocco
- Crops: Wheat and maize
South Asia
- Principal Investigator: Athar Hussain, COMSATS University Islamabad
- Host country: Pakistan
- Crops: Rice and wheat
Funding and partners
Degrees is administering the project under its Global to Regional Impacts Downscaling for Climate Cooling (GRID-CC) programme, funded by the UK’s Advanced Research + Invention Agency (ARIA).
It will be delivered in collaboration with the Agricultural Model Intercomparison and Improvement Project (AgMIP), Cornell University and the University of Cape Town (UCT). AgMIP will lead on protocol development, scientific coordination and cross-regional synthesis. Cornell University and UCT are responsible for preparing and delivering the harmonised climate datasets and supporting the data infrastructure used across all teams.
A central advisory group, including members of AgMIP and the climate-agricultural modelling community, will provide technical input and guide the scientific design of the programme.
Degrees is funding the studies across the Global South, and the coordination of Global North modeling through the partnership the AgMIP. The Chinese component will be completed by a volunteer team using the same protocols.