Friederike Schilling

• Land use and food security
• Ecosystem services
• Gender
• Agriculture, land use, climate change

> 08/2018 - 12/2021: AFC Agriculture and Finance Consultants, Project Manager Financial Sector Development

> 06/2016 - 03/2018: University öf Göttingen, Research Assistant Chair of Development Economics (Prof. Dr. Stephan Klasen) and Research Training Group Globalization and Development

> 01/2014 - 02/2014: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), Intern Financial Systems Development

> 09/2015 - 12/2015: KfW DEG, Intern Investement Management

> 06/2014 - 09/2014: BMZ, Intern

> MA Development Economics, University of Göttingen (2016-2018)

> BSc Economics and Business Economics, University of Hull (2012-2015)

> BA European Business Programme (EBP), University of Applied Sciences Münster (2012-2015)

BMZ via the Program of Accompanying Research for Agricultural Innovation (PARI)

Climate change mitigation finance: risks and opportunities for farmers and food systems in Africa (tentative)

In the policy dialogue on climate change, two aspects are stressed. First, the importance of reaching net‐zero CO2 emissions globally by 2050. Second, the strong impacts of climate change on African agriculture, contributing to food insecurity (IPCC, 2018).

Innovative solutions that support the sustainable transformation of African food systems are urgently needed. A large potential arises from the adoption of agricultural practices that increase carbon sequestration in soils and plants, referred to as carbon farming. Existing markets fail to internalize environmental externalities, creating a mismatch between individual costs and societal benefits. One solution to bridge this gap are payments linked to carbon farming.

Research evidence on the opportunities of carbon sequestration for farmers and food systems is crucial. While opportunities include direct payments and co-benefits of carbon farming, risks may stem from both technical (e.g., permanence, additionality) and institutional factors (e.g., elite capture of benefits).

The proposed research aims to explore the risks and opportunities of carbon farming in East Africa. The objectives are to:

(i) explore possibilities for integrating carbon farming into smallholder farming systems,

(ii) disentangle distributional effects,

(iii) analyse food security concerns related to carbon farming,

(iv) explore and assess the technologies and approaches for measuring and verifying soil carbon changes, and

(iv) assess institutional arrangements to tap potentials for carbon credits to promote sustainable production methods.

Prof. Dr. Joachim von Braun

Dr. Heike Baumüller

CV_Friederike Schilling_August 2022.pdf [PDF]