ABSTRACT

Climate variability will likely continue to affect agricultural production, but through what other pathways will environmental change affect food security and nutrition outcomes in the developing world? The most food insecure members of society are also the most vulnerable to disease, extreme events, conflict, lack of access to credit, education and health resources, and other problems of distribution. Malnutrition itself changes the immune system, increasing the likelihood that the individual will have more diarrheal, communicative and vector-borne diseases during their lifetime. Prolonged malnutrition degrades the individual’s utilization of food, reducing food security even if there is adequate access and availability later in life. This chapter will explore what is known about the causes of malnutrition and its linkages with environmental and climate dynamics. Climate variability and price spikes have broader societal consequences beyond simply food security impacts. Understanding these consequences is critical for designing appropriate interventions to improve human welfare.