ABSTRACT
Climate changes often adversely affect farming systems and biodiversity (Halewood et al. 2013). Morton (2007) has shown that these impacts are hard to predict because of their complexity and specificity, and they are mainly affecting small farmers in developing countries. These factors may be diverse including emergence of new pests and diseases, change of flowering and pollination period, and timing of some agriculture activities. Plant genetic resources are affected by the climate change and can respond to adverse effects by adapting crops and varieties. Farm conservation is a very efficient solution to adapt to climate change because it can maintain the evolutionary process of crops and their agricultural systems (Bellon 2009). Furthermore, field genebank, seed genebank, and community genebank can make plant materials available for adaptation to diverse environment conditions. Custodian farmers can play an important role to conserve plant genetic resources and to offer adapted germplasm to climate change. Adapted germplasm can be evaluated and improved in collaboration with farmers and research institutes. Performed accessions can be distributed to other regions, particularly vulnerable ones (Ramirez-Villegas et al. 2013, Vermeulen et al. 2013). The ability of farmers, plant breeders, and natural resource managers to identify and access such germplasm is becoming increasingly important 100as climates continue to change. Tunisia is one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change in the region, given its limited natural resources and the dominance of an arid and variable climate. Scenarios of climate change agree on an increase in temperature of about 2°C, more pronounced in the south of the Mediterranean (GIZ 2013). The country is particularly vulnerable to accelerated desertification and degradation of its coastline facing the rising sea levels. This natural vulnerability and increased human pressure on ecosystems and natural resources are more and more increased by the need of socioeconomic development. Tunisia has already developed policies for sustainable management of natural resources in line with its economic development goals. But limited resources and the effects of climate change are still threatening the equilibrium between socioeconomic development and resources (GIZ 2013).
