Agriculture Decision-Making in Indonesia with ENSO Variability: Conference poster

The combined forces of El NinoSouthern Oscillation (ENSO) eventsand global warming are likely to have dramatic effects on future cropproduction and food security in Indonesia and other tropical countries.Indonesia consistently experiences dry climatic conditions and droughtsduring El Nino events, resulting in delayed production of rice—thecountry’s primary food staple—and exacerbated problems of foodinsecurity among the poor. Our preliminary analysis suggests thatglobal climate change could cause Indonesia’s “normal” climate state tobe similar to an El Nino state currently. Unfortunately, globalclimate models (GCMs) link poorly to regional hydrologic conditions in thetropics, and have limited coverage of the Indonesian archipelago, excludingareas representing 75% of the population and 66% of the riceproduction (Figure 1). Therefore results from the GCM need to befurther “downscaled” to understand the effects of global climate changeon Indonesian hydrology and agriculture.