Baseline assessment based on data collected for all project indicators and additional data will need to be identified by stakeholders. Collecting quantitative and qualitative data to track and report on important project metrics and learning questions on climate variability: agricultural productivity (yields, chemical use, input use); environmental sustainability (water and soil quality); economic sustainability (farm incomes); social sustainability (gender equity, information access); and human wellbeing (food and nutrition security). Conducting assessment tools, including the Sustainability Assessment of Food and Agriculture systems, technical efficiency analysis; technology adoption behaviors; consumer behaviors and patterns; and structure and prices along the value chain.

Using a participatory approach and building on the baseline analysis in WP1 to identify the challenges, the MIPs will be established to facilitate networking and knowledge exchange between the partners themselves and the stakeholders at all stages of the project. The multi‐institutional approach will also be used for the strong participation of young researchers and women in the MIPs to encourage widespread engagement with the project outputs. The MIPs will ensure effective co-prioritization and co-selection of appropriate CSFPs from WP3 that best meet end-user needs. In WP6, one business model will also be selected among three according to its relevance for each case study. Creation of a stakeholder and expert network. Development of social capital and social learning, selecting herdsmen/herdswomen who will commit to changing their practices in WP4, and disseminating them.

In WP2, co-prioritize the efficient innovations from WP3 to be introduced into each case study country. Introduce new tested heat and disease tolerance cereal and high protein-crop varieties using effective seed delivery methods. Save water and improve the efficiency of water use by using irrigation strategies (deficit irrigation strategies, using marginal quality (saline) water and abiotic stress tolerant crops). Produce vermicompost by mixing vegetative waste with animal manure in a 1:2 ratio and supplementing with worms to strengthen soil quality. Improve and promote agriculture-livestock (small ruminants) integration and convert straw, hay, agricultural by-products to high-protein feed.

Building on the selected innovations in WP2 from WP3, the project will design agro-ecosystems using LESs. A top-down approach for prototyping new cropping systems by researchers and designing the vision of the agro-ecosystems for the future. Bottom-up approach to assess and validate obtained prototypes with on-farm trials through experiments, train the farmers and scale out the CSFPs to improve capacity building of farmers and other stockholders.

To monitor and review project activities by applying a LCA using a “cradle to gate” approach with CBA in order to define their environmental and economic profiles and identify the “hotspots”, i.e. aspects to be addressed for improving the economic and environmental performance of the whole value chain sector through the SimaPro® software and following the Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules (PEFCR). Provide benchmarks using the “base cases” defined in WP1 and the stakeholders (WP2) that will be used to measure the value chain against the average values of the region and/or the technology. Performing comparative LCA, evaluating the impact of implementing WP4 based on the CSFPs in WP3.