CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems

The Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE) is an ambitious 12-year CGIAR Research Program, unmatched in its scope and range of partners. 

It embodies innovative thinking on agriculture, the management of natural resources, and the alleviation of poverty to improve food security and environmental protection.

It harnesses specialist skills to solve pressing problems in priority regions, and it processes data on natural resources to provide a truly global picture of the overall health of our ecosystems.

Our vision

A world in which agriculture thrives within vibrant ecosystems, and where communities have higher incomes, improved food security and the ability to continually improve their lives.

From research to impact

WLE has five Intermediate Development Outcomes that are linked to the CGIAR Strategic Level Outcomes:

1. Improved land, water and energy productivity in rainfed and irrigated agro-ecosystem
2. Increased resilience of communities through enhanced ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes.
3. Increased and more equitable income from agricultural and natural resources management and ecosystem services in rural and peri-urban areas
4. Increased ability of low income communities to adapt to environmental and economic variability, demographic shifts, shocks and long term changes
5. Women and marginalized groups have decision making power over and increased benefits derived from agriculture and natural resources