The Role of Plant Breeding Under Changing Climate

Abstract

Climate change is now unequivocal, particularly in terms of increasing temperature, increasing CO2 concentration, widespread melting of snow and ice and rising global average sea level, while the increase in the frequency of drought is very probable but not as certain. Even though climate change is one of the major current global concerns, it is not new. Several climate Changes have occurred before, with dramatic consequences in history. Plant breeding is the activity of developing diverse plant varieties that can contribute usefully to cropping and production systems. These breeding efforts are directed at plant improvement. But ‘improvement’ is a subjective and relative goal and it is useful to regularly break up plant breeding objectives and procedures into clearly defined and manageable units. Owing to the imperatives of food security, plant breeding must combine the objective of ecological intensification with that of adaptation to overall societal and global changes.

Keywords: Climate change, Green revolution, Genetic gain

DOI: 10.7176/JBAH/11-4-04

Publication date: February 28^th 2021