This manual sets out the steps to guide rural advisory and agricultural extension workers to successfully integrate trees in rice-field and associated farms and landscapes using practical tools for implementing agroforestry practices on farms in Southeast Asia. Developed in collaboration by FAO with CIFOR-ICRAF, the manual builds on manifold experiences, consultations, and visits, especially in Indonesia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR), the Philippines and Thailand. The FFS approach is introduced as one of the best ways to share learning and knowledge and to discover technologies.

This document provides practical guidance on the establishment and implementation of FFS combining local innovations and AESA for trainers and FFS facilitators in introducing and promoting improved land and water management. Agroforestry systems are introduced for fodder trees, fodder crops, their management and utilization.

Mult-actors Agricultural Innovation Platform (MAIP) is established in rural communities where farmers and key value chain actors become empowered through participatory action research, knowledge co-creation and application, market linkages and so on. MAIPs, as a model for inclusive and collaborative innovation, are increasingly deployed in farmer communities to solve the last-mile bottleneck, namely, the empowerment of smallholder farmers and value chain actors to access innovation and services to drive field-level change.

The Office of Innovation launched the Portfolio Sense-Making initiative to mainstream the concept of innovation portfolio management across FAO teams and Divisions/Offices at HQ, Regional and Country levels. Portfolio Sense-Making involves systematically analyzing and visualizing innovation projects and their key data to understand their interrelationships, strengths, areas for improvement and potential impacts, thereby facilitating informed decision-making and strategic alignment with Organizational goals.

The Food Systems Thinking Guide for UN Resident Coordinators and UN Country Teams is an interactive resource designed to support food systems transformation as a contribution to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It emphasizes a systems approach, fostering collaboration across diverse stakeholders – including governments, civil society, and private sectors – to address interconnected challenges like food security, environmental sustainability, and social equity.