Productive land is a foundation to global food security and environmental health, zero hunger, poverty eradication, and energy for all yet this natural resource is under pragmatic threat. Human activities and climate change directly pose negative effects on the environment. As the world population is expected to reach 9.8 billion in 2050, pressure on land and natural resources is expected to increase due to increased demand for food, feed and fuel.

The Agro-Ecological Zones (AEZ) methodology developed by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), is an internationally recognized Framework for land evaluation. The Framework was initially established to assess the ability of the world's agricultural resources to provide the needs of its growing population, a fundamental issue for the international community. The AEZ framework principles and outputs contribute directly to a number of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including SDG-1, 2, 12, 14, 15 and 17. 

The new Global Agro-Ecological Zoning version 4 (GAEZ v4), launched on June 17th 2021, is based on updated agro-climatic assessments, models, resources, crop statistics and water use at global scale and represent a practical tool to assess the current agricultural resources, alternative sustainable farming practices and the impact of climate change on agriculture. Implementing an Agro-Ecological Zoning (AEZ) framework at national scale is a complex task, due to the numerous skills, data and tools required to effectively deliver outputs that can reach the decision-making process on land use planning. 

From October 11 to 15th 2021, FAO and the Geo-informatics Center of Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) in collaboration with the Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) and International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), organized a training on “Introduction to Ago-Ecological Zoning: a framework for agricultural development and land use planning.” The objective of this training (3 hours, 5 days length each) was to provide basic information on implementing Agro-Ecological Zoning. Trainings was conducted virtually and attended by at least 100 participants from 22 countries.

AIT and the Geospatial Unit, Land and Water Division (NSL) at FAO, provided introductory information on AEZ from theoretical concepts and definitions to practical outputs and results. “These kind of tools are very important because we have to manage the land resources properly. The agricultural potentials and constraints are not the same everywhere and must be better understood” said Rajendra Shrestha, AIT Professor of Land Resources and Management. 

Various trainers from different organizations shared their knowledge and experience: Prof. Rajendra Shrestha (Professor of Land Resources Management at AIT), Kavinda Gunasekara (Associate Director of AIT’s Geoinformatics Center (GIC)), Thaileng Thol (Senior Research Associate at GIC), Freddy Nachtergaele (AEZ International Consultant at AIT), Gianluca Franceschini (Senior Geospatial Data Scientist at FAO), Federica Chiozza (Land Monitoring Expert at FAO); and Sam Libby (Practice Lead from the Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI).