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Grassland-based systems are no longer seen exclusively as livestock production enterprises but as
multiple use systems with important consequences for the global environment. They are crucial for
the protection of ecosystem goods and services, for tourism and for mitigating climate change. Wellmanaged
grasslands provide important benefits such as increased water infiltration and retention or
improved nutrient cycling, associated with organic matter accumulation in the soil, as well as increased
plant growth and species diversity. Thereby, grassland management is also an adaptation strategy for
climate change, as it reduces the risks associated with prolonged drought periods and unreliable rains
that characterise Mediterranean regions. There is an urgent need to assess the interaction between
climate change and grasslands to identify appropriate options that can help farmers to manage forage
resources under increasing drought conditions and market globalisation. The challenge is then to
improve grassland productivity, pasture persistence and resilience under these constraints. Scientific
advances in grassland management and new strategies in plant improvement may undoubtedly
contribute to this aim.
This publication is the outcome of the 14th Meeting of the FAO-CIHEAM Inter-regional Cooperative
Research and Development Sub-Network on Mediterranean Pastures and Fodder Crops titled "New
approaches for grassland research in a context of climatic and socio-economic changes" which took
place in Samsun (Turkey) from 3 to 6 October 2012, and includes the invited and selected papers
presented at the Meeting.
