Bapon (SHM) Fakhruddin, PhD

Water and Climate Leader| Strategic Investment Partnerships and Co-Investments| Professor| EW4ALL| Board Member| Chair- CODATA TG| Award Winner (SDG 2021, EWS 2025)

Regenerative Agriculture: Sowing the Seeds for a Healthier Planet

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Bapon Fakhruddin

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In the face of an escalating climate crisis, one fundamental truth remains unchallenged: our soil, the lifeblood of our food supply, has suffered greatly. Modern agriculture has waged a relentless assault on our planet’s soil, stripping away an astounding 116 billion tons of carbon over the millennia, according to a 2017 study. This process has transformed carbon-rich, fertile soil into eroded land and turned stored carbon into a significant contributor to atmospheric CO2 levels.

However, the switch is not easy. It requires farmers to risk their livelihoods and adopt radically new practices. The fight against climate change is daunting, and the path is filled with challenges – unpredictable weather, volatile markets, and the intricate complexities of nature.

Regenerative agriculture is our chance to heal our soils and our planet. It’s a call to action for a sustainable future. Let’s embrace it and sow the seeds for a healthier planet. One field at a time.

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About the author

Dr Fakhruddin is an expert climate change risk assessor with 18 years’ global experience in working on disaster risk and climate resilience projects. This experience is a major advantage in climate change adaptation and mitigation strategy development. His key areas of expertise are climate and multi-hazard risk assessment, disaster preparedness, early warning and emergency response and coastal community resilience. He has designed climate change and disaster response projects more than 25 countries in Asia and the Pacific. During his career, Dr Fakhruddin helped to design major international multi-hazard early warning systems for floods, cyclone and tsunami to save life and property damage. His most high profile work has been developing multi-hazard warning systems including a tsunami warning system for Indian Ocean countries following the deadliest one in history – the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami. Dr Fakhruddin is currently work as a mentor and supervisor for postgraduate study in disaster risk management in University of Auckland (UoA). He is a Science Committee Member of IRDR of ICSU/UNISDR, Co-Chair for the Disaster Loss DATA and Risk Interpretation and Applications (RIA) Working Group of IRDR of ICSU/UNISDR. He is also Co-Chair CODATA task group Linked Open Data for Global Disaster Risk Research (LODGD) and PSG member of the Coastal Inundation Forecasting Demonstration Project (CIFDP) and Open Panel of Commission for Hydrology Experts (OPACHE) of WMO. Recently Dr Fakhruddin appointed by the Government of New Zealand to develop national climate change risk assessment framework