Major Formas grant to research on low-emission agriculture
Joseph Vecci at the University of Gothenburg receives over SEK 8 million from Formas to study how farming in Kerala can reduce emissions and support farmers’ welfare.
The Department of Economics at the University of Gothenburg is pleased to announce that Associate Professor Joseph Vecci has been awarded a major research grant of over 8 million SEK from Formas, the Swedish Research Council for Sustainable Development.
The project “Comparing financial payment mechanisms to reduce emissions: Evidence on what works and their effects on equity” studies how different types of financial support programs can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture, while also supporting fairness and farmer welfare.
In most developing countries, agriculture accounts for between 25 and 45 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions, yet the sector receives only around 4 percent of global climate finance. This gap higlights a major opportunity: better policy design could both lower emissions and improve livelihoods.
The project will run a large-scale randomized controlled trial in Kerala, India, in partnership with the International Rice Research Institute, the World Bank, Kerala Agricultural University, and the Government of Kerala. Different communities will participate in financial support programs designed to encourage low-emission farming practices, allowing the team to compare how well various approaches work — both in reducing emissions and supporting farmers’ welfare.
By combining field experiments with economic analysis, the research aims to generate credible, policy-relevant evidence to guide how climate finance for agriculture can be both effective and impartial.
The project is funded by Formas under its call for research that supports a sustainable and fair climate transition and will run from 2026 to 2029.
