The discussion on the potential synergies between adaptation and mitigation measures is therefore just only starting and the debate is all too often for political reasons reduced to a discussion of the costs of global adaptation versus global mitigation. A practical understanding of the link between adaptation and mitigation measures particular in LULUCF does not yet exist. However, research in the agricultural sector has focused for some decades now on the need to cope with adverse and irregular climatic conditions including rainfall variability or shifting weather patterns, in particular in the world"s arid and semi-arid areas. Equally, years of agricultural research have focused on improving the productivity of agricultural systems leading to the understanding that increasing, for instance, soil carbon stocks is essential for an enhanced productivity.