Climate Change | Agriculture & Food Security | Storytelling
Brook Tesfaye Makonnen is a seasoned development and communication professional with over ten years of experience in environmental and food systems project management, policy engagement, and science communication. He is passionate about showcasing climate-smart agricultural innovations and building partnerships that strengthen climate action for food and nutrition security in Africa and beyond.
At ILRI, Brook leads the communications campaign for the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP) 2026. While supporting various projects and initatives in the Livestock, Climate and Environment program, Brook has also been leading the communications and knowledge management efforts for the Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) program, supporting the scaling of climate-smart innovations and data-driven solutions across East and Southern Africa (covering 15 countries). In addition, he is supporting science communication and knowledge platform management for several bilateral projects with regional and global partners ranging from digital information hubs to climate-smart livestock systems. He previously worked with the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) in the same capacity. Before joining CGIAR, he previously consulted for several GIZ initiatives on sustainable agriculture, food systems and youth engagement in Ethiopia and Germany.
He holds an MSc in Environmental Governance from the University of Manchester and a BSc in Management of Agro-ecosystems and Environment from the University of Nairobi.
