Policymakers, practitioners, and researchers frequently cite an increase in shocks around the world as a reason for focusing on resilience. But have shocks actually increased or become more severe and farâ€reaching? What does the landscape of shocks look like?

Recent policy statements refer to increasingly frequent and intense shocks as one of the main reasons for focusing attention and investments on building resilience for food and nutrition security. This paper investigates whether shocks have actually increased in frequency, severity, scope, and...