agricultural university

7 March 2019.   MAK’IT, the new “Montpellier Advanced Knowledge Institute on Transitions ”, which promotes inter-disciplinary research and knowledge sharing towards the SDGs. In advising the MAK’IT team on how to make the institute a success, David Nabarro and Louise Fresco share cunning insights on the kind of science we need to support the achievement of the SDGs, insights that can inspire many of us in this CoP. Louise Fresco  challenges scientists, saying that “many times, science has been stuck at the diagnosis of the problems – which is very good – but  we now must move collectively to solution-driven science”, going beyond “partial solutions”,  and stepping outside “our ivory towers” by engaging people in society. She reflects on the ambition behind the SDGs and invites us to think beyond the specific targets, calling for a “turning around of our way of thinking” for example thinking of “a new economic system where value is given to things that don’t have valu...

30th January to 1st February 2019. FARA Secretariat, Accra, Ghana The Long-term Europe-Africa Partnership for Food and Nutrition Security, and Sustainable Agriculture (LEAP4FNSSA) is a Coordination Support Action (CSA) funded by the Directorate General for Research and Innovation (DG RTD) of the European Commission (EC), under Horizon 2020. It brings together 35 institutions from Africa and Europe which are ready to engage in collaborative research and innovation on Food and Nutrition Security and Sustainable Agriculture (FNSSA) roadmap signed in 2016, between the African Union and the European Union. From Left: Dr. Mawoko Philippe (Africa Union Commission), Agnieszka Romanowicz (European Commission), Madam Patricia Apiagyei (Hon. Deputy Minister of Environment, Science, Technology & Innovation of Ghana), Dr. Yemi Akinbamijo (Executive Director, FARA) and Philippe Petithuguenin (CIRAD) A presentation to the  Honourable Deputy Minister The official Kick Off Meeting, which is t...

INNOVATION AND DEVELOPMENT IN AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD SYSTEMS Guy Faure (coordination éditoriale), Yuna Chiffoleau (coordination éditoriale), Frédéric Goulet (coordination éditoriale), Ludovic Temple (coordination éditoriale), Jean-Marc Touzard (coordination éditoriale) Innovation is often presented as one of the main catalysts for more sustainable and inclusive development. In the agricultural and food sectors, innovation is characterized not only by specificities arising from its relationship to nature, but also from the wide diversity of its stakeholders , ranging from farmers to consumers, and including intermediaries such as the research community and advisory services.  Innovation emerges from interactions between these actors , who mobilize resources and produce knowledge in collaborative mechanisms in orderto generate changes. It encompasses domains as varied as production practices, market organization, and eating habits. Innovation is closely tied to major development c...

Creating a Sustainable Food Future A Menu of Solutions to Feed Nearly 10 Billion People by 2050 by Tim Searchinger , Richard Waite , Craig Hanson , Janet Ranganathan , Patrice Dumas and Emily Matthews - December 2018, 96 pages The World Resources Institute (WRI) published a new report, Creating a Sustainable Food Future , that states the world must prepare to feed the planet’s growing population sustainably, reducing agricultural land and greenhouse gas emissions, and suggests that genetically modified organisms and gene editing may be useful tools in achieving this goal. According to a summary of the report by ISAAA , population is set to rise to 10 billion people worldwide by 2050, while food demand is projected to rise by 50 per cent. The report offers several approaches to feeding the world sustainably, including reducing food loss and waste, changing diets to consume less beef and lamb, reducing population growth, increasing harvests on the same land area, stopping deforestation,...