Logo 16th IFOAM Organic World Congress, Modena, June 2008

Servicemenu


Workshops

Tuesday, June 17, 2008, will be dedicated to workshops that will allow researchers and other organic stakeholders to update their knowledge on specific areas of expertise and to identify bottle necks and research needs.

Collective Farmers Marketing Initiatives in organic supply chains – relevance, barriers and support strategies

Organizers

  • Jürn Sanders, FiBL, Telefon: +41 62 865 7266, E-mail: juern.sanders@fibl.ch
  • Markus Schermer, University of Innsbruck, Telefon: +43 512 507 5690, Email: Markus.Schermer@uibk.ac.at
  • Kees de Roest, Research Centre on Animal Production, Telefon: +39 0522 436999, Email: K.de.roest@crpa.it


    Objectives

    • To outline the importance of collective farmers marketing initiatives (COFAMIs) for the development of organic farming in Europe as well as in other continents/different market environments
    • To discuss possible factors that limit and enable the establishment and successful development of COFAMIs
    • To discuss possible support strategies aiming to overcome existing barriers and limiting factors


      Workshop structure

      • Presentation of one or two synthesis papers (e.g. those presented at the COFAMI conference)
      • Respond / comment from external key-speakers
      • Discussion of the synthesis paper by the workshop participants

        Expected output

        (Workshop organizers are expected to write a 1 A 4 page report on the output of the workshop that will be published on the ISOFAR website.)

        • Discussion on the importance of collective marketing actions in organic farming
        • Identification of differences among different market environments and continents
        • Overview on the state-of-the-art on factors limiting / enabling (organic) farmers to pool ideas, experiences and capital
        • Outline on possible support strategies
        • Identification of further research need

        Duration

        3 hours

         

        Maximum amount of participants

        Not limited

         

ORGANIC VEGETABLE PRODUCTION IN BULGARIA - CURRENT SITUATION AND FUTURE

 

Organizer

  • IVAN DIMOV, ASSIST. PROFESSOR D-R, 4003 PLOVDIV, Vasil Levski 242, str., BULGARIA. KOLEGGE OF ECOLOGY AND SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT DEVELOPMENT, GSM +359897 322 079, E-mail: dimraket@abv.bg
  • GALINA ANTONOVA, The “ ?aritsa “ Institute for Vegetable Crops, 4003 Plovdiv, Brezovsko shosse 32, str., BG. Tel. ? +359/32/952 295, E-mail galjaant@abv.bg

Objectives

The participants will get information about:

- Bulgarian vegetable crops production - on  open field and in glasshouses, area, yields and total production.

- Results from the scientific  investigations on the field of organic vegetables production - tomato, pepper and head cabbage.

- Quality characteristics of fruits grown organically.

 

Workshop structure:

Bulgaria, as a traditional producer and exporter of fresh and canned vegetables, history and perspectives.

Structure of Bulgarian vegetable crops production - types of production directions: early, summer, late / autumn /  in the open field and in glasshouses.

Our potential for growing vegetables organically - area, crops and market, problems of Bulgarian producers.

 

Expected output

 Exchange an information with other researchers and producers from EC in the field of organic production of vegetables and development of local and international market for organic production 

 

 

Maximum amount of participants: 40-50

Participatory mapping of potentials of organic agriculture in different tropical farming systems

Organizers

  • Christine Zundel, Forschungsinstitut für biologischen Landbau (FiBL), +41 (0)62 865 72 49, E-mail
  • Lukas Kilcher, Forschungsinstitut für biologischen Landbau (FiBL), +41 (0)62 865 72 62, lukas.kilcher@fibl.org
  • Eva Schmidtner, University of Hohenheim, + 49 (0)711 459 23506, schmidtn@uni-hohenheim.de

 

Background and objectives

To effectively promote organic agriculture, mutual exchange of experiences and learning from each other are essential. In temperate areas, this process has started half a century ago. In these areas, challenges for and potentials of organic agriculture are well studied and comprehensively discussed. In contrast, knowledge on the impact of organic agriculture on food security and sustainability in tropical areas is still scant. Experiences are often project specific and it is difficult to get a broader view.

The objective of this workshop is to jointly create an overview of experiences with organic agriculture in the various tropical farming systems. Key factors for success and failure with regard to food security and sustainability shall be identified, considering agro-ecological and socio-economic components inherent to the respective farming systems. Where possible, generalisations beyond the farming systems shall be made.

 

 

Workshop structure

The workshop will start with two presentations:

1) Network of long-term farming systems comparisons in the tropics (Christine Zundel, FiBL)

2) Possible contribution of organic farming to food security in sub-Saharan Africa – preliminary results of an expert survey (Eva Schmidtner, University of Hohenheim)

In the second part, workshop participants meet in groups by continent (Africa, Asia, Latin America) and report their own experiences on organic agriculture with regard to the specific tropical farming system (5’ per participant). For this purpose, participants are asked to bring a picture (approx. 13 x 9 cm) from the region where they have most experience in organic agriculture. The picture should show a farmer in his/her field (with crop). The pictures will be pinned on the FAO farming systems map for illustration. Subsequently, the continent groups will synthesise the various experiences by farming system: what is the impact of organic agriculture on local and regional food security, and on the agricultural system’s sustainability? What is the way forward?

In the final part, the continent groups report and discuss their findings in plenary.

 

Expected output

  • FAO farming systems map, enriched with participants’ pictures (A0)
  • Conclusions on the ways forward to support organic agriculture, specific for each farming system
  • 1 page report to the ISOFAR website (A4)

     

    Duration

    2 – 4 hours, depending on the number of participants

     

    Maximum amount of participants: 30

     

Social Farming as a perspective for organic farms in Europe

Organizers

  • Dr. Thomas van Elsen, Research Institute of Organic Agriculture FiBL, Nordbahnhofstr. 1a, 37213 Witzenhausen, Germany, E-mail Internet: www.fibl.org, www.sofar-d.de/
  • Prof. Dr. Francesco Di Iacovo, CIRAA Interdipartimental Centre for Agri-Environmental research, University of Pisa Via Vecchia di Marina 6, 56100, Pisa, Italy, E-mail francovo@vet.unipi.it, Internet: http://sofar.unipi.it/
  • Dr. Jan Hassink, Agriculture, Care, Health, Plant Research International, Wageningen UR, P. O. Box 16. 6700 AA Wageningen, The Netherlands, E-mail jan.hassink@wur.nl

 

Objectives

Social farming in Europe integrates “users” like people recovering from drug addiction, psychiatric, mental or physical diseases or handicaps, the long term unemployed, people with depression or burnout, the homeless, former prisoners, old people suffering dementia or currently active contributors to farm life as well as disadvantaged young people such as truants, urchins and young people with eating disorders. Within the “SoFar”-project (http://sofar.unipi.it/, www.sofar-d.de/) diverse European experiences are brought closer in order to compare, exchange and coordinate experiences and efforts. Different typologies and schemes of “social/care farming” practices can be distinguished. Organic farms are specially suited for green care. Due to the grass root level of the experiences and to the incremental nature of this process, also policies devoted to social farming have to be carefully designed in order to promote and to reinforce pathways of change and increase the relevance of policy networks.

 

Workshop structure

We will start by presenting results of the SoFar project and would like to discuss the question whether social farming could be a future perspective especially for organic farms.

After short presentations we would like to collect items and aspects: Which typologies and schemes of “care farming” practices across Europe do exist? Which new policies for social farming in EU are needed? What kind of research is needed? Which experiences can participants from different countries in the workshop contribute? We will use questions and methods of participatory platform meetings that have taken place in the seven countries involved into the SoFar project.

 

Expected output

We expect to identify new aspects for the questions mentioned above. We hope to make clear that research about the development of social farming in Europe can be an item and a chalence within a scientific organic farming conference although three applications for papers have been rejected by ISOFAR and were shifted to the OWC.

Duration: (in hours) 3

Maximum amount of participants: 50

Enhancing Organic Agriculture Research in Africa

Objectives

The workshop will aim at

1- identifying on-going research efforts in Africa

2-finding out factors limiting institutitonalization of OA research

3- networking among OA researchers

4- determining potential sources of funding

5-and organization of an OA ISOFAR conference for Africa as part of the Organic Agriculture Conference planned for May 2009, Kampala, Uganda.

Duration

of the workshop will be one day.

Workshop structure

It will have three sessions. Each session shall have four items on agenda. The workshop will be in groups and plenary discussions.

Session 1:

a) On-going Research (Plenary)

b) Research Gaps (Group discussions)

c) Plenary presentation of findings

d) Institutionalise research and limiting factors/ scenario analysis (Plenary)

Session 2:

a) Formation of a Network: National Movements to identify hubs (Plenary)

b) Group discussion of possible structure of a continent wide network

c) Presentation of group findings (Plenary)

d) Discussion on sources of research funding (Plenary)

Session 3:

a) Plenary Discussion: ISOFAR Conference for Africa, May 2009, Kampala, Uganda

b) ISOFAR Organizing team formation (Plenary)

c) Closing and Resolutions made (Rapporteur/Convenor)

 Expected output

1- Workshop report

2- A summary of research priorities in form of broad themes

3- Inventory of available technologies and on going research

4- Skeleton for an OA research network for Africa

5- Way forward for an OA Conference, Africa, May 2009

6 List of potential sources of funding for OA research, network and conference

The workshop shall target all African participants at the Organic World Congress, Modena and well wisher stakeholders.

Duration

1 day

Organizer

  • Dr. Charles Ssekyewa, Director of Research, Uganda Martyrs University, +256772517158; cssekyewa@umu.ac.ug

Organic farming in the Amazon and Sustainability

Objectives

Objectives: The objective of the workshop is to present to international scientific community the PROAMBIENTE research project results. As globalization is taking place in every world localities, we intend to discuss how small organic farmers in Amazon can continue to manufacture their homemade agroforestal products and at the same time attending international quality needed in the globalized market, how they are keeping the forest biodiversity at the same time conducting agronomic activities in a sustainable way. Sustainability indicators for Amazon will be considered as parameters of the agroenvironmental equilibrium. Organic farming from a social viewpoint will be analyzed an discussed, which includes the alimentary security guaranteed by agrobiodiversified organic farmer’s activities, the family as traditional agroecological knowledge guardian, perpetuator and disseminator. Another objective is to present the role of traditional communities as creators of in-situ collection of wild relatives of agricultural germplasm.

Workshop programme

 

  • 2:00 pm – 2:45 pm – Small organic farmers in Amazon and the challenges of globalization
    Speaker: Maria Aico Watanabe

  • 2:45 pm – 3:15 pm – Agroforestal systems as an Agroecologically sustainable option
    Speaker: Maria Aico Watanabe

  • 3:15 pm – 3:45 pm – The traditional communities of the Baixo Rio Branco – Rio Jauaperi (Roraima) will geolocate traditional  Taxa and create an in-situ collection  Centered around wild relatives of Agricultural germplasm
     Speaker: Luigi Fabbro

  • 3:45 pm – 4:15 pm – Sustainability indicators for Amazon  Agriculture 
    Speaker: José Maria Gusman Ferraz

  • 4:15 pm – 4:45 pm – Organic farming in Amazon from a Social perpective
     Speaker: Lucimar Santiago de Abreu

Each speaker will have 30 minutes: 20 minutes for presentation + 10 minutes for discussion.

Expected output

Expected output : Comparison of Amazon agroforestal systems with other tropical agroforestal systems; we hope to get some orientation concerning the future perspectives and courses for Amazon organic agriculture study; to supply the Amazon small organic farmers with suggestions of new agroforestal practices aiming forest preservation. To show the importance of small farmers of Roraima as guardians and perpetuators of local germplasm and creators of an in-situ collection.

Duration

2 hours

Maximum amount of participants

50

Contact /Organizer

 

 

Contribution of new technologies addressing grazing of dairy herds

Background & objective

Grazing of pasture has the last five years become an increasing concern on the modern organic dairy farm. Concerns on expanding herds with increasing demands for optimized feeding levels, challenge problems with access to acceptable grazing area, logistic problems with the cow traffic, and problems with automatic milking systems and grazing coexistence.

Access to limited pasture, creates hot spots of potential eutrophication and leaching. Emerging new technologies such as online activity sensors for behavior surveillance, automatic fences and gates, mobile infield robotic milking, could together with intensified focus on management using ICT, help the organic dairy sector keep their strong asset in organic milk based on roughage and outdoor grazing. Aspects considered as the basis of documented quality difference in CLA content, Vitamin E and D, among others.

The objective is to assess, present and discuss innovative technological contributions concerning the grazing of organic dairy cows in Europe.

Workshop structure

  • Inventory of the European status quo on grazing in organic dairy herds, using the participants of the workshop as informers.
  • Presentation and identification of technological possibilities. Participants are encouraged to present technological innovations concerning this topic.
  • Discussion on the sustainability of the solutions, addressing ethics and practice.

The aim of the workshop is to set focus on how technological Innovation could contribute to  solutions, within the sustainability principles of the organic farming, addressing sufficient grazing in organic dairy farming In Europe.

 

Duration

2 hours

Maximum amount of participants

50

Organizer

  • Frank Oudshoorn, Aarhus University, Faculty of Agricultural Science, department of agricultural engineering. +4589993106, Frankw.Oudshoorn@agrsci.dk

Global network on organic / agro-ecological livestock farming systems for sustainable rural and society development (First meeting)

Objective

The main objective of this newly initiated network is to support sustainable development of organic and agro-ecological farming systems for food security and rural development, and with particular emphasis on livestock systems through a joint effort of research, extension, education and participation.

The objective of the workshop is to discuss the possibilities for networking with and without funds, and to create possibilities for e.g. 1) collating and disseminating research results relevant to sustainable organic livestock production from different regions of the world, through webbased exchange, education etc., 2) building up a knowledge base of practical examples on problem solving in organic livestock production in harmony with local conditions and public demand, 3) Making joint analyses of diverse organic systems, at meetings, conferences, exchange of researchers, farmers, organisations and students and 4) developing common research and development platforms for farmers, organisations, advisors, researchers, students and supervisors.

Workshop structure

  • Organic farming in a global perspective (John Hermansen/Niels Halberg)
  • Examples of organic or agro-ecological systems (2-3 participants to confirm their presence)
  • Visions of a global network (Mette Vaarst)
  • Brainstorm and development discussion: possibilities, goals, strategies, activities with and without funds, initiative groups.

Expected output

  • 1 page report to the ISOFAR website
  • A summary-report to be distributed among all with potential interest in this network
  • An initiative group for future work settled

Duration

  • 2.5 Hours

Organizer

Soil suppressiveness

Objectives

Soil suppressiveness is defined as the ability of a plant or crop to remain undamaged in the presence of pathogen's inoculum. The objective of the proposed workshop is to discuss factors that affect soil resilience, in relation to soil-borne pathogens including fungi, bacteria and nematodes. Knowledge gaps that require further research will be highlighted. Subjects to be covered during the workshop:

  • Soil microbial activity and diversity as indicators for soil suppressiveness.
  • Improving soil health through cultural practices: tillage, application of organic matter, crop rotation, cover crops, solarization.
  • Specific soil-borne pests: fungi, bacteria, nematodes.
  • Systemic acquired resistance and the effects of cultural practices on foliar diseases.
  • A-biotic factors in soil health.

Workshop structure

The workshop will start with a general presentation of current knowledge on the effect of Organic farming practices on soil health (about 30 minutes). It will be followed by short (12-15 minutes) contributed presentations describing specific issues as detailed above. A general discussion of about 30 minutes will be devoted mainly to the identification of knowledge gaps that require further research.  

Expected output

It is proposed that the contributions will be pear-reviewed and published as a special issue of one of the relevant journals (e.g. Biological Agriculture and Horticulture). in addition to be published through Organic e-prints.

Duration: (in hours)

3-4 hours

Maximum amount of participants

not limited.

Organizer

  • Dr. Michael Raviv, Agricultural Research Organization, Newe Ya'ar Research Center, Israel. +972-4-9539505; mraviv@volcani.agri.gov.il  

Organic Agriculture and Rural Development

Organizer

  • ISOFAR Working group Rural and Regional Development (RRD), c/o
  • Univ. Prof. Dr. Bernhard Freyer, Division of Organic Farming, University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, BOKU, Gregor Mendelstr. 33, A-1180 Vienna, Austria, Tel.: 00431476543750, 3751, Fax: 00431476543792, Bernhard.Freyer@boku.ac.at
  • Professor Dr. Jim Bingen, Community, Food & Agriculture, Dept. of Community, Agriculture, Recreation & Resource Studies, 326 Natural Resources Bldg., Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824-1222 USA, Tel: 517-353-1905, Fax: 517-353-8994, bingen@msu.edu

Objectives

To attract public and scientific attention about the potential of organic agriculture for rural development in future, it is planned to summarize the state of the art on this topic and future perspectives in a book for the ISOFAR Book series. The aim of the workshop is to focus on most relevant topics and the process of organisation of the book. Topics which could contribute are (beside others):

  • State of the art of organic agriculture initiatives in rural development (e.g. Bioregions)
  • Policy for an organic agriculture to strengthen rural development
  • Methods and theories
  • Contribution of organic agriculture to rural economy/ to social networks / ecology / resource management
  • Conversion strategies
  • Government policies in support of organic agriculture and rural development
  • Regionalized organic farms and businesses
  • Networks among regional organic farmers
  • Regionalized marketing strategies
  • The challenge of regionalizing input supply
  • Etc.

Workshop structure

Researchers active in these research fields are invited to participate and to contribute with their experiences and research results. It is of specific interest to get a broad picture of world wide development in this topic. In the workshop we have to discuss the content and preferences for this ISOFAR book.

Expected output

  • First structure for a ISOFAR book on the topic "Organic Agriculture and Rural Development" identified
  • Authors identified, interests into specific chapters, topics
  • Schedule for ongoing steps developed

Duration: (in hours) four

Maximum amount of participants: 30

 

nach obentop
druckenPrint view | weiterempfehlenRecommend page
© International Society of Organic Agriculture Research (ISOFAR) / Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL)
All rights reserved. Last Update 05/15/2008 | Comments to Webmaster