Workshop: What is the value of On-Farm Experimentation to end-users in the context of the agro-ecological transition?
9h – 12h30, October 18th, 2023 – Agropolis Building, Montpellier
(Co-organised by INRAE and CGIAR Digital Innovation Group; sponsored by DigitAg)
Background
The 2nd International Farmer-centric On-Farm Experimentation (OFE2023) Conference will take place online on the 5-7th December, 2023. It will comprise keynotes, papers, in-person presentations and recorded videos. The internet is awash with online academic conferences and workshops and the organizing committee for OFE2023 is keen to maintain contact with farmers and advisors on the ground, i.e. to ensure it remains ‘farmer-centric’. One of the ways that we intend to achieve this is by means of a number of local workshops with local actors (growers, agronomists, etc), which are individually easy to organize, but together will inform conference delegates of changes in the OFE field.
To ensure the global and diverse reach of OFE2023, these workshops are being organised in Argentine, Brazil, Kenya, ZImbabwe, UK, the USA and of course France.
Purpose
The common theme of OFE2023 and these pre-conference workshops is the value of OFE: What services does OFE deliver to farmers that they find helpful? What problems or difficulties does it solve? What gains does it support. How does the OFE process generate (or lose) value? What could increase the value? All of these questions will be locally different, as OFE is used in many different forms, but there will be some global commonalities that we would like to explore. These workshops will be designed so that we can hear about these processes locally and then share them globally.
Format
In France, the workshop will specifically address these questions in the context of the agroecological transition that is being strongly advocated within the European Union.
It will be a half-day workshop on the morning of October 18th, held at the Agropolis Campus (near the zoo) in Montpellier. Lunch will be offered after the workshop.
There is no cost associated although numbers will be limited.
Programme
09h30 Welcome and Introduction, short Q&A
10h00 Interactive break-out sessions to explore aspects of the value of OFE to agroecological transition
11h15 Pause Café (synthesis of group activities)
11h30 Presentation of break-out session outcomes
11h45 General Discussion – open forum
12h25 Summation and Closing Remarks
12h30 Lunch
Participants
To achieve this goal, the workshops are intended for participants involved in and/or experienced with OFE, from research, industry, NGOs, advisory and farming communities, i.e. we need a diversity of actors to engage.
For further information or to confirm please contact James Taylor (james.taylor@inrae.fr) or Anice Cheraiet (anice.cheraiet@inrae.fr).