SUPPORT at the IFSA conference in Trapani (Italy)
The 15th International Farming Systems Association (IFSA) conference was held in Trapani (Italy), 30th of June – 4th of July 2024. Hosted by CREA (the Italian Council for Agricultural Research and Economics), the event focused on systemic change for sustainable futures.
On the 1st of July, SUPPORT partner Anne-Charlotte Hoes (Wageningen) presented a paper on the results of the SUPPORT co-creation workshops. She shared experiences about the backcasting approach that has been applied in the Community of Practices (CoPs) in the eight countries selected for the project. The main finding is that co-creating desirable future visions can trigger internal aspirations for system change for various stakeholders across a specific crop/orchid system.
Anne-Charlotte also had the opportunity during the conference to attend several relevant presentations and to be inspired by the diversity of research carried out by PhD students from across Europe, primarily focussing on farmers’ perspectives. She also talked to Jane Mills (University of Gloucestershire), who presented insights from SUPPORT’s sister project SPRINT, on transition pathways to reduce reliance on synthetic pesticides.
In the picture: Alberto Sturla (CREA) and Anne-Charlotte Hoes (Wageningen), both SUPPORT partners involved in the multi-stakeholder approach of the project.
The conference also organised an excursion to the organic farm cooperative Valdibella. The windy location of the farm cooperative ensures limited risks for fungi. Furthermore, the cooperative has invested in a low oxygen treatment technique, an environmentally friendly way to reduce risks of infestations by pests and diseases of harvests such as ancient grains.
We thank CREA for organising the IFSA 2024 Conference and for offering us this great opportunity to share and discuss the results of SUPPORT.