The 188th EAAE Seminar, organized by the European Association of Agricultural Economists (EAAE) in collaboration with the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania (MAICh), focused on "Reorienting agri-food chains to hinder climate change and food security threats." The conference, held in Chania, Greece, on September 12-13, 2024, addressed key issues in agriculture, climate change, and food security.

The event kicks off with a welcome reception on the evening of September 11, followed by the official proceedings starting on September 12 with registration and an introductory session chaired by Mattas Konstadinos. Opening remarks were made by prominent figures, including Baourakis George, Director of CIHEAM-MAICh, José María Gil, EAAE President, and Frida Krifca, President of CIHEAM's Governing Board. The keynote speech was delivered by Christian Schöb from the University Rey Juan Carlos, Spain, on the theme of "More biodiversity for a more sustainable and resilient agriculture."

The seminar featured multiple parallel sessions to delve deeper into various aspects of reorienting agri-food chains to address climate change and food security challenges. Assoc. prof. Miroslava Bavorova chaired the session „Sustainable and biodiverse food systems“ and presented the research „Food Security Dynamics Across Diverse Regions in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq“ (co-authors:  Abdalla Niga, Ullah Ayat). Petra Chaloupkova, Ph.D. gave a lecture on  „Promoting Sustainable Supply Chains through the Consumption of Certified Tropical Fruits in the Central European Region“ (co-authors:  Rondevaldova Johana, Hejkrlik Jiri). In addition, Tereza Pilarova, Ph.D. presented the poster focused on „Does drought pose a main challenge of farming in Tajikistan? The perception of smallscale farmers“ (co-authors: Mirkholiqov Azamjon, Khobilova Nigina).

As part of the project Transforming Agri-Food Systems in Cambodia Through Strengthening Research Capacity, financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through Czech Aid, a 10-day Summer School on Agro-food Systems Towards Green Technologies and Self-Sufficiency from 19th till 30th August 2024 was held. This dynamic program took place at the Royal University of Agriculture (RUA) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, with the collaboration of the Faculties of Agroeconomics, Rural Development, and Agroindustry. The Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, led the coordination efforts.

The program brought together 8 Czech and 10 Khmer students, engaging them in a hands-on, project-based learning environment. Combination of workshops, soft skills, practical tasks and excursion aimed to provide complex background for the topic of self-sufficiency and agrifood systems. Our experts Associate Prof. Jaroslav Havlík, Dr. Markéta Houdková and Dr. Tereza Brůna Slámová jointly with the expert from the RUA Dr. Kimchhin Sok thought the students in the field of food safety and security, technology of tofu, jams and kimchi making from the local crops as well as presentation skills and marketing and management of food products in developing countries.

The intensive theoretical and workshop activities were combined with the excursions to the local market and supermarkets. And excursion to the province where the students had an opportunity to visit traditional Kampot Pepper Farm, Mangrove nursery and conservation program and traditional fish sauce manufacture.

Throughout the program, students developed in-depth knowledge of specific food products and were tasked with building projects around them. As a result, student presented their outcomes about the food product they were assigned to in front of panel of experts from CZU and RUA.

As a part of the program, they were invited guests such as representative from the Czech Embassy, Barbora Žáčková, presenting about the opportunities to apply for Government scholarship. As well as student Dana Samoeun participating in the ERASMUS KA171 International Credit Mobility program sharing her experience from the studies in Czechia.

The program concluded with a closing ceremony, where students were awarded diplomas for their participation. The celebration ended with a joint BBQ, offering a chance to taste the students’ newly created food products and strengthen the bonds formed during this enriching educational experience.

See the pictures and video from the summer school and stay tuned for next activity!

We are proud to announce that Nishanth Gurav, a 3rd-year Ph.D. candidate at the Tropical Botany and Ethnobiology Lab (TRIBE), Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences (FTA), Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, has been selected as a Student Ambassador and a member of the student committee of the prestigious Society for Ethnobotany (SEB).

Nishanth hails from India, and his current research focuses on sustainable practices and the folk taxonomy of wild edible plants used by the Gond tribal communities in the Bastar region of India. He has extensive experience working with local communities, having developed People’s Biodiversity Registers (PBR) for over 70 villages in the states of Karnataka and Chhattisgarh.

As a member of the SEB student committee (serving from June 2024 to June 2026), Nishanth will be involved in managing the committee’s social media pages and student blog, as well as supporting the organization of student events and initiatives related to ethnobotanical research.

We congratulate Nishanth on this significant achievement and wish him continued success in his future endeavors!

For more information on SEB, visit SEB's website.