Author: natae_admin

On 21 September, the first out of six NATAE Living Lab launches was organized by our partner organization GRDR in PK17, Riyadh, Nouakchott, Mauritania. In PK17, peri-urban farmers are growing vegetables and fruits for own consumption and local markets.

The launching event started with opening words from the representative of Riyadh and the representative of the Waliya (region) of Nouakchott. Next, an explanation on the NATAE-project was provided and the representative board members were presented. The representative board will serve as discussion and decision making group on agroecology at the food system level. At the farm level, it will be farmers having a strong voice on the type of agroecological practices to be selected and tested.

During the launch meeting, about 30 farmers were present. Most of which participated actively in discussing the crops that should be selected for further study. They indicated, for instance, that our initial proposition to study tomato and spring onion value chain, basically meant an emphasis on fragile crops. Instead, farmers proposed dry onions and potatoes, also because of market-related aspects. These crops are not exactly considered ‘robust’ crops from an agronomist perspective, as both are sensitive to pests and diseases. So more discussions are foreseen in which researchers and local actors meet and exchange knowledge.

After a, for Nouakchott very unique, heavy rain shower, we visited farmer’s fields which led to many interesting observations and discussions. Issues in the area revolve around poor soils, limited access to water, and legal issues related to access to land. Farmers indicated a strong interest in experimenting with compost making, adding manure and using (homemade) biobased crop protection products. All together a promising start with an enthusiastic group of local actors.

The Local Multi-stakeholder Collective of the Laghouat Living Lab (Algeria), in close collaboration with the El Argoub association, a partner in the NATAE project, recently concluded a series of territorial diagnostic workshops.

The aim of these participatory workshops, which were held throughout July and involved around ten key stakeholders from the agricultural and agri-food sector, was to generate an in-depth, shared understanding of agroecological practices, while identifying the predominant practices and possible synergies within the study area. These workshops served as a dynamic platform for achieving several key objectives, including:

– Building a common and contextualised understanding of the concept of agroecology (AE);

– Exhaustive identification of the main AE practices specific to the region;

– Identifying the main obstacles and levers to the agroecological transition;

– Drawing up a participatory map of the Living Lab’s agricultural perimeters and characterising them according to the predominant types of agricultural production;

The results were presented at an extended feedback workshop attended by more than 25 professionals from the agricultural and agri-food sector (farmers, livestock breeders, professional agricultural organisations, institutional representatives, as well as key players in the value chains and a consumer association). This feedback workshop provided the opportunity for an interesting and stimulating debate, and enriched, consolidated and validated the various proposals.

The various workshops were fruitful moments of exchange and mutual discovery, testifying to the dynamism and commitment of all the participants. The NATAE project team at the Laghouat Living Lab is encouraged by these promising advances and looks forward to continuing its efforts to stimulate the agro-ecological transition in the area where the Laghouat Living Lab is based.

Laghouat Living Lab team: Association El Argoub and NGO CARI.

For further information, please contact: elargoub.association03@gmail.com or natae@cariassociation.org

NATAE partners got together in Paris, between 21st and 23rd march aiming to precise the general data collection methodology, such as the criteria to be selected and the data to be collected to define typical farms in the different living labs, to explore value chain and consumer behavior and also to describe the conceptual model and the main assumptions that define the structure and the functioning of the future NATAE modelling system.

More than 20 participants (including on-line participants) from WP1, WP2, WP3, WP4 and WP6 contributed to build a shared proposition over field activities, while connecting different methodologies, tools and disciplines. This meeting is also to be considered as a preparation for the project KickOff Meeting to be held in Bari from 26th to 28th April.

The NATAE project consortium met for the first time, via video conference, on the 19th january 2023, for almost the entire day. The meeting had as objectives to: restate objectives of the project and establish a good understanding of the deliverables and related activities; present the living labs context and challenges in the project; clarify grant agreement requirements; present and identify relevant project management tools for NATAE implementation and governance and review the next activities of the project and associated meetings.

It was the first time the project time was able to be on the same space (even if virtually) and count with the presence of the Advisory Board. The meeting also had the participation of the project’ Project Officer and Research policy officers from DG AGRI.

The speakers were very clear on the information that was transmitted to the participants, so the meeting was really successful and the first step of the project team as a whole to implement the project.