REPORT of the REGIONAL SYMPOSIUM on AGROECOLOGY for SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE and FOOD SYSTEMS for Europe and Central Asia
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REPORT OF THE REGIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON AGROECOLOGY FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE AND FOOD SYSTEMS for Europe and Central Asia Budapest, Hungary, 23–25 November 2016 REPORT OF THE REGIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON AGROECOLOGY FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE AND FOOD SYSTEMS for Europe and Central Asia Budapest, Hungary, 23–25 November 2016 FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS Rome, 2017 The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. 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Peigné, ©FAO/Attila Kisbenedek, ©Remi Cluset Illustrations: Guida Joseph Report of the Regional Symposium on Agroecology for Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems for Europe and Central Asia CONTENTS ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ..................................................................................................................v EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .............................................................................................................................. 1 CONTEXT ................................................................................................................................................ 5 1. HIGH LEVEL PANEL SESSION ................................................................................................................ 6 2. AGROECOLOGY: CONCEPTS, SYSTEMS AND PRACTICES ............................................................................. 11 3. RESEARCH, INNOVATION, KNOWLEDGE SHARING AND AGROECOLOGICAL MOVEMENTS ............................... 17 4. AGROECOLOGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES IN A CHANGING CLIMATE: WATER, LAND, BIODIVERSITY AND TERRITORIES ................................................................................... 25 5. AGROECOLOGY AND SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS ................................................................................. 31 6. PUBLIC POLICIES TO DEVELOP AGROECOLOGY AND PROMOTE TRANSITION ............................................... 38 7. CLOSING SESSION ............................................................................................................................. 50 ANNEXES .............................................................................................................................................. 53 Annex 1. RECOMMENDATIONS ....................................................................................................................53 Annex 2. FIELD VISITS .............................................................................................................................59 Annex 3. SIDE EVENT ON LIBERATION .........................................................................................................60 Annex 4. FINAL AGENDA ...........................................................................................................................61 Annex 5. ADVISORY PANEL ........................................................................................................................70 Annex 6. PARTICIPANTS LIST .....................................................................................................................71 iii Report of the Regional Symposium on Agroecology for Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems for Europe and Central Asia Remi Cluset © iv Report of the Regional Symposium on Agroecology for Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems for Europe and Central Asia ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ACC Association of Conscious Consumers ASP Animal Production Systems CAP Common Agricultural Policy CFS Committee on World Food Security COAG Committee on Agriculture COP Conference of the Parties CPD Centre for Plant Diversity CPF Community Preference Function CSA Community Supported Agriculture CSO Civil Society Organization DKM Nature Conservation Centre, Turkey EALTN European Agroecology Learning and Training Network ECVC European Coordination Via Campesina EGTOP Expert Group for Technical Advice on Organic Production EHNE Euskal Herriko Nekazarien Elkartasuna (Basque Farmers Union) EIP-Agri European Innovation Partnership ESD Education for Sustainable Development EU European Union FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FFS Farmer Field Schools GAP Global Action Programme GEEI Groups of Economic and Environmental Interest GHG Greenhouse gas ICAAM Instituto de Ciências Agrárias e Ambientais Mediterrânica ICARDA International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas ICT Information and communication technology IDDRI l’Institut du développement durable et des relations internationales IFOAM International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements INRA Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique IPC International Planning Committee ISARA Institut supérieur d’agriculture et d’agroalimentaire Rhône Alpes ITPGRFA International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture MOOC Massive Open Online Course NCC Nature Conservation Centre NGO Non-governmental organization ÖMKi Hungarian Research Institute of Organic Agriculture v Report of the Regional Symposium on Agroecology for Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems for Europe and Central Asia PGR Plant Genetic Resources PGS Participatory Guarantee Systems RHEA Natural Resources Human Environment and Agronomy (Belgium) SDGs Sustainable Development Goals TEEB The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change URGENCI The International Network of Community Supported Agriculture VGGT Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests VGSSF Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-scale fisheries WFFP World Forum of Fisher People vi Report of the Regional Symposium on Agroecology for Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems for Europe and Central Asia EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In September 2014, FAO organized the ‘International Symposium on agroecology for food security and nutrition’ in Rome. This was followed in 2015 by three regional symposia in Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa and Asia and the Pacific. To continue the development of this regional approach, a regional Symposium on Agroecology for Europe and Central Asia was held in Budapest from 23 to 25 November 2016, which was attended by over 180 participants from 41 countries in the Region. The Symposium participants formulated 37 recommendations to develop agroecology for sustainable food and agricultural systems in Europe and Central Asia (see Annex 1 of this report). This summary reflects the discussions among participants on the following five topics: » Agroecological concepts, systems and practices, » Research, innovation, knowledge sharing and agroecological movements, » Agroecology and natural resources in a changing climate: water, land, biodiversity and territories, » Agroecology and sustainable food systems, » Public policies to develop agroecology and promote transition. Agroecological concepts, systems and practices Increasing land degradation, loss of valuable agrobiodiversity and pollinators, and climate variability were highlighted as significant threats to achieving food and nutrition security. The reduced number of farmers, and erosion of their incomes, was also presented as a serious issue in Europe. To ensure global food and nutritional security, two paradigms are often confronted: » Sustainable intensification can be presented as producing “more with less” or eco-efficiency, which is the maximisation of agricultural products per unit of inputs or natural resources. Sustainable intensification is usually obtained in highly specialised production systems through a gradual substitution of inputs with knowledge. » Agroecology is seen as an alternative paradigm, which is based on the increased use of biodiversity, of integrated production systems and diversified landscapes. Agroecology is also close to the ‘Save and Grow’ paradigm (FAO, 2011), which addresses the crop production