Welcome note October 2020 newsletter
Dear readers,
As Board Vice President of IFOAM Organics Europe and prospective member of the TP Organics Steering Committee, it is my great pleasure to announce the Organic Innovation Days 2020 on 24 and 25 November. This year’s edition is jointly organised by TP Organics, the European Technology platform for organic food and farming of which IFOAM Organics Europe hosts the secretariat, and the LIVESEED project. Given the worsening Covid-19 situation, it will take place online.
The Organic Innovation Days are the only EU-wide annual event on research & innovation for organic. This year, those among you active on organic seed use and plant breeding will find your liking in the LIVESEED project’s final conference and the LIVESEED European workshop. The LIVESEED project is increasing transparency in the organic seed market and providing recommendations on organic seeds and plant breeding. You will also have the opportunity to learn about the opportunities for organic in Horizon Europe, the European Union’s next research and innovation framework programme. Horizon Europe will offer many funding opportunities for research on and related to organic, so if you are working on research projects related to organic, this session is key to you.
In more detail, this is what you will learn about:
- 24 November, day 1: LIVESEED final conference
LIVESEED, a four-year Horizon 2020 research project, aims to increase the performance and sustainability of organic farming by boosting organic seed use and plant breeding. The opening day of the Organic Innovation Days 2020 will be dedicated to the project’s final conference. On this day, the project partners will share the project’s innovations and results.
- 25 November, day 2: Parallel sessions on Horizon Europe and LIVESEED workshop
Parallel session I: Organic Innovation Days – Opportunities for organics in Horizon Europe
TP Organics is organising the first parallel session, dedicated to opportunities for organics in Horizon Europe. Emile Frison, member of IPES-Food and the Soil Health and Food Mission Board, will give a keynote speech, after which the European Commission will introduce Horizon Europe. A policy debate with representatives from the European Commission’s Directorate General for Agriculture and Rural Development (DG AGRI) and DG Research & Innovation will take place following, focussing on the Missions as new instruments in Horizon Europe.
In the afternoon of day two, the stakeholder forum for TP Organics members will take place. Do note that this is a member-only event.
Parallel session II: LIVESEED European workshop
The second parallel session, the LIVESEED European workshop, will look at the implementation of the organic seed regulation as well as national progress made in the context of LIVESEED. Participants will have the possibility to discuss case studies on seed expert groups, organic field trials, and national seed databases as well as increasing the production and use of organic seeds.
I would like to invite you to join the online event. Visit TP Organics’ website for the latest edition of the programme and make sure to register by 17 November.
All events will take place digitally, using SpotMe. It will launch a week before the live event to allow participants to get familiar with the tool’s look and functions.
If you have any questions about the Organic Innovation Days, please contact Maria Gernert, TP Organics Coordinator, at [email protected].
If you are present on social media, please use the following hashtags to share information about the event: #OrganicInnovationDays #OID2020 #TPOrganics, and tag @LIVESEEDeu.
We are looking forward to seeing many of you!
Organic regards,
Dr. Dóra Drexler
IFOAM Organics Europe Board Vice President