Since 1990, in 25 European countries the populations of a group of common farmland birds have been reduced by roughly 25% and in some cases as much as 50%. This decrease in bird numbers along with the wider decrease in biodiversity in the EU is largely related to loss of...

The forest not only supplies the raw material for paper and solid wood products, it also has a great potential for renewable energy production. As the EU designs its energy and climate policy for post-2020, it is essential to consider this remarkable asset. Without a congruent EU bioenergy policy with the...

Following ICES advice for 2017, LIFE’s Members of the Baltic Region (including Poland, Sweden, Denmark and Germany) elaborated the following action plan, to be presented to decision-makers, with concrete proposals for a correct management of the Western Baltic Cod stock. Cod is one of the main sources of income for...

Organic farming in Austria has undergone various development phases, starting from the pioneer phase in the inter-war period and  a phase of institutionalisation between the 1970ies and the 1980ies when organic associations were founded and first regulations for the certification of organic products were established (Austrian Food Code). From the...

Fundația ADEPT Transilvania  is listed among the 1.000 worldwide cultural institutions on the Google Cultural Institute, which brings together millions of artifacts from multiple partners, with the stories that bring them to life, in a virtual museum

Following ICES advice for 2017, LIFE’s Members of the Baltic Region (including Poland, Sweden, Denmark and Germany) elaborated the comments and highlights below, to be presented to decision-makers, with concrete proposals for a correct management of Baltic stocks. 

Climatic constraints, especially the scarcity of water and land resources have always been characteristic of Mediterranean agricultural systems that have developed ingenious farming systems to adapt. Today, the resilience of these systems is challenged since climatic disruptions will generate different conditions for agricultural production throughout the region and will impact...

Saturday 29th October, Warsaw - Member organisations and invited guests met in Warsaw, Poland to celebrate LIFE’s work in support of the small scale, low impact fishers of Europe

FAO Permanent Representatives of Australia, Chile, Kuwait, Japan, Libya, Russian Federation, USA, and the European Union are on a field visit to of Albania and Serbia this week. By visiting FAO project sites and talking with farmers, national officials, FAO partners, other UN agencies and FAO teams on the ground,...

In the Mediterranean, the diversity of production systems and value chains is seen as an asset for sustainability. More than anywhere else, the Mediterranean zone boasts a wide range of sheep and goat farming situations, products and natural resources. This diversity of production systems has provided many different products, shaped...

Cork, a picturesque city in South-West Ireland might not ring a bell to many people, and the event taking place there this week even less: the Cork European Conference on Rural Development. Unless, of course, you’re somehow involved – for better or for worse – in the European Union’s agricultural...

Presented in Rome the 5th of December during the FAO Council 155th Session, the 2016 UNFAO-CIHEAM Joint edition of Mediterra  offers an innovative and prospective approach on the issues of TRIPLE WASTE reduction including agricultural losses, waste of natural resources and waste of knowledge and knowhow. This Report features a collection of shared expertise and local experiences...

On 21 February 2016, at Sighişoara, Fundaţia ADEPT repeated for the 6th consecutive year, its popular annual event dedicated to Family Farmers and Small-scale Producers from the Târnava Mare area, bringing together around 200 local farmers with the specialists who have contributed to the survival and prosperity of their landscapes....

Scientific assessment and observations from small-scale fisheries highlight the poor state of sea bass stocks, and raise major concerns about the survival of the resources and of the fishers who depend on them.

Climate change is a major challenge in Europe as well as globally with potential implications for issues including food security and environmental protection. As reflected in the priorities for the current period, EU rural development policy must play its part in contributing solutions. Rural areas and activities can be surprisingly...

The headlines are full of stories about migration, food and climate change – soil, perhaps unsurprisingly, barely gets a mention in these stories, yet it is crucial to understanding all three issues. Shockingly, the UK estimates that there are only 100 harvests left in its soil. More than 300 civil organisations,...

La politique agricole commune (PAC) a été mise en place en 1962. Il s'agit d'une politique commune à tous les États membres de l’Union européenne (UE), gérée et financée grâce aux ressources du budget annuel de l’UE, dont la PAC représente près de 40%. Ses principaux objectifs sont d'améliorer la...

The future of the EU’s rural development depends on digital technologies, which are essential to fill the existing gap with urban areas, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Phil Hogan has said.

The experiments in farming described in this book represent new social forms of agriculture which have arisen in recent years while traditional family farms have declined and industrial agriculture has increased. These new famers involve many local families directly in the decisions and labour which produce the vegetables, fruits, milk,...

Ensuring adequate, nutritious and safe food for a growing population is a complex task – one where food, livelihoods and management of natural resources can no longer be handled separately. Bearing in mind specific regional challenges, the countries of Europe and Central Asia appear determined to get it right. Gathered here...