Leading scientists in the field of agro-ecology and socio-economy join forces with farmer and citizen science networks, and organisations working in nature conservation.

Newly funded EU Horizon 2020 project SHOWCASE aims to deliver new insight and innovative tools facilitating the agricultural sector’s transition towards more sustainable farming, and thus help meet wider societal needs.

The project’s kick-off meeting took place online on 2-4 December 2020. Representatives of the 21 partner organizations from 15 European countries met for the start of the five-year research project. A detailed discussion of actions for the first period of the project framed a plan for the achievement of results.

The SHOWCASE project focuses on socio-economic incentives that effectively motivate farmers to integrate biodiversity practices into agricultural management. The project aims to find out how biodiversity management impacts crop production and wildlife, and how the two can achieve a sustainable synergistic relationship. The project will rely on a multi-actor pan-European network of 12 Experimental Biodiversity Areas (EBAs) and use them as a testing ground for the co-design of farming practices that capitalize on the positive interactions between biodiversity and agriculture.

"We hope the five-year collaboration will achieve a breakthrough in the integration of biodiversity into farming," project coordinator Prof. David Kleijn from Wageningen University explains.

With future actions planned, and a strongly motivated team of researchers and experts, we cannot help but look forward to the next five years of significant biodiversity-friendly farming research!

Photo: SHOWCASE online kick-off meeting (2-4 December 2020).