In the framework of the partnership with the FAO – Food and Agriculture Organization, UNIMED coordinates a case study research on policies, strategies, initiatives and programs related to family farming and a mapping of the existing institutional framework related to family farming in 5 countries in the region of Europe.
The research team, selected by UNIMED, is made up of 5 universities: Bulgaria (Agricultural University of Plovdiv), Croatia (University of Zagabria), Hungary (MATE), Italy (University of Teramo) and Portugal (Evora University).
UNIMED is flanked by Maria Angela Perito, Professor at the University of Teramo and responsible for the academic coordination of the team and the consolidation of research results.
On September 9th, Paola Hernandez, researcher at the University of Evora and member of the research team for the FAO-UNIMED project on Family Farming, was invited to present the first results on the occasion of the seminar “Agricultura Familiar: Conhecimento, Organização e Linhas Estratégicas”, held in Coimbra, Portugal.
The event aimed to promote the exchange of experiences between projects related to the Family Farming topic and included several moments of debate and discussion.
Following the interest arisen from the fieldwork done in light of the Portuguese case study, Paola Hernandez was asked to illustrate the ongoing project on the mapping of policies and instruments supporting family farming in Portugal. She explained her work according to the two outputs of the research:
- Mapping of existing set of institutional, policy and legal frameworks targeted towards, or related to family farming in Europe
- Documentation and systematic analysis of case studies about policies, strategies, initiatives and programs successfully supporting family farming
Those two outputs will contribute to the elaboration of a comparative analysis of policies, strategies, initiatives and programs successfully supporting family farming in the five European countries. An inspiring publication will be out soon.
Learn more about UNIMED’s contribution to the United Nations Decade for Family Farming (“UNDFF”) at www.uni-med.net/projects/familyfarming
