The Agrogeneration Experience: Worth Every Bit!

This year's Agrogeneration summit held in Catania (Sicily) from 18^th to 22^nd of July brought with it many tidings. It not only paved a new way for the youth to be listened by the Italian Agricultural Ministry, but also other institutions, universities and NGOs in the agricultural sector.

This year's topic was on innovations and their application to the agricultural sector. As such, young farmers, startups, researchers and students dealing with agriculture and food had been invited to show case how innovation can improve modern agriculture.

The first three days were dedicated to the hackathon “feeding fair agrogeneration hack food” where 200 participants - researchers, startups, NGOs, farmers, activists, experts and policy makers- involved in one way or another with the Future Food Institute helped students from all over the world create models, provide solutions and prototypes with a long-term vision, accountability and innovative thinking on issues impacting agricultural production and nutrition.These models had been created starting from specific issues related to the Sicilian’s agriculture. For example, in this region there is the necessity to work with the waste from tomatoes’ industries to decrease income losses and avoid waste. From the peels of tomatoes, cosmetic industries could create a new line of bio products based on natural colorant and beneficial substances such as the lycopene.

Its through this fair that I met 30 students from all over the world who had been inspired by the YPARD network and were willing, some of them, to take part in the network activities in the future. Seeing their interest has been quite an inspiration and another proof that YPARD can continue increasing its reach.

Meanwhile, at the University of Catania, i participated in lectures, conferences and listened to inspiring and visionary key-note speeches held by international leaders, policy makers, inventors and entrepreneurs who share a common experience and a humanistic vision of the future of food and agriculture. I  discovered the world of science, politics, but also communities, accelerators and incubators; success stories and best practices to be shared.

Far from being a static activity, agriculture is a sector in constant evolution and development of new technologies is a prerequisite for the creation of thousands of  Agtech ideas that revolutionize the way we live the table and earth. During the showcase organized within Agrogeneration, some of the most interesting companies in the Agtech World showcased their ideas and helped spread the knowldge far and wide. 

But, what impressed me the most as the Italian YPARD representative was the fact that in the south of Italy there were already several networks connecting young farmers and making a significant difference for these important stakeholders. These networks included;

• Vàzapp : The first rural hub in Puglia designed to bring together young people and be a point for the exchange of knowledge relating to agriculture and tourism. It is composed by people who love their land and have realized that happiness is always at the turn of the sacrifice,of  choice and will.
• Rural Hub : A rhizome of a network of researchers, activists, scholars and managers interested in identifying new models of economic development. All those people are motivated to find new solutions to the needs (both social and market-related) of the new rural enterprises. It was founded as a research union to facilitate the connection between new and innovative enterprises, investors and trade associations. This “response” to the lack of business incubators and service providers could really entail a renewal of the business for a sustainable development of the agri-food industry. Rural Hub is the first Italian hacker space allowing connection and sharing among people, ideas, technologies and projects concerning social innovation projects applied to the rural world.
• Coldiretti Youth: A network that helps young farmers have a better access to land and credits.

Such networks can definitively connect with YPARD Italy and YPARD Europe to enrich the connection and for the next months, we will establish a common path to follow to build a more inclusive network.