Together for better futures

Why youth do not participate in decision-making process to structure the future where they are going to leave, work and develop their careers? Why someone else has to decide for them? Is there any reason for which the specialization which is absolutely crucial for the humankind, like agriculture is considered like not prestigious one in most parts of the world? Is there any sense to perform scientific researches without putting the findings into practice? I am looking forward to discuss these and other problems with main stakeholders in the frame of Global Forum on Agricultural Development, which takes place on 5 – 8^th of April 2016 in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Someone should address these concerns, organize the dialogue between main players of the sector, and coordinate the efforts of different institutions, so does GFAR. GFAR provides the opportunities to exchange the ideas and find solutions for the crucial issues for agricultural research and development.

One of the topic which is going to be discussed on the forum is keeping science relevant and future-focused. My firm believe is that only in case we manage to organize the dialogue and strong cooperation between research institutions and inputs producers, farmers and policy makers, the results of the researches will serve to optimize the production and food supply. The optimal scheme is when inputs producers respond to the markets’ needs; following requirements of the market they address the request to research institutions and after insights from them, produce the best solutions for farmers; all this correspond to sustainable agriculture values and practices. The Regulation framework has to be transparent and let the sector function in an optimal way. To achieve this the cooperation between private sector and other stakeholders is mandatory.

Nowadays there are examples of companies, (fertilizers, plant protection products producers), who already follow this scheme and this is what makes them the leading ones in the sector. However, there are countries, where science and business do not overlap and work in an independent way, therefore all innovations are imported instead of being produced locally. That’s why international cooperation, exchange of experience and applying already existing solutions are important.

As a representative of private sector, I would like to discuss deeply this theme and share my experience in this field. During the discussions with specialists from other sectors new boundaries and possibilities for cooperation can come up, we can get insights for future projects. Moreover, good possibilities for investments, which can be sustainable and beneficial for both private sector and young farmers can be investigated.

Being both young and woman, I can’t remain indifferent to such issues as improvement the position and strengthen the roles of youth and women in agribusiness. As YPARD representative, I work on improving information exchange, increase the capacity building and promote agriculture among young people on a local level.

The role of facilitator seems to me the most fascinating one, since it could be exciting to catch the opinions on key topics of main players in the sector from different backgrounds and fields of work. Besides, thanks to valuable experience I’ve got during the seminar devoted to leadership skills development (which took place in Hersching), I have a clear idea, understanding and experience in the role of facilitator.

At the end of this post, I would like to draw few lines about myself. I come from Saint-Petersburg, Russia. I’ve got a Master degree at Saint-Petersburg State University, my specialization is Ecology, Nature protection and Environmental Studies. Then I’ve attended International Master programme in Horticultural Studies as Erasmus Mundus scholarship holder. At the moment I work as Export Manager for Eastern Europe at Biolchim Company. Biolchim is one of the leading company in production and commercialization of special fertilizers. It’s an international company with headquarter in Italy, where I am working. 

This blog post is part of the GCARD3 Youth blogpost applications. The content, structure and grammar is at the discretion of the author only.