Objectives
The main aim of the project’s multi-actor approach is to co-create research and share new knowledge on emerging viral diseases in tomatoes and cucurbits, mainly on those caused by begomoviruses and tobamoviruses. For this purpose, VIRTIGATION will establish a multi-stakeholder network, the VIRTIGATION network, to enable co-design between project partners and the involved stakeholders in the project. The specific objectives of the multi-actor approach are to:
• Create common tools and guidelines for the implementation of the multi-actor approach
• Establish the VIRTIGATION network at various governance levels (local, national, cross-border) in the project’s 11 focus countries in Europe and worldwide (Israel, Morocco, India)
• Use the project’s national knowledge brokers (NKBs) to define a joint approach for all parts of the VIRTIGATION network to harmonize protocols and methods used for data gathering and delivering co-creation
• Coordinate events, joint activities and prepare Practice Abstracts for the European Innovation Partnership for Agriculture Productivity and Sustainability (EIP-AGRI) to stimulate co-design and exchange of knowledge between the VIRTIGATION consortium and the stakeholders of the VIRTIGATION network
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Approach
The project’s National Knowledge Brokers (NKBs) have already identified an initial set of relevant stakeholders in all of the project’s 11 focus countries in Europe (Belgium, Netherlands, UK, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain, Germany) and across the globe (Israel, Morocco, India) to be included in the VIRTIGATION network. The NKBs have also defined the roles and expected involvement of the stakeholders in the network, to gather effective and continuous information to feed into the project’s scientific research.
VIRTIGATION’s multi-actor approach is based on established stakeholder relations of the project’s consortium. With this in mind, VIRTIGATION seeks to promote the active participation of the VIRTIGATION network members (e.g. farmers, growers, agro-industry, universities, research technology organizations and agricultural extension services) to co-design, refine and tailor its research to the needs of its stakeholders, to maximize the added-value of VIRTIGATION’s generated results for its stakeholders.
Key partners involved
Thanks to the unique composition of the VIRTIGATION consortium, which already includes representative partners in groups of farmers, agro-industry, agricultural extension services, universities, research & technology organizations and SMEs, the project will have a strong starting base in implementing its multi-actor approach in the form of the VIRTIGATION network.
The VIRTIGATION partner TECNOVA is leading the project’s multi-actor approach, benefitting from its longstanding experience in clustering and connecting key agriculture and horticulture sectors to promote the adoption of innovative techniques, guide practitioners and establish strategic relations with decision-makers.
TECNOVA will be especially supported by five partners acting as National Knowledge Brokers in the VIRTIGATION network: for Spain, AGAPA – the Agency for the management of agriculture and fisheries of Andalusia; for France, INRAE – the National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment; for Germany, JKI – the Julius Kühn Institute (Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants in Germany); for Belgium, PCH – the Research Centre Hoogstraten; and for the Netherlands, WU – Wageningen University.
