The Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s) were formulated as a tool for focusing development work during the first fifteen years of this millennium. Although not all of them will be achieved by 2015, there has been significant progress towards several of the goals. They have also served to align and focus research in the development area. Most importantly, from an agricultural research perspective, the MDG’s have helped bring agriculture and agricultural research back onto the development agenda.
In the UN system and in other international arenas there are now intensive discussions on what will follow on the MDG’s after 2015 and consequently guide development, and thereby development research, for the next 15-20 years. The new proposal has been named Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s). Sustainable agricultural production and agricultural research, are fundamental and instrumental in the tremendous challenge to reach Sustainable Development. Achieving the SDG’s could be the driver and motivator in Agricultural Research for Development. Hence the theme for the 2013 Agricultural Research for Development will be: Agricultural Research Towards Sustainable Development Goals.
We will in addition introduce some sub-themes, relevant to the theme and also continuously relevant to agricultural research for development, to the research society and to sustainable development.
The sub-themes are:
- Capacity Development
- Sustainable Intensification
- Climate Change
- Multi-disciplinarity
At the conference there will be opportunities for individual scientists and PhD students to present research projects, ideas and results in posters, parallel sessions and/or discussion fora. Please watch for more detailed program on our web sites (e.g. www.agri4d.se). Also make sure to register your own intended contributions.
Speakers Corner at the Agricultural Research for Development Conference
This year we introduce a new way of communicating at the conference; Speakers Corner. In a semi-confined area in the lounge where we have lunch and coffee breaks, there will be an opportunity for anyone to enter and speak. The topic/content of presentations will be free (within the conference theme) but the format quite restricted. Five minutes presentation, maximum five PowerPoint slides and no questions/discussion, that will have to come afterwards on an individual basis with the presenter. The first slide should contain on the presenters name and organizational affiliation.
We anticipate presentations on e.g. new research ideas, invitations for research cooperation, presentations on NGO activities, ideas on NGO-research cooperation, presentations of networks and initiatives, research project presentations that don’t fit in sessions (or are just too new to have results yet), presentations of private sector – research projects and ideas, ideas on research organization and/or how to attract younger scientists to development research, announcement of positions …………. and much more. A title for the presentation and the name of the speaker must be registered, by e-mail to Gert.Nyberg@slu.se, no later than August 31st.
Click to download the conference programme
Production and Carbon Dynamics in Sustainable Agriculture and Forest Systems in Africa
Conference Proceedings – Agricultural Research for Development