All 27 LEAP-Agri projects participated in the Kick-off Meeting from October 8 to 10, 2018 in Bari, Italy, organized by CIHEAM. With an average of three members per project, 22 funding agencies (of the 24) were represented during the meeting. Furthermore, there were three European Commission representatives from DG Research, DG DEVCO and DG Agri.
The main objective of the seminar was to build a platform strengthening the LEAP-Agri community in order to have a common focus.
During the event, all projects had the opportunity to present their project, combining a pitch presentation, a poster session and an information note. Other activities included:
- Discussions between projects teams and their funding agencies, to facilitate interaction and to solve ongoing questions if needed.
- Networking sessions in cluster groups to share concerns within projects and to create research teams’ networks.
- Session on the projects’ Monitoring and Evaluation and Impact Pathway (M&E), for reaching impact beyond the project level.
- Presentations by EC representatives related to the EU-AU Food and Nutrition Security and Sustainable Agriculture (FNSSA) and renewed energy, and the LEAP-Agri global context.
The two-day meeting was very productive and created a real LEAP-Agri spirit. The event ended with the formation of an “FNSSA Funders and Research Alliance”.