Who is included in digital transformation, and who is left behind? This is the central question of FAO’s contribution to the 3rd UN Virtual Worlds Day. The event was held on 11–12 May 2026 in Geneva, Switzerland, and organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in collaboration with FAO and other UN entities and partners. Titled “AI, Spatial Intelligence, and the Citiverse: Shaping Trusted Digital Futures”, it brought together discussions on the future of digital economies, artificial intelligence, and virtual worlds. 

Local farmers in Colombia have long conserved and developed native seeds with distinctive traits, yet their contributions often went unrecognized and unrewarded because existing seed laws and policies—like those in many countries—were designed primarily to govern commercial seeds. Innovation Policy Labs (IPL), FAO’s newest policy-innovation tool, provides a structured, co‑creative approach to policy design, de‑risking, and implementation that can change that dynamic. 

The systematic transformation of agrifood systems constitutes not merely an aspirational objective, but a fundamental economic and societal imperative. Crucially, this transformation can only be realized through the strategic application of Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI). Furthermore, persistent gender inequalities represent not only a matter of inherent injustice but also a substantial impediment to sustained global progress and systemic resilience, underscoring the necessity of a gender-inclusive approach to STI adoption and development.

Global AgriInno Challenge (GAC) 2025, co-organized by FAO, Zhejiang University, and Pinduoduo, supported by the Foreign Economic Cooperation Center, MARA, P.R.China (FECC) and Government of Binjiang District, Hangzhou City, has concluded after three days of innovation, learning, and collaboration.This year’s competition received 519 applications from 97 countries, the most competitive edition to date. From these, nine youth-led solutions were selected to pitch in Hangzhou, representing Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, China, Thailand, Colombia, Hungary, and the United States.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has launched a new webinar series designed to integrate Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization (SAM) into Farmer Field Schools (FFS), targeting small-scale producers worldwide.  This initiative comes at a time when smallholder farmers face increasing productivity challenges, centred around climate-related shocks, limited access to technology and outdated vocational training. As a result, farming remains labour-intensive and increasingly unattractive — especially for women and youth who often lack the finance needed to access modern tools, equipment and technologies. 

Access to reliable, affordable clean energy remains a challenge for many rural communities around the world. In response, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has launched two innovative renewable energy projects aimed at tackling energy access and efficiency challenges in rural communities in Jamaica and Jordan. These initiatives are being supported through FAO’s ELEVATE Incubator Programme, under the guidance of the Office of Innovation (OIN).

The FAO Global Agrifood Biotechnologies Conference 2025, held from 16 to 18 June at FAO headquarters in Rome, brought together experts, policymakers, and practitioners to explore how biotechnological innovation can help transform agrifood systems. Under the theme “Biotechnologies for a Sustainable Future: Driving Agrifood Systems Transformation”, the conference emphasized the need for science-based, inclusive, and responsible approaches to ensure that new technologies contribute to more efficient, sustainable, and resilient food systems.

The Global Agrifood Biotechnologies Conference 2025 opened today at  the headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), bringing together policymakers, scientists, civil society, farmers, youth leaders, private sector and development partners under the theme “Biotechnologies for a Sustainable Future: Driving Agrifood Systems Transformation.

In today’s fast-changing world, making inclusive, evidence-based decisions in agrifood systems is more important—and more complex—than ever. The Innovation Policy Labs (IPLs) approach offers a transformative approach to tackling this challenge through co-creation, collaboration, and innovation. IPLs are currently implemented through the FAO project: Innovation policy labs (IPL) to promote evidence-based, inclusive and co-created decision-making (2024-2026) in four countries: Colombia, Ethiopia, Madagascar and Uzbekistan.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the European Union (EU) partnered with students from top ranked universities to design creative solutions that harness behavioural science to support sustainable agrifood systems in developing countries.

FAO Newsroom spoke with Vincent Martin, Director of the FAO Office of Innovation. Martin outlines FAO's vision for innovation, highlights projects underway, and emphasizes the urgent need for collective action to build resilient and equitable agrifood systems

On March 26th, 2025, the Office of Innovation hosted a dynamic session of the Junior Innovation Policy Labs at FAO Headquarters in Rome, Italy. The event, organized by Nevena Alexandrova-Stefanova, leader of the Policies and Capacities for Innovation Unit, with her colleagues Zofia Mroczek, Manuela Bucciarelli and Yuxin Hong as facilitators, provided a platform for young minds to dive into the world of agrifood systems, policy, and innovation. 

New Delhi, 18 February 2026. Leading experts from three Rome-based United Nations agencies joined India's Chief Economic Advisor for a panel discussion on transforming artificial intelligence from pilot projects into sustainable, large-scale solutions that address food security, climate resilience, and humanitarian challenges affecting the world's most vulnerable populations.