IPROMO 2024 Summer School

Promoting agrifood systems and mountain products

Introduction

Protecting mountains through sustainable agrifood systems is a prerequisite to lift mountain communities out of food insecurity and marginalization.

Mountain people globally face high rates of food insecurity and malnutrition. As of 2017, one in two rural mountain people in developing countries lived in areas where the local food availability risked falling below the minimum threshold to ensure healthy lives.

The 17^th annual IPROMO course focuses on promoting mountain economies by understanding   sustainable agrifood systems and mountain products’ potential. It will provide an overview of sustainable mountain development, identifying specific challenges and opportunities within resilient and sustainable agrifood systems, and exploring strategies to better promote mountain products. 

Over centuries, mountain people have developed agricultural techniques to cultivate the land for food production and have designed mechanisms to govern their commons while conserving the natural resources surrounding them. As a result, inhabited mountain areas are often characterized by agricultural terraces or alpine pastures rich in biodiversity, agrobiodiversity and biocultural diversity owing to the fast-changing terrain and climate conditions.

Traditional and Indigenous Peoples' agricultural knowledge and practices are essential sources for a sustainable management of mountain commons and biodiversity conservation.

According to FAO, the agrifood system covers the journey of food (e.g: cereals, vegetables, fish, fruits and livestock) from farm to table – including when it is grown, harvested, processed, packaged, transported, distributed, traded, bought, prepared, eaten and disposed of. It also encompasses non-food products (e.g: woody biomass, biomass to produce biofuels, and fibres) that also constitute livelihoods and all of the people as well as the activities, investments and choices that play a part in getting us these food and agricultural products.

To support sustainable mountain agrifood systems, it is crucial to harness the capacity of small scale producers in mountain areas through technological and innovative solutions and to add value to mountain products, by highlighting their benefits for biodiversity, the environment, and sustainability. Recent market trends offer opportunities for mountain producers to better market their high-quality mountain products and boost local economies.

Objectives

The IPROMO 2024 Summer School aims to explore policies, tools, and skills that can equip actors in fostering the sustainable and integrated management of agrifood systems in mountain areas.

Tailored for young and mid-career professionals, this year's course will address key issues of sustainable mountain development, contributing to a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by mountain ecosystems and peoples.

Lecturers will focus on food security, agrifood systems in mountains, opportunities and challenges and concrete examples of mountain product value chains that have been strengthened through capacity development including business entrepreneurship and marketing techniques.

Expected Outcomes

By the end of the course, participants will have developed an advanced understanding of sustainable agrifood systems in mountain areas and a broader perspective of what sustainable mountain development entails.

IPROMO graduates will join the ranks of a unique alumni network of mountain researchers and practitioners with whom to develop future collaborations.

Structure and Venue

The summer school will take place in person in a charming Italian alpine village – Ormea in northwest Italy – with field trips to the surrounding areas. The course can accommodate approximately 30 participants, whom will be selected among officers, researchers and technicians dealing with mountain and forestry issues from all over the world.

Participants will arrive on 24 June 2024 and activities will begin on 25 June 2024 with an overview of the course. The summer school will end on 9 July 2024 with a closing ceremony.

The course will include lectures, seminars, group work and field trips. The lecturers will be experts from the United Nations system, universities, international organizations and non-governmental organizations.

Given the nature of the activities and the challenging mountain environment in which they take place, participants need to demonstrate a high level of adaptability.

The activities will be supported by the City of Ormea and organized by the University of Turin's Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences (DISAFA), the Interdepartmental Research Centre on Natural Risks in Mountain and Hilly Environments (NatRisk) and the National Research Council - Research Institute for Hydrogeological Prevention and Protection (CNR-IRPI).

Basic Information

Scientific Directors:

Professor Michele Freppaz - Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences (DISAFA) - Interdepartmental Research Centre on Natural Risks in Mountain and Hilly Environments (NatRisk), University of Turin, Italy

Professor Giuseppe Scarascia Mugnozza - Department for Innovation in Biological, Agrifood and Forest Systems (DIBAF), University of Tuscia, Viterbo, Italy

Programme coordinator:

Rosalaura Romeo - Mountain Partnership Secretariat, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Rome, Italy

Scientific Director and Chair:

Danilo Godone - National Research Council, Research Institute for Hydrogeological Prevention and Protection (CNR - IRPI), Geohazard Monitoring Group, Turin, Italy

Course manager:

Tommaso Chiti - Department for Innovation in Biological, Agrifood and Forest Systems (DIBAF), University of Tuscia, Viterbo, Italy

Official course language:

English

Requirements:

Excellent command of English
Advanced scientific degree
High degree of adaptability