SIF 2026 Exhibition Programme

Nearly two billion people still over open fires or inefficient stoves, with nearly a billion in sub-Saharan Africa alone. The lack of clean cooking is a crisis that undermines food security, health, gender equity and climate goals as much as it does energy access. This interactive session, jointly organised by FAO and IRENA as part of the Science and Innovation Forum 2026, combines experiential learning, live demonstrations of renewable cooking technologies and a high-level panel discussion to accelerate the clean cooking transition as an energy-smart agrifood system solution. The session examines two interlinked dimensions: the role of smallholder farmers and rural households in producing and using modern, sustainable cooking fuels (biogas, bioethanol, pellets and electric cooking) from agricultural residues and organic waste; and the wide-ranging benefits of expanded clean cooking access, including reduced pressure on forests, lower indoor air pollution, time savings for women and girls, diversified rural incomes, and improved food security and nutrition. Drawing on FAO and IRENA country evidence, it highlights the strong synergies between SDG7 and SDG2. The session aims to build a shared agenda for action: stronger evidence and data, sharing successful country experiences, integration of clean cooking into policies and investment plans, and a coalition-building roadmap toward universal clean cooking access.

This interactive exhibition takes visitors behind the scenes of the HLPE-FSN to discover how independent science informs global food policy through a series of interactive experiences. Secretariat staff will guide visitors through the lifecycle of HLPE-FSN reports, from the call for experts to scientific assessment, public consultations, peer review and policy uptake, using visual materials and examples from recent reports. Visitors will be able to browse digital versions of flagship publications through QR codes, learn how HLPE-FSN findings have informed international and national policy discussions, and engage with Secretariat, with the possibility of asking questions. An interactive "Myth versus Evidence" survey will invite visitors to vote on food systems questions before revealing what HLPE-FSN scientific assessments concluded on those topics. 

This exhibition showcases, through a range of media, BioStar project’s approach to the co-design, construction and operation of sustainable bioenergy technologies developed with local stakeholders to convert agri-food processing residues into clean, affordable and locally sourced energy for SMEs.  
Combining circular economy, applied R&D and participatory innovation, CIRAD and its partners have developed solutions tailored to African contexts and the needs of rural agri-food SMEs, ensuring technical performance, economic viability and local manufacturability.  
Installed and operated under real operating conditions, more than 40 bioenergy systems have been deployed in 20 SMEs, delivering technical, environmental and socio-economic benefits.  
Deployed in SMEs with a predominantly female workforce, these innovations have reduced labour-intensive tasks, improved occupational health and safety, strengthened women’s empowerment and supported rural employment.  

Connected Communities is an interagency programme led by the United Nations Resident Coordinator’s Office in Chile and FAO, with the participation of ECLAC, PAHO/WHO, UN Women and ITU. The exhibition will showcase how rural connectivity, digital technologies and artificial intelligence can support more innovative, productive and inclusive agrifood systems in Chile’s underserved and lagging rural territories. It will feature solutions that strengthen digital skills, agricultural production, access to markets and finance, and the delivery of public services, particularly for small-scale producers, rural women and Indigenous communities. The exhibition will also introduce a new component currently under development: the Regional AI Solutions Platform for Rural Territories. The platform will identify and assess responsible and inclusive AI solutions, facilitate their adoption across Latin America and the Caribbean, and promote regional cooperation and the replication of successful innovations.

The exhibition highlights three Embrapa’s innovations that contribute to the sustainability and resilience of agrifood systems, and to food and nutritional security: (i) Bio-inputs — Biological Nitrogen Fixation, Biomaphos and Auras: bioinoculation with native soil microorganisms to fix atmospheric nitrogen, to enhance phosphorus acquisition, and to mitigate drought effects, resulting in less use of fertilizers, lower costs, reduced environmental impacts, longer period during which plants remain green and improved water-use efficiency; (ii) Biofortification — BioFort increases micronutrient content in staple foods using conventional (non-GM) breeding, and makes them locally available to communities.

Using DSI as an innovative approach to understand the status and trends of crop diversity while generating mutual benefits to in situ and ex situ conservation: acquiring unique accessions for genebank conservation and providing farming communities with a secure backup from which varieties can be returned when needed. The team will showcase a pioneering case study of good practices in the use of DNA sequencing to support complementary in situ and ex situ conservation.

The ELLS European University brings together 11 leading life-science universities in Europe, all with strong global partnerships, to turn science, education and cross-border collaboration into practical capacity for sustainable agrifood transformation. The interactive booth will show how ELLS Faculties—including Food and Nutrition Security, Safety in the Food Chain, Agrifood Systems, Organic Agriculture and Digitalisation—connect research-based solutions with the Changemaker Competence Framework. Visitors will discover that transforming food systems requires not only scientific expertise, but also systems thinking, interdisciplinary cooperation, stakeholder engagement and the capacity to turn knowledge into action. Visitors will choose a concrete food-system challenge and combine relevant scientific fields and changemaker competencies. The resulting pathway will show how interdisciplinary knowledge and skills can contribute to one or more of FAO’s Four Betters. Short examples from ELLS universities will demonstrate how joint programmes, student challenges, doctoral training and partnerships translate knowledge into action for better production, nutrition, environment and life.  

What do remote sensors mounted on cattle in Kenya, a picture-based insurance solution in India, and an international radio serving farmers across dozens of countries have in common?  

They are all examples of how digital technologies and AI are opening up new possibilities for agriculture.  

Digital twins can help scientists understand which animal breeds may be better adapted to a hotter climate. Smartphone-based tools can assess a farmer’s field to support access to credit and insurance. And AI can analyse thousands of messages from farmers calling into radio programmes, turning voices and questions that were previously unheard into a tremendous source of insights for agricultural advisory services.  

These are not distant possibilities. They are real innovations being developed by CGIAR researchers and enabled by the CGIAR Digital Transformation Accelerator.  

This interactive side event will showcase the breadth and depth of digital and AI applications emerging across agriculture, from livestock and climate adaptation to finance, insurance and farmer advisory services.  

Through a combination of short talks, videos and animations, we will explore what these technologies can do today and what they could make possible next. 

The exhibition showcases how biological diversity, plant and insect science, and innovative digital technologies can contribute to more resilient and sustainable agrifood systems. Visitors will explore two complementary examples: crop resilience and pollinator health. Bean biodiversity and a living plant equipped with a BIORISTOR sensor will illustrate how genetic resources and real-time monitoring can help understand plant responses to water stress. A second interactive demonstration will show how artificial intelligence and image analysis can assess key honeybee immune responses, supporting the study of colony health and resilience. Together, these activities demonstrate how integrating biological knowledge, biodiversity, sensing technologies and AI can provide innovative tools to address environmental stresses, support sustainable crop production and safeguard essential pollination services.

CREA’s exhibition presents six interactive activities showing how science and innovation can strengthen resilient agrifood systems. Visitors will explore low-dose UV-C LED treatments that activate plant defenses and reduce pesticide use; beneficial root microbiomes that improve crop tolerance to pathogens, drought and salinity; and digital decision-support tools for efficient on-farm water management. Portable MinION sequencing will demonstrate real-time genomic applications for livestock health, breeding, diagnostics and traceability. An immersive virtual-reality journey will connect visitors with scientists working on aquaculture and animal production systems. Through demonstrations, specimens, devices, data visualizations and dialogue with researchers, the exhibition translates CREA’s multidisciplinary research into practical solutions for sustainable production, animal welfare, biodiversity, resource efficiency and food security. Visitors will discover bean biodiversity and technologies supporting resilient and sustainable legume production. 

The exhibition showcases the CGIAR Policy Innovations program by featuring the 2025 Global Impact video as a central visual anchor at the booth. The display uses real-world country results from across Africa and the global South to draw in visitors, spark conversations, and introduce our policy modeling, digital tools, and capacity-building work to key stakeholders. We will also do a demo of RIAPA AI and allow passersby to have a firsthand experience of the tool.

Building resilience can be a procurement and investment decision. Every dollar of predictable, publicly financed food demand — a school meal budget, or emergency support — can build local capacity, strengthen markets, and bring in outside investment. This can keep a local farm standing when the next shock arrives.   This is the core thesis of the Rockefeller Foundation Food Team’s Big Bet on Regenerative School Meals as well as the theory of change that drives the team’s newest initiative on Reimagining Humanitarian Nutrition Security.  The table will focus on these programs and share additional information on broader Food team and Foundation priorities including the Periodic Table of Food Initiative, Food is Medicine, and the Build the Shared Future.  

CIMMYT proposes hosting an exhibition at FAO Scientific Innovation Forum 2026 focused on the urgent challenge of global food security and the science, innovation and partnerships needed to feed humanity today, in 2050 and beyond. The exhibition will showcase a response agenda for both immediate food security needs and the longer-term transformation of food systems, using durum wheat and opportunity crops as tangible examples. The booth combines a looping video, an interactive experience, printed materials and branded merchandise to give visitors a quick, engaging entry point, with visibility extended through coordinated content on digital channels.

A scale model of an integrated smallholder farm in which one activity's waste becomes another's input. Black soldier fly larvae convert Enset processing residues, crop waste and manure into protein for poultry and fish; Azolla grown on pond water adds fresh protein to the feed and green manure to the soil; and the frass returns nutrients to enset, coffee, beans and vegetables. Developed by ICGEB with BETin, Arba Minch University and Lucy Enset through B-INOC Africa, the system shows how locally available biological resources can lower feed and fertiliser costs, cut waste and produce more food from the same land.