Periodic Reporting for period 2 - ATTER (Agroecological Transitions for Territorial Food Systems)
Okres sprawozdawczy: 2023-05-01 do 2025-04-30
In a context of unprecedented combined ecological and social crises, local transition initiatives are emerging in different places, demonstrating the great potential of territorial food systems in terms of their ability to feed people in a healthier and fairer way, while engaging the diversity of actors in such agroecological transitions, despite lasting lock-in mechanisms. The ATTER project (for Agroecological Transitions of TERritorial agri-food systems), which brings together nearly 150 participants - researchers from different disciplines and practitioners with diverse experience - defends the idea of the importance of the territorial scale in initiating systemic agroecological transitions, made possible by a vision of transition as an open, multi-actor process. Transition therefore depends on the contexts, and different paths and trajectories are possible.
As a research-action project, ATTER aims at producing knowledge and tools to facilitate and to support agroecological transitions in territorial food systems, according to their contexts. Its approach is based on two pillars:
- Learning from the diversity of case studies in different contexts. The project has built up a portfolio of 16 case studies in 5 countries (France, United Kingdom, Italy, USA, Brazil).
- Facilitating exchanges of knowledge and experience between researchers and practitioners from the 19 organizations of the network, both through long-term mobilities in order to collectively produce transversal and comparative analyses of the various cases and through a diversity of collective activities.
The consortium collective work is structured around these objectives:
- Build an international observatory of transitions in territorial agri-food systems
- Build a typology of transition trajectories based on case studies
- Analyse and propose support approaches to initiate and sustain transition dynamics in their context
- Design tools to assess transition processes
- Produce public policy recommendations to support transitions at regional, national and European levels.
As a research-action project, ATTER aims at producing knowledge and tools to facilitate and to support agroecological transitions in territorial food systems, according to their contexts. Its approach is based on two pillars:
- Learning from the diversity of case studies in different contexts. The project has built up a portfolio of 16 case studies in 5 countries (France, United Kingdom, Italy, USA, Brazil).
- Facilitating exchanges of knowledge and experience between researchers and practitioners from the 19 organizations of the network, both through long-term mobilities in order to collectively produce transversal and comparative analyses of the various cases and through a diversity of collective activities.
The consortium collective work is structured around these objectives:
- Build an international observatory of transitions in territorial agri-food systems
- Build a typology of transition trajectories based on case studies
- Analyse and propose support approaches to initiate and sustain transition dynamics in their context
- Design tools to assess transition processes
- Produce public policy recommendations to support transitions at regional, national and European levels.
Objective 1: Build a portfolio of 16 regionally embedded case studies representing diverse agroecological transitions and trajectories and transform this portfolio into a lasting observatory
Common tools of characterization and presentation have been developed and then applied to all case studies. The ATTER observatory has been designed through a series of iterative steps, partly along secondments, tested with users, and is now online and progressively enriched with Case Studies Identity Cards, analyses of territorial food systems trajectories, comparative and transversal insights.
Objective 2: Elaboration of a typology of transition pathways in diverse contexts
Methodological guidelines have been developed, tested and then shared for the building and analysis of the case studies trajectories. These guidelines are freely accessible as are the trajectories of the case studies (https://obsatter.com/(odnośnik otworzy się w nowym oknie)). We elaborated three typologies of transition based on our cross case-studies analyses and discussions. These results are in open access on the ATTER observatory. We have produced both a deliverable on the typology of agro-ecological transition pathways (DL 3.2) and a practitioner guideline (DL 3.3) to provide concrete principles and tools for local actors to conduct the trajectory building and analysis on their own territory.
Objective 3: Develop evaluation approaches and tools aimed at integrating the different dimensions involved in agrifood transitions
A framework has been developed and tested for supporting reflexivity on the challenges of evaluation in the transition. We assess the nature and diversity of approaches dealing with transition evaluation, which allowed to identify key dimensions to characterise these approaches, i.e. whom is involved in the design and implementation of the evaluation approach, and whether the evaluation refers to predetermined objectives or not.
We have produced one deliverable «Agroecological transition assessment toolbox for policy makers and practitioners» (DL 4.4) which presents two participatory approaches developed in ATTER and guidelines to enable their use and two short papers.
Objective 4: Analyse the effects of policy instruments and facilitating approaches and define policy recommendations and context-sensitive methodological frameworks aimed at facilitating these transitions
A transversal and comparative analysis of national policies dealing with agroecological and/or territorial transitions was conducted, based on a shared analytical grid used in policy-makers workshops and discussions during secondments, as well as a characterisation of the different types of policies applying at the territorial scale.
A characterisation of the facilitation approaches and methods used in different countries was carried out through the kind of support they provide and through the type of vision of facilitation they encompass (qualitative and experience-based versus objective and evidence-based, and endogenous versus exogenous).
The focus on some innovative policies or schemes such as Territorial Food Projects, Biodistricts or Local Food Councils allowed us to build policy briefs, guidelines and recommendations (see DL5.3).
Objective 5: Develop a diversity of adapted training and exchange activities both for academics and practitioners, which will allow more than 100 staff members to develop new skills, discover new research environments and expand their career perspectives, as well as to consolidate a wider and lasting network
To identify the training and learning needs within the consortium, as well as the training capacities, topics and aspirations, an initial consortium-wide survey was carried out, and allowed to develop a program of webinars and workshops as well as training sessions (on concepts and methods). A devoted guideline for sharing principles and methods was also developed to support direct exchanges of knowledge during secondments. A network of ATTER PhD students was formalised and two summer schools were organised as well as numerous writing workshops and focused mentorship processes.
Common tools of characterization and presentation have been developed and then applied to all case studies. The ATTER observatory has been designed through a series of iterative steps, partly along secondments, tested with users, and is now online and progressively enriched with Case Studies Identity Cards, analyses of territorial food systems trajectories, comparative and transversal insights.
Objective 2: Elaboration of a typology of transition pathways in diverse contexts
Methodological guidelines have been developed, tested and then shared for the building and analysis of the case studies trajectories. These guidelines are freely accessible as are the trajectories of the case studies (https://obsatter.com/(odnośnik otworzy się w nowym oknie)). We elaborated three typologies of transition based on our cross case-studies analyses and discussions. These results are in open access on the ATTER observatory. We have produced both a deliverable on the typology of agro-ecological transition pathways (DL 3.2) and a practitioner guideline (DL 3.3) to provide concrete principles and tools for local actors to conduct the trajectory building and analysis on their own territory.
Objective 3: Develop evaluation approaches and tools aimed at integrating the different dimensions involved in agrifood transitions
A framework has been developed and tested for supporting reflexivity on the challenges of evaluation in the transition. We assess the nature and diversity of approaches dealing with transition evaluation, which allowed to identify key dimensions to characterise these approaches, i.e. whom is involved in the design and implementation of the evaluation approach, and whether the evaluation refers to predetermined objectives or not.
We have produced one deliverable «Agroecological transition assessment toolbox for policy makers and practitioners» (DL 4.4) which presents two participatory approaches developed in ATTER and guidelines to enable their use and two short papers.
Objective 4: Analyse the effects of policy instruments and facilitating approaches and define policy recommendations and context-sensitive methodological frameworks aimed at facilitating these transitions
A transversal and comparative analysis of national policies dealing with agroecological and/or territorial transitions was conducted, based on a shared analytical grid used in policy-makers workshops and discussions during secondments, as well as a characterisation of the different types of policies applying at the territorial scale.
A characterisation of the facilitation approaches and methods used in different countries was carried out through the kind of support they provide and through the type of vision of facilitation they encompass (qualitative and experience-based versus objective and evidence-based, and endogenous versus exogenous).
The focus on some innovative policies or schemes such as Territorial Food Projects, Biodistricts or Local Food Councils allowed us to build policy briefs, guidelines and recommendations (see DL5.3).
Objective 5: Develop a diversity of adapted training and exchange activities both for academics and practitioners, which will allow more than 100 staff members to develop new skills, discover new research environments and expand their career perspectives, as well as to consolidate a wider and lasting network
To identify the training and learning needs within the consortium, as well as the training capacities, topics and aspirations, an initial consortium-wide survey was carried out, and allowed to develop a program of webinars and workshops as well as training sessions (on concepts and methods). A devoted guideline for sharing principles and methods was also developed to support direct exchanges of knowledge during secondments. A network of ATTER PhD students was formalised and two summer schools were organised as well as numerous writing workshops and focused mentorship processes.
Based on the analysis of diversity of case studies crossing diverse scientific disciplines perspectives and practitioners experiences, ATTER has produced knowledge about:
- The enrichment of the concept of agri-food systems
- The diversity of transition issues and pathways, highlighting their context-dependency
- The different mechanisms that foster or impede transition processes and their interactions – especially those linked to civil society and public action
- The polysemy of the notion of territory according to countries and its consequences on issues of (re)territorialisation or the definition of “local”
- New methodological approaches favouring participation in transition processes towards sustainable and just food systems
In total, ATTER has:
• Published 28 scientific articles (2 in press) plus about 10 in progress as well as a collective book) and a dozen non-scientific publications
• Organised or co-organised 7 Conferences and forums
• Organised 29 Workshops, whether in scientific conferences, in multi-actors conferences, or as specific ATTER events in the ATTER territories
• Provided 60 teaching or training sessions
• Participated to 36 different conferences (with for some of them, several ATTER participants being present) and so many different workshops
- The enrichment of the concept of agri-food systems
- The diversity of transition issues and pathways, highlighting their context-dependency
- The different mechanisms that foster or impede transition processes and their interactions – especially those linked to civil society and public action
- The polysemy of the notion of territory according to countries and its consequences on issues of (re)territorialisation or the definition of “local”
- New methodological approaches favouring participation in transition processes towards sustainable and just food systems
In total, ATTER has:
• Published 28 scientific articles (2 in press) plus about 10 in progress as well as a collective book) and a dozen non-scientific publications
• Organised or co-organised 7 Conferences and forums
• Organised 29 Workshops, whether in scientific conferences, in multi-actors conferences, or as specific ATTER events in the ATTER territories
• Provided 60 teaching or training sessions
• Participated to 36 different conferences (with for some of them, several ATTER participants being present) and so many different workshops