The FAIRshare project was focused on reducing the digital divide in agriculture and forestry, it aimed to engage farm advisors directly and farmers indirectly through their networks and through targeted activities. Direct engagement and involvement was encouraged in the adoption and use of new digital tools and services in 42 diverse user cases . The project laid the groundwork for increased networking, sharing of digitalised tools and service ideas. A key development in this was the Permanent Networking Facility(PNF), which accumulated more than 370 examples of tools and services used by advisors in their day to day work in different contexts throughout Europe and globally. The PNF platform also made an inventory of almost 200 digital training modules and a library of short animated good practice videos. This PNF will continue to be supported and available for farm advisors, which given their unique role within the Agricultural Knowledge Innovation System (AKIS) and their direct link to farmers on the ground, are best placed to advocate and support the use of DATS at farm level going forward.
Each advisor who participated in the projects 42 User Cases had an impact on their own clients/farmers, potentially reaching a wider audience through a wider use of digitization in their organisations, by their advisory colleagues and their client base. As a result of training and guidance provided to User Case participants, they were equipped to implement the use of further Digital Advisory Tools and Services and have established stronger networks and contacts for future collaborations in the fast changing digitalised agricultural economy. The experiences and documented guidelines for cross-visits developed during the project will serve as valuable resources for future digitalisation collaborations and innovation within the wider European AKIS system.
The design and use of the Multi-Actor Approach (MAA) adopted for the Use Cases was pivotal in bringing about a clear understanding and approach to overcoming the many digitalisation challenges identified among European farmer advisors, on individual and organisational level, and in successfully addressing the project's challenge. The overarching goal of FAIRshare was to engage, enable, and empower the independent farm advisor community. The multi actor experience of sharing tools, expertise, and motivations, helped supported two main approaches; one gathered an evidence base of digital tools and services used internationally, leveraging partner institutions' social networks across EU and non-EU countries. The second approach established a participatory "living laboratory" of user cases, empowering advisor peers from across the EU to interact with the online inventory. This "living lab" approach enabled advisors to tackle challenges related to adapting, adopting and embedding digital tools and services in advisory contexts and farming communities, sectors and contexts across Europe. Special emphasis was placed on co-designing effective communication and engagement approaches for advisors to advocate and inspire their peers and farmer clients, fostering a social movement for the wider and increased and improved use of digital tools by advisors and farmers.
