Periodic Reporting for period 2 - EuroSheep (European Network for interactive and innovative knowledge exchange on animal health and nutrition between the sheep industry actors and stakeholders)
Período documentado: 2021-07-01 hasta 2022-06-30
Sheep meat and milk production is an important agricultural sector in European Union and neighbouring countries. Despite a 50 % decline in the sheep sector since 2000, European Union is still home to 85 million sheep on 830 000 farms. Efforts to increase the sustainability of the production are high on the EU agenda.
The EU-funded EuroSheep project is creating a self-sustained EU/international network on 'sheep profitability through health and nutrition'. It will facilitate knowledge exchange among diverse stakeholders and disseminate best practices. The project will also bring together experts through a transdisciplinary approach in sheep production, taking into consideration aspects related to animal health and nutrition, grassland management, precision livestock farming, breeding and genetics, as well as sociology and economics.
Therefore, EuroSheep aims to:
• Establish a network of regional/national/European and international actors and stakeholders in the sheep industry to foster a cross-fertilisation approach and lay the foundation of efficient knowledge dissemination.
• Assess practitioners’ needs (farmers, advisors, economic actors…) and interests as well as uptake, and identify factors influencing user acceptance taking into account regional/national specificities of the AKIS.
• Create a knowledge reservoir of useful and usable Best Practices and innovations ready to be put in practice from the large available range of practitioners’ experience and research.
• Ensure wide dissemination to the relevant Actors and stakeholders.
• Link EuroSheep network and its knowledge reservoir production with EIP-Agri and policy makers
To do so, EuroSheep has set up a specific organisation centred on one network facilitator (NF) in each partner country. This NF has received a specific training for the National meetings facilitation to foster the multi-actor and cross-fertilisation approach as well as for communication and dissemination. Each NF is in charge of implementing all Network tasks in its own country with the support of a Scientific and Technical Working Group (STWG) and of a Sheep-AKIS composed of stakeholders. The involvement of stakeholders in Sheep-AKIS is based on existing networks such as Operational Groups.
The methodology is based on 3 key elements working in coordination to ensure multi-stakeholders’ interaction, exchange of information and knowledge generation:
1. A Network Facilitator* (NF), one person per country
2. Scientific and Technical Working Groups** (STWG) in each country
3. SheepAKIS composed of relevant national organisations and networks with wide stakeholders’ representativeness (economic, technical…) and EIP-AGRI Operational Groups (EIP OG).
The structure is implemented and presented in the image “EuroSheep Structure” in each participating country.
All results are available on the EuroSheep Community Platform (www.eurosheep.network) which has been setup in 7 languages and supported by social media such as Twitter (@EuroSheepEU) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/EuroSheep/).
The EU-funded EuroSheep project is creating a self-sustained EU/international network on 'sheep profitability through health and nutrition'. It will facilitate knowledge exchange among diverse stakeholders and disseminate best practices. The project will also bring together experts through a transdisciplinary approach in sheep production, taking into consideration aspects related to animal health and nutrition, grassland management, precision livestock farming, breeding and genetics, as well as sociology and economics.
Therefore, EuroSheep aims to:
• Establish a network of regional/national/European and international actors and stakeholders in the sheep industry to foster a cross-fertilisation approach and lay the foundation of efficient knowledge dissemination.
• Assess practitioners’ needs (farmers, advisors, economic actors…) and interests as well as uptake, and identify factors influencing user acceptance taking into account regional/national specificities of the AKIS.
• Create a knowledge reservoir of useful and usable Best Practices and innovations ready to be put in practice from the large available range of practitioners’ experience and research.
• Ensure wide dissemination to the relevant Actors and stakeholders.
• Link EuroSheep network and its knowledge reservoir production with EIP-Agri and policy makers
To do so, EuroSheep has set up a specific organisation centred on one network facilitator (NF) in each partner country. This NF has received a specific training for the National meetings facilitation to foster the multi-actor and cross-fertilisation approach as well as for communication and dissemination. Each NF is in charge of implementing all Network tasks in its own country with the support of a Scientific and Technical Working Group (STWG) and of a Sheep-AKIS composed of stakeholders. The involvement of stakeholders in Sheep-AKIS is based on existing networks such as Operational Groups.
The methodology is based on 3 key elements working in coordination to ensure multi-stakeholders’ interaction, exchange of information and knowledge generation:
1. A Network Facilitator* (NF), one person per country
2. Scientific and Technical Working Groups** (STWG) in each country
3. SheepAKIS composed of relevant national organisations and networks with wide stakeholders’ representativeness (economic, technical…) and EIP-AGRI Operational Groups (EIP OG).
The structure is implemented and presented in the image “EuroSheep Structure” in each participating country.
All results are available on the EuroSheep Community Platform (www.eurosheep.network) which has been setup in 7 languages and supported by social media such as Twitter (@EuroSheepEU) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/EuroSheep/).
The first task performed within the EuroSheep project has been to setup its network organisation, with the nomination of one network facilitator per partner country, the creation of one scientific and technical working group per country and the identification of national/regional networks (such as operational groups) to compose the Sheep-AKIS of each country.
The second task has been to train each NF to build communication and dissemination plans. NF who were not already trained to facilitation techniques have also been trained to innovative facilitation.
Then an online survey has been conducted to identified needs/questions related to sheep profitability through health and nutrition. A total of 1366 responded to the survey with 57% of those being farmers, shepherds or farm workers. The results of this survey have been used at national and international level during national and transnational workshops to identify and precise the main needs/questions of stakeholders regarding sheep profitability through health and nutrition. Those main needs/questions are driving all the work of EuroSheep, in particular by identifying best practices (solutions and Tips&Tricks) to provide relevant answers to needs/questions.
The work performed in each country with the support of the Sheep-AKIS and the STWG, in a multi-actor and cross-fertilisation approach also allowed the production of 92 technical and/or practical solutions to improve sheep profitability through health and nutrition. Those have been shared during the 2 transnational workshops and the 2 series of national workshops with a strong participation and involvement of stakeholders.
EuroSheep partners have conducted plenty of communication activities to advertise EuroSheep and its results to date. In addition, 52 tips and tricks have been identified by the consortium and shared during 1 series of national workshops and 1 transnational workshop. Finally, 26 factsheets have been produced and will be shared with the EuroSheep community during the next events of the project.
For a better and wider communication and dissemination, the EuroSheep Community Platform (www.eurosheep.network) has been setup in 7 languages as well as the social media such as Twitter (@EuroSheepEU), Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/EuroSheep/) and Instagram (eurosheepeu)) have been frequently used. Videos have also been realised to advertise EuroSheep. All videos are on the EuroSheep YouTube channel (EuroSheep EU). The EuroSheep communication strategy is also based on the use of existing channels, such as agricultural/technical newspapers and journals, existing websites, conferences and sheep events.
The second task has been to train each NF to build communication and dissemination plans. NF who were not already trained to facilitation techniques have also been trained to innovative facilitation.
Then an online survey has been conducted to identified needs/questions related to sheep profitability through health and nutrition. A total of 1366 responded to the survey with 57% of those being farmers, shepherds or farm workers. The results of this survey have been used at national and international level during national and transnational workshops to identify and precise the main needs/questions of stakeholders regarding sheep profitability through health and nutrition. Those main needs/questions are driving all the work of EuroSheep, in particular by identifying best practices (solutions and Tips&Tricks) to provide relevant answers to needs/questions.
The work performed in each country with the support of the Sheep-AKIS and the STWG, in a multi-actor and cross-fertilisation approach also allowed the production of 92 technical and/or practical solutions to improve sheep profitability through health and nutrition. Those have been shared during the 2 transnational workshops and the 2 series of national workshops with a strong participation and involvement of stakeholders.
EuroSheep partners have conducted plenty of communication activities to advertise EuroSheep and its results to date. In addition, 52 tips and tricks have been identified by the consortium and shared during 1 series of national workshops and 1 transnational workshop. Finally, 26 factsheets have been produced and will be shared with the EuroSheep community during the next events of the project.
For a better and wider communication and dissemination, the EuroSheep Community Platform (www.eurosheep.network) has been setup in 7 languages as well as the social media such as Twitter (@EuroSheepEU), Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/EuroSheep/) and Instagram (eurosheepeu)) have been frequently used. Videos have also been realised to advertise EuroSheep. All videos are on the EuroSheep YouTube channel (EuroSheep EU). The EuroSheep communication strategy is also based on the use of existing channels, such as agricultural/technical newspapers and journals, existing websites, conferences and sheep events.
Within the EuroSheep project, partners will create:
• A long term collaboration between the partners,
• A better knowledge of the different sheep rearing systems across Europe to facilitate future common research projects,
• A strong interaction between different grassroots sheep actors, the scientific community and stakeholders, thanks to the multi-actor approach,
• A network of sheep actors (stakeholders) that can interact easily,
• A new positive dynamic generated by a knowledge sharing across the Europe,
• A knowledge reservoir, based on end-users needs, that gathers scientific and practical knowledge,
• A better uptake of practices to improve sheep profitability through health and nutrition coming from stakeholders,
This will allow a better attractiveness of the sheep sector and the maintenance of an essential economic activity in harsher/challenged areas across the EU.
• A long term collaboration between the partners,
• A better knowledge of the different sheep rearing systems across Europe to facilitate future common research projects,
• A strong interaction between different grassroots sheep actors, the scientific community and stakeholders, thanks to the multi-actor approach,
• A network of sheep actors (stakeholders) that can interact easily,
• A new positive dynamic generated by a knowledge sharing across the Europe,
• A knowledge reservoir, based on end-users needs, that gathers scientific and practical knowledge,
• A better uptake of practices to improve sheep profitability through health and nutrition coming from stakeholders,
This will allow a better attractiveness of the sheep sector and the maintenance of an essential economic activity in harsher/challenged areas across the EU.