Saline Agriculture Update

Firstly, thanks to our partners at the Waddenacademie for all of their efforts in getting our Interreg project proposal through to the second stage.  If successful, this will see new test sites for salt-tolerant crops extended across the North Sea Region of Europe and additional research to explore the economic potential of yields and marketing approaches linked to the new crop varieties.  We look forward to continued collaboration over the coming months… and hopefully beyond!

Meanwhile, our new Research Fellow, Zhongwei Xing has joined us in Lincoln International Business School to work on new economic modelling of the risks to the agriculture sector associated with potential increases in salinity of low-lying farmland.  Having previously studied at Lincoln University (New Zealand) he is already feeling at home in his new city!!

 

Cork Declaration 2.0 – A better life in rural areas

Having digested the content in more detail, it is pleasing to see some that there is an emerging sense of the need for a shift in European rural policy.  The first Cork Declaration was a major step towards the inclusion of broader rural development policies alongside direct agricultural support.  The new Declaration firmly embraces all types of economic activities in rural areas within its remit.

http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/events/2016/rural-development/cork-declaration-2-0_en.pdf

The need to bridge the digital divide, although not a headline, emerges clearly in the detail.  So to does the significance of urban-rural interdependence.  Rural places are increasingly connected through social and economic links to urban centres and beyond.  The implications for how we conceive of rural places and rural economies within diverse value chains and diverse social networks need greater attention but the fact that rural quality of life is clearly recognised in relation to economic outcomes is to be applauded.

I am sceptical about whether rural proofing can effectively be applied across Europe (it was hard enough in the UK) but any steps to bring rural areas to the attention of other policy departments is very much welcomed.  After all, it is the core services of education and health that make as much difference as any specifically “rural” policy in Europe’s more peripheral areas.

If/when the UK leaves the EU, this document can also provide a valuable reference point for DEFRA to think about how to tackle rural issues outside of the CAP.

International visitors arrive in Lincoln

Hanne and NancyWe are very pleased to welcome Hanne Bat Finke from the University of Southern Denmark and Nancy Lissete Morales Diaz from the National Polytechnic Institute of Durango, in Mexico.  Both are staying for 3 months, until the end of May.

Hanne has a professional background as a landscape architect, educated from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen. She also has 15 years experience of running her own landscape studio from a rural district, during which time she has developed a growing interest in the societal perception of landscape values. This led her to study for a PhD at the Danish Centre for Rural Research (University of Southern Denmark) for which she is receiving funding from the Danish Ministry of Housing, Urban and Rural Affairs. During Hanne’s stay in Lincoln, she will be comparing British and Danish approaches to rural development and helping to write an article about rural businesses and their relationships with their local environments and landscapes.

Nancy is completing her Masters degree with a dissertation about improving livelihoods in a community of apple farmers in Mexico. She is applying a sustainable livelihoods and community capitals framework and has been carrying out participatory investigations.  As well as learning about new research methodologies, Nancy will be collaborating with Susan Marango to compare ideas about how community groups can engage in sustainable development.

Research updates to follow…

Interpreting Rurality – debating the future of the Countryside

Tonight’s debate will feature Professors Nigel Curry and John Shepherd arguing that “the death of the rural” is inevitable.  Opposing the motion, we have Prof Peter Somerville and Dr Keith Halfacree and we will have plenty of oppotunities for contributions from the audience.  Tea and coffee will be available from 5.30 outside the Book and Latte on the ground floor of the Business School and further refreshments will follow the debate.  We look forward to seeing you there.