SHINE 2Europe, represented by Ângela Freitas, recently travelled to the beautiful city of Gijón, Asturias, to join the 3rd General Assembly of the Horizon Europe project GUARDIANS – “Smart solutions to empower small- and medium-sized farms as Guardians of the territory.”
Hosted by SERIDA, this meeting marked a key milestone in the project’s journey, a year and a half after its launch. From November 26-27, 2024, project partners gathered to review progress across various work packages, including the development of nine cutting-edge technologies. Discussions were focused around challenges and upcoming implementation phases at pilot farms in Spain, Italy, Sweden, and Czechia, representing diverse environmental, climatic, and socio-economic conditions.
The meeting also included an inspiring visit to a demo farm and SERIDA’s headquarters, where partners engaged with research and innovation initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable and healthy farming practices.
SHINE 2Europe leads Work Package 2, focusing on fostering farmer engagement and technology acceptance through social innovation. Together with NOFIMA (technology uptake) and SMACT (mentoring), SHINE 2Europe presented updates and action plans for the months ahead.
Angela has also facilitated a collaborative brainstorming session on the One-Stop-Shop concept, exploring how cooperatives can support technological adoption and sustainable farming. The discussion highlighted cooperative’s different needs of services, expectations, and resources while identifying ways GUARDIANS can enhance capacity-building.
With the goal of bridging the technological gap for small- and medium-sized farms, GUARDIANS aims to empower farmers through smart solutions and sustainable innovation. Funded by Horizon Europe, the project commenced in June 2023 under the FARM2FORK call for fair, healthy, and environmentally-friendly food systems.