Context
The University of Banja Luka has joined the EcoStack project in an attempt to respond to the major challenges facing agricultural producers. Faced with the demands for high productivity brought about by the global increase in the human population, agriculture must be able to strike a balance between production, environmental impact and social acceptability. It is at the heart of these issues that the EcoStack project is positioned, working through research to develop agricultural production strategies that are sustainable on three levels: ecological, economic and social. The potential solutions proposed will also contribute to the gradual implementation of more sustainable food production systems. Funded as part of the European Union's Horizon2020 programme for research and innovation, and bringing together a group of twenty-four stakeholders including European universities, institutes and research centres, etc., all focused within the framework of this project on advancing sustainable agricultural techniques, this partnership places the town of Banja Luka on the path to ecological and sustainable agricultural production.
The project
The EcoStack project is based on interaction and the exchange of knowledge between its various partners. It functions as a network of players committed to researching and testing various agricultural techniques and practices with the aim of developing new ways of cultivating crops. The aim is to introduce optimised farming techniques that will enable producers to become more integrated into a sustainable production chain that respects biodiversity and is socially appropriate, and to develop viable, resilient production over the long term. Experiments and research are particularly focused on agricultural techniques for reducing the use of pesticides, quantifying and assessing the effects of natural enemies (such as ladybirds, considered to be the natural enemy of aphids) and pollinators on yields and soil quality, and studying the social and economic impact of new cultivation strategies.
With the participation of the various partners, conferences are also organised to provide information about biodiversity-friendly farming practices on farms across Europe. Each year, the annual Ecostack general meeting provides an opportunity to review the different farming techniques tested, the progress of the various research projects and future plans.
Little extra
EcoStack provides explanatory content in video format on a Youtube channel dedicated to presenting the various possible cultivation methods (click here to find out more) and also makes all the studies arising from the project available online, free to download directly from its electronic library (click here to find out more).
This initiative sheet was written by Mathis Kugel, in civic service with Let's Food in March 2023.
Sources
https://ec.europa.eu/eip/agriculture/en/find-connect/projects/ecostack-stacking-ecosystem-services-mechanisms
https://www.ecostack-h2020.eu
Last modification : 12 Jun 2023.
Banja Luka & EcoStack
EcoStack is a research and innovation project funded as part of the European Union's Horizon2020 research and innovation programme. It is based on the testing of innovative agricultural techniques in an attempt to meet the major challenges facing agriculture today.