Legume Genetic Resources Conference featuring PAR’s Paola De Santis

On Monday, September 12, from 2:30 to 6:30 pm CEST, at the Mole Vanvitelliana Auditorium, ANCONA (Italy), a public conference will be held on the topic: "𝐀𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐢𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐬": 𝐅𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐥𝐞𝐠𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐬, 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐬𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧", opening the annual meeting of the INCREASE EU-Horizon 2020 project, which will take place from September 12 to 15, 2022.

The conference will feature several key speakers, including PAR’s own Paola De Santis.

Roberto Papa, Professor of Agricultural Genetics at the Polytechnic University of the Marche (UNIVPM) and coordinator of the INCREASE project, says, “In the face of the climate change crisis, the conservation and valorization of Agrobiodiversity and Plant Genetic Resources are crucial to ensure nutritious food and a healthy diet for all. We need to utilize and valorize the great diversity that exists in gene banks. To do this, we need to expand, compared to the current situation, the access to genetic resources and the production and knowledge sharing by the engagement of experts (scientists, farmers, and stakeholders) but also all citizens. We need a new strategy for the conservation of agrobiodiversity and genetic resources in Europe and worldwide. This can be achieved by establishing a decentralized genetic resources conservation system. In this context, we believe that the EU and its member states need to step up their efforts on this aspect and renew agrobiodiversity conservation strategies by incorporating decentralized approaches that use participatory science and cutting-edge technologies.”

The INCREASE project aims to promote agrobiodiversity and support the conservation and use of food legumes as common bean, chickpea, lentil and lupin for the development of sustainable agricultural systems leading to the production of innovative food products, with the purpose of facilitating the food transition towards plant-based diets rooted in the agricultural and food tradition of European and Mediterranean countries. At the same time, INCREASE deals with studying innovative methods to facilitate the conservation and sustainable use of all genetic resources, focusing on innovative strategies that can facilitate the access and use of genetic resources while promoting the sharing of benefits, between peoples and countries.