It’s the 19th international conference since 1999, and over 1,000 registered participants from over 68 countries assembled to discuss our vision of a new path for agriculture, while still providing for the growing world population.

The inaugural speaker, Professor Mathias Becker from University of Bonn, emphasized the crucial role of young scientists and journalists, giving special thanks to us student reporters, who” link the world outside with the Tropentag conference”.

In accordance with the representative of the German Minister of Economic cooperation and Development, both acknowledged the massive deprivation of natural resources from intensive agriculture, e. g. deforestation, big monocultures and pesticide use. They also both mentioned that feeding the soaring demand for food, even while arable land was limited, would require intensification.

Can intensification be the only answer and solution? No, nor can CRISPR/Cas9 be, said Michael Hoch, Rector of the University of Bonn. He had further questions, what role does modern biotechnology play? How can small-scale farmers in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa be considered as a key factor to considerably change agricultural output? In contrast to keynote speaker Monty Jones, the minister of agriculture of Sierra Leone, the welcome speakers were less certain about how to feed the world in the future.

At what point should a researcher with limited understanding of the socio-political context and no lived experience in a country, feel comfortable questioning the strategies of an expert from that country?

Speaking of food producers in Sierra Leone in his Tropentag 2017 keynote speech, World Food Prize Laureate Monty Jones claimed, “these people deserve to use external inputs, such as fertilizers, improved seeds, gm."

Looking to the future, shouldn't we transform the food system, rather than just reform an admittedly flawed system? We must be openly critical of existing production standards that shape these systems, for example, agricultural production methods that rely on mechanization and rely on external inputs. Jones’ direct emphasis on biotechnological innovation and production intensification in Sierra Leone seem to conflict with, at least in my mind, a pathway towards sustainable transformation.

Fadli is studying Agricultural Science and Resources Management in the Tropics and Subtropics at the University of Bonn. Last year he was also a student reporter, and found it fun and wanted to do it again-so he did. “The Tropentag conference itself is a big conference, and an opportunity to discuss with a variety of people from a range of expertise”, he said. He hopes to earn a deeper understanding of blogging and managing the team, now as chief editor. He hopes to catch some of the presented topics at the Tropentag 2017. This year at the conference, he would like to learn more about organic agriculture.

This year's student reporters come from different parts of the world. Twelve students, nine nationalities, same passion. We are here to ensure you get a glimpse of everything ranging from keynote speeches to poster sessions at Tropentag 2017.

Meet Liz from Nairobi! Liz is from Nairobi, Kenya. She is a PhD student in Agricultural Science at the University of Bonn. She is currently working on “Edible Insects in Kenya” for her research project at the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), Kenya. The student reporter call posted on the Tropentag website caught her attention as she was registering to present a poster. She went for it. Even if it meant more work, her acceptance was exciting. This would be a starting point for her path towards a potential career in science communication. Liz flew in from Nairobi expecting to meet people, learn new skills in photography, blogging and editing and, most importantly, have fun. She has interests in entomology, agrobiodiversity and nutritional diversity.

For Giulia, Tropentag will be a great place to learn, share, and get new research ideas in her field. The first time she heard about the student reporter position from her professor when he promoted it at the University of Florence, Italy and he encouraged her to join. At Tropentag she expects to produce useful content that interests young people, both expert and non-expert alike, on issues linked to agricultural sustainability. Her interest is agro-biodiversity conservation in future agriculture. If she has the time, she hopes to find interesting discussions about this topic.

Diana, from Syria, is a PhD student of Organic Agricultural Science at the University of Kassel. She was just checking her emails as usual when a friend sent her the announcement about Tropentag student reporters. She knew right away this was for her. One of her passions is to discover people through interviews, and this was just the opportunity to practice that. Diana cancelled an invitation for a vacation in Berlin to come to Bonn to learn more about reporting and the technical aspects around it, like video editing, sound mixing, and photography. Even though she will be busy covering the conference, she hope to learn more about her interests in biodiversity, soil and soil fertility.

Rami hails from Syria and he loves connecting with people. Rami is pursuing a PhD in Organic Agricultural Sciences at the University of Kassel, Witzenhausen, Germany. His passion for film led him to the position of student reporter at Tropentag 2017. This was his chance to shine. He would be able to capture on film current research affecting food security globally. So, he hopped on a train to get to Bonn and tell the Tropentag story. Otherwise, he hopes build networks at the conference and improve his overall skills as a science reporter.