“We are going to have a controversial discussion, but a respectful one.”

I had been waiting for some conflict and controversy...for nearly three days. It was decidedly inconspicuous at a conference bearing those very words in its title. But now, here was conference organizer Stefan Sieber promising that controversy in the closing keynotes and plenary. The speakers, and their topics of choice, followed one of the most fundamental debates in the fields of agriculture and rural development - pitting the core philosophies around technology dissemination and institutional support versus grassroots innovation and social movements against one another.

As a biologist I was very interested in the Poster Session “Biodiversity and ecosystem services”. Bernhard Freyer from BOKU Vienna (organisator of next year’s Tropentag) lead as the session chair and connected the different topics of the posters quite well. Interesting discussions developed subsequent to the presentations. Bernhard Freyer opens the discussion. Continue...

It is time to say goodbye from the Student Reporters. We had a great time learning and reporting for Tropentag 2015. Check out our closing video with highlights of the closing plenary and ceremony. Keep checking the Tropentag website for details of the next Tropentag in Vienna, and for the students, look out for the call to become a student reporter. It is a worthwhile experience!

I talked to Mr Siegfried Harrer of the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE) – an office that is subordinate to the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) with German Federal Minister for Food and Agriculture Schmidt. BMEL is one of the donors of Tropentag 2015. Harrer said that BMEL is spending 8.5 million Euros on 8 different science projects this year. The main interest of BLE being at Tropentag is to get in contact with other organizations and researchers. They organize workshops for local farmers around the world. Furthermore they have upcoming possibilities for young scientists from developing countries to get grants.

When visiting the conference, you cannot have missed the different stands, where various organisations have set up camp for these days. One of them is DAAD, the German Academic Exchange Service. We had a quick interview this morning, to hear more about what they are doing and what services they offer! Continue...

Thursday was a vibrant and full day, filled with exciting presentations and new insights. Later there was the conference dinner, and for the lucky few even a small dance party in the basement! Thursday’s quote: "To reach your aims- work together, not against each other" - Max (Boku, Vienna)

An interview with this unique participant, the only representative of Fiji!

poster sessions

“We are placing research within development...These models are new, but I think they are working.” Bernard Vanlauwe from IITA argued during his closing keynote. Emerging mechanisms to approach agricultural research and how to link it to on-the-ground application were themes across the Centre’s research.
Each year at Tropentag, one of the research centres of the CGIAR* is featured as a means of forging collaboration and furthering research for development. This year, the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) filled that role, and works through partnerships and with farmers to improve food security and livelihoods. As the focal organization, IITA brought along a dozen or so experts, some of whom spared a moment to impart a few words of wisdom. Continue...

Did you leave Tropentag wondering if tropical agriculture is still your future career? Well, you were in the right place, because the student reporters caught up with one woman whose career path might just inspire you. Dr. Ajantha Perera, an Assistant Professor at Fiji National University, and the only one from Oceania participating at the Tropentag conference this year answered a few questions about  her career and her motivation to fly thousands of miles for Tropentag. Continue...