AgrismaRT con il gruppo UNIFI-GESAAF sarà presente al prossimo convegno AIIA 2015 International Mid-Term Conference: New Frontiers of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering for Feeding the Planet Italian Society of Agricultural Engineering – Naples, June 22-23, 2015. http://www.aiia2015.eu/  

The challenge of research in agriculture and forestry today is to cope the rapidly growing food demand (to be doubled in 2050) with the environmental impacts related to agricultural expansion. We are seeing an agricultural intensification in richer nations and a growing land clearing in poorer nations; this joint process will increase environmental pressure in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, land and water resources, energy demand. Diversely, additional production – in the whole food chain – should be achieved without further damaging to essential ecosystem services or excessive use of land, water and non-renewable energy resources. The concept of “sustainable intensification” in agriculture means increasing together yields and efficient use of input, by reducing in the same time the negative environmental effects of food production. High quality research in Agricultural Engineering may contribute very significantly to address a more complex set of goals than just increasing yield, by developing new technologies which can be transferred to applications and best practices.

In the year of EXPO2015, which is focused on this theme, this conference, organized by the Italian Association of Agricultural Engineering and the University of Naples Federico II – Department of Agriculture, in collaboration with the European Network for Engineering and Systems in the Rural Sector (EurAgEng) and the International Commission of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering (CIGR)  aims at presenting the state of the art of R&D in the following topics:

Innovative Systems, Structures and Technologies for Sustainable Agriculture and Forestry: advancements in understanding processes and new technologies for reducing the environmental impact of agriculture and forestry production chains; “green” and “smart” bio-processes The Land, Water & Energy Nexus: integrated frameworks for optimal utilization of natural resources and land planning in agriculture and forestry systems (i.e.: renewable energy land occupation vs. afforestation; impact of food vs. no-food biomass production on land and water resources) Information and Communication Technologies: management, modelling and monitoring: advanced sensors and control techniques, management of data and information, expert systems to improve quality and sustainability of the agro-forestry systems Transfer of Knowledge and Cooperation in Developing Countries: experiences and case-studies on the impact of research in agricultural engineering in Developing Countries; the role of the Italian community of researchers in this sector in the context of international cooperation