VC highlights Nauni’s agroecology initiatives
Solan, July 25
Rajeshwar Chandel, Vice-Chancellor of the Nauni-based Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry was among the distinguished speakers at the launch of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) Regional Child Project on Fostering Agrochemical Reduction & Management (FARM) in India.
The event, held recently in Delhi, witnessed the participation of experts representing UNEP, HIL, UNIDO, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, the Department of Chemicals & Petrochemicals, and various other government bodies and academic institutions.
The Global FARM project — initiated by the governments of Ecuador, India, Kenya, Lao PDR, Philippines, Uruguay and Vietnam — aims to establish a regulatory and financial framework to detoxify the agriculture sector. Led by the UN Environment Programme, supported by the Global Environment Facility and implemented by the Asian Development Bank, UNDP and UNIDO, the project’s execution is carried out by FAO and relevant country institutions.
The FARM programme’s mission is to transform the agriculture sector by reorienting policy and financial resources toward reducing agrochemical use. Its goals include creating less chemically intensive agricultural systems, protecting and restoring ecosystems, phasing out harmful inputs, reducing carbon emissions from agriculture and fostering sustainable and resilient farming communities for smallholder farmers.
In Asia, the Regional FARM Project will be jointly implemented in India and the Philippines, with a focus on promoting eco-friendly crop protection solutions for persistent organic pollutants (POP) and highly hazardous pesticides. In India, the project will cover several crops across 10 states.
The university, a leader in agroecological practices such as natural farming, is already a part of the European Union-funded ACROPICS consortium. It aims to foster co-innovation in agroecological crop protection, comprising 15 members from 13 countries, including 12 academic organisations and three companies. The goal of ACROPICS is to promote the reduction of chemical pesticide use through systemic innovations in agroecological crop protection. The VC shared insights on the university’s work in agroecology and how the goals of the ACROPICS project can be aligned with the FARM project in India. Ashish Gupta, an International Consultant in the university’s SUSPNF project, presented his views on transforming agri-food systems sustainably with smallholder Himalayan farmers.
