The report Approaches to Sustainable Agriculture, published by the IUCN European Regional Office in June 2020 was presented by Barbara Pia Oberč, Policy Officer, outlining the main pathways to sustainable agriculture, as well as some of the next important questions to be tackled for the transition.

We were honoured to have Janez Potočnik, former EU Commissioner and chairman of the Forum for the Future of Agriculture, who gave his views on the report and on the transition to sustainable agriculture.

"We need to address the main drivers of unsustainable agriculture in production, food-chain and (over)consumption. All stakeholders need predictable trajectory for the way forward, clear rules, agreed targets and transition targeted funding”, said the former European Commissioner for the Environment.

“The transformative change we need can only happen with the support of a European agricultural policy that is up to the challenge", added Luc Bas, Director IUCN Europe. "The sustainable agricultural approaches described in this report can be part of the Nature-based Solutions we need for the future".

The webinar concluded with an interesting Q&A session, moderated by Alberto Arroyo Schnell, Senior Policy Manager at the IUCN European Regional Office. Issues discussed included the relationship between the Natura 2000 network and sustainable agriculture, how important are education and awareness to the transition to sustainable agriculture and if this is possible without a change of paradigm in our society.

We thank all participants for their interest - we look forward to seeing our Members at the next Nature O' Clock early next year!