Periodic Reporting for period 2 - D4AgEcol (DIGITALISATION FOR AGROECOLOGY)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2024-03-01 al 2025-08-31
The transition to agroecology is one of the major challenges facing European agriculture. Agroecology brings together ecological and social principles to create more sustainable farming and food systems. It offers ways to address the environmental, economic, and social limits of conventional agriculture. Digital tools and technologies can support this transition, but their potential benefits, limitations, and wider impacts are still not fully understood.
The D4AgEcol project (https://d4agecol.eu/(si apre in una nuova finestra)) was established to improve this understanding. Its aim was to provide knowledge that helps farmers, advisors, and bioeconomy stakeholderssupport the shift toward agroecology in Europe. The project focused on identifying and assessing digital tools and technologies used in both organic and conventional farming systems. It also examined how these tools align with and contribute to the FAO’s Ten Elements of Agroecology (2018). In addition, the project explored how digitalisation could be adapted and guided to better support agroecological principles and practices.
The project also examined barriers, trade-offs, and societal concerns that may affect the uptake of agroecological approaches and related digital tools. By working with stakeholders in seven European countries, D4AgEcol sought to understand the conditions needed to support a transition to agroecology through digital technologies. These insights were then used to define key actions and strategic priorities for actors shaping the future of sustainable and digitally supported European agriculture.
The D4AgEcol project (https://d4agecol.eu/(si apre in una nuova finestra)) was established to improve this understanding. Its aim was to provide knowledge that helps farmers, advisors, and bioeconomy stakeholderssupport the shift toward agroecology in Europe. The project focused on identifying and assessing digital tools and technologies used in both organic and conventional farming systems. It also examined how these tools align with and contribute to the FAO’s Ten Elements of Agroecology (2018). In addition, the project explored how digitalisation could be adapted and guided to better support agroecological principles and practices.
The project also examined barriers, trade-offs, and societal concerns that may affect the uptake of agroecological approaches and related digital tools. By working with stakeholders in seven European countries, D4AgEcol sought to understand the conditions needed to support a transition to agroecology through digital technologies. These insights were then used to define key actions and strategic priorities for actors shaping the future of sustainable and digitally supported European agriculture.
D4AgEcol identified and mapped promising digital tools and technologies that could help European agriculture transition to agroecology. These tools were analysed for their environmental and economic potential and are available online at https://platform.d4agecol.eu/.The(si apre in una nuova finestra) repository builds on previous research, project outcomes, and commercial products, and connects with related initiatives, such as PATH2DEA.
Twelve technologies were selected for in-depth evaluation of their potential to support agroecology. The project also developed a set of 30 agroecology indicators to measure how well these tools align with the FAO’s Ten Elements of Agroecology. To carry out the assessment, the team created protocols for Digital Tool Scoping Workshops (DTSWs), allowing evaluation of the tools across seven European countries. By January 2025, all 12 technologies had been tested with farmers, stakeholders, and researchers in 10 living labs. The methodology was developed collaboratively and presented at several scientific fairs and conferences, including the GIL annual meetings, the GIATE symposium, and AGRITECHNICA.
To turn workshop results into actionable guidance, the consortium organised national roadmap workshops in each of the seven participating countries. These workshops identified country-specific needs and policy adjustments required to foster agroecology through digitalisation. The key findings were then presented and discussed at a European-level policy workshop with a broad range of stakeholders, including EU policymakers.
Drawing on these discussions—along with insights from the entire project, such as drivers and barriers to adopting agroecology-enabling digital technologies and impact assessments from the DTSWs—the consortium produced a policy brief (https://zenodo.org/records/17464086(si apre in una nuova finestra)).
Twelve technologies were selected for in-depth evaluation of their potential to support agroecology. The project also developed a set of 30 agroecology indicators to measure how well these tools align with the FAO’s Ten Elements of Agroecology. To carry out the assessment, the team created protocols for Digital Tool Scoping Workshops (DTSWs), allowing evaluation of the tools across seven European countries. By January 2025, all 12 technologies had been tested with farmers, stakeholders, and researchers in 10 living labs. The methodology was developed collaboratively and presented at several scientific fairs and conferences, including the GIL annual meetings, the GIATE symposium, and AGRITECHNICA.
To turn workshop results into actionable guidance, the consortium organised national roadmap workshops in each of the seven participating countries. These workshops identified country-specific needs and policy adjustments required to foster agroecology through digitalisation. The key findings were then presented and discussed at a European-level policy workshop with a broad range of stakeholders, including EU policymakers.
Drawing on these discussions—along with insights from the entire project, such as drivers and barriers to adopting agroecology-enabling digital technologies and impact assessments from the DTSWs—the consortium produced a policy brief (https://zenodo.org/records/17464086(si apre in una nuova finestra)).
D4AgEcol developed a set of agroecology indicators together with experts to assess the potential contribution of digital tools and technologies to agroecological practices. The project also elaborated a protocol for identifying the potentials and constraints of digital tools and technologies in stakeholder workshops. This approach combined methods to assess both the technologies’ capacity to enhance agroecology and their likelihood of adoption by farmers. The resulting “Digital Tool Scoping Workshop” methodology will be published as a joint outcome of the consortium.
The Hands-Free Hectare Multi-Objective Linear Programming model (HFH-MOLP), a methodological tool with high scientific and policy potential, was further developed within D4AgEcol. It integrated multiple farm-level objectives across economic, environmental, and social domains to generate whole-farm plans that balanced competing goals. The model supported scenario analyses—such as technology adoption or policy impacts—and helped estimate trade-offs among incommensurable objectives. By simulating different farmer decision profiles, it also identified key drivers and barriers linked to varying priorities. Its main audiences were researchers and policymakers.
The Hands-Free Hectare Multi-Objective Linear Programming model (HFH-MOLP), a methodological tool with high scientific and policy potential, was further developed within D4AgEcol. It integrated multiple farm-level objectives across economic, environmental, and social domains to generate whole-farm plans that balanced competing goals. The model supported scenario analyses—such as technology adoption or policy impacts—and helped estimate trade-offs among incommensurable objectives. By simulating different farmer decision profiles, it also identified key drivers and barriers linked to varying priorities. Its main audiences were researchers and policymakers.