It is undeniable that the world we live in constantly changes (“everything flows” as the Greek philosopher Heraclitus pointed some 2.500 years ago). Nowadays, one of the major vehicles of this principle is the climate change; and it is going to be even more intense in the following years. The primary sector, plant and animal production, depends a lot on the climatic conditions and it is expected to carry most of the weight of this change. Therefore, adjustments are necessary in the way that we perform agriculture; adjustments that will allow the continuation of the production of quality food from animal and plant origin and that will ensure the survival of the human race. In this direction, the wider objective of this project is to create qualified scientists who will contribute to the development of environmentally friendly and sustainable agriculture and will be readily absorbed by the labour market.The key actions of this project will be: a) the development, testing and adaptation of new content for courses, learning materials and tools and b) the university-enterprise cooperation. The major outputs of this project will be: a) new updated material in the field of “climate change, crop and animal production” in two languages (French and English), b) the development of the relevant courses, c) the development of modern learning materials (educational and mechanical equipment related to the courses) and d) the development of learning tools (e-learning platform, dynamic web site), that will all contribute to the succession of the wider objective of the project.The impact of this project is expected to be significant since: a) it will provide the HEI’s with the appropriate tools to produce highly trained scientists in the respective field, b) it will strengthen the internationalization of HEI and the capacity to network effectively in research, scientific and technological innovation and c) it possesses a strong dissemination WP, involving all stakeholders.

Transforming agriculture in the context of climate change is a central challenge in North-Africa, the most food-import-dependent region worldwide and a climate change hotspot. Tackling these issues, Agro-Ecology (AE) appears as an answer to meet both the challenges of global sustainability and local resilience. In this context, NATAE consortium brings together high-level research institutions, international organisations and NGOs with strong experience on AE approaches and exceptional capacity to induce transformational change by informing policies and education. NATAE project aims to foster the adoption of science-based, locally-tailored and co-designed AE strategies in North Africa by creating a comprehensive and quantitative baseline on AE, providing a shared understanding, multidimensional performance measures, and analyses of AE potential for meeting consumers demand on the market. To achieve this goal, NATAE will set-up and inform a unique multi-actor community of knowledge and capacity building on AE in the Mediterranean, with ground breaking findings on the performances of AE-Practices (AEP) in North Africa. An original multi-dimensional, multi-scale evaluation framework covering dimensions currently overlooked, and a replicable methodological guidebook will be designed. An integrated modelling approach combining a biophysical, a household/regional bio-economic indicator modelling chain will be used to develop a unique Integrated Assessment of Agricultural Systems to assess the resilience of AEP-based farming systems. Participatory approaches via Living Labs will be elaborated to develop, test and capitalize alternative public policies and foster AE transitions. An integrated group of dissemination activities, will further test, advance and communicate a range of existing AE innovations from farm to fork, including innovative farm practices, value-chain innovations, and innovations in food system governance, advancing their respective readiness level.