international collaboration in agricultural...

International Collaboration in Agricultural Research

addressing global challenges together

Dr. Christine Bunthof

11-12 November 2010, Delhi, India CONFERENCEIndia-EU and Member States Partnership for a strategic Roadmap in Research and Innovation

Note on this Handout version

This handout is slightly different than the presentation given.

● some slides are combined into one, in particular subsequent slides that added information slide by slide to build a list of figure.

● some slides are added, just to provide more information, in particular in the part about ERA-NET Plant Genomics

● slides indicating the different sections have been included to make the structure clearer

Outline of Presentation

● The ERA-NET Scheme

● ERA-NET Plant Genomics

● Grand Challenges for plant research

● Intermezzo Wageningen UR, Netherlands

● Examples of European/international collaborative research projects in agriculture

● Networking research programmes

The ERA-NET Scheme

– the creation of an "internal market" in research(free movement of knowledge, researchers and technology)

– the restructuring of the European research fabric(improved coordination of national research activitiesand policies)

– the development of a European research policy(taking into account other EU and national policies)

3 3 conceptsconcepts

European Research AreaEuropean Research Area

�� ERA-NET Actions help building the European Research Area

The ERA-NET Scheme

● Launched in 2002 under FP6, continued under FP7

● “to step up the cooperation and co-ordination of research activities carried at national and regional level in the Member States and Associated States, through the networking of research programmes, including their mutual opening and the development of joint activities”

● ~ 100 ERA-NET Actions have been launched

● involving over 1000 participations from over 40 countries

● majority of ERA-NETs have launched joint call(s)

● ERA-NETs in areas of biotechnology, agriculture, genomics (non-exhaustive list):

ERA-NET Plant Genomics, ERA-IB, ERA Chemistry, ACE-NET, Euro Trans Bio, Woodwisdom, BiodivERsA, ERA-ARD, Core organic, Euphresco, Safe Food ERA, ERASAGE, ERA Sys Bio, ERA Pathogenomics, agriculture in the mediterranean, Animal health

ERA-NET information at cordis: http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/coordination

ERA-NET Plant Genomics

● European Research Area Network in Plant Genomics

● Network of ministries, funding agencies and national research councils

● Co-ordination and co-operation between national plant genomics research programmes

● Working together to stimulate excellent science, drive innovation and create a fruitful environment for commercial exploitation.

● Implementing joint calls with ear-marked national budgets; 2 calls so far 55M

● Basis for continued collaboration, extension of network, new joint initiatives

● Contribution to a strong knowledge-base, contributing to a competitive European bio-economy

● Coordination costs partly covered by EC under FP 6 (ERA-NET Scheme)

NL, CBSGArabidopsis, potato, tomato

ERA-PG built on national plant genomics initiatives

Spain, MECArabidopsis, tomato, potato, grape, pine, oak

UK, GarnetArabidopsis

France , GenoplanteArabidopsis, wheat, corn, rice, rapeseed, sunflower, pea

Germany , GABIArabidopsis, barley, corn, sugarbeet, wheat, potato

Sweden , Finland Arabidopsis,poplar, birch

Italy

Belgium

Denmark

Norway

Austria

ERA-PG collaborates from the start on with the ETP Plants for the future

The Knowledge Based Bio-Economy1.600 Bi Euro

Agriculture, forestry andanimal production

Food products•Fresh food products•Processed foods•Feed

Non-food products•Biochemicals •Biomaterials•Biofuels & bioenergy

Higher yields, sustainable production create added value to the producer

Novel and high quality productscreate value added products for consumers

ERA-PG Work Plan

� Exchange of information and best practice on existing programmes and activities

� Identification and analysis of common strategic issues

� Planning and development of joint activities between national and regional programmes

� Implementation of joint trans-national activities

Step I

Step II

Step III

Step IV

�� ERA-PG Research Programme

Plant GenomicsPlant Genomics

Overarching themes to unify partners

Abiotic and biotic stress

Genomic tools, technologies and resourcesHigh value

crops and non-food crops

Crop and forage plants for low input systems

Use of models and model-

crop translation

Other topics?Yield stability and genetic potential

Quality traits

● Delivery of excellent science in transnational collaboration –true transnational working

● Transparency of process with minimal bureaucracy

● Synergy by collaboration – maximisation of return on funding agency investments

● Joint programme design and operation

● Stimulation of industrial participation and cooperation

● Enhanced profile for EU science in global terms – elevated competitiveness

ERA-PG joint calls – main objectives

ERA-PG 2006 Calls

• 12 Participating funding organisations EWI Belgium, DFG Germany, MIUR Italy, NWO/NGI Netherlands

DRA Denmark, AKA Finland, RCN NorwayFCT Portugal, BBSRC UK, ANR France, BMBF Germany, MEC Spain

• Sub Call A Broad call for publicly funded research in plant genomics

• Sub Call B Trilateral partnership and beyond; the future for European Public-Private Partnerships in Europe

• Two stage review process

Structuring Plant Genomic Research in Europe

ERA-PG 2008 Call

Strengthening the European

Research Area in Plant Genomics

-integrating new technologies in

plant science

• Funders from 9 countries: Austria, Belgium, Finland, Germany, Israel, Netherlands, Portugal, UK and Canada

• One-stage process

• Allocated budget (preliminary) ~ 15 million Euro

Organisation of the ERA-PG joint calls

Participation in the applications (all calls)

Success rates in the ERA-PG joint calls

Evaluation● Learning experiences on developing joint actions

● Common goal, overarching themes

● Agreed procedures for evaluation and selection and for monitoring (distinguish centralised tasks, national tasks, joint tasks)

● (centralized) call secretariat with the expertise, manpower and systems in place

● Commitment, involvement, trust

● Distributed pot worked out well in our calls

● Positive feedback from academic and industrial communitity, in particular for bottom-up approach, transparency, openness to small consortia and low bureaucratic burden

ERA-PG enhances transnational collaboration

Towards Sustainable Collaboration

through a follow-up ERA-NET action: ERA CAPS *

● Underpinned by strong basis from joint calls

● Focus & Strategy (topics, activities, countries)

● Delivery of excellent science in true transnationalcollaboration

● Encourage of industrial participation and cooperation

● Synergy by collaboration – maximisation of return on funding agency investments

● Joint programme design and operation, transparency of process with minimal bureaucracy

● Establish / strenghten collaboration with other ERA-NETs, with Technology Platforms and with Joint Programming Initiatives

* ERA CAPS contact: Dr Rowan McKibbin, BBSRC, UK

Strong basis for competitive European Knowledge-Based Bio-Economy

Wageningen UR (Universiteit & Researchcentrum)

Wageningen UR (Universiteit & Researchcentrum)

� Three units:� Wageningen University� Van Hall Larenstein� DLO – 9 applied research institutes

� Turnover 2009: € 688 million� € 33 million EU projects

� 6500 staff, 10.000 students� Extended network� Large-scale new buildings� Partner in Food Valley

…to explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life…

The Wageningen UR domainhealth, lifestyle, livelihood

healthy food and living environment

food and food production

living environment

Sustainable agricultureNutrition and healthSustainable fisheryBiomassChains

Marine resource management

Landscape and land useNature & Biodiversity

Water managementCompeting claims

Behaviour and perceptionFood security

InstitutionsConsumer

Citizen

Den Helder

Food Valley

All over the country

e.g. our international ‘food alliances’

Offices in Brasil and China

Alliances worldwide

� Science for impact

Wageningen UR develops global networks

� Capacity building

� Strong international orientation and focus

� Students from > 100 countries

� Collaborations with many countries

� Participating in hundreds of FP6 projects

� Key player in FP7 185 projects until now:� Food, agriculture and biotechnology

� Environment, incl. climate change

� Programmes aimed at mobility of young researchers

� Higher success rate than average and benchmark group

� Also active in other FP7 themes

Wageningen UR in international context

The most prominent issues today

� Food security

� Water

� Climate

� Biobased economy

� Sustainability

� Healthy food for a healthy life (ageing)Sustainability

Our main challenges

� Doubling demand for food, reducing footprint

� Breakthrough in knowledge & technology

� Intensive productive systems ‘the way to go’

� Looking for new resources

� Open mind

CO2 per kg product

Porc 4.5 Chicken 2.6 Cashew nuts 2.3 Tofu 2.0

Wageningen UR – India collaborations and interests – 4 examples

1. The potato genome sequencing

2. FP7 project HighNoon

3. FP7 project QBOL

4. Possible topic for collaboration: Biorefineries

The Potato Genome Sequencing Consortium

aim : sequencing the complete genome of potatoIn addition to the benefits acquired from the sequencing the worlds fourth most important food crop the PGSC aims to actively build capacity in countries with less developed a plant genomics infrastructure. The PGSC aims to form the basis of a research network for the scientific exploitationof the sequence data in the post-genomics era.


Rationale for sequencing potato

• Potato is the 4th most important food crop

• Heterozygous self$incompatible tetraploid

• Large untapped gene pool resource

The Potato genome sequence will:

• Help advance plant breeding to fulfil the demands of the increasing

world population

• Enable the rapid generation of markers for breeding

• Enable identification of agronomically important genes

• Facilitate capacity building in less developed countries

• Complement the other Solanaceae$genome projects


The PGSC is a union of collaborating laboratories interested in sequencing the potato genome:

Consortium agreement is set up

Participants have their own grants and financing

Mix of pure academic and commercial partners

Data submission to public databases after 6 month quality>control “grace>period”

For example in the Netherlands a budget of around €11M

various financial resources: €3M FES (chromosome 1), €2M STW (chromosome 5), €4M Matching (Physical map, CBSG sequences etc.), €1M NGI (coordination), €1M WUR (Infrastructure, bioinformatics, etc.)


� Assessment of impact of Himalayan glaciers retreat and possible changes of the Indian summer monsoon on the spatial and temporal distribution of water resources of the Ganga

� Recommendations for appropriate and efficient response strategies for adaptation to hydrological extreme events, including droughts, floods and glacier lakes outburst floods

� Improvement of climate forecast skills at regional scale by improving process knowledge and downscaling techniques

� Integration of socio-economic drivers in climate change studies

2008

CC impacts on water

HIGHNOON:Adaptation to changing water resources availability in Northern India with Himalayan glacier retreat and changing monsoon (www.eu-highnoon.org)

EC contribution of 3.3 M€, end May 2012Coordinator: Eddy Moors, Alterra Wageningen UR

Partners: Europe, India, Japan

2. FP7 project HighNoon

QBOL:QBOL:Development of a new diagnostic tool using Development of a new diagnostic tool using

DNA DNA barcodingbarcoding to identify quarantine to identify quarantine

organisms in support of plant healthorganisms in support of plant health

[email protected]@wur.nl

Financed by EU 7th Framework Program, 3 M€, 3 y

3. FP7 project QBOL

Partners QBOLPartners QBOL

www.qbol.orgwww.qbol.org

QBOL consortium: Over 20 QBOL consortium: Over 20

organizations (universities, organizations (universities,

research institutes and research institutes and

phytosanitary organizations) phytosanitary organizations)

in 15 countriesin 15 countries

3. FP7 project QBOL

Why DNA Why DNA barcodingbarcoding??

� Increasing world wide trading of plants enhances risk of spreading harmful organisms

� Decreasing taxonomic knowledge to identify Q-organisms

� Result in significant possible economic damage� DNA barcoding offers accurate identification and

focuses on strengthening the link between traditional and molecular taxonomy

3. FP7 project QBOL

� Which?

� Fungi

� Arthropods

� Bacteria

� Nematodes

� Viruses

� Phytoplasmas

Targets Targets QuarantineQuarantine

� Council Directive 2000/29/EC

� EPPO list A1 and A2

Phytophthora ramorum

Xanthomonas fragariae

Pinewood nematode

PolerovirusPhytoplasm

Anoplophora chinensis

3. FP7 project QBOL

� to DNA barcode relevant Q-organisms + morphologically and/or taxonomically related organisms

� to develop a database of DNA barcode sequences plus relevant taxonomic/geographic/host data

� to develop a DNA bank for the selected set of Q-organisms + morphologically and/or taxonomically related organisms

Three principle QBOL ObjectivesThree principle QBOL Objectives

3. FP7 project QBOL

QBOL: DNA Barcoding for plant healthQBOL: DNA Barcoding for plant health

Source: Duteso

Johan Sanders, Professor Valorisation of Plant Production Chains, Wageningen University and Research center

� Drivers for transition to a biobased economy: shortage of cheap oil ; high energy prices; security of energy supply ; climate change by green house gasses ; rural development ; developing countries ; geo>political conditions

� New biorefinery processes for Dutch bio based economy can be build on Dutch pilars: agriculture, chemistry, ports !

� International interest: Development of small scale biorefineries in collaboration with international partners


Green grass proteincompound feed

white grass proteinGrass protein (products)

+ .....

compound feed

Grass juice concentrate

Ethanol

HTU$Biofuel

Construction material+ paper

Polymer extrusion products

Grass juice

Protein

Fibers

Example of Pilot biorefinery line Foxhol (Groningen) (PROGRASS Consortium)


Example of a small scale biorrefinery: mobile Cassava starch refinery in Africa

Source: Duteso


Networking Research Programmes

● Through the ERA-NET Scheme and with the ETPs

● Through Platforms for EPTs / ERA-NETs

● Through Joint Programming Initiatives!

● Through Partnering Initiatives such the EU India partnering initiative on biomass production and bio waste conversion through biotechnological approaches (Focal point of this sessions C)

● and more

Plant GEMs

Plant GenomicsEuropean Meetings

Berlin2002York 2003Lyon 2004Amsterdam 2005Venice 2006Tenerife 2007Albena 2008

Lisbon 2009

Istanbul, Turkey4-7 May 2011www.plant-gems.org

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION

[email protected] ERA CAPS contact: [email protected]

Acknowlegements Project colleagues from all the consortium partners of ERA-Net Plant Genomics;Our scientific officers at the EC: Giorgio Clarotti, Zsuzsanna König, Annette Schneegans Applicants to the calls.slides courtesyKarin Metzlaff EPSO / ETP Plants for the FutureRichard Visser Potato Genome Sequencing ConsortiaEddy Moors Highnoon projectPeter Bonants QBOL projectJohan Sanders Biorefineries

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