A social media training delivered by Codrin Paveliuc-Olariu, YPARD Steering Committee chair, was held for YPARD web interns on June 16th in Beijing, China. Labeling himself as a “social media nerd”, Codrin shared with YPARD staff as well as with different young professionals not only his “art of live blogging” but also his ideas on using social networks in order to... More

It was the first day of June in the serene and sunny – but slightly windy – city of Montpellier, and from all around the world researchers and academics in the fields of agriculture and family farming were gathered: experts in international development, decision makers, NGOs, as well as farmers organizations’ and private sector representatives. The stage had been set for... More

Nepalese youth has played an immense role in the political transformation of the country many times; however, their issues are repeatedly unaddressed. Youth represents 38.8% (National Youth Policy, 2010) of the total population of the country, which is a big number considering the fact that young people are the ones to shape the nation’s future. Even though Nepal has very little... More

Within an initiative started from YPARD-Brazil, here comes the third blog post of "All in One Rhythm" series. As the World Cup’s title, this initiative aims to use the young and the agricultural sector to foster development in Brazil.  The first round of the 2014 World Cup finished last Friday, 27th of June, but we all go forward in one rhythm in order... More

Once I was with my friends and we met another group of acquaintances. During the conversation, we were asked what we were pursuing as undergraduate studies. One of them said that he was enrolled as a Mechanical Engineer in U.S.A., another answered by saying that he is a BBA student in U.S.A. too. I remember that the third one commented that... More

  I had the pleasure last week of attending the YPARD China Week organized at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), the YPARD China hosting institution. Superbly organized by Bi Jieying, the YPARD China coordinator, this week was all about empowering Chinese young professionals (YPs) by giving them the necessary knowledge and skills to join the international community. Moving beyond... More

Some recent surveys show that during the year 2013 the total population growth in Pakistan was 1.91% while during the last 10 years average was 1.82%. As we are a growing population country with low economic growth, we have to be certain that we may ensure better quality of life which is only possible when living in a green and fresh... More

Forests aren’t always filled with trees. Patches of trees outside of forests, and even in urban areas, can be important ecosystems, providing many of the same resources and opportunities as large forested areas, especially in terms of food sources. Young foresters, especially in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, are taking the lead in studying how these patches can improve food and nutrition... More

In the beginning of June, I went to Azerbaijan on a 3-day trip in which my main goal was to promote YPARD among students as well as to do some networking for future possible collaborations. The first day, I met the rector of Azerbaijan State Agricultural University, Prof. Ibrahim Jafarov. After having introduced myself as YPARD Azerbaijan representative, I provided him... More

In 2003, African heads of state have pledged to revitalize the agricultural sector on the continent through the allocation of 10% of their budget to the agricultural sector and a 6% annual growth rate of agriculture. Ten years later, only 8 of the 54 countries have met this commitment while more than 240 million people still suffer from malnutrition on the... More

When I saw the title of the conference, “Agriculture growth, jobs, food security and climate: Taking action in response to IPCC[1]” I thought: “We have a key role there!” Young people are a key element to foster change and innovation, they’ll be future actors in the new landscape that’s being designed now; their voices must be taken into account. This conference... More

 Within an initiative started from YPARD-Brazil, here comes the second blog post of "All in One Rhythm" series. As the World Cup’s title, this initiative aims to use the young and the agricultural sector to foster development in Brazil. Brazil is a huge country with great diversity in terms of culture, weather and economy. Around 1/3 of the country’s GDP is provided... More

Deepa Pullanikkatil, Programme Manager at LEAD SEA talks global warming, the necessity of economic growth, climate compatible development, and solutions to better water management. Deepa is also available in our LinkedIn group to engage with your questions. Water is life. We cannot survive in this world without water. The biggest challenge mankind is facing today – that of Climate Change, will... More

“Online media is becoming increasingly important for any company, organisation or institute. If you don’t have an online presence, you don’t exist. Social media, websites, online data repositories, intranets, mobile technologies - all make our “online publishing” diverse and exciting. Today’s fast-paced online technology in an interactive and inter-connected world also means that “the work is never finished.” Peter Casier, the... More

A three-day “Pakistan Agricultural Exhibition” was held at Punjab’s second largest exhibition center set up at the University of Agriculture Faisalabad – Pakistan, from May 28-30, 2014. In this technological and innovative era, the event was designed as a launch pad for international and national organizations to penetrate in the highly expanding and lucrative Pakistani markets. More than 15,000 people visited... More

Yesterday, 16th of June, the 2014 YPARD China Youth Elite Round Table Discussion was held in the west lobby of the National Agriculture Library in the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. As the theme of this discussion was "YPARD China’s role in Fostering Chinese Young Professional in International Communication", the participants were mainly young elites and professionals, such as Codrin Paveliuc,... More

It’s a common fact that family and small-holder farming contributes to food security, income generation, and employment for a majority of people in developing countries. The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) 2013 estimates that small-holders produce about 80% of food consumed in developing countries. The United Nations’ declaration making 2014 the year of as the family farming recognizes this fact. The potential in... More

Farming is an inborn thing for a standard African man, or a Nigerian, to be precise. There is a refrain or a common say in the Western part of Nigeria (among the Yoruba) which says: “Farming is the profession of our land/ anyone who refuses to work will steal/ education without hoe or cutlass/ is not complete, no, not complete.” As... More

The day has finally come. After eight years of intensive planning, building and waiting, we will see the ball rolling at 5 pm today, Brasilia time, for the first match in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Surely, this journey means more than football. This period was also marked by a rising concern of Brazilian people for better days, for better living... More

Mushroom farming is one of the immense potential crops which could trigger youth generation towards its production. High valued crop in terms of both food and medicine with low cost production technology cannot only attract the youth but also smallholder farmers to get high return within short time interval. Agroclimatic variation in Nepal is a boon for the mushroom farming, as... More