Task 4.1 Development of the knowledge platform and project website
Lead partner: AU/ICROFS
Partners involved: All partners
Based on experiences with existing knowledge platforms and input from IFOAM EU, AU/ICROFS will develop and set up the open-access on-line knowledge platform. It will feature (a) an extendable tool box for depositing end-user and education materials, (b) a discussion forum for multi-actor communication and c) the project website. AU/ICROFS will translate all the desired features of the platform into technical requirements guiding the actual set-up.
(a)The tool box will present all the education and end-user material developed by the combined efforts of WP2 and WP3 plus evaluation of their usability and potential for implementation across Europe. The tool box will not contain the materials as such, but will link to the relevant archives/locations. Depending on the typology of the material it will be deposited in Organic Eprints (www.orgprints.org, international open access archive for papers and projects related to research in organic food and farming) or in other databases (e.g. in the case of video clips, in Youtube). If relevant Organic Eprints will be further developed by AU-ICROFS making it more user-friendly as regards depositing of enduser and education materials, which it currently does not include.
(b) The discussion forum for multi-actor communication and learning will serve to discuss experiences with the enduser material as well as getting suggestions from users on other relevant material and how its use can be promoted. Rather than developing a new discussion forum from scratch, AU/ICROFS will integrate an existing discussion forum module in the platform. Which kind of module is most suitable will be decided based on input from WP3 (knowledge exchange methodology) and the 2nd SCAR-AKIS report , which evaluated various existing discussion forums for multiactor communication and learning. AU/ICROFS will ensure that synergies are created as much as possible between the knowledge platform and already existing knowledge hubs for the organic and low input farming sector such as Organic Eprints and Organic Edunet (portal with digital learning resources; portal.organic-edunet.eu/en) as well as the EIP-AGRI website. The website will be made in English, but translation will be provided with help of Google Translate or similar.
(c) The project website will contain basic information regarding partners, aims of the project and deliverables. It will inform users and interested stakeholders about the progress of the project. Whilst a certain time is needed to develop the knowledge platform with the tool box and discussion forum, the project website will be set-up already at the start of the project by AU/ICROFs. It will be ensured that the project website is user-friendly and Search Engine Optimised. AU-ICROFS will integrate the project website in the knowledge platform once that is ready. Before the actual launch of the knowledge platform, a beta-version will be made (M12) to be tested by all partners for functionality and usability. Problems encountered during the testing phase will be corrected by AU-ICROFS and the platform with toolbox, discussion forum and website will be ready by M16.
Task 4.2 Presentation and evaluation of end-user and education material in the online knowledge platform
Lead partner: AU/ICROFS
Partners involved: All partners
Based on the needs and bottlenecks identified in WP2 (task 2.2), the offer of end-user material provided by WP3 (task 3.3) will be evaluated by all partners at the third project meeting (M13-14). The partners will make a selection of the material to be tested in the project and check whether no important bottlenecks in organic arable cropping remain uncovered. AU/ICROFS will be responsible for moderating the evaluation. The evaluation will serve to further improve the material in WP3. The selected material will be tested in WP2, but will also be presented in the knowledge platform for testing by a wider community of users (see task 4.3). AU/ICROFS, with help of IFOAM EU, FiBL, PFT Ltd/ORC and AIAB, will make the end-user material ready for use in the knowledge platform. For end-user material developed by third parties, the rights holders of the material will be contacted in order to obtain permission for making it available.
In case the copyright holders do not grant permission only the description and evaluation of the material will be presented together with a link to where the material can be obtained. Materials in other languages than English will be described with a short summary in English.
According to the needs of the farmer innovation groups some of the material will be completely translated into national languages in order to facilitate testing in WP2. The project coordinator (IFOAM EU) will manage a dedicated budget for translation and will ensure the budget is fairly distributed to the farmer innovation groups. These translations will also be made available in the tool box of the online knowledge platform.
At the fourth project meeting (M22-23) the new offer of end-user material provided by WP3 will be evaluated. This evaluation will take into account the first experiences with the testing in WP2 as well as the feedback received from the discussion forum. Based on the evaluation, farmer innovation groups can decide to test additional material.
Finally, AU/ICROFS, in collaboration with IFOAM EU, will draft a final report about the end-user material (deliverable 4.3). This report will compile all the end-user material collected and developed during the project and describe the experiences made with it. The report will be based on deliverables 2.2 and 3.3, complemented with feedback received from the discussion forum.
Task 4.3 Maintaining the knowledge platform and moderating the discussion forum
Lead partner: IFOAM EU
Partners involved: IFOAM EU, FiBL, PFT Ltd/ORC, AU/ICROFS, AIAB
AU/ICROFS will be responsible for the development of the project website and for the incorporation of it into the knowledge platform. During the project period AU-ICROFS will maintain and update the software of the knowledge platform. Content will be regularly edited and uploaded by IFOAM EU. Even though the knowledge platform, tool box and discussion forum will be easy to use, AU-ICROFS will make short instruction videos with examples on how to use the facilities on the knowledge platform. These videos will be made available on the knowledge platform in M18 after all material and tools have been uploaded.
IFOAM EU will be the main responsible for the moderation and animation of the discussion forum, but FiBL, PFT Ltd/ORC, AU/ICROFS and AIAB will assist in answering questions from farmers and advisors according to the type and subject of the questions. Other users (farmers, agricultural advisors, scientists....) may give inputs as well, thus promoting multi-actor communication and learning. The main purpose of the discussion forum is the evaluation of the end-user and education materials in the tool box, collecting other tools and suggestions for further implementation across Europe.
IFOAM EU will evaluate the functioning of the knowledge platform and based on this make a plan for the continuation of the knowledge platform after the end of the project. The knowledge platform will be continued by at least following partners: IFOAM EU, AU/ICROFS, FiBL, PFT Ltd/ORC, Bioland, AIAB and IAMB.
Task 4.4 Online training courses
Lead partner: IAMB
Partners involved: IAMB, IFOAM EU, AU/ICROFS
In this task online training courses for farm advisers will be developed. The aim of the courses is to promote the use of end-user material beyond the farmer innovation groups. Examples of end-user material possibly covered by the courses include nutrient budgeting tools or, tools that forecast likely disease incidents.
Taking into account the recommendations regarding best methods for learning (WP3), IAMB will develop the courses according to the international E-Learning standards SCORM (Shareable Content Object Reference Model) and GPL (General Public License). This means the quality of contents, the methodology and the technology adopted in the course will be recognised by other educational institutes. It also allows other educational institutes to include the course in their own curriculum. Two types of courses will be developed: courses facilitated by IAMB and self-learning course. The structured courses will follow the collaborative learning model in which learners work in groups (10-12 people/group) thus establishing “communities of learning”. The facilitated courses will have a duration of 3-4 months. During the project, 2 courses will be held.
Based on the experiences with the structured courses, at least one self-learning course will be developed. This course can be followed completely independently and at the own pace of the learners. This will allow learners to follow the course even after the end of the project when facilitation cannot be guaranteed. All courses will be available free of charge through the knowledge platform developed in this project as well as through IAMB’s learning platform. Promotion of the courses will be part of task 4.5 Public relations & communication.
Task 4.5 Public relations & communication
Lead partner: IFOAM EU
Partners involved: All partners
During the project period AU-ICROFS will maintain and update the knowledge platform after mutual agreement and prioritization. Making the knowledge platform self-sustainable after the project period can only be achieved by means of a massive campaigning and marketing effort. An ambitious dissemination plan has therefore been developed to raise awareness about the knowledge platform, attract users and encourage the use of the developed end-user material. Various communication channels will be used:
• existing communication channels of the project partners (newsletters and homepages)
• email, social media and other relevant online channels (facebook, twitter, slideshare, youtube)
• events and conferences
• farmer innovation groups will disseminate the outcomes of the project to relevant national media including online forums
• EIP-AGRI website
The resulting innovative knowledge and easy accessible end-user material should feed into the EIP-AGRI for broad dissemination. The common format to be used for this end-user material contains the characteristics of the project and a short text for practitioners ("practice abstract") which describes the main information/ recommendation/practice that can serve the end-users in their daily practice. Such a "practice abstract" is a short summary of around 200 words/1200 characters. The web application form to be used is available on the EIP-AGRI web site.
It has been decided not to create a separate newsletter for this project, but to make use of the existing and well-established newsletters of the project partners. A special agreement has been made with the European Technology Platform TP Organics (Technology Platform for Organic Food and Farming Research) to promote the project through its website and newsletters. A final conference will be organized in M35 by IFOAM EU in Brussels for all partners and stakeholders. At this workshop farmer innovation group partners will present their experiences with various tools, while AU/ICROFS will present experiences with the knowledge platform. All partners and stakeholders will be asked to contribute with ideas for further development of the knowledge platform and promotion of the tools and end-user material across Europe.
IFOAM EU is the main responsible for the communication activities.