Sharing knowledge from lab to field, from science to practice

The H2020 INCREDIBLE project continues its work to foster the spread and exchange of knowledge related to non-wood forest products (NWFP) in the Mediterranean basin through five “Science to Practice” events that have been held in different partner countries. The events are organised as a one-day meeting to present some of the most recent lines of research and field experience supporting innovations in NWFP sectors.

On 26th September, coinciding with EFI’s Annual Conference in Alghero (Sardinia), the Cork iNet organized the first ‘Science to Practice’ event under the scientific seminar Roots to riches: Genetics products of stone pine and Mediterranean oaks, organized by EFI in collaboration with the EUFORGEN and EVOLTREE initiatives, INCREDIBLE project, European Hardwoods Innovation (EHIA) and the French Institute of Technology for Forest-based and Furniture Sectors (FCBA). The second ‘Science to Practice’ event was held two weeks later, on 9th October in Rome, within the framework of a workshop for the promotion and valorisation of cork.

The Wild Mushrooms & Truffles iNet also held a one-day event in Zaragoza, Spain on 19th October, contributing to the International Workshop on Mycological Forests with a seminar entitled Advances in the management and valorisation of edible wild mushrooms in Europe and Canada. Another ‘Science to Practice’ event was held just one day later in Istria (Croatia), and mainly focused on truffles. Participants from Croatia and Italy engaged in very interesting discussion by comparing the case studies from both sides of the border. It was an opportunity to learn from the experiences of each participant, especially since productive forests and climate for truffles are very similar in both Croatia and Italy.
Tardelcuende (Soria, Spain) hosted the last ‘Science to Practice’ day in October, on the 23rd. The event was organized by the Resins iNet to demonstrate the advances on the mechanisation and organisation of resin use. Throughout the event, the innovation challenges in this field were analysed by public and private research entities, who presented their proposals for innovation, both in the field of extraction and in collection, or logistical control of resin collection operations.

The tools, machines, methods and systems presented at the conference offer solutions for different stages of collection and use. The event also displayed an initiative design to analyse the efficiency and profitability of each resination system (innovative and traditional), offering planners and managers a standardized technical reference to decide which system is the most suitable for each case.

Finally, the event presented on the progress of a project to design and implement a web/Android application for natural resin traceability and harvest-related logistical coordination.

In the coming weeks, the INCREDIBLE project will organize other ‘Science to Practice’ events and begin to launch a series of Interregional Workshops, which consist of longer meetings that incorporate seminars and debates, field trips and farm-to-farm innovation activities. These Interregional Workshops will be arranged in different locations within each iNet geographical area.

Stay tuned to save the most interesting dates!