FAIRShare project launches funding call for proposals to support digitalisation of agriculture across the EU
The FAIRshare (Farm Advisory Digital Innovation Tools Realised and Shared) project was launched in November 2018 and with 22 partners involved, includes a mix of advisory services, organisations and research institutions from across the EU. This EU H2020 funded project, coordinated by Teagasc (Ireland), aims to enable a more digitally active farm and farm advisory community by focusing on bridging the digital divide evident between, and within, advisory services. The project focuses explicitly on existingDigital Advisory Tools and Services (DATS) which include: communication tools, farm software, benchmarking tools, web and phone applications, digital education and training materials and supports, among others.
The project is now offering the opportunity to develop a number of User Cases (UC) to help and support the implementation of a range of DATS across the EU. UCs aim to address a challenge faced by a group of agricultural advisors by implementing DATS (For inspiration please refer to the FAIRshare DATs inventory for a list of existing DATS, however the DATS selected does not need to come from this list). Learnings from the UCs will be used to collect insights of the environmental factors (human, infrastructural, cultural, economic etc.) that influence the adoption of DATS.
Applicants can include an advisory service, a cohort of advisors within an advisory service, or a group of independent advisors. Initially, FAIRshare will fund 10 UCs up to €90,000 from across Europe to represent different sectors, production systems, regions, and farm advisory contexts. FAIRshare will support each UC by providing €90,000 worth of funding and also via strategic assistance. The funding is NOT available for the development of new digital tools and services; rather it is for the adoption or adaption of existing DATS. Funding should be used to meet costs for aspects such as staff time, travel, workshops, hosting cross visits, training or licencing of key DATS etc. Information gathered from this call may be used at a later date to allocate funding towards 10 smaller User Cases which will be funded up to €30K.
Proposals are now being accepted through a public procurement competition which is divided into four‘lots’based upon geographical location Western Europe (France, Ireland, UK, Spain, Portugal); Central Europe (Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Czech-Republic, Slovakia, Austria); South-Eastern Europe (Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Hungary, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Greece); and North-Eastern Europe (Lithuania, Latvia, Finland, Denmark, Poland, Estonia, Norway). You can apply only in the Lot according to country where your company is based.
The deadline for applications is 14:00 (CET) on Tuesday the 13th of April. To learn more visit: https://bit.ly/3eBbY17.
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement no. 818488