Workshops

EURAF 26 Agroforestry at the Heart of Europe: Workshops

• Theme 1: Agroforestry for food security

  W1.1 – Agroforestry and Water-Cycle Restoration in Mediterranean and arid climates

  Jeffrey Reidl – Agro-Ecosystems Design & Mama Tree Ojai – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Jeffrey Reidl – Agro-Ecosystems Design & Mama Tree Ojai – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Presentation & discussion of how agroforestry is not just a regenerative land-management strategy with all the environmental benefits we are aware of, but it's also a crucial tool as part of a broader agro-ecological framework to revive vital biotic pumps and restore regional water-cycles -- both critical and strongly underestimated factors of ecosystem health & climate resilience. Detailed examples given from arid & Mediterranean climates, from water-harvesting, land-hydrating, groundwater-recharging earthworks to climate-appropriate agroforestry design & management strategies. Open discussion follows with various prompts on how water-cycle restoration is essential for climate resilience and how agroforestry is one of the interdependent strategies to enhance biotic pumps and restore water-cycles.

   

  W1.2 – Modelling the financial costs and benefits of agroforestry - Tool Testing Workshop

  Waas Thissen – Louis Bolk Institute – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Evert Prins – Louis Bolk Institute – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Maureen Schoutsen – Wageningen University & Research – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Bert Reubens – ILVO – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Anil Graves – Cranfield University – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  We propose a workshop with a focus on the modelling of the financial costs and benefits of agroforestry. We will draw from the DigitAF project where consortium members (LBI, ILVO, Cranfield, DeFAF, UNIPI, VUKOZ, and others) participate in a financial modelling working group with the aim to further develop and test financial tools for agroforestry. The goal is to have workshop participants to test and interact with the digital tools (3-5 tools) and provide feedback from their specific role as farmer/policy maker/value chain actor, etc. Before the workshop, a short introduction will come from the project "PPS Verdienmodellen Agroforestry" (LBI, WUR) where we will explain the different facets of a business model based on agroforestry depending on the diversity of agroforestry systems. In addition, the new developments of each tool will be shortly presented. We are open to invite other tool developers to showcase and test their tools.

   

   

• Theme 2: Agroforestry for farmers and people

  W2.1 – Agroforestry Policy in Europe ... a Delphi approach to priority setting

  Gerry Lawson – EURAF – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Fabian Liagre – AGROOF – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Constantin Muraru – EURAF – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  By EURAF 2026 the DigitAF and Reforest projects will have finalised agroforestry Policy Briefings for most European countries.  Current levels and types of support for agroforestry in the CAP are clearly inadequate.  They have improved little from the CAP 2024-22 when Member States initially planned to establish 80 kha of agroforestry but only managed to get 5 kha into the ground.  How can we do better? How can we get EURAF´s Mission of 10% tree crown cover on agricultural land by 2040 implemented in Member States and other European countries?   How can we link carbon payments and nature payments?  How to break down the silos between agriculture and forestry?  What good examples are there from elsewhere in the world?  This workshop will take the form of a 3 round Delphi Process (see https://tinyurl.com/4m24w6es)  The final round will probably be finished after the Conference.  Come and give us your ideas!

   

  W2.2 – Agroforestry and the EU Nature Restoration Regulation - including trees outside forests in national targets?

  Julia Guenzel – DEFAF – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Gerry Lawson – EURAF – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Agroforestry is uniquely positioned to support the EU's Nature Restoration Regulation by directly addressing its core aims for the restoration of agricultural and forest habitats. It's a versatile, nature-based solution that tackles biodiversity loss, enhances ecosystem services, and builds landscape resilience. BUT how will it fit with the targets for implementation of restoration measures on 30% of habitats in poor and bad condition by 2030, 60% by 2040 and 90% by 2050. Is the habitat-focused approach realistic? How accurate are the metrics currently being used? Why are other agricultural and forest biodiversity indicators not being proposed? What maps will be produced and are comparisons valid between Member States? Do we have enough land for agriculture and forestry for the NRR to focus on restoring 152 Mha of “habitats” by 2050? Give a poster and come along to make a “lightning” presentation and join the debate?

   

  W2.3 – Deforestation-free supply chains: the role of agroforestry in sustainable trade

  Ingrid Fromm – BFH-HAFL International Agriculture Department – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Mélanie Feurer – BFH-HAFL Forestry Department – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Gurbir Bhullar – BFH-HAFL International Agriculture Department – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Quentin à Hauariki – BFH-HAFL International Agriculture Department – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  This interactive session explores how agroforestry can help reduce deforestation in producer countries and support compliance with policies such as the EU Regulation on Deforestation-Free Products (EUDR). Agroforestry offers a sustainable, practical solution aligned with growing global demands for transparent, environmentally accountable supply chains. The session highlights how tropical agroforestry systems linked to European markets can meet EUDR requirements while promoting livelihoods restoration, biodiversity, and climate resilience. Mélanie Feurer will introduce the EUDR and agroforestry's role, followed by case studies on tropical commodities by Ingrid Fromm and the “Going Bananas” initiative in the Philippines, by Gurbir Bhullar. Participants will engage in breakout discussions on aligning agroforestry with EUDR and reflect on the transferability to European contexts. A plenary wrap-up will share insights on designing deforestation-free, equitable, and resilient value chains.

   

  W2.4 – Agroforestry in national policies - Switzerland, Europe and the World: how to ensure multistakeholder (vertical) dialogue for policy coherence?

  Jean-Laurent Pfund – BFH-HAFL, Forest Sciences – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Mélanie Feurer – BFH-HAFL, Forest Sciences – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Hansjürg Jäger – BFH-HAFL, Agricultural Sciences – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Agroforestry is gaining momentum among farmers and scientists in Europe and worldwide, but it remains among the most complex land uses to be categorized and considered in national policies. It is rarely considered as priority topic but is often present in several national-level policies from different domains and sectors and appears increasingly in climate- and adaptation national-level programs. This session discusses how agroforestry can best be supported through science-policy interactions, multistakeholder dialogue and coherently coordinated policies. The session will start with case study presentations of policies relevant for agroforestry in Switzerland, a comparative study for Europe, and beyond, including perspectives from both forestry and agricultural sectors. In breakout groups, we will then discuss challenges as well as best-bet science-policy practices and propose solutions through the eyes of different stakeholder groups.

   

  W2.5 – Advising and education in agroforestry

  Lisa Nilles – Agridea – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  How to implement advisory services for agroforestry? What is important for education (self-learning, workshops, farm visits? What are the experiences in other organisations?

• Theme 3: Reconciling agriculture and nature

  W3.1 – Agroforestry & Water Management - scientific findings, modelling & experiences from practice

  Jörg Böhmer – Trier University of Applied Sciences, IfaS – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Bert Reubens – Flanders research institute for agriculture, fisheries and food (ILVO) – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Piet Rombouts – Rombouts Agroecologie – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Juliette Vermeulen – Association pour la promotion de l’agroforesterie en Wallonie et à Bruxelles – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Martina Mayus – Trier University of Applied Sciences, IfaS – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Agroforestry can serve as a tool in water management in many ways, both at the field and farm level and at the regional level. Many effects are known from practical experience, but not all cases are supported by data and scientific studies. Models can help to close the gaps in knowledge. The implementation of further practical sites is necessary to enable more research and to obtain data for modelling. The workshop aims to promote the exchange of experiences, data and findings between scientists and stakeholders in order to improve the contribution of agroforestry to water management in Europe. To achieve this, we would like to invite speakers from practice and science to give keynote speeches, discuss various aspects in break-out sessions and compile the current state of knowledge on agroforestry and water management.

• Theme 4: Agroforestry systems design

  W4.1 – Syntropic agriculture in temperate climates

  Renke de Vries – Syntopia-agroforst – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  Mara Ursprung – Syntopia-agroforst – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  During the workshop, Renke de Vries and Mara Ursprung will present an overview of the philosophy and core principles underlying syntropic agroforestry. They will elucidate its practical applications in temperate climates, highlighting key considerations necessary for successful implementation. Furthermore, the workshop will encompass a brief explanation of the design process and system management. To conclude, Renke will share valuable insights and experiences gathered from the syntropic systems he has designed and implemented across various regions in Central Europe over the past seven years. Participants will have the opportunity to pose specific questions throughout the workshop.

   

  W4.2 – Agroforestry pruning

  Thomas Leonard – Contour Lines – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

  We will explore the science and strategies behind pruning trees and shrubs for agroforestry systems. The class will discuss the botany of pruning and strategies for silvopasture, alley cropping, food forests, windbreaks, and riparian buffers. We will discuss the differences in pruning for fruit, nut, timber, fodder and mulch production. Participants will leave understanding how to prune trees to control growth and optimize yields.