Past events
- 2026-06-03T16:30:00+02:00
- 2026-06-03T18:00:00+02:00
3
WednesdayZEF public lecture on The transformation of agrifood traders
The talk presents a panorama of surprising and rapid changes in the trader segment in domestic agrifood value chains in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. This is a crucial component of transformation of value chains from traditional to transitional and early modern phases, as traders are major “change agents” in food systems. Many of the patterns observed in detailed trader surveys are at odds with conventional wisdom regarding the role of middlemen, vertical integration, outsourcing of agricultural services, etc. Observed patterns, their drivers, and emerging evidence on effects are discussed. About the speaker: Tom Reardon is one of the most cited agricultural economists worldwide. He is a University Distinguished Professor at Michigan State University and Non-Resident Senior Research Fellow at IFPRI. Tom is Fellow of the AAEA and Honorary Life Member of the IAAE. He resided over 20 years in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and spent more than 40 years studying those regions.
- 2026-05-28T16:00:00+02:00
- 2026-05-28T17:00:00+02:00
28
ThursdayINTERFACES colloquium: sustainable land management in Africa
Multiple actors, multiple strategies: how to incentivize the uptake of sustainable land management practices by smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa
- 2026-05-21T13:30:00+02:00
- 2026-05-21T14:30:00+02:00
21
ThursdayZEF public lecture about Biofortified Seeds in Zimbabwe
Individuals do not always make decisions according to traditional economic rationality; instead, behavioral factors such as perceptions, information, and aspirations shape how they value and adopt new technologies. We present 3 examples of how these factors influence farmer acceptance and valuation of agricultural-nutrition interventions, specifically iron- and zinc-biofortified beans and vitamin A biofortified maize seeds in Zimbabwe. First, we examine how experimental quantity design affects farmers’ willingness-to-pay (WTP) for biofortified bean seeds. Second, we evaluate how nutrition information and farmer aspirations influence demand for biofortified bean seeds. Finally, we examine how different types and combinations of information—including labeling, vitamin A deficiency and its health impacts, the nutritional benefits of vitamin A-biofortified maize, and cooking-quality attributes such as taste and cooking time—influence farmers’ WTP for vitamin A biofortified maize seed.
- 2026-05-13T11:00:00+02:00
- 2026-05-13T12:00:00+02:00
13
WednesdayZEF Colloquium with Marthe Wandou (Right Livelihood Awardee)
In a context of cultural and traditional practices in Northen Cameroon, the patriarchy system has created gender inequalities between men and women with many consequences on women and girls. The Boko Haram crisis has worsened the situation with women and girls being most affected by sexual and gender based violences leading to severe trauma. On this backdrop, Marthe Wandou founded the non-profit NGO Action Locale pour un Développement Participatif et Autogéré (ALDEPA) in 1998, working with community-based approaches, effective strategies and tools in rural communities and schools. Girls’ clubs, child protection committees, peace and non-violence clubs, positive masculinity ambassadors are some community organisations that ALDEPA helped to establish, to address the root problems and to bring sustainable solutions to reinforce legal frameworks, sensitization, and capacity building, and to change the situation with real positive impacts for women and girls.
- 2026-05-06T14:15:00+02:00
- 2026-05-06T15:15:00+02:00
6
WednesdayZEF seminar: food-energy-water-environment nexus's polycrises
The convergence of climate change, resource degradation, geopolitical instability, and economic shocks has intensified a set of interconnected “polycrises” across the food, energy, water, and environment (FEWE) nexus. These overlapping pressures are reshaping agri-food systems globally, with disproportionate impacts on vulnerable populations and smallholder producers. Drawing on ongoing work from the Agrifood Innovation and Resilience Unit at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), the presentation identifies key entry points for integrated policy and investment responses highlighting nexus approaches to uncover synergies and manage trade-offs between competing resource demands.
- 2026-04-29T10:00:00+02:00
- 2026-04-29T11:00:00+02:00
29
WednesdayPublic lecture: Rice Innovation for Food Systems Transformation
This ZEF public lecture will present the International Rice Research Institute’s 2025–2030 Strategy, which sets a clear direction for transforming rice-based agri-food systems toward a more sustainable, resilient, and inclusive future. The strategy repositions IRRI – an international research for development organization credited for spurring the Green Revolution in rice-based systems in the 1960s in Asia - as a demand-driven and impact-oriented organization that integrates science, partnerships, and delivery to address country-specific needs across Asia and Africa. The lecture will highlight how IRRI is evolving its research and partnership model to become more integrated, agile, and collaborative in response to a rapidly changing global landscape. It will also explore the role of strategic partnerships, data and digital innovation, and South–South collaboration in scaling solutions and accelerating food systems transformation.
- 2026-04-27T14:00:00+02:00
- 2026-04-27T15:00:00+02:00
27
MondayThe True Cost of Coffee Production in Uganda
Global food systems generate substantial social externalities that are rarely reflected in market prices. Among these, child labor represents a particularly severe yet often hidden cost in smallholder-based agricultural value chains. Using primary household- and child-level survey data from coffee-producing communities in five regions in Uganda, this study examines the prevalence, drivers, and educational implications of child labor in coffee production. Results show that 13.9% of children are engaged in child labor with boys being significantly more engaged than girls. Turning to coffee-specific activities, 42% of children participated in at least one coffee-related task during the last two agricultural seasons, with slightly higher participation among boys than girls. Regression results show that child labor is strongly associated with children’s age, school attendance status, the relation to the household head, and the educational attainment of the household head.
- 2026-04-23T16:00:00+02:00
- 2026-04-23T17:00:00+02:00
23
ThursdayINTERFACES colloquium Strengthening rice farmers' resilience
In Senegal, agricultural production is affected by increasing land degradation – i.e. in the Senegal River valley, an important rice-growing area. The main causes are deforestation, overgrazing, the abandonment of sustainable agricultural practices, and the excessive use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. The Farmer Field School approach integrated the System of Rice Intensification and involved training producers. This was followed by a comparative analysis of the effects of traditional practices on rice production and sustainable land management. Subsequently, the most effective and sustainable practices were identified and promoted. In a context of climate change, land degradation, and declining yields, SRI appears to be a promising farming practice for sustainable land management, improved natural resource management, and enhanced resilience of family farms. Join via zoom! (See link below)
- 2026-04-23T13:30:00+02:00
- 2026-04-23T14:30:00+02:00
23
ThursdayPublic lecture: Does transdisciplinary research actually work?
Transdisciplinary research is widely advocated as an approach to address complex sustainability challenges. Yet it has rarely been evaluated whether participants actually learn, change their practices, or benefit from the collaboration. This talk presents a framework for evaluating collaborative learning processes from the perspective of societal stakeholders —i.e. smallholder dairy farmers in Nakuru County, Kenya. Drawing on a two-year collaborative learning process aimed at co-developing innovations to reduce milk losses, I integrate Kirkpatrick's four-level evaluation scheme with second-order cybernetics and organizational learning theory (Learning Loops) to assess: what farmers found useful about the process, what they learned, how their new knowledge translated into changed practices, and what concrete benefits they experienced. Results show that farmers engaged in single-, double-, and triple-loop learning, with an average increase in milk production of 80% across both groups.
- 2026-04-15T10:00:00+02:00
- 2026-04-15T11:00:00+02:00
15
WednesdayColloquium: Power-Sharing in Post-Conflict Contexts
In post-conflict contexts, rent-generating institutions are often captured by political factions for rent-seeking purposes. Yet some institutions stay relatively effective. Why? Using a comparative analysis of Afghanistan’s Ministries of Interior Affairs and of Finance, it examines why two ministries with comparable rent-generation potential, levels of international engagement, and exposure to factional distribution produced divergent outcomes. While the Min. of Interior was marked by factional capture, the Min. of Finance retained relative credibility and effectiveness. Drawing on institutionalist theory, a qualitative Most Similar Systems Design, and social network analysis, the study explores: (1) the conditions under which political factions refrain from state capture; (2) how capture persists despite reform pressures; and (3) how patronage can be systematically measured in fragile settings, thus contributing to debates on institution building and reform in post-conflict societies.