19/8/21, 00:00
RedES: How do our decisions impact on production, the environment and society?
Aapresid, AACREA, INTA and FAUBA united to work collaboratively towards sustainability
María Eugenia Magnelli, Agricultural Engineer. (Aapresid Press)
To begin with, Florencia Accame (Sistema Chacras Aapresid) explained that the System Studying Network (RedES) is a collaborative workspace between Aapresid, Argentine Association of Regional Consortiums of Agricultural Experimentation (AACREA), National Agricultural Technology Institute (INTA) and School of Agronomy at UBA (FAUBA) whose focus and stimulus is to achieve sustainability collectively, generate knowledge, communicate and disseminate it. It was then introduced the representatives of the four institutions to share their vision.
The Director of Aapresid, Marcelo Arriola, commented that Sistemas Chacras was created to solve the problems faced by producers, considering the axes of sustainability: economic, social and environmental. Facing this challenge, they considered that it was not easy to carry it out alone and three years ago, they made the proposal to AACREA to work together. Sharing the same vision of networking, they felt the need of incorporating INTA, a vital "partner" to build a change, and then they invited FAUBA. Arriola said that the doors are open to incorporate more actors. "We need successful models, to add more protagonists who are the producers of all the regions of the country, particularly the most committed areas. Argentina is a pioneer in no-till farming, we should not only worry about the environment, but also take care of it," he concluded.
Then, Gustavo Martini (coordinator of CREA's agriculture area) said: "We are very excited to be part of an inter-institutional project on such a relevant topic. The search for sustainability was the driving force behind the formation of CREA groups and that has not changed. Over the years, the focus of the projects has been changing depending on agricultural issues, production models under no-till farming, the use of biotechnology, agrochemicals and fertilizers have allowed increasing yields and when technologies advanced, the problems of the externalities they generate became apparent. Needs related to the environment arose. With the indicators, we no longer look at erosion, but at the contamination of watercourses, loss of biodiversity, greenhouse gases. The perception has changed and today we see the system and not just a single crop."
In representation of INTA, Alfredo Cirilo (EEA INTA Pergamino) assured that the Institute's target is sustainability, which is a priority and it is included in the strategic plan. The future focus is not on fiber and food production, but on providing agrosystemic services and separating them from environmental impacts. Reinforcing this idea, he stressed the importance of having a comprehensive and holistic view, where the governmental area and the non-governmental area can work together gradually with a goal in common. "Seeing four institutions working together is innovative," he said. He explained that RedEs is a collective, collaborative space for dialogue and consensus, which seeks to
identify the gaps in the primary indicators of sustainability in different regions of the country, in order to determine and learn about these limitations and reduce those gaps.
In order to have the producer's view, Facundo Lagos (CREA Carnerillo, west-central Córdoba) stated that it is not possible to improve what is not measured. With this concept, they implemented the Best Agricultural Practices and Aapresid certification program. He stressed the importance of caring for resources thinking about future generations. For this reason, in their farm they aim to have a green field all the year, intercropping service and harvest crops to keep the soil microbiology active, improving fertility and weed control, applying only the necessary phytosanitary products with the least impact. Shifting the focus, he posed the challenge of establishing a better relationship with society, empathizing, listening and improving communication outwardly and inwardly.
In an agroecological area totally different from the previous one, between Chaco and Santiago del Estero, Juan Carlos Cottella (Member of Chacra Sachayoj of Aapresid) told about the rotation scheme and the inclusion of foxtail millet between harvest crops to improve yields, water use efficiency, organic matter and to recover soil fertility. "Agriculture in recent years has allowed them to do things better, provide knowledge and improve the environment where the activity is carried out," he reflected.
To close this part, and present the progress of the project, Diego Ferraro (Technical Coordinator of FAUBA) stated that RedES is trying to answer questions that arise from the agricultural sector and that are related to both the productive and socio-territorial spheres. Understanding productive sustainability as a priority of agricultural systems that allows them to improve their performance, by improving productivity, while maintaining or improving environmental aspects. On the other hand, social sustainability is what is related to the practices of producers or companies in relation to social aspects both in their scale of production and in the communities that contain them. The first activity they proposed was a national survey carried out in 2020 to find out the most frequent practices, both in terms of production and socio-territorial aspects. Although there was a great heterogeneity of answers, they analyzed that, out of 10 questions on productive sustainability, seven were on the right track, and in the social area, the data were more diverse. That leaves several questions that they will work on in a new survey to be conducted this year and everyone was invited to participate.
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