We are learning new methods. RISE

An important part of the SULAWE project is to familiarise teaching staff from university with the principles of farms sustainability assessment and developing of proposals for improving of sustainability in the future. In the modern model of agricultural production, sustainability is seen not only as a factor in minimising the impact on the environment, but also as a factor in ensuring the economic well-being of the enterprise. Therefore, the approach to farm development based on sustainability criteria should become more widely used in Ukraine.

Currently, there are several tools available for assessing sustainability, including those based on special software. As part of the SULAWE project, it was decided to train interested staff to work with the specialised RISE software. RISE is a computer-based method developed at the School of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, Bern University of Applied Sciences (BFH-HAFL) for the holistic analysis and evaluation of agricultural holdings.

The training consists of 8 units, includes theoretical and practical parts and will last about 3 months. On 1 March 2024, the first online training was held under the guidance of Veronika Zbinden, scientific collaborator sustainability & RISE, which was attended by representatives of 4 Ukrainian universities and their colleagues from Slovenia. During the training, the final registration of participants in the RISE expert network system took place and basic data on the organisation of further work was obtained.