Palazzo Italia hosted the conference “Italian experiences in agricultural innovation” with the objective of presenting the contribution of Italian research on increased agricultural productivity, food security and quality and for the development of scientific cooperation. The meeting benefited by the participation of Emilia Chiancone, President of the Italian National Academy of the Sciences of the Forty; Luigi Nicolais, President of the National Council on Research; Alessandro Ruggieri, Provost of the Università degli Studi of Tuscia; Roberto Schmid, President of the Scientific Committee for Expo Milano 2015; Francesco Cassata, Università degli Studi of Genoa; Luigi Rossi, President of the Italian Federation of Doctors in Agricultural and Forest Sciences; Eugenio Benvenuto and Maurizio Calvitti, ENEA - Casaccia, Andrea Sonnino, Vice President of the Italian Federation of Doctors in Agricultural and Forest Sciences; Giampiero Maracchi, President of the Accademia dei Georgofili; Franco Scaramuzzi, Honorary President of the Accademia dei Georgofili and UNASA; and M.S. Swaminathan, President of the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, as well as a video contribution shown in memory of Gian Tommaso Scarascia Mugnozza, the father of agricultural genetics.
An international system to guarantee growth
The event, promoted by the Università degli Studi of Tuscia and the Italian National Academy of the Sciences of the Forty in collaboration with the National Research Council, illustrated the development of agricultural science and the need to involve various players in the communication and application of the results obtained from research. “Researchers must be able to work in their own areas,” stated Luigi Nicolais, “in a united, supportive system that is also open to international dialog to share and disseminate the results. Only in this way, through research, is it possible to push the frontiers of knowledge and allow the country to grow.” Through documents from the files of Professor Scarascia Mugnozza, from the green revolution to aspects and perspectives on the contemporary biotechnology revolution, the speakers emphasized the value of multilateral scientific cooperation to guarantee the quality and productivity of technological systems in the agricultural field.
