The European project makes itself known through informative meetings in bars in both cities.

The European Researchers’ Night, an event organised by the European Commission in more than 300 European cities, with the aim of bringing science closer to the citizens, was the venue chosen by Diverfarming to present itself to the cities of Cordoba and Cartagena.

One of the main objectives of this project, based in crop diversification and the creation of sustainable alternatives for European agriculture, is the divulgation and diffusion of the work carried out in this field. Therein lies the reason for its presentation within a divulgation event that takes science to settings where it is not usually found.

In Cartagena, the event began at 7pm in El Soldadito de Plomo. Under the title of “Diversify to improve agriculture: celebrating the European Researchers’ Night”, protagonists from different areas of the project mixed with the audience in the bar to give a friendly presentation of the reasons for Diverfarming and its objectives. In this way, the participation and dialogue between those attending and the researchers flowed naturally.

Representatives from the Technical University of Cartagena and ASAJA Region of Murcia, among others, detailed the actions of Diverfarming on the Region of Murcia where opting for diversification involves adding alternative crops between the rows of woody crops, such as almond and citrus, which are typical of the zone.

A bit later on in the evening, in Cordoba the event started at 9pm. In this case the format chosen was different, imported from the United Kingdom. In “Science in the bar” speakers had five minutes to give as much information as possible about their project. This dynamism kept the attention of the audience in the Café Málaga.

Beatriz Lozano, a researcher from the Department of Edaphology and Agricultural Chemistry at the University of Cordoba, was in charge of providing a clear and concise overview of the project in general and on her own work in the Cordoba zone in particular.

In a region where olive trees dominate and where, additionally, they are continuing to spread, with the danger of becoming a total mono-crop, it is proposed to alternate with other crops and to study the effects. Thus, they will be able to find the best combinations for the soils and climates that predominate in this land of olive trees.

The success of attendance in both venues opens the door to greater participation by citizens in changing the paradigm of European farming that Diverfarming seeks.

The European Researchers’ Night is a European project for science divulgation promoted by the European Commission within the Marie Sktodowska-Curie actions of the Horizon 2020 programme. It has been held simultaneously in over 300 European cities since 2005.