Farmers’ innovation power captured in new research project

There is a great spirit of innovation in the agricultural industry that needs to be harnessed to enable farmers to meet the challenges of the future. Educational researchers in the Norrland hub are driving this development.

– Through lifelong learning we develop and shape the society we live in. “Sustainable food production is central to the survival of civilization,” says Niklas Johansson, a PhD student in the Norrland Hub’s research project on lifelong learning.

Over the past 100 years, the agricultural industry in Northern Sweden has gone through several major innovation processes. In the future, Swedish agriculture will need to develop even more due to climate change, technological development and an aging workforce.

The research project, run by Luleå University of Technology in close collaboration with the County Administrative Board of Norrbotten, will study what motivates farmers and entrepreneurs in the hospitality industry to adopt new knowledge. The aim is to support Norrbotten’s food strategy Nära mat, which is clearly linked to the global goals of Agenda 2030. Researchers conduct life history research.

– We interview farmers about their lives, challenges and what drives their learning. And compare that to how they have responded to change over the past 20-40 years. It will give us insights into how they best absorb knowledge,” says Niklas Johansson.

“Lifelong learning is a buzz word”

In the project, researchers will design training courses and other educational activities aimed at farmers and entrepreneurs in the tourism industry. The idea is to reduce the distance between new knowledge and its application.

– Farmers know how to grow crops but methods are needed to make it happen, says Caroline Graeske, Associate Professor of Education at Luleå University of Technology.

The research project will develop lifelong learning models suitable for the agricultural and hospitality industries.

– ‘In academia, lifelong learning has become a buzz word, but no one knows what it really means,’ she continues.

People train for three or four years and then go out to work, rarely returning to school. But Caroline Graeske believes that things will be different in the future.

– There will be more collaboration between academia and industry, with people developing their skills throughout their careers. “In this research project, we work very closely with farmers and small businesses in the hospitality industry to raise interest in locally produced food and increase the production of sustainable food,” says Caroline Graeske.

Contact
niklas.1.johansson@ltu.se
caroline.graeske@ltu.se

READ MORE ABOUT THE NORRLAND HUB
On their website
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