Agreement Number: 2021-1-IT02-KA220-HED-000032227

The project “Advanced training on sustainable management of pastoral systems” (TranSuMan, https://www.ucv.es/investigacion/transhuman/grasslands-management), approved by the European Commission within the framework of ERASMUS+ Key Action 2 (KA220 HED) – Cooperation partnerships in higher education. The project is coordinated by the Universita degli Sudi di Camerino (Italy) and also involves the Fundacion Universidad Catolica de Valencia San Vicente Martir (Spain), the Universitatea Babes Bolyai (Romania), while the University of Thessaly (Greece) is represented by the Department of Forestry, Wood Sciences and Design. The members of the Department Professor Michalis Vrachnakis, Associate Professor Ioannis Kazoglou and Associate Professor Marios Trigas are participating in the project. employ a team of students and stakeholders. The project will last until December 2023.

The project aims to develop an innovative educational approach to create a professional profile of postgraduate students, able to address in an interdisciplinary way the sustainable management of European grassland ecosystems. According to this approach, academic knowledge together with the experience of local actors (stakeholders) will contribute to the creation of a favorable learning environment for students (tomorrow’s professionals), enabling them to work in a real environment. The specific objectives of the project are: – to define common guidelines and strategies for the sustainable management and utilization of grasslands – to define teaching methods and strategies to involve stakeholders in the teaching/learning process – the transfer of knowledge to Higher Education students about the complexity of grassland management, including the design of sustainable production chains based on high quality products and the management of processes from the base to the top (bottom up approach).

To achieve the goals of the project, the Green Team of 25 people was created, the composition of which is 3 professors, 9 postgraduate students, 8 undergraduate students and 5 local actors. On the two days of December 1 and 2, 2022, a relevant workshop will be held in Karditsa, where Greek and foreign academics will develop topics related to the sustainable management of grasslands. These topics will be expanded in the presence of local stakeholders in order to gain knowledge about the cutting edge of grassland science and the latest developments and scientific achievements in grassland ecology and management.

Professor Michalis Vrachnakis

Coordinator of the Greek partnership