The Association places the pursuit of knowledge and advanced training – in the fields of agriculture and farming, tourism, and cultural heritage – at the top of their agenda. To promote the economic recovery of the area, a collaboration with the University of Tuscia was established to launch the “Project for Agro-Food Development.”
The Project would initially include the award of three (3) scholarships of a minimum of €2,500.00 (two thousand five hundred / 00) each, to the three best-performing students based on the criteria established by the University and “Terra di Amatrice.” The Project would be based on the completion of graduation dissertations (academic year 2017-2018), on one of the following topics:
- Alternative and/or Innovative cultures that can be developed in the Amatrice Valley
- Alternative and/or innovative breeding of animals in the Amatrice Valley
- Economic and production benefits as a result of working with breeders and farmers
The demand for agricultural products is divided into two distinct categories, the first consisting of mass production, and the second for niche products, such as BIO, DOP or DECO of unique attributes – which allows for less-intensive cultivation. The citizens of Amatrice have enjoyed the success of many existing legumes in the area – such as lentils from Castelluccio and the traditional beans and potatoes from Avezzano.
We believe this will help to revive agricultural production in the area. There are currently several small farms in the area, although many were severely impacted by the earthquake. However, their food production is not large enough to saturate local market demands. Therefore, new agricultural products could be sold locally and also to markets in Rome.
Marketing farm products in Rome, from locally-produced food sources, is particularly relevant now that the name “Amatrice” is internationally recognized due to post-earthquake marketing efforts.
As for “innovative” animal breeding, we anticipate going beyond the traditional farm animals of the region – such as cattle, sheep, or pigs. We plan to diversify local animal breeds (for example, transitioning from dairy cattle for milk to other cattle breeds for meat, or developing sheep breeding farms that can produce both meat and milk as part of existing dairy supply chains.
In our opinion, new ideas should explore the feasibility of matching new culture and breeding programs with the geomorphological and meteorological compatibility of the area. These new ideas will be applied to a cost-benefit plan, as part of a GANTT flowchart, to determine the appropriate planning strategy for proposed culture and breeding programs.
Alternatively, we can analyze and developthese new ideas to explore the possibility of connecting producers and breeders of individual products with suitable market demand programs, and quantify benefits.
The thesis selected will be made available to local operators who want to vary their agricultural production operations. We also hope to involve the graduates who could start a type of “tutor-internship” with breeders or farmers. This partnership would follow and guide the activities of the new STARTUP.
Upon completion of the first initiative, we plan to repeat it in following years, shifting the focus to mountain tourism and/or mountain sciences to enhance the naturalistic features of the nearby Monti della Laga.
The three scholarship winners will be joined by three other students, from the scientific high school of Amatrice, during the school year 2016-2017. For these local students, a contribution of €1,200.00 each was established.
These local scholarships will be awarded to the most deserving students who intend to enroll at the Sabita Universitas of Rieti. This university is located in the Lazio Region and is the closest to Amatrice that offers numerous undergraduate and graduate courses, including the new and unique course “Science of Mountains.”
Similar scholarships have been established in collaboration with the University for Foreigners of Perugia
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