中欧社会论坛 - China Europa Forum

Programme of the China Europa Forum and workshop 2010 (draft)

Monday July 5 2010:
 Travel of European participants to Beijing

Thuesday July 6 and Wednesday July 7 2010:
 Visits to farms and agricultural industry, meetings with representatives of agricultural policy

Thursday July 8 and Friday July 9 2010:
 Workshop meetings and preparation of the plenary sessions

Saturday July 10 2010:
 Visits

Sunday July 11 2010:
 Travel to Hong Kong for plenary sessions

Monday July 12 until Wednesday July 14 2010
 Plenary sessions

Topics for debates

 1. A multipolar versus an unipolar world, free trade versus regional trade policies: what are the best conditions for geo-political balance and mutual respect for a thriving global community? Evaluation of WTO Agreement on Agriculture versus regional agricultural trade policies. What can the China and Europe contribute to a better agricultural trade system?

 2. Financial and economic crises and agriculture: todays globalised and liberalising world leads to higher price volatilities. The recent dramatic rise and subsequent fall in food prices has demonstrated this, excacerbated by the recent financial and economic crisis. How exactly does the financial and economic crisis affect agriculture? How do the European and Chinese agricultural policies react? What are good policies to anticipate or remedy these crises and at what level of governance?

 3. Food security and sustainable management of resources: How can food security be obtained and improved and at the same a sustainable management of resources be secured? What are good practices? What policies to find a balance?

 4. Multifunctionality of agriculture and rural development: Agriculture and rural development are connected by definition. What can we compare between European and China? How can we differentiate and integrate policy on different levels (local, national, regional) to accomodate the multifunctional role of different types of rural areas and agriculture? What are examples of best practices practices?

 5. Urbanisation and the rural exodus: The exodus from rural areas both in China and in Europe to the cities leads to a negative attitude of citizens towards agriculture and rural areas and a disconnection between cities and rural areas and between food consumption and food production. How can citizens be connected to agriculture and rural areas? Should rural development and food policies start in the cities?

About us

Prime Mover China: Professor Wen Tiejun, State Counsellor and Dean at Remnin University of China, School of Agriculture and Rural Development

Moderator in China: Mr. Chen Chuanbo

Prime Mover Europe: Bart Soldaat, secretary Groupe de Bruges

Participants from Europe:
 Mr. Franco Sotte, vice-president of the Groupe de Bruges and professor at the Università Politecnica delle Marche, Ancona (Italy)
 Mr. Zdenek Linhart, assistant professor at the Czech University of Agriculture, Faculty of Agricultural Economics and Management, Prague (Czech Republic)
 Mr. Charalambos Kasimis, professor of Rural Sociology, Agricultural University of Athens (Greece)
 Mr. Edwin Hecker, director at Schuttelaar & Partners (The Netherlands)