Liberiamo la Diversità! 8° workshop europeo del Coordinamento Europeo LLD

FIRST ANNOUNCEMENT:

We are happy to announce that the 8th edition of the annual Let’s Liberate
Diversity! Forum will take place in Basel, Switzerland on September 20-22,
2013.

The forum is organized by the European Coordination: Let's Liberate
Diversity (EC-LLD) with ProSpecieRara in cooperation with partner
organizations in Switzerland, including SwissAid, Bern Declaration,
Vogelwarte Sempach, Kleinbauern-Vereinigung Schweiz, Sativa Rhienau AG,
IP-Suisse and SAG.

This year the forum will devote special attention to practices – 'from
planting to plate' -which contribute to the sustainable use of
agricultural biodiversity as outlined in the International Treaty for
Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA).

Issues addressed in the workshops include: participatory breeding in
support of food sovereignty, internal rules of functioning for
community-based seed systems, and tools for the on-farm management of
agricultural biodiversity. The long neglected issue of livestock
diversity will be addressed as well.

Also "on the menu" at this year's LLD are discussions on alternative
labels highlighting the added value of foods produced by methods that
support agricultural biodiversity, and on forms of direct marketing, with
examples from Switzerland and other parts of Europe.

The forum's other main focus is on how European and international law
affects farmers' efforts to renew the diversity of local and locally
adapted crops, varieties and underutilized species on farms and in
gardens.

Sessions will be devoted to briefings on the latest developments with the
ITPGRFA, as well as on industrial property rights managed by the Union for
the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) and the European Patent
Office (EPO), and the current review of the European legislation on the
marketing of seeds, plant health and controls. In addition, details will
be provided of progressive initiatives, such as attempts to register "seed
exchanges" on the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage – an area
where Switzerland has shown particular commitment.

As a national case study from the conference hosts, the Swiss laws on
farmers’ rights or on the marketing of seeds of special varieties –
including local, old and niche varieties – will be assessed.

The program also includes a tour of the ProSpecieRara demonstration
garden, field trips, a fair of farmers' products and much more…

Website: <a href=”http://www.lldforumch2013.liberatediversity.org
Programme:” rel=”external”>http://www.lldforumch2013.liberated … Programme:</a> <a href=”http://www.lldforumch2013.liberatediversity.org/programme.html
Workshop” rel=”external”>http://www.lldforumch2013.liberated …
Workshop</a> descriptions will be available shortly.
Online registration:<a href=”nhttp://www.lldforumch2013.liberatediversity.org/registration.html
Please” rel=”external”>nhttp://www.lldforumch2013.liberatediversity.org/registration.html
Please</a> note that registration will be open until August 1, 2013

For more information please contact:
ProSpecieRara
Email: info@prospecierara.ch
Phone: +41 61 545 99 11

We are looking forward to meeting you at the LLD Forum!
European Coordination: Let’s Liberate Diversity
ProSpecieRara