Thessaloniki, 1 December 2006
The British Embassy in Athens and the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy organized a workshop entitled “Sustainable Agriculture and Communities: The Future of Rural Europe”. The conference formed part of the efforts of ELIAMEP and the British Embassy to deepen ties and understanding between Britain and Greece across a range of European issues.
The agricultural sector in Europe and its rural context are in flux. The Common Agricultural Policy was reformed earlier in the decade and reviews of individual regimes, such as the wine sector, are ongoing. At the same time, the proportion of Europe’s workforce involved in farming is declining and rural communities have to adapt to this change. Our workshop aims to examine these issues in an intimate, informal setting, bringing together a fairly small but diverse group of British and Greek officials, academics, journalists, farmers and businessmen.
The workshop consisted of two sessions, both of which were introduced by a British and Greek speaker. The first session concentrated primarily on future prospects for the Common Agricultural Policy, while the second considered the future for Europe’s rural communities. Although participants hailed from Greece and the United Kingdom, there was hope to look at the issues in a European, rather than purely national, context. Chatham House rules – where participants may quote from the conference, but without attribution – applied, in order to encourage frank debate.
To round off the conference, Evangelos Yerovassiliou hosted a visit and tasting at his winery in nearby Epanomi the following (Saturday) morning.
Read the Programme of the conference, the List of Participants, and a related article in Business News.