Wednesday, April 12, 2023, 10:00–11:30 EEST (9:00–10:30 CET) Joint Webinar of LIFE OrgBalt and JustFood projects will take place.

This event is to discuss the LIFE OrgBalt project`s experience in working with agriculture organic soils and part of the activities under a living lab currently being set up for the JustFood project. One of the LIFE OrgBalt project`s aims is to study the climate and socioeconomic impacts of different agricultural organic soil management types. JustFood agroecosystem living lab is to co-create policy measures to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agricultural peatlands in Finland. One of the main objectives of the living lab is to develop a shared understanding between relevant actors in the food system for creating actions and related policy measures to significantly reduce GHG emissions from agricultural peatlands in Finland. The living lab and LIFE OrgBalt project stakeholders are scientists, farmers, foresters, the local community, government representatives, private companies, NGOs, and consumers.

Please register by Monday, April 10, 2023. The registration link:
https://www.lyyti.in/Life_OrgBalt_and_JustFood_Joint_Webinar_3220

Programme

(10:00 to 11:30 Helsinki time)

10:00	Opening words by the moderatorEllen Huan-Niemi, Senior Scientist (Luke), JustFood Project
10:05	The functioning of peatlandsRaija Laiho, Research Professor (Luke), LIFE OrgBalt projectPeatlands are a diverse group of habitats that produce a wide range of ecosystem services in their natural state, and are also widely used for agriculture, forestry, and peat extraction. Their land-use, carbon storage and greenhouse gas emissions are currently intensively discussed in the context of climate change mitigation. The inconsistency in the use of concepts and terms related to the functioning of peatlands may cause confusion and misinterpretations. This presentation aims to create a common understanding on the patterns of carbon sinks and storages as well as reduction in greenhouse gas emissions that are needed for advancing sustainable management of peatlands.
10:30	The complexity of climate change mitigation in agricultural peatlandsIeva Licite, Project Manager (Silava), LIFE OrgBalt ProjectThe complexity of climate change mitigation in agricultural peatlands is due to the diverse interests in the use of peatlands as well as the lack of data related to the socioeconomic analysis of agricultural peatlands management and the reporting of organic soils in the greenhouse gas inventory. To uncover the situation in the Baltic region, the LIFE OrgBalt project examines several initially identified mitigation strategies for agricultural peatlands/organic soils and tries to adapt to the rapidly changing environment, which imposes new challenges, e.g., from new EU-level regulations. This presentation is to unfold the complexity in the management of agricultural peatlands and share lessons learned so far in the implementation of the LIFE OrgBalt project.
10:55	The just transition of the food system in relation to the usage of peatlands for food production Teea Kortetmäki, Postdoctoral Researcher (University of Jyväskylä), JustFood ProjectThe effective sustainability transition to low-carbon and sustainable food systems raises the question of how to make the transitions as just as possible. Justice involves many aspects that can also generate tensions with relation to the environmental goals of the transition. The need to reduce peatland use in food production (due to the high GHG emissions related to farming on peatlands) raises particularly challenging questions because it directly concerns property rights, land use rights, and livelihoods of farmers. This presentation elaborates the questions that just transition raises in the context of reducing peatland use in farming, addressed as part of just transition analysis, and discusses their implications for transition-promoting policies.
11:20 – 11:30	General discussion