BIP - The valorization of origin products and their cultural heritage for territorial sustainable development
Critically exploring local agri-food products and bio-cultural heritage as levers for integrated, sustainable, and people-centred rural development.
General Information
Master's
Application
Applications closed. Application deadline was 12/10/2025 .
For any questions, contact your local coordinator.
If your home institution is listed below, please check the funding requirements and selection criteria prior to applying:
Course description
The project realises a thematic seminar aimed at critically analysing opportunities for promoting origin agri-food products and the bio-cultural heritage resources linked to them, including through tourism development and interactions with other sectors of the local economy. It will provide elements for interpreting the dynamics and strategies for promoting local resources and related accompanying policies, identifying their strengths, weaknesses and areas for intervention, including in relation to their potential contribution to the activation of sustainable and people-centred local development processes.
The seminar will be structured as follows:
a. Understanding the territory, its resources and the actors operating within it;
b. Understanding past, current and planned initiatives and/or strategies promoted by local actors;
c. Interpreting dynamics and strategies, identifying strengths and areas for improvement, as well as possible integrated initiatives for the enhancement of the bio-cultural heritage.
The thematic seminar aims to help participants develop knowledge and skills for the enhancement of local products from a rural development perspective, equipping them with the tools to face challenges and seize opportunities for agricultural producers and other actors in local food systems.
Schedule
The thematic seminar will be divided into three phases:
1) Preparatory phase, consisting of a series of online meetings aimed at introducing participants to the seminar topics and providing them with some basic knowledge. Materials presenting the topics covered will be distributed. This phase will take place on January 12, 2026.
2) In-person phase, consisting of presentations and seminars aimed at exploring the topics in depth and applying them to the specific context of Tuscany and a particular area, through meetings with university professors and representatives of private and public companies and organizations. This phase will also include a study visit (lasting one or two days) to the identified area. This phase will be held from 26 to 30, January 2026.
3) Revision and synthesis phase: drafting of a report on what has been learned and observed, linking the experience to the student's university course and containing proposals for initiatives/strategies for promoting one or more products. This phase will end before end of February, 2026.
Requirements
English B2 level
