What support is available to help HEIs modernize their teaching methods and incorporate cutting-edge digital agriculture technologies into their curricula?

Undoubtedly the integration of digital technologies—particularly IoT, sensors, AI-driven analytics, and decision support systems—enhances agricultural sustainability, productivity, and resilience by enabling more precise and data-driven operations. In the EU, the European Commission has actively supported this transition through R&I H2020 initiatives (e.g., ATLAS, DEMETER) and currently infrastructure efforts (HE) like the Common European Agricultural Data Space (CEADS), fostering digital innovation across the sector. Digitalization benefits the entire agri-food value chain, from input suppliers to consumers, by improving transparency, traceability (e.g., via blockchain), and operational efficiency, while reducing resource use and emissions. It also opens space for innovative SMEs and start-ups to contribute novel solutions to systemic agri-food challenges, fostering thus the EU economy.  

However, several restrictions on DA holistic adoption still exist and contribute to the unequal access to digital tools—driven by geographic, economic, and demographic factors—risks and deepening the digital divide among farmers, including strong capacity building and modernized training and education infrastructures particularly in HEIs of widening EU member states. To modernize teaching and integrate digital agriculture, Agricultural Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) can leverage various supports, including dedicated funding for digital infrastructure upgrades, staff training on digital tools, and curriculum development focused on digital agriculture technologies. Policies are also needed to ensure equitable access to digital resources, especially in "Widening" countries, focusing on high-speed internet and digital platforms.  

EU Funding Support for Modernizing HEIs Research and Teaching Performance on DA Cutting-edge Technologies Integration  

EU provides dedicated funding for HEIs to upgrade their digital infrastructure, Staff Training and Development, Curriculum Development, Partnerships and Collaboration and Internationalization and Networking via: 

Specific funding and support programmes  

1. Erasmus+ which provides financial support for Partnerships for Innovation, including for higher education institutions (HEIs) to modernize teaching methods and incorporate digital agriculture technologies by funding projects focused on developing innovative curricula and teacher training. The program also supports capacity-building projects, which can strengthen higher education institutions in non-EU countries (including EU Associated countries) to improve their digital teaching and learning environments, including in agriculture. In addition, it promotes staff and student mobility, facilitating thus the sharing of knowledge and best practices in digital agriculture across different countries and institutions.  

2. Digital Europe Programme which is the first financial instrument of the EU focused on bringing digital technology to businesses and citizens and aims to increase investments in digital, focusing on areas of public interest, while reinforcing several ongoing cooperation projects with Member States. Promoting Advanced Digital Skills capacity building and ensuring the wide use of digital technologies across economy and society, Digital Europe supports the development of advanced digital skills through calls like Specialized Education Programmes in Key Capacity Areas, funding HEIs to become leaders in training digital specialists for areas like robotics and automation in agriculture. (e.g. TRUSTFOOD).  

3. The European Digital Transformation Accelerator (DTA), a program managed by the EC to support the network of European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs). Its primary goal is to accelerate the digital transformation of the European economy by fostering a vibrant community among EDIHs, businesses, and policymakers. The DTA provides services such as community building events, training, knowledge sharing, and managing the online presence and tools for the EDIH network, including the online catalogue of EDIHs of successful digital hubs including those on DA (e.g. AgroDigiRise. AgrotechDIH, AgrInnovate EDIH, etc.) 

4. HORIZON EUROPE by representing the cornerstone of EU in research and innovation funding, supports projects related to digital agriculture, helping to develop cutting-edge technologies and solutions that can be integrated into curricula. In the field Research and Innovation, key EU-funded actions and initiatives include a number of funded HE projects as well as the Common European Agricultural Data Space (CEADS) in the field of deployment.  

5. NextGenerationEU is boosting Europe’s economy and making our societies stronger and more resilient, delivering tangible results for Europeans through its many projects. With loans and grants provided to Member States through the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) temporary instrument, NextGenerationEU has been investing in a series of critical areas including educational reforms and investments to support Member States in increasing basic and advanced digital skills within their national recovery and resilience plans. 

Specific initiatives and projects 

1. The European Partnership “Agriculture of Data”, a Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) anchored around a core group, which consists of representatives from Member States and associated countries, additional experts and is supported by two ERA-Nets, aims to enhance sustainable agricultural production and to strengthen policy monitoring and evaluation capacities through exploiting the potential of Earth Observation (EO), environmental, agricultural and other data, in combination with state of the art data technologies. The partnership will build the capacities to effectively and efficiently deploy data technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI); develop innovative data-based solutions that could serve as, for instance, inputs to Decision Support Systems (DSS) and farm management systems; and generate indicator data to assess policy performance. It will exploit the opportunities novel satellite and sensor data offer. It will generate reference and training data sets from various sources for AI applications. The focus lies on Europe-wide data sets and services. Encouragement of Business-to-business (B2B), Business-to Government (B2G), and Government-to-Business (G2B) data sharing and the reduction of administrative burdens as well as legal framing conditions will play a key role in the work of the partnership. The partnership aims to create an “umbrella effect” through taking stock, linking and, assessing Research and Innovation (R&I) initiatives and use cases in the field of agricultural data while accounting for data interoperability. 

2. The European Testing and Experimentation Facilities for Agrifood Innovation (TEFagrifood), a 5-y project funded by the Digital Europe Programme to empower the agricultural industry with validation tools for maximizing the impact of digitalization of the agrifood sector. TEFagrifood focuses on bringing AI and robotics solutions to the market to help the agri-food sector. In this context, it will enable farmers to access the full benefit of AI and AI-powered robotics technologies and thus allow more sustainable and affordable food, brought to Europe’s shelves and tables in an efficient and competitive way. 

3. AGRITECH EU project which aims at directly funding and developing a European Catalogue of advanced educational modules for experts in DA, fostering thus the collaboration between HEIs, industry, and researchers to build advanced digital skills and adopt cutting-edge technologies in the sector, and consequently leveraging precision agriculture applications. A characteristic initiative outcome is the access-free PIX4Dfields hybrid drone and satellite mapping software for aerial crop analysis and precision agriculture. AGRITECH EU focuses on developing a European catalogue of advanced educational modules and programs in digital agriculture for sustainable development, involving a consortium of higher education institutions, businesses, and a research center aiming to equip future professionals with the skills needed for the digital transformation of agriculture by creating new and enhancing existing courses, including a new I level Master's program (Master AGRITECH EU), to drive innovation and sustainability in the sector.  

4. ReGrow Project, an initiative that addresses skill gaps by developing advanced curricula and capacity-building activities in agriculture, promoting collaboration between HEIs and the labor market to ensure alignment with needs and boost innovation. ReGrow fosters modernized and internationalized higher education on DA, empowers learners through digital access by establishing a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) for providing students from remote areas with access to high quality educational resources tailored to their needs, and nurtures sustainability and resilience by promoting climate-smart agriculture practices and knowledge sharing.   

5. TRUSTFOOD, a Digital Europe initiative that designs and delivers short-term training courses for upskilling and reskilling of the labor force by providing access to high-quality specialized training courses, reflecting the latest developments in the area of Blockchain technologies applied holistically to the Food Supply Chain. The courses are highly practical and provide specific knowledge about key digital technologies of Blockchain and their applications to the Food Supply Chain.  

   
   

EU Policies and Bodies to Support Modernizing HEIs Research and Teaching Performance on DA Cutting-edge Technologies Integration  

The Political Guidelines For The Next European Commission 2024−2029 emphasizes on supporting  the competitiveness of EU entire food value chain through investment and innovation. To this end, the EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), a partnership between society and agriculture, aims to ensure food security, protect farmers' incomes, safeguard the environment, and support vibrant rural communities. Central to this vision is active collaboration with higher education institutions (HEIs), farmers, food chain actors, and civil society at local and regional levels, ensuring their needs and insights shape agricultural development.  

However, many widening countries face limited access to digital infrastructure, which hinders HEIs' ability to engage in advanced agricultural education and research. To address this, several EU policies support: 

• Infrastructure Development: Investments in high-speed internet and modern digital tools to bridge digital divides and reduce disparities in technological capacity across regions. 

• Digital Skills: Training students, educators, and researchers to effectively use digital technologies in teaching, learning, and research. 

• Innovation Promotion: Empowering HEIs to lead the green and digital transitions, particularly in agriculture, by fostering innovation through digitalization. 

  
  

In this context, EU policies promoting digital infrastructure access in widening countries are crucial. A short ranking of EU policies targeted to support modernizing HEIs research and teaching performance on DA cutting-edge technologies integration may include: 

• The Bologna Process, aiming at enhancing learning and teaching across the European Higher Education Area. Its recommendations on learning and teaching can be adapted to promote the use of digital platforms and tools, fostering inclusive, forward-looking education across the European Higher Education Area.  

• The EU HEInnovate tool,  

• Digital Education Action Plan (DEAP) 2021-2027 calling for greater EU cooperation to improve digital education, support students and researchers, and enhance the digital skills of teachers and academic staff, with a focus on inclusivity. 

• Digital Decade Policy Programme 2030 establishing a framework for the EU and its member states to achieve ambitious digital goals, including digital infrastructure development and digital skills. 

• National Recovery and Resilience Plans (NRRPs) Under the NextGenerationEU (NGEU) instrument, member states must submit NRRPs that include reforms and investments in digital infrastructure and skills, with significant funding allocated to the digital and green pillars. 

• The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), an EU body aiming at boosting the innovation capacity of HEIs, integrating them into innovation value chains, and supporting inclusive education. 

• The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is an international organization of 38 democratic countries with market economies working on building better policies for better lives and improving economic and social well-being worldwide. EU is a full participant in the OECD, collaborating and sharing its experience and analysis to develop solutions for common problems in economic, social, and environmental and education policy. As such, EU and OECD co-created HEInnovate, a free, online, self-assessment tool for higher education institutions (HEIs) that helps them evaluate and improve their innovation and entrepreneurship capabilities. HEIinnovate guides HEIs through a process of self-reflection across eight key dimensions to identify strengths, weaknesses, and areas for strategic action.