Countryside COP 2023 took place from 20th to 24th November, ahead of COP28 which is running from 30th November to 12th December.

Each year since it began, Countryside COP has included a range of online and in-person events aimed at the farming community. These provide an opportunity to hear how the UK’s rural economy and agriculture can help tackle the climate crisis and improve sustainability. The 2023 Countryside COP themes were:

  • Health
  • Nature, land use and oceans
  • Energy transition
  • Youth and international
  • Finance
  • Food and water systems
  • Science, technology and innovation
  • Skills, education and training

Many of this year’s Countryside COP sessions are now available to watch online. These include:

Carbon calculators: Assessing the tools in the box – organised by the Royal Agricultural Society of England

This webinar brought together representatives from Agrecalc, Cool Farm Tool, Farm Carbon Calculator and Sandy to answer a series of questions relating to the tools and the future of their use in agriculture. Watch it here.

Decarbonising from the field up – organised by the Allerton Project

With net zero targets in mind, this webinar explored the practical steps farmers might take to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at the farm level. Watch it here.

Enhancing climate resilience on farm: What's the challenge and how can we adapt to the changes? – organised by Met Office and ADAS

This webinar considered the low-cost, easy-to-implement adaptation actions that can be taken on-farm to reduce risk, capitalise on opportunities and enhance the resilience of UK agriculture. Watch it here.

How regional water resources planning can support sustainable agri-food systems – organised by Water Resources East and Water Resources South East

This webinar introduced regional water resources planning and discussed the challenges faced involving the agricultural sector, as well as opportunities and recommendations to make future regional plans truly multi-sector. Watch it here.

The full 2023 Countryside COP programme can be viewed here, and videos are likely to continue to appear on the Countryside COP YouTube channel over the coming days.

From 2024, Innovation for Agriculture will be organising a series of farm walks and demonstration events as part of our Climate Smart Farming initiative, so keep an eye on our upcoming events to find out what is happening in your area.