{"id":39095,"date":"2026-05-12T07:15:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T07:15:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/39095\/"},"modified":"2026-05-12T07:15:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T07:15:11","slug":"empowering-europes-rangeland-livestock-farming-through-digital-innovation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/39095\/","title":{"rendered":"Empowering Europe\u2019s rangeland livestock farming through digital innovation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Across several European regions, DIGI-Rangeland<\/a> works with local actors to test new approaches for rangeland sustainability.<\/p>\n

Rangeland Livestock Farming Systems (RLFS) are extensive livestock systems that depend on natural and semi-natural landscapes, such as grasslands, shrublands and open pastures, for grazing. Beyond producing food, these systems play a vital role in maintaining biodiversity-rich habitats, preserving traditional rural landscapes and sustaining communities in areas where other agricultural activities are often limited. For this reason, rangeland farming is increasingly recognised as an important contributor to Europe\u2019s sustainability ambitions, including the goals set out in the European Green Deal. Reflecting this growing recognition, 2026 has been declared the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (YRO) by the General Assembly of the United Nations, highlighting the global importance of these ecosystems and the communities that depend on them.<\/p>\n

However, the future of these systems faces growing uncertainty. Farmers managing rangelands must cope with challenges such as climate variability, changing pasture conditions, economic pressures and the gradual decline of rural populations. Addressing these issues requires stronger support networks, knowledge exchange and new ways of monitoring and managing complex grazing landscapes. In this context, innovative technologies and digital tools are emerging as valuable allies to help farmers make better-informed decisions and improve the long-term resilience of rangeland livestock farming. It is within this framework that the DIGI-Rangeland project has been launched, aiming to explore and develop practical digital solutions that support farmers and stakeholders working in rangeland systems.<\/p>\n

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The role of DIGI-Rangeland in transforming rangeland practices<\/p>\n

DIGI-Rangeland is a four-year transdisciplinary research project aiming to enhance digital innovation in rangeland livestock farming systems (or RLFS). In response to the challenges threatening their viability, the project establishes an innovative network focused on digital technologies and data-driven solutions for farmers and land users in rangeland areas. Using a multi-actor approach across 11 countries, and identifying practitioners\u2019 needs and barriers, the project assesses and promotes effective digital solutions to ensure the resilience and sustainability of these systems.<\/p>\n

The DIGI-Rangeland consortium brings together a diverse group of research institutions, universities, advisory bodies and innovation organisations across Europe, combining expertise in livestock systems, rural development and digital technologies. The project is coordinated by Germain Tesni\u00e8re from the Institut de l\u2019\u00c9levage (France), a leading research organisation.<\/p>\n

Alongside the coordinator, the network includes multidisciplinary institutions spanning France, Spain, Romania, Greece, Croatia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Iceland, Norway, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. This wide geographical coverage brings together a rich diversity of rangeland contexts and farming realities, from Mediterranean and Balkan landscapes to Atlantic, Nordic and Alpine regions, fostering knowledge exchange and collaboration across very different environmental and socio-economic conditions.<\/p>\n

A central role within the DIGI-Rangeland project is played by the National Facilitators, who act as the key link between the project and the thematic networks in each participating country. They are responsible for coordinating and energising national communities of farmers, land users, advisors, researchers and other relevant stakeholders, fostering collaboration and encouraging the exchange of knowledge and practical experience.<\/p>\n

From challenges to digital solutions<\/p>\n

Through a series of National Workshops and Transnational Workshops, organised by the National Facilitators, farmers, advisors, researchers and other stakeholders come together to identify key challenges in rangeland livestock systems and explore possible responses. These participatory spaces enable the exchange of experiences across different contexts and support the co-design of digital transformation and innovation (DTI) solutions tailored to real needs on the ground.<\/p>\n

The process is already well underway, with the first Transnational Workshop (1TNW) taking place in Romania in November 2025, and the next one scheduled for late June 2026 in Iceland. In parallel, the second round of National Workshops has been carried out in spring 2026, further consolidating national discussions and refining locally relevant challenges.<\/p>\n

The process follows four main stages: identification, exchange, solution and demonstration. In the identification phase, local challenges are collected directly from practitioners and land users. These are then shared and discussed during national and transnational exchanges, where common patterns and innovative ideas are explored. In the solution phase, concrete DTI approaches are proposed, including technologies such as GPS tracking systems, drones, camera traps, environmental sensors and virtual fencing, among others. Finally, the demonstration phase focuses on testing and showcasing these solutions through hands-on activities, training sessions and field demonstrations targeted at farmers, advisors, students and other end-users, ensuring that innovations are both accessible and practically applicable.<\/p>\n

\tPlease Note: This is a Commercial Profile<\/p>\n

Please note, this article will also appear in the 26th edition of our\u00a0quarterly publication<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Across several European regions, DIGI-Rangeland works with local actors to test new approaches for rangeland sustainability. Rangeland Livestock…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":39096,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[233,22356,7002,15,7003],"class_list":["post-39095","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-europe","tag-agriculture","tag-animal-health","tag-contributor-profile","tag-european","tag-the-innovation-platform-issue-26"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39095","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39095"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39095\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39096"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39095"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39095"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/europe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39095"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}