Professor Julie Ingram will draw on her research to examine how innovation is helping to address the challenges facing agri-food systems and society, in her inaugural public lecture at University of Gloucestershire next week.

With concerns around climate change, land and water degradation, loss of biodiversity and food insecurity, researchers are reconsidering the role of innovation, such as precision agriculture and climate smart agriculture, and looking how it can it be supported and achieved at a large scale.

Professor Ingram - professor of innovation for sustainable agriculture - will explore how innovation has evolved regarding a more sustainable agricultural outlook in her public lecture - Unpacking the Multiple Meanings of Innovation for Sustainable Agriculture: The Who, What, How and Why.

From the Countryside and Community Research Institute (CCRI) based at the university, she will reflect on her previous research in the UK, Europe and international contexts, including the different views needed to understand how farmers innovate or adapt their innovations.

Professor Ingram will show how different people and communities are actively innovating and creating new directions for the future of agriculture, such as through nature-friendly farming and climate smart agriculture.

The public lecture takes place on Tuesday April 25 between 4.30-5.30pm at the university's Park Campus in Cheltenham. It is free to attend, but tickets must be booked in advance.

The CCRI plays an important role in shaping rural development policy and practice in the UK, Europe and further afield. The CCRI is one of the largest specialist rural research centre in the UK, working at the interface of agriculture, society and the environment.