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About us
Here you can find information of our interdisciplinary consortia, linking expertise from diverse disciplines such as nutrition, agricultural economics, sport science and social science together
3 years
project runtime
2
case study sites
4
partner institutions
25 team members
in two contries
Project coordination
Research
Consortium
HUB
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (Berlin, Germany)
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin ranks among the top ten universities in Germany and was chosen “University of Excellence” in 2012 and 2019. The university focuses its research on socially relevant topics and challenges of the future and communicate these with the public. The Division Urban Plant Ecophysiology headed by Prof. Dr. Dr. Christian Ulrichs comprises of four different research groups. The research group Quality Dynamics/Postharvest Quality Management of Perishable Crops headed by Prof. Dr. Susanne Huyskens-Keil focusses on the quality evaluation, postharvest physiology and quality assurance of highly perishable fruits and vegetables of temperate and tropical/subtropical origin. Special emphasis is placed on the comprehensive assessment of the interactions between eco-physiological impacts (e.g. drought, temperature, UV-radiation, ozone) in pre- and postharvest as well as evaluation of new emerging postharvest treatments on nutritional/health promoting primary and secondary plant compounds in postharvest. The aim of the research is to gain a better understanding of physiological processes leading to product quality decay by stress impacts during production and postharvest allowing prediction and minimization of quality losses in food supply chains.
The division “Urban Plant Ecophysiology” has been involved and headed several larger food security projects, some of them in Africa. The project will benefit from the know-how gained in these international horticultural research projects, e.g. Attraction in Action, Maruca vitrata Management, and the recently successful finished HORTINLEA. HUB is currently active in coordinating the BMBF funded project CUBES Circle (www.cubescircle.de) and runs an AvH funded project on beneficial insect introduction research in West Africa.
ZALF
Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (Müncheberg, Germany)
The Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF) is a large national research facility with 170 scientists and a total of 335 employees. ZALF has extensive experience in international projects and scientific networks in the field of land and water management and sustainable agricultural development. The research focuses on integrated analysis of agricultural landscapes for sustainable management of land and water, conservation of natural and cultural resources, and sustainable development of rural areas including overseas regions, and particularly Africa. Activities are focused on developing methods to evaluate policy impacts and changes of land use systems on environmental, social and economic sustainability and to support decision making of land use management and policy. FoCo-Active will benefit from the know-how and experiences gained in ZALF’s long-time engagement in international agricultural research projects, many of them in Africa. ZALF is currently active in coordinating the Vegi-Leg project and successfully finished the Scale-N project (www.scale-n.org) in 2018.
DSHS
German Sport University Cologne
(Cologne, Germany)
The German Sport University Cologne is the only university in Germany that is dedicated exclusively to the world of sport and exercise science. The spectrum ranges from health to biomechanics and physiology, but also economic, historical and ethical considerations.
Prof. Dr. med. Dr. Sportwiss. Christine Graf is the Head of the Department of Physical Activity and Health Promotion of the Institute of Movement and Neuroscience at the German Sport University Cologne. The working group consists of physicians, sports scientists and ecotrophologists and is dedicated to research into the prevention and treatment of overweight and obesity and active lifestyle development in lifespan. Based on the results of previous Cologne examinations in kindergartens and schools (“CHILT – Children’s Health InterventionaL Trial” and KiMo (Kindergarten Mobil), the scientific focus is increasingly on the early promotion of a healthy development in different settings, which includes several components (e.g. exercise, nutrition, media) in the communal social space as a setting network.
SUA
Sokoine University of Agriculture
(Morogoro, Tanzania)
Sokoine University of Agriculture is a public University in Morogoro, Tanzania, specialized in agriculture and allied sciences. The department of “Food Technology, Nutrition and Consumer Sciences” (DFTNCS) is one of the six departments and one unit in the College of Agriculture (CoA). It is one of its kind in the country and involved in teaching, research, consultancy and outreach in food, human nutrition and consumer sciences. In terms of student enrolment the department is among the largest in the university. The department hosts 38 full-time academic staff, also being the most gender balanced department with 50% males and 50% females. It is renowned for its excellence in teaching and research as indicated by the very positive feedback from industry and from an inter-disciplinary employment base. The respective research themes often cut across different departments. Major areas of expertise include food processing, food safety, new product development, nutrition assessment, nutrition for special needs, home economics, catering and hospitality, and consumer protection.
UDSM
University of Dar es Salaam
(Dar es Salaam, Tanzania)
University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) is the oldest and second largest public research university in Tanzania. The department “Physical Education and Sport Science” (PESS) focusses on teaching, research and consultancy services in physical education, sports and recreation. The department PESS engages in focused research in physical education, physical activity and health, sport and gender, curriculum development, life skills education, sport management, sport for special population groups, sport economics and marketing, ethics in sport, and sport psychology. The team has great experience in community and outreach programmes for recreational physical activities, swimming lessons for young children, competitive and leisure swimming, aerobics and fitness programmes, organizing sport training workshops, guidance and facilitation in organization of sport bonanzas.
