University of Debrecen to Strengthen Ties with State of Nebraska
Zoltán Bács, Rector of the University of Debrecen, and Endre Harsányi, Vice-Rector for Sector Development, held talks with senior officials from the State of Nebraska, including Secretary of State Robert Evnen and Deputy Secretary of State Cindi Allen, as well as László Búza, State Secretary for Food Economy, Trade and Food Literacy at the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Economy. The meeting focused on further expanding the university’s network of US partnerships and exploring new opportunities for cooperation in education, research and innovation.
Hungary and the US state of Nebraska, which is part of the American Midwest, face a number of similar agricultural and climate-related challenges. Increasingly frequent periods of drought, extreme temperature conditions and growing uncertainty in precipitation patterns are highlighting the importance of modern water management and sustainable agricultural solutions in both regions. The experts agreed that knowledge-based cooperation, together with research and technological innovation, could provide an effective response to these challenges.
“One of the key topics of the American delegation’s visit to Hungary was agricultural knowledge transfer and adaptation to climate change. Based on the discussions with representatives of the State of Nebraska and Associate Professor Saleh Taghvaeian of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, cooperation between our institutions could offer significant opportunities for joint research projects, student and academic staff mobility programmes, as well as the mutual sharing of expertise accumulated in irrigation development, plant breeding, soil science and precision agriculture,” Vice-Rector Endre Harsányi told hirek.unideb.hu.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Economy is also playing an active role in strengthening these ties. Nebraska and Hungary are planning to launch specific practice-oriented cooperation in several strategic areas of agriculture, including precision farming, irrigation development, research into drought-resistant crop varieties, soil health and agricultural digitalisation. The initiatives are intended not only to strengthen research and innovation partnerships but also to help create new opportunities for Hungarian agricultural and food-industry companies in the Nebraska market.
Source: dehir.hu | Photo credit: Debrecen városa (Facebook)

