News archive
Diversity
(M@ngfold) (a
email-newsletter) December
2005
Read
what is new from the different sectores
New broschure about:
Forest Genetic Resource Management in Finland
Read
the pdf-document here
Diversity
(M@ngfold) (a
email-newsletter) October
2005
Read
what is new from the different sectores
Welcome
in for art and food
The Nordic Council of Ministers
will be welcoming night owls of all ages to Culture Night in the
yard at Store Strandstræde 18 from 18- 24:00 tonight. First
Peder Jansson will open his art exhibition - after which Nordic
food will be served up.
For
more information (NCM)
Healthy food and happy children in Copenhagen
The back yard at the Nordic
Council of Ministers in Copenhagen was a hive of activity today,
full of sounds and smells never before experienced there as 700
children were introduced to healthy food from the Nordic countries.
For
more information (NCM)
Forests an important Nordic
asset
The Nordic forests are more important than people realise as a
way of making a living and as a recreational facility. The Nordic
ministers and secretaries of state responsible for forestry signed
an agreement about the importance of the forests in the Nordic
Region yesterday at the end of a conference organised by the Nordic
Council of Ministers in Nødebo, Denmark, to discuss the
importance of forestry to local communities.
For
more information (NCM)
Diversity
(M@ngfold) (a
email-newsletter) August
2005
Read
what is new from the different sectores
Nordic
GENEresources 2005
With this issue of Nordic GENEresources,
we wish to present some
of the diverse activities aimed at securing our genetic cultural
heritage. While some are utilising genes, others are freezing
them and have developed data systems to enable the future use
of these genetic resources.
World
heritage in the Nordic Region
“World Heritage in
the Nordic Region 2004” is the name of a report published
by the Nordic Council of Ministers as part of the follow-up
to the UNESCO convention for the protection of the world’s
cultural
and natural heritage. The report serves as an introduction to
work on World Heritage in the Nordic Region – and looks
at a number of the sites that are of particular value and are,
therefore, on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
For
more information
Diversity
(M@ngfold) (a
email-newsletter) April
2005
Read
what is new from the different sectores
Seminar
- The Belly Rebellion
8 March,
10 am –10 pm in Copenhagen
The rally is for women who work with food, who are interested
in the various contexts that food is a part of, who carry out
food research, who cook, who grow ecological foods, who are members
of groups or organizations that work with food. In short: Most
women.
For
more information
Calendar
2005 
We have the pleasure of
providing you with a calendar for 2005 –
free of charge. The calendar contains photos of Nordic farm animals,
crops and forest trees, with captions in English, Finnish and
Norwegian. Each month’s photo can also be sent as a postcard.
We have sent the calendar to many of our contacts. However,
if you haven’t received a copy, or would like to have more,
send an e-mail to: Liv
Lønne Dille
Diversity (Mangfold)
(a email-newsletter) December
2004
Read
what is new from the different sectores
"The Nordic Region in a New Era - Knowledge, dynamism and
co-operation"
Denmark's
Presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers 2005
As President of the Nordic Council of Ministers 2005, Denmark
is responsible for inter-governmental co-operation in the Nordic
Region. The theme for the Presidency programme is "The Nordic
Region in a New Era - knowledge, dynamism and co-operation".
For
more information
Genetic resources on the agenda in Rome
The
FAO held its tenth regular session of the Commission on Genetic
Resources for Food and Agriculture in Rome on 8-12 November 2004.
The Nordic Council of Ministers participated, together with the
Nordic Gene Bank, the Nordic Gene Bank Farm Animals and the Nordic
Gene Resource Council.
Read more about the Commission
and its future plans
New Nordic Cuisine Symposium
Food
and ’the meal’ is an important part of our identity
and the New Nordic Cuisine Symposium is an initiative, which focuses
on developing the Nordic Kitchen as a vital and attractive kitchen.
The purpose of the New Nordic Cuisine Symposium is to utilize
and develop the various local potentials and seriously relate
to taste, traditional livestock, health, traditions and new experiments.
For more
information
Crop
trust to Conserve Plant Diversity
Rich and Poor Nations Sign on to Save Seeds Worldwide;
21 October 2004 Rome, Italy - -The Global Crop Diversity Trust,
an initiative to conserve in perpetuity the Earth’s most
crucial agricultural biodiversity, entered into force today as
an independent international organization.
The Trust crossed a major milestone when Sweden signed the agreement establishing the Trust. This brings the number of signatories to 12 from 5 world regions, thus exceeding the criteria for recognition under international law. Sweden joins Cape Verde, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, Jordan, Mali, Morocco, Samoa, Syria, Tonga, and Togo as Trust signatories.
Along with its signature, Sweden
pledged 50 million kroners, about $7 million, to the Trust. The
Trust’s newest donor joins more than a dozen others, including
Ethiopia, one of the 10 poorest countries in the world, which
recently pledged $50,000. This money will go toward building a
$260 million Trust endowment, the proceeds of which will be used
to fund the most threatened and valuable collections of crop diversity.
For
more information (pdf-document)
The Nordic Council's Session 2004
Sustainable development is one
of the most important challenges of the 21st century. The Nordic
Prime Ministers have a specific mandate for this domain. The Nordic
Council and the Council of Ministers adopted a strategy for this
work in 2000 and this strategy has aroused attention far.
For
more information (Nordic Council
of Ministers)
Diversity (Mangfold)
(a email-newsletter) October
2004
Read
what is new from the different sectores
Nordic GENEresources 2004
It is becoming increasingly important
that these genetic resources
are managed sustainably,
especially since the traditional genetic material is no longer
adapted to the changing, constantly more efficient farming and
forestry methods. Since the mid-1970s, the Nordic Council of Ministers
has played an active role in the management of Nordic genes. Via
gene banks and conservation strategies for livestock, crops and
forest trees, the Council has
helped to prevent the loss of Nordic genetic material. In a joint
effort, we must ensure that the Nordic genetic resources are appreciated
and used more, both in a Nordic and an international context.
Furthermore, we must provide all stakeholders, decision-makers
and the general public with broader and better knowledge about
the value and importance of our genetic resources.
In
2004, Iceland will lead Nordic co-operation under the theme "Nordic
Resources".
"Nordic Resources" - Programme for the Icelandic Presidency
of the Nordic Council of Ministers 2004. Resources include the
structure of society, social conditions, cultural heritage and
natural resources. The principal resource is, however, the Nordic
people themselves, and the overall objective of the programme
is to develop and make better use of human resources and thereby
strengthen Nordic competitiveness internationally. The Nordic
Countries are rich in natural resources, untouched and diverse
wilderness as well as exploitable reserves. The structure of society
rests on a strong democratic foundation, democracy is alive and
well, there is widespread social wealth, a fruitful social debate
and thriving NGOs. Nordic resources are diverse and form the foundation
of Nordic welfare. This accounts for the strong position the Nordic
Countries hold in the international arena. These many resources
must be exploited to the full, to strengthen welfare and to secure
the countries' international prosperity.
The three main themes of the programme
are democracy, culture and nature, which are intertwined in a
variety of ways. The potential of human resources cannot be separated
from culture, social order and democratic tradition. In addition,
natural resources are inseparably linked to human resources, whose
knowledge and ingenuity are fundamental to creating new value
in the exploitation of nature.
For
more information (NMR)
Nordic Gene Bank
A
book on potato genetic resources in the Nordic countries
"Potatoes
in the Nordic countries" describes old Nordic potato varieties
and landraces from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden.
Each description is supplemented with colour pictures and information
on history, usage, quality and resistance traits. The book provides
also information on history of potato and potato breeding in the
Nordic region.
The book is written in the Scandinavian languages and Finnish
with English summaries of variety descriptions and articles. Helpful
synonym lists assist in identification of landraces. Gene bank
curators, potato researchers and breeders, botanists, potato growers
and gardeners will find the book an important information source
and key reference.
Nordic Genebank Farm Animals
NGH-genviten 1 2004 "Nordic Freerange Hens"
Hens from existing Nordic poultry strains will be tested
to see if they can achieve satisfactory egg production under freerange
conditions. Presumably, a hybrid based on breeding stock from
throughout the Nordic countries would be most suitable for organic
hen farming. A project group appointed by Nordic Gene Bank Farm
Animals (NGH) will not recommend the use of breeding stock before
the various strains have been compared under actual operating
conditions.
For
more information
The Nordic Council for Forest Reproductive Material
The Nordic Council for Forest Reproductive Material (NSFP) had
its spring meeting between 1st and 2nd April in the Icelandic
Horticultural College in Hveragerdi. NSFP is an umbrella organization
for the Nordic Network for Forest Tree Gene Conservation. The
functions and happenings of the first year of the Network were
presented in the meeting. The Nordic Council of Ministers has
accepted the budget proposal of NSFP, which includes funding of
the Network. This means that the Network can continue its newly
started work though evaluations of the Nordic strategies and on
going re-writing of the strategies can bring some changes.
