FITONET Operational Group: Development of a digital environment and living laboratories to enhance plant genetic resources of agricultural interest

• Incorporation of useful information for farmers' use of materials through an information system that captures their characteristics, farmers' knowledge, evaluation results, crop performance, and data collected in the Collections Network Inventory.
• Development and distribution of a user-friendly and dynamic app that connects farmers, associations, and businesses with researchers and that provides feedback on all the information generated by users.
• Selection of the most suitable varieties of corn, rye, and spelt for cultivation and study of hypoallergenic wheat varieties with a very low capacity to induce allergies and intolerances. Agronomic and immunogenetic characteristics will be analyzed, and crop problems will be incorporated into FitoNet by farmers using the app.
• Farmers and agri-food processors who are not part of the operational group will be incorporated into the dynamic and open network thanks to the dissemination of the app and pilot experiences.

Dissemination outcome 1: Effective and efficient communication strategy

DESCRIPTION: FITONET's communication strategy is based on the definition of responsibilities and clear guidelines, both with regard to internal and external communication, corporate identity and design of dissemination materials, definition of the strategy for website development, communication strategy according to the target audience, as well as planning.

MAIN RESULTS OF DISCLOSURE RESULT 1:
Within this disclosure result 1 the main activities and their results have been:

• Act. 1.1. Steering Committee: This committee was created by Agrofor-CSIC and held in-person meetings. This committee is composed of the five partners of the operational group.
• Act. 1.2. Bimonthly communications: In this case, Agrofor-CSIC has been responsible for conducting bimonthly online communications to ensure monitoring of project activities (progress, risks, results).
• Act. 1.3. External Communication: BIOVEGEN was responsible for creating the corporate image (logo and a roller) for the project.
• Act.1.4. Databases: BIOVEGEN has also spearheaded the creation of databases for outreach activities (compliance with the LOPD) using member entities' databases. These databases contain all the target audience's interest groups.

Outcome 2: In-person outreach activities

DESCRIPTION: The in-person outreach activities are aimed at encouraging GO participation in regional, national, and international events (scientific conferences, trade fairs, training forums, seminars, etc.) in the sector.

MAIN RESULTS OF DISCLOSURE RESULT 2:
Within this disclosure result 2 the main activities and their results have been:

• Event 2.1. Type 1 Outreach Event: Technical workshop on: What are plant genetic resources? Where are they found? How can they be used? What do they contribute? Target audience: farmers and industry producers. This workshop showcased the project's midterm results.
• Act. 2.2. Type 2 Outreach Events: Technical workshop on biodiversity as a system for optimizing farms in the face of climate change. This workshop was aimed at farmers, technicians, and managers. The workshop included a presentation of the final results of the project.
• Act. 2.3. Type 3 Outreach Events: Training forum on established good agricultural practices. Target audience: general and specific audiences. Content: The speakers are farmers themselves, presenting innovations and established good agricultural practices that serve as an example to the rest of the production sector.
• Act. 2.4. Type 4 Events: Participation of the GO in scientific and technical conferences where the progress made by the innovative project to date is presented. This category includes examples of this type of meetings in which the SIMBIOLIVA GO has participated: Congress on Plant Genetic Improvement (CMGP2024) (September 24, 25, and 26, 2024, Cáceres), Meeting on Plant Molecular Biology (RBMP2024) (July 3, 4, and 5, 2024, Castellón de la Plana).
• Act. 2.5. Type 5 Events: GO participation in industrial fairs where the innovative project's progress to date is presented. This category includes examples of this type of meeting: FRUIT ATTRACTION 2022 (4, 5 and 6 October 2022, Madrid), BIOSTIMULANTS EUROPE CONFERENCE 2022 (30 November and 1 December 2022, Seville), TRANSFIERE 2023 (15 and 16 February 2023, Malaga), BIOPESTICIDES EUROPE CONFERENCE 2023 (6 June 2023, Brussels), FRUIT ATTRACTION 2023 (October 2023, Madrid), MICROBIOMA 2023 (November 2023, Murcia), TRANSFIERE 2024 (20, 21 and 22 March 2024, Malaga), BIOPESTICIDES EUROPE CONFERENCE 2024 (5 and 6 June 2024, Barcelona), FRUIT ATTRACTION 2024 (8, 9 and October 10, 2024, Madrid).
• Act 2.6. Networking with other GOs: Participation of other GOs in GO FITONET activities and vice versa, with the aim of strengthening potential synergies and amplifying the common benefits between cross-cutting projects.

Outcome 3: Digital outreach activities

DESCRIPTION: Digital outreach activities are aimed at improving GO's presence in various virtual media such as the SIMBIOLIVA website, social networks, newsletters, etc.

MAIN RESULTS OF DISCLOSURE RESULT 3:
Within this disclosure result 3 the main activities and their results have been:

• Act. 3.1. Creation of the GO FITONET OWN WEBSITE.
• Act 3.2. Creation of the SOCIAL MEDIA PROFILES (LinkedIn, X -with your own hashtag #FITONET-, Instagram) of GO FITONET.
• Act. 3.3. Creation of GO FITONET's OWN YOUTUBE ACCOUNT, which will host recordings of virtual performances.
• Act. 3.4. Virtual sessions developed specifically for virtual format. These meetings focused on specific content and were short (≈2 hours) to facilitate attendee participation.
• Act. 3.5. Amplification of the dissemination of GO FITONET through the websites of all project members, which contain direct links to the OWN WEBSITE and to the SOCIAL MEDIA and YOUTUBE of GO FITONET.
• Act. 3.6. Newsletters coordinated by BIOVEGEN and distributed (and available for download) via:
  • The DATABASES of all GO FITONET members, the GO FITONET's OWN WEBSITE and the websites of all GO members.
  • GO FITONET'S OWN SOCIAL MEDIA and social media of all GO members.
• Act. 3.7. Emailing all materials (presentations, recordings, curriculum vitae, etc.) used during in-person outreach activities to attendees.

Dissemination outcome 4: Dissemination actions through publications

DESCRIPTION: The following publications have been aimed at disseminating, among industry stakeholders, the opportunities arising from the project's results and promoting its implementation in the sector's business environment. As in the previous phase, the communication objectives of the GO and those of the call for proposals were taken into account, and therefore various actions were carried out to reach the various identified audiences. All dissemination actions met the information and publicity requirements required in the call for proposals.

MAIN RESULTS OF DISCLOSURE RESULT 4:
Within this disclosure result 4 the main activities and their results have been:

• Act. 4.1. Technical publications:
  • Informative brochure with information about the members, the objective and the activities of the GO.
  • Publication of informative articles on GO in specialized industry magazines.
• Act. 4.2. Media:
  • Design and preparation of press releases containing the status of the GO and progress of the innovative project. These documents were disseminated through other online and offline tools and sent to various media outlets, including print and radio.

Outreach Outcome 5: Monitoring outreach activities

DESCRIPTION: This outcome focused on monitoring the outreach activities described previously in the other outreach outcomes. This monitoring was carried out through press clippings.

MAIN RESULTS OF DISCLOSURE RESULT 5:
Within this disclosure result 5 the main activities and their results have been:

• Act. 5.1. Preparation of press clippings and follow-up reports for each result related to dissemination. These clippings/reports have been published on the GO's own website and social media, and, in turn, on the websites and social media of GO members.