Articles by Hannes Lorenzen

Hannes Lorenzen
About Hannes Lorenzen
Hannes Lorenzen was senior adviser to the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development of the European Parliament in Brussels and Strasbourg from 1985 to 2019. Before starting his career in the European institutions, he carried out research, coordination and evaluation work on rural development projects with the Technical Service of the German Government. On the international level Hannes Lorenzen is co-founder of Genetic Resources Action International (www.grain.org) and co-president of the European Rural Development Network Forum Synergies (www.forum-synergies.eu). He is also co-founder of PREPARE, the "Partnership for Rural Europe" network for Central and Eastern European Member States (www.preparenetwork.org), serving as chairman and president until 2016. He co-founded ARC2020 and is its president since 2016. Closer to home, Hannes chairs a local rural development organization on his home island of Pellworm in North Friesland, Germany, which works o organic farming, renewable energy production, soft tourism and nature protection projects in a local dimension.
Latest from EU Member States

Catcher in the Rye: Breeding Diversity for Unpredictable Conditions

7 September, 2020 Hannes Lorenzen

The new EU organic regulation, to be implemented in 2022, promises new opportunities especially for young farmers to regain control and knowledge of local conservation, breeding, sustainable use and marketing of seeds fit for organic production. As part of the team that negotiated the new EU organic regulation, ARC2020 President Hannes Lorenzen is curious about how the new less restrictive conditions for organic seed production and marketing will impact breeders and farmers. He spoke to an organic plant breeder and a young farmer about their ideas on the future of seeds. […]

Latest from EU Member States

Germany | Islanders Go Digital

18 June, 2020 Hannes Lorenzen

If remote rural communities want to be part of the conversations that will shape their futures, the ability to connect with other projects and stakeholders is a crucial skill. For one island community, the coronavirus crisis was a crash course in online networking. Hannes Lorenzen reports on Eco-Week 2020 and the digital leap forward on his home island of Pellworm, Germany. […]

Latest from Brussels

Coping with Covid19 – Letter from a Brussels Lockdown

21 March, 2020 Hannes Lorenzen

In our part of the street, some 100 meters, live 21 nationalities – we counted that at our last summer street festival, sharing food from across the world. Now we share our songs at 8 pm from our balconies, giving applause to the doctors and nurses trying to save lives. We are all Italians at this moment. We know we are just at the beginning of a huge challenge. We have no idea what is still to come. […]

Latest from the ARC network

Stefan Doeblin Talks Organic Seeds

1 December, 2019 Hannes Lorenzen

The EU’s rules on certified organic seeds are finally due to change from 2021. Why is this happening, and what is the sector doing to prepare? Stefan Doeblin works in the development of organic seeds. Here Hannes Lorenzen interviews him on this fascinating topic. […]

Latest from EU Member States

Anders Borgen | Nurd of the Niche

17 September, 2019 Hannes Lorenzen

Anders Borgen has been an organic farmer for 35 years, and has for the past 15 years worked as a private organic plant breeder in Northern Jutland, Denmark. Hannes Lorenzen meet Anders Borgen at the European Cereal Diversity Conference in Kalö near Aarhus in Denmark to discuss organic regulations, cereal diversity and other matters. […]

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Rural dialogues – Let’s talk!

5 May, 2019 Hannes Lorenzen

Introducing our next debate series – rural dialogues. What is the state of play for rural Europe? Are rural places still lagging behind – forgotten, disadvantaged and in need of extra supports? Or is there a rural renaissance of sorts occurring, from smart villages to innovation hubs? Tell us what you know and let’s get talking! […]

Main stories

Towards Bhutan’s New Organic Food Movement

26 January, 2019 Hannes Lorenzen

In part 2 of this short series on the Kingdom of Bhutan Hannes Lorenzen talks with Kesang Choedon,who has created an innovative organic and heritage food enterprise near Thimphu, the Bhutanese capital. The enterprise includes processing of nearly 150 different organic food ingredients from a wide range of local products. Kesang is also a leading light in the countrie’s shift to total organic production. […]

Main stories

Bhutan | Spearheading a Transition to Organics?

17 January, 2019 Hannes Lorenzen

The Kingdom of Bhutan is best known for its high national happiness levels, gorgeous Buddhist monasteries, untouched forests and nature protection areas. Lesser known is that fifteen years ago, the small country in the Himalayan Mountains pledged a shift to total organic food production. ARC2020’s Hannes Lorenzen reports on the innovative entrepreneurs spearheading this transition. […]

Latest from EU Member States

Traditional Seed Rules – Oceans Apart

4 May, 2017 Hannes Lorenzen

As we build towards the European Rural Sustainability Gathering (ERSG) in Greece, 1 7-20th May, we publish now an exclusive interview with Shannon McCabe of Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company. This interview was conducted at the Peliti Olympic Seed Festival, which took place in Drama Greece last month. Peliti are co-organisers of the ERSG. […]

Latest from EU Member States

Seeds of System Change | Peliti & Greece’s Olympic Spirit

26 April, 2017 Hannes Lorenzen

In the build up to the Forum Synergies European Rural Sustainability Gathering 17-20th May, we continue our focus on grassroots initiatives in Greece. Here, we talk to Panagiotis Sainatoudis and Vasso Kanellopoulou. The chat happened at the 17th seed festival of Peliti and the first international Olympic Seed festival in Peliti, Drama, Greece 20-22 April. […]