High in the heart of the Pamir-Alai mountain system, the Almosi Valley of Tajikistan appears, at first glance, an almost impossible place for agriculture. Characterized by steep gradients and the harsh climate of the Hisor Range, this landscape is anything but forgiving. Yet, nestled just 37 kilometres from the capital city of Dushanbe, a resilient and integrated way of life has sustained nearly 59 000 people across 49 villages for centuries.

Today marks the conclusion of a series of trainings on African swine fever and stamping-out measures conducted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in the Western Balkans.

The trainings were held in Albania, Kosovo, and Montenegro, with support from national experts and veterinary services. An ASF expert from Latvia shared practical experience on stamping-out procedures. 

The Amalfi lemon grows in a landscape as distinctive as its flavour. For nearly a thousand years, farmers have worked in harmony with nature to carve arable land from the sheer slopes of Italy’s Amalfi Coast, planting lemon groves, olives and vines along narrow ribbons of stone-walled terraces that cling to the mountainsides. 
FAO recognized the Amalfi Lemon Gardens as a GIAHS in August 2025. The designation acknowledges this unique system as a cultural treasure but also a model of resilience worth protecting. 

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has developed a land degradation neutrality strategy and local action plans for community and agricultural lands across 32 localities in three districts of the Republic of Moldova. The initiative aims at improving soil health, enhancing sustainability and supporting long-term agricultural resilience in the pilot districts of Orhei, Rezina and Șoldănești. The strategy was designed in response to the country’s accelerating land degradation, which poses a serious threat to the agricultural sector. 

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has released the National gender profile of agriculture and rural livelihoods: Republic of Tajikistan, examining the causes and impacts of gender inequality in agriculture and rural development and offering recommendations for more inclusive and gender-responsive policies and practices.

Zarnigor Yakubova has been surrounded by bees for most of her life. Growing up in a small village in Boʻstonliq district, in the mountainous region of Uzbekistan, she helped her father with the family’s beekeeping work. What began as a family routine became a skill she quietly carried with her into adulthood.

In 2023, Zarnigor was approached by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to join the Leaving No One Behind project, supported by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Türkiye. The project economically empowers rural women by providing them with access to agricultural knowledge, tools and peer networks.

At first glance, the volcanic landscape of Lanzarote, in Spain’s Canary Islands, looks anything but fertile. The island is dry and harsh, blanketed in layers of black lapilli — fine volcanic gravel and ash — left behind by massive eruptions nearly three centuries ago. But look closer, and a different story emerges: green shoots of grapevines rise from black ash pits; strawberries and sweet potatoes thrive in soil that appears lifeless.

The European Forestry Commission (EFC) will meet in Istanbul, Türkiye, from 22 to 25 October to review and coordinate regional strategies on forests and the forest industry, with a specific focus on innovation. The session, coordinated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), will bring together government officials and representatives of international organizations, civil society and the private sector to discuss a wide range of issues.

This year’s World Food Day theme, “Hand in Hand for Better Foods and a Better Future”, calls for global cooperation to ensure a peaceful, sustainable, prosperous and food-secure future. To highlight the day’s significance, Nadire Hasani, a woman from Frashër/Svinjare village in South Mitrovica, Kosovo, shared her experience in farming and community development. Her story embodies the spirit of collaboration and perseverance. With more than 15 years of experience in growing and processing vegetables, Nadire Hasani is part of an increasing number of rural women turning small-scale farming into a promising business. 

Aggressive and invasive plant species continue to undermine biodiversity, ecosystem safety and sustainable land management in Europe and Central Asia. Both forest ecosystems and urban green spaces face ecological imbalance, loss of native species, increased fire risk and human health risk due to allergies, not to mention the emerging costs of mitigating these effects. To this end, forest and urban landscape managers, policymakers, scientists and civil society representatives came together from 13 to 16 October 2025 at the Forest Invasive Species Network for Europe and Central Asia (REUFIS) technical workshop and annual meeting to address the escalating threat posed by invasive plant species across the region.