Strategic Plan EAAP 2012-2015

The strategic plan for EAAP will be the basis for leading the association for the next four years. To develop a strategy and working plan to meet these challenges, EAAP created a Strategic Planning Committee. The first meeting of the Strategic Planning Committee was held in Stavanger during the last annual session in 2011, then successive versions circulated among the different EAAP bodies until the 139th Council Meeting, then the General Assembly of 29 August 2012.

All country and individual members should appropriate this plan and be involved in its application. The Strategic Plan is the affair of everyone, from the president to the individual members, through the Council, the Committees and Country representatives should feel responsible for its application.

Addressing the changes in the livestock industry, the place of animal production in the society, the fast development of animal science, and the budget constraints in more European countries will be critical for the future of EAAP and the European animal science community.

The main activities to meet future challenges were identified and fell under the following categories:

• Dissemination
• Promoting and help
• Annual meeting
• Facility
• Young scientists
• Interface and interaction
• EAAP brand

For each of these main categories we described the relevant aspects and actions to take.

Dissemination

One of the most important responsibilities of EAAP is to disseminate animal science and related research results. The academic community and feed and livestock industries have a need for animal science research results that EAAP can and must satisfy. Other important groups to whom EAAP should focus their attention on include: young scientists, graduate students, animal agricultural teachers, NGOs, regulators, and policy makers. This last group is becoming more important also because international trade of animal products is expected to increase in the future and because NGOs are enlarging their relevance. Proper dissemination gives a very central role to EAAP. The importance of disseminating to a wider public is a duty of animal scientists.

The annual meeting is one of the most important tools for dissemination to primarily academicians, young scientists, graduate students, regulatory scientists, and industry stakeholders. In the next years EAAP needs to continue to improve the annual meeting and to open it to new participants, especially policy makers.

The journal ANIMAL, like ANIMAL FRONTIERS and ADVANCES IN ANIMAL BIOSCIENCES are also important tools for dissemination; while ANIMAL and ADVANCES are mainly relevant for scientists, ANIMAL FRONTIERS is more focus on industry, agriculture teachers and policy makers. During the next strategic plan these tools should continue to increase their quality in terms of contents and their dissemination within their readership. An active, coordinated approach among the Council, the Scientific Committee and the Secretariat will be required to successfully accomplish the objective.

Besides the annual meeting, workshops and the peer reviewed publications (journals), other tools including websites, scientific and technical series books, networking chat group sessions and other more current devices like podcasts and social networks (i.e. Apps, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.) should be leveraged.

Promote and help

Areas of regional and global concern such as sustainable animal production systems, animal welfare, food security, technology use, animal food and feed safety, multidiscipline holistic approaches to key problems identified by EAAP’s stakeholders needs to be promoted by the Scientific Committee at the annual meeting as well as in workshops. EAAP should seek out collaborative relationships with other scientific societies in order to meet the aforementioned goal. Cooperation with societies having a current relationship with EAAP should be strengthened.

EAAP has a social responsibility and it must work not only in dissemination of research results but also in the promotion of the relevance of animal production in society. To obtain this objective EAAP can organize meetings and workshops outside the annual meeting and invite the participation of policy makers, NGO’s and society representations.

EAAP must enhance its role so as to act as a platform for “Excellence in Innovation in Livestock Production” based on sound science.

Annual Meeting

The annual meeting is the main focus of EAAP activities. It is the main annual European meeting of animal science and the second in the world, in terms of attendance and importance. In the last ten years the annual meeting realized an increase in the number of participating young scientists, and industry groups. Enhanced industry involvement in planning, sponsorship, and scientific sharing and discussion and an updated structure should be achieved. Additional improvements in the annual meeting should be pursued through enhancing quality of science offered and by enlarging the network of EAAP stakeholders network. Increased country member and individual member involvement is required to achieve these objectives. The Council and the Secretariat should improve the decision making structure of the annual session. The format of Scientific Committee needs to be reviewed and updated to successfully address the existing and new challenges. These changes will be done after a large consultation of all the EAAP committees during the first year of the strategic plan.

The annual meeting must play a larger role in addressing societal industry concerns and educating policy makers. Furthermore themes should take on a multidisciplinary approach. Addressing scientific issues using a system approach should also be envisaged.

Facility

EAAP has already been active for some years in EU projects, which helps disseminate the activities and research of the European animal science community. The support from the EU to these projects helps create proper facilities. The proposition of associating EAAP for achieving the dissemination tasks of the EU projects build by their members should be encouraged. EAAP must build new competencies and improve the reputation of ANIMAL, as one of the premier animal science journals in the world to better serve the animal science community. EAAP should encourage the European scientists to submit their best manuscripts in ANIMAL. EAAP should continue to participate in projects and to enlarge the organization of specific relevant workshops. EAAP should increase the involvement of scientists, technicians and extension services in all its activities. EAAP should also play a role in keeping animal production on the EU research and innovation agenda, namely in “Horizon 2020”, also linking with Animal Task Force and another relevant organizations.

Young Scientists

EAAP needs to work hard to increase the involvement of the young scientists including graduate students to provide opportunities and venues for development of their European animal science network and their scientific careers. Propositions for reduced inscription fees to EAAP for PhD students should be developed, as it is done in other main animal science societies. Further development of the poster session (e.g. “guided poster tours”) will also facilitate for young scientists to build networks.

Interface and Interaction

EAAP must work to create a good interface between academia and industry and, obviously, between academia and society. EAAP should be structured and well organized to improve the relative interactions. Other important interfaces in which EAAP should be active are between civil societies and animal production and also between animal production and media. EAAP should be active in improvement of interactions between animal scientists and NGOs especially in the fields of animal welfare, food and feed safety, food security, environmental issues and consumers’ issues. EAAP must work hard to be more open and transparent to society, media, regulators, and policy makers. EAAP should also work more closely with livestock industry chains, feed companies, pharmaceutical industry and especially retail trade for they more often dictate animal welfare, animal health programmes, product specifications and prices. We must work closely with them trying to influence their agendas. It is very important to notice that main concerns of governments around Europe seem to revolve around animal welfare, food safety and environmental standards. All interactions should be based on sound science. “Animal Frontiers” is a good example of a tool to reach this goal.

EAAP Brand

The EAAP brand must be protected and disseminated for strengthening the importance of its activities. The EAAP brand should become easily recognizable and represent a symbol of relevance and scientific integrity in animal science. EAAP should be an advocate for science based solutions at EU and individual country levels.

Additional items

• To better achieve the necessary objectives EAAP will make necessary use of Service EAAP S.r.l. that is the business company fully belonging to EAAP. Service EAAP S.r.l. will operate for some specific activities, like management of publications, sponsorships, scholarships and organization of meetings and workshops.
• The name of EAAP’s journal, ANIMAL, should be the brand of a highly recognized and reputable international journal.
• EAAP should contribute to include/build new scientific competences relevant to the animal sciences.
• Membership. Each member should see the usefulness of being a member also to receive press release and news through the Newsletter.

MISSION

To promote discussion, debate and dissemination of high quality and relevant animal science amongst the scientific communities and bodies with interests in livestock production.

VISION

• To be the world’s leading dissemination channel for European animal science researchers
• To represent European animal science community
• To be the most important network for animal science and feed and livestock industry and policy representatives

SWOT Analysis

Strengths

• Recognized role in Europe
• Large participation in annual meeting
• Expertise and commitment of volunteer scientists and staff
• Journals and Magazine
• Small staff
• Collaboration with North-American societies of Animal Science

Weaknesses

• Low annual budget and economic difficulties of members
• Lack of feeling of affiliation and poor involvement of field and industry scientists and technicians
• Language barriers
• Small staff
• Low proportion of young scientist participation

Opportunities

• The growing demand for animal products, simultaneous demand for improved sustainability and environmental friendly type of production, creates a
   much stronger need for innovation and sound policy-making
• Modern tools for exploring animal genetics and physiology
• Increase importance of networking also with modern tools and connection between science and industry and policy makers
• Internationalization of animal science
• Influence policy based on sound science
• Necessity to respond to the perception opinion of animal production for welfare and pollution issues
• Enhance the quality of presentations and journal articles

Threats

• Budget cuts for public research and privatization of research
• Lack of perception for the importance of agriculture themes
• Increased specialization of specific animal science discipline
• Competition from other scientific associations for participation in meetings and workshops and publication in their journals

 

Main operations to be developped during the Strategic Plan

Governance and Finance	Technical Activities	Role and Representation
·  Develop and maintain through regular review, a robust and transparent EAAP strategy commensurate with the Mission and Vision statements ·  Update the Scientific Committee while maintaining the committment of their members ·  Manage risks of economic problems related to membership ·  Structure the competency and capacity of the organization ·  Ensure resources for delivery of strategy ·  Implement properly individual memberships ·  Improve the feed back and decision making from members and stakeholders	·  Improve and strengthen dissemination methods and quality o     Journals o     Annual meeting o     Electronic and Social tools ·  Maintain role for participating in international projects ·  Support animal science ·  Support developmental opportunities for young scientists	·  Strengthen the EAAP brand ·  Improve international communication and cooperation with other societies ·  Improve delivery of services for animal scientists (both inside and outside of individual members) ·  Improve communication and interactions with the key stakeholders ·  Cooperate closely with groups having complementary vision

 

Annual Goals

The attainement of the annual goals and the goals for the forthcoming years should be analysed every year by the Council who will help to prioritize the goals
 

	2012	2013	2014	2015
Membership	·    Keep the country members to 38 ·    Re-organize individual members within EAAP countries	·  1 country members addition ·  re-organize the individual memberships for non EAAP countries	·  150 individual members from non EAAP countries	·  1 country members addition ·  250 individual members from non EAAP countries
EU Projects	1 new project	1 new project	1 new project	1 new project
Publications	·  Animal – gets the 8th position in the rank of general animal science journal based on impact factor rating ·  Animal Frontiers – find 3 supporters in Europe	·  Animal - reaches the 7th position in the rank of general animal science journal based on impact factor rating ·  Animal Frontiers – find 5 supporters in Europe	·  Animal - reaches the 6th position in the rank of general animal science journal based on impact factor rating ·  Animal Frontiers – find 8 supporters in Europe	· Animal – reaches the 5th position in the rank of general animal science journal based on impact factor rating · Animal Frontiers – find 10 supporters in Europe
Dissemination	·  Update the Scientific Committee ·  900 participants at the annual meeting ·  3 sponsors from industries related to EAAP	·  1200 participants at the annual meeting ·  7 sponsors from industries related to EAAP	·  1200 participants at the annual meeting ·  10 sponsors from industries related to ·  EAAP ·  Organizing 1 workshop through Service EAAP	·   1200 participants at the annual meeting ·   13 sponsors from industries related to EAAP ·   Organizing 2 workshops through Service EAAP
Young Scientists	·  Offer 8 scholarships ·  Plan a structure to attract young scientists to EAAP activities and attendance at annual meeting	·  Offer 10 scholarships ·  Increase young scientist attendance at the annual meeting by 10%	·  Offer 15 scholarships ·  Increase young scientist attendance at the annual meeting by 10% ·  The structure a group of EAAP young scientists is operating	·  Offer 20 scholarships ·  Increase young scientist attendance at the annual meeting by 10%
Interface and Interactions	·  Create a structure of industry supporting member	·  Organize 1 workshop to meet the interests of industry and science interactions ·  Achieve 5 supporting industry members	·  Organize 1 workshop to meet the interests of industry and science interactions ·  Create links with media to disseminate animal science results and views ·  Achieve 10 supporting industry members	·  Organize 1 workshop to meet the interests of industry and science interactions ·  Organize a workshop with relevant NGOs to establish interactions ·  Achieve 15 supporting industry members