The Forum offers a high level opportunity to discuss the following issues starting with keynote presentations from the Commission and industry speakers, and responses from panel members on a number of challenges faced by the agriculture and life sciences in the future – looking 10 - 20 years ahead.

What has made the Universities/Faculties of Life Sciences unique when compared to other related faculties/disciplines?  What of their delivered outcomes have defined this unique position?

• Do the Universities/Faculties of Life Sciences still have a unique position?
• Is it the result of their institute/faculty/departmental structures and the consequent staff recruitment policies?

What defining missions and structures should life science universities/ faculties develop to successfully meet the needs of the rural economy, and the food and non food chains?

• How to strengthen this unique profile and make it stronger compared to others?
• How to strengthen the core competences of Universities/Faculties of Life Sciences?
• How to get the incentives right in Universities/Faculties of Life Sciences which will result in achieving this stronger profile?

How to keep a strong profile in applied research and a good collaboration with the green sector, and still compete for research funding nationally and internationally to achieve research excellence?

• How to achieve and get recognition for excellence in applied research?
• How to manage the balance between the need to deliver research based teaching with the need to compete for research funding and achieve research excellence outcomes at the European and Global levels?
• Is there a move to research intensive staff and teaching only staff within universities falsifying the notion of delivery of research based teaching?