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The Centre for Social Studies (CES) of the University of Coimbra is part of FarmHeroes (Fostering Attractive and Resilient Farming through Generational Renewal), a new European research project that aims to use creative industries to change how society—and especially young people—views agriculture, thereby curbing the abandonment of the sector by new generations.

The project’s starting point is a paradox: today's youth, such as Generation Z, increasingly seek careers with social and ecological purpose, yet they continue to associate agriculture with isolated, precarious, and outdated work. This detachment has accelerated the lack of succession in family farms, putting Europe's very food sustainability at risk.

FarmHeroes proposes an unusual response to this problem: rather than approaching it solely from a technical or economic perspective, it argues that agriculture is, in itself, a creative activity. Through artistic residencies, festivals, and digital and video game tools, the project will give a voice to farmers and create new ways to bring the rural world closer to the young urban public, paving the way for new opportunities to settle in non-urban regions.

It is this component—mobilizing art and culture to reconnect the countryside and the city—that the CES team will primarily develop. This builds on the work already carried out in the European project IN SITU, which mapped the impact of the cultural sector on the development of rural territories, expanding its work on cross-sectoral collaborations and reflecting on how artists and farmers can, together, generate innovation and new business models.

A European consortium with direct links to Portuguese producers

Funded by the Horizon Europe program, FarmHeroes is coordinated by The James Hutton Institute (United Kingdom) and brings together 15 organizations from 13 European countries, including universities, research centers, European youth organizations, producer associations, and entities from the cultural sector.

In Portugal, this link between science and the field is established through the collaboration between CES, which is responsible for the scientific research, and CONFRAGI, which ensures direct contact with national producers.

The CES team is coordinated by Nancy Duxbury, a researcher with recognized international experience in the study of cultural and creative industries in non-urban territories, and also includes researchers Sílvia Ferreira, Sílvia Silva, and Paola Di Nunzio.

For CES and the University of Coimbra, participation in FarmHeroes reinforces a commitment to research with social impact and international reach, placing the social sciences and creative industries at the service of one of Europe’s greatest challenges: the valuation and future of food systems.