23 May 2024, Ljubljana: FAO Director-General QU Dongyu today visited Slovenia’s National Institute of Biology (NIB) where he met with staff and researchers working in the fields of biotechnology, and organisms and ecosystems research.
“Science–based solutions are essential in achieving sustainable agrifood systems transformation. As the main United Nations specialized agency for food and agriculture, FAO is committed to working with the Slovenian Government and the NIB to support scientists in their efforts to promote knowledge-sharing.With about 190 employees, the NIB is one of the independent Public Research Institutions for Life Sciences in Slovenia. Activities taking place at the NIB are related to the environment, agriculture, food and as well as human health. An important milestone in the history of the Institute was the establishment of the Marine Biological Station Piran (MBSP) on the Adriatic coast in Piran in 1969 and its recent upgrading into a modern research facility in 2006. The focus of the MBSP is ecological research, particularly interdisciplinary research concerning coastal seas.
Other NIB research programmes take place within the Department of Organisms and Ecosystems Research, Department of Genetic Toxicology and Cancer Biology, Department of Biotechnology and Systems Biology and focus on topics ranging from viruses, plant and animal species to humans and their environment.
The FAO Director-General’s visit to Slovenia coincided with his participation in the first International Forum for Action on Sustainable Beekeeping and Pollination organized by FAO and the Government of Slovenia.
He also held bilateral meetings with Slovenia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, HE Tanja Fajon and the country’s Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food, HE Mateja Čalušić.
