Over the past eight years, our research team has exemplified entrepreneurial leadership in higher education by spearheading a mission to support and grow Europe’s agri-food sector; a sector under immense pressure from climate change, digital disruption, and economic volatility. What began as a two person research team has grown into a dynamic, multidisciplinary team of six core researchers, with additional part-time roles created across multiple collaborative partnerships in Europe.
Our team has established international connections and are advancing research to promote agri-food entrepreneurship across Europe, Vietnam, Singapore, and Ukraine, reflecting a growing vision, global reach, and deepening impact. To date, we have secured €2.7million in research funding, led eight Erasmus+ funded projects focused on strengthening Europe’s agri-food sector through entrepreneurial education, and have been invited to partner on several European projects.
In Ireland, we successfully secured over €500,000 to design and deliver a Food Innovation and Entrepreneurship course (2017-23) tailored to the entrepreneurial training needs of Irish food producers. This model was later adapted with Irish Aid funding to train 90 female food entrepreneurs in Vietnam. Our research has been shared globally in the US, Australia, Vietnam, Singapore, and Europe through publications and presentations at international conferences.
We are commited to equipping educators, learners, farmers, and food producers with the entrepreneurial knowledge, practical skills, and innovative mindset required to navigate a sector in transition. Through co-designed, experiential courses, digital toolkits, and strategic partnerships with educators and stakeholders, we have embedded entrepreneurial education in the agri-food landscape which is traditionally an under-served area in higher education.
Our approach is underpinned by a vision to not just observe change, but to lead it by cultivating entrepreneurial capacity within the communities that sustain our food systems.
