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1. Introduction
Following the analysis of the findings from the literature review and field research activities there is a strong need to train and upgrade rural young people to become attractive, employable and to take up central positions in the circular and regenerative economy.
Adapted training material will be further described and developed for practical implementation within our project. The training material will provide young / women NEETs with a package of digital learning resources designed based on the concept of micro-learning: short and coherent learning nuggets delivered in multimedia formats aiming to promote blended learning methodologies. The digital learning nuggets will include a variety of resources such as interactive games, podcasts, e-learning videos, interactive case studies, infographic resources, etc.

Digital Divide: lack of digital education of farmers
According to Eurostat, only a 54% of adults in Europe (aged 16 to 74) are digitally literate. This grade impacts the European Union greatly, as it hugely impacts the way citizens access and process information, as well as many other things. Unfortunately, this percentage is highly linked with demographics as, mainly, digital literacy is correlated with income and education. Even though this is a problem for all citizens, when we apply this to farmers, we can easily find that they are one of the most disadvantaged affected groups of population. Although, in this case, the most serious part isn’t not understanding how to use smartphones, an internet browser, or social media, but also the access to the information of the available technology that is not only going to save them time and resources, but also money.
Farmers work protracted hours while making a huge physical effort, expose themselves to polluted air and extreme weather conditions, and more. Technology is an answer to ease up these conditions, lessening their dangers and promoting the acquisition of new skills, improve their ability to self-organize and receive assistance and overall, improve their working conditions. Also, moving forward on this subject ensures more productive farms.

But what is the “digital divide” and why does it matter?
This term refers to the disparities in skills related to the practical and correct use of the available technology. That is, cognitive and technical skills, but also internet connection.
When it comes to rural areas, also named “low settled areas”, Eurostat says that even though there was a vertiginous growth from 2013 to 2021, only the 37% of its population have internet access.
Technology has proven multiple times to have the power to upgrade many traditionally analogical industries in a way that makes work safer, more accurate, and faster. Tackling the digital divide is important because it contributes to the critical processing and validation of new information, to ensure access to healthcare, to promote the adaptation to innovative new technologies in their field of work, favor connection between farmers and networking to increase their business opportunities, among other things. However, this will only be possible through practice in order to get familiar with all its possibilities and boost their digital literacy.
All in all, every innovative technological upgrade intends on improving the quality and sustainability of the produced goods, earn money for the farmers in the long-run, ensuring safer working conditions and save time for the growers, even though this implies certain level of specialization for the hired workers.
Now that we have stated the benefits of adapting to the new technological possibilities in this field of work, we will begin to point out the different identified challenges of technology in agriculture, in order to make all of the participants aware of the weak points to take into account and, also, how to overcome them.
Large investment in infrastructure and technologies
We will first manage the necessary investment in infrastructure and technologies.
Not everyone has access to new technologies or the option of digitalizing their businesses due to financial reasons. Even in Western countries like the United States, only a quarter of its farms use connected equipment or devices to access data. However, this is the first necessary step in order



to achieve the digital optimization of this field of work, as an improvement in this area will add more than $500 billion to global gross domestic product by 2030, together with a productivity improvement of 7 to 9 per cent.
Source: McKinsey & Company. “Agriculture’s connected future: How technology can yield new growth”. Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/agriculture/our-insights/agricultures-connected-future-how-
technology-can-yield-new-growth
The radical transformation agriculture has gone through in the last 50 years has been able to expand the productivity of this sector, with special regard to data and connectivity. Artificial Intelligences, sensors and other emerging technologies improve harvesting, and contribute to sustainability and resilience. However, without a proper connectivity infrastructure, these changes cannot become a reality.
Therefore, the industry needs to address two main challenges: the development of connectivity infrastructure; and in the cases where connectivity is already in place, a leap in further quality



must be taken. The introduction of these new tools will provide farmers with new capabilities, like: massive internet of Things; mission-critical services; and near-global coverage.
Available options
When it comes to available options both nationally and internationally, we find several interesting opportunities. First of all, crop monitoring is one of the most powerful tools available, as it can further enhance the observation and care of crops by providing farmers with useful information about weather data, irrigation or nutrient, among others. Sensors can help workers in their daily tasks by improving their capacity to predict deficiencies; maximizing the revenue of its crops by paying more attention to the quality of the products; or getting early warning on diseases, pests, natural disasters, and so on.
Secondly, livestock monitoring is another technique that must be taken into account. By implementing chips and body sensors to animals, farmers can easily get information about their temperature, pulse, or blood pressure in order to detect illnesses beforehand. This technology will bring numerous advantages, such as the prevention of herd infections, the tracing of disease outbreaks, the improvement food quality and the enhancement of the living conditions of animals.
An appropriate management of the inventory can definitely make a difference, and that is why a good building and equipment management is paramount to save costs. Employing chips and sensors to monitor and measure warehouses and barns can dramatically reduce inventory costs, post-harvest losses and energy consumption, as well as improve storage conditions and save time to farmers, by automatically reordering what is necessary.
The extensive benefits of farming by drone have already been experimented in several countries around the globe. This new technology not only helps to spray fields more easily, but it also brings a more efficient way of surveying crops and herds thanks to the transferring of real-time data to other interconnected machinery.
Finally, a considerable way of boosting the autonomy of machinery through better connectivity can be achieved with autonomous farming machinery. With highly precise GPS technology,



together with computer vision and sensors, workers can use their equipment without human intervention.
Climate-Smart Agriculture
For some decades now, the steady rise of temperatures, together with an increasing percentage of the world population – nearly 690 million people today - facing hunger, is raising concern about how to achieve food security, as well as about how to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) and carbon emissions. Thus, with the growing of the global population, the draining of seas and lakes, and the lack of available land and farming inputs, humanity is facing a problem that needs immediate answers. Climate change is a key issue to be tackled in order to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and transforming the existing agricultural systems is crucial for that purpose.
Similarly, our agricultural practices are seriously harming the environment, too. Agriculture generates between 19% and 29% of the total GHG emissions, it consumes over 90% of the world’s water, and food produced globally has been proved to be inefficiently distributed, since a third of it is lost or wasted, causing more people to starve every day. Consequently, since around 2.5 billion people worldwide depend on agriculture for their subsistence, we need to make substantial investments to adapt our approach to mitigate climate change and achieve food security.
What are our alternatives?
This evolution in agriculture must be attained through integrated, multispectral approaches that are gender-transformative, inclusive, environmentally-friendly and supportive of the most disadvantaged sectors of society. Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) meets all these requirements. This integrated approach, coined by the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), aims to tackle three main issues:
• Mitigation. CSA is committed to minimizing GHG emissions and avoiding deforestation.
• Adaptation. The goal is to help farmers adapt to short-term risks and long-term stresses.



Another crucial objective is to protect the ecosystem in order to maintain productivity.
• Productivity. This approach intends to increase agricultural productivity in a sustainable manner, thus raising food security.
Source: Presentation by Irina Papuso and Jimly Faraby, Seminar on Climate Change and Risk Management, May 6, 2013.
Why CSA?
Even though it is inspired in existing knowledge, technologies and principles of sustainable agriculture, CSA represents an interesting approach due to several reasons. CSA helps strengthen national and local institutions; it has an integral focus on addressing climate change; it creates the perfect balance between the synergies between productivity, adaptation and mitigation; and creates new funding opportunities to alleviate the deficit in investment.
Entities such as the World Bank Group (WBG) are strongly encouraging CSA by investing large sums of money into the implementation of this brand-new idea. For instance, in 2020, 52 per cent of WB financing in agriculture was destined to sustainable agriculture projects, and in the first and following Climate Change Action Plan (2016-2020), the WB announced that it would engage with countries to help them adapt CSA to their agricultures. The Climate-Smart Agriculture Investment Plans (CSAIP) accounts for more than $2.5 billion, which translates into 80 million people across the world being helped.



Apart from the above-mentioned benefits of implementing CSA, we have multiple examples across the globe where this method is making a huge difference. Some of the countries that are already taking a chance on this model are Bangladesh, Senegal, Uruguay, the Philippines, Brazil, Morocco, or Mali, among many others.
More importantly, the countries that are already implementing CSA are also creating a powerful network where knowledge is shared among members, thus making CSA terminology more approachable for everybody. With the support of international entities and an increasing number of countries, CSA is gaining momentum over other alternatives that are not as efficient or sustainable.
Food Waste
It is expected that in 2050 the world population will surpass 9.7 billion people, which translates into more people needing to be fed. This is likely to become a serious conundrum if our agricultural techniques do not change soon, as millions of tons of food – roughly 40 per cent of the total food produced globally - are wasted every year due to the inefficiency of our methods. Nonetheless, we need to differentiate between food waste and food loss. The latter refers to any edibles that go unbeaten at any stage, which includes uneaten food at homes and supermarkets, crops left in the field, food damaged in transportation. On the other hand, food waste alludes to a specific part of food loss, that is, food thrown away by retailers due to its color or appearance, as well as half-eaten dishes at restaurants or homes.
We find numerous causes that lead to food waste: bad weather, overproduction, unstable markets, overbuying, processing problems, poor planning, etc. This waste translates into huge losses for supermarkets, as unsold goods cost billions of dollars to stores, not to mention the massive impact it has on the most vulnerable sectors of society, who continue to starve due to poor business strategies that lead to food being thrown away.
Similarly, food waste is negatively affecting our environment. When food is put into landfills, it starts forming methane, which is highly harmful for the environment. Moreover, food waste is also responsible for fresh water pollution.
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  Existing technology
Apart from the already mentioned CSA, there already exist multiple alternatives that are more environmentally-friendly and efficient. For instance, there exist real-time weather forecasting mechanisms that help farmers to choose the best time to irrigate, fertilize, harvest, spray pesticides. Consequently, the negative impact that agriculture has on nature and climate is greatly mitigated.
Similarly, farmers are making use of smart greenhouses that work with algorithms that give out information about roof ventilation, light and heating, therefore helping workers to ensure the best conditions for crops.
The use of drones provides farmers with ultra-high-quality images of their fields in order for them to detect diseases, water stress or soil degradation beforehand. Moreover, these devices can also spray fertilizers, water, pesticides with high accuracy, saving farmers physical work.
Biotechnology and especially, seed science, are helping crops to grow more resistant do drought, pest, infestations and natural disasters, which translates into an enhancement in productivity.
Nevertheless, all these mechanisms help to increase farmers’ ability to produce more food in a more efficient way, but that does not prevent food from being wasted.
How can this problem be overcome?
As we have seen, food is wasted from its harvest until its consumption. But, what methods do we know to prevent this situation? How can technology help us to solve this issue?
One of the proposed ideas to avoid this situation is to cut out the so-called middlemen from the transit of food from farmers to consumers. This way, food would flow from the farm to the kitchen table of consumers, resulting in less time spent in transit, more income for farmers and a reduced amount of food waste.
Another idea, at the selling stage, is to use technologies that extend the shelf life, or to better adjust the demand planning in order to avoid overbuying. When it comes to the consumption
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  stage, upcycling allows unused food to become valuable ingredients for other products again, rather than being disposed.
Data Collection
Many of the problems associated with food waste and climate change oftentimes start in the first stage of “the journey of food”, that is: the farming. Therefore, it is paramount that we reflect on what changes can be introduced in this stage so that some of the abovementioned negative effects can be remedied or reduced.
One of these improvements in agriculture is data collection, which consists on the installation of sensors and systems in the field that collect information about crops. This technology (GPS, GIS, geo-mapping, loT sensors, drones) measures available resources, such as water, fertilizers, seeds by creating maps on soil, farm and wildlife.
Thanks to this sophisticated technology, farmers can make better decisions that will consequently result in lower costs, higher productivity and profitability, less environmental damage, stronger supply chain relations, increased transparency of their products, the identification of the most productive parts of the field, etc.
In particular, drones are one of the tools that are gaining the most ground among farmers, as they enable them to take high quality field shots with multispectral cameras. This information allows workers to identify the state of vegetation and problem areas in their fields, and at the same time it provides farmers with information about land, soil or farm.
In like fashion, data-gathering robots assist farmers with similar tasks. These tools are spread throughout the fields in order to analyze the crops and return important details about warnings and threats to workers. Consequently, this method comes in handy when farmers want to have a good performance in pest management and disease prevention.
As a result, we can conclude that there exists plenty of mechanisms that make the work of farmers easier and more efficient, and with the advancement of new technologies, more of these sophisticated tools are yet to come. We already have many different ways to collect useful
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  information to achieve the best harvest possible. The only step yet to be taken, as it has been pointed in the previous paragraphs, is that this technology becomes more and more accessible for farmers.





  Agriculture 4.0: Equipping young NEETs with basic & advanced digital and green skills
Module 8
Digital Farming: Driving productivity and a more sustainable way of farming
 Developed by
 1

   Disclaimer:
This project is funded with the support of the European Commission.
The information and views set out in this document are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Commission. Neither the European Union institutions not any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.
2

  Contents
1. Introduction............................................................................................................................. 4 2. Content.................................................................................................................................... 5 Sustainable Farm Management ............................................................................................. 6 Knowledge and Information Services .................................................................................... 7 Digital Farmer Profiling Platforms and Services .................................................................... 9
Digital Technology and Sustainable Agriculture: “Fog computing model” and Organic pesticides .............................................................................................................................. 10
WUE (Water Use Efficiency/Effectiveness) - Definitions and key formula......................... 12 Methodology – activities ........................................................................................................... 14 References................................................................................................................................. 15
3

  1. Introduction
Following the analysis of the findings from the literature review and field research activities there is a strong need to train and upgrade rural young people to become attractive, employable and to take up central positions in the circular and regenerative economy.
Adapted training material will be further described and developed for practical implementation within our project. The training material will provide young / women NEETs with a package of digital learning resources designed based on the concept of micro-learning: short and coherent learning nuggets delivered in multimedia formats aiming to promote blended learning methodologies. The digital learning nuggets will include a variety of resources such as interactive games, podcasts, e-learning videos, interactive case studies, infographic resources, etc.
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  2. Content
Main objectives
➢ Introducing the Digital Farming as a solution to the nowadays challenges that Agriculture face
➢ Providing the target group with fundamental knowledge of the main tools used in the Sustainable Farming
Learning contents
The module consists of 5 submodules:
8.1 Sustainable Farm Management
8.2 Knowledge and Information Services
8.3 Digital Farmer Profiling Platforms and Services
8.4 Digital Technology and Sustainable Agriculture: “Fog computing model” and Organic pesticides
8.5 WUE (Water Use Efficiency/Effectiveness): Definitions and key formula
Learning outcomes
Target group will gain knowledge of the essential aspects of Agriculture 4.0 emphasizing its sustainable approach. Learning outcomes:
➢ Knowledge of tools for prevention the development of unhealthy soil by monitoring soil moisture and humidity, nutrient levels, temperature, and acidity
➢ Mobile applications to disseminate different crops and livestock information
➢ Platform service managing farmers’ data
➢ Examples of Bio pesticides and herbicides that are used in alignment with European
legislation
➢ Introduction to the “Fog computing model”
➢ WUE (Water Use Efficiency) importance]
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  Sustainable Farm Management
Agriculture depends to a large extent on the services provided by ecosystems. Sustainable agriculture approaches, therefore focus on optimizing production while minimizing negative environmental impacts and promoting actions for the protection, conservation, enhancement and efficient use of natural resources.
Industry 4.0 digital transformation in agriculture integrates IoT (Internet Of Things), cyber-physical systems, AI, Big Data, Machine Learning and Cloud computing with agricultural machinery. It is more common to precision agriculture whereby innovative ICT solutions and IoT components such as sensors monitor spatial and temporal variability in farm
 production.
specific
management provides an understanding of
soil and crop characteristics unique to each field, thus enabling farmers to apply farm inputs (such as irrigation, fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides) in small portions where needed for the most economical production.
The sustainability of a farm depends on effectively integrating a diversity of plant and animal systems to create farming systems that accommodate the preferences of farmers and their families, as well as meet societal and economic needs of the communities and societies within which and for which they function.
Also, the sustainable farm must be managed holistically, as an integrated system rather than a collection of specialized components and functions. Holistic Management, a decision-making
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Site- farm

  process developed by Alan Savory, provides the most clearly-defined process for sustainable farm or ranch management.
The management process begins by defining the “Whole Under Management,” or span of management control. The purpose of the particular farming operation is defined by a holistic, three-part quality of life, production, and resource goal—consistent with the social, economic, and ecological dimensions of sustainability. The basic principles or laws of nature that govern sustainable systems are reflected in ecosystem processes of community dynamics, water cycles, mineral cycles, and energy flow. These principles must be respected in all farm management decisions.
The management process then moves to various tools for planning and managing the farm’s agroecosystem and guidelines for managing the social and economic functions of the whole-farm system. Next comes specific guidelines for managing the spatial and temporal arrangement of the diverse components of the sustainable farming system. Spatial arrangements of enterprises are changed or rotated over time so that each enterprise benefits from and provides benefits to whatever preceded and follows it in the systematic rotation. Crop rotations, intercropping, cover crops, rotational grazing, multispecies gazing, are all examples of spatial and temporal relationships that can be managed for agricultural sustainability.
Knowledge and Information Services
Knowledge and Information Services include the essential for the sector of Agriculture disseminating information to most rural smallholder farmers through ICT, including management information systems, knowledge management systems and expert systems. The existing farmers’ applications cover various agriculture-related sectors, including horticulture, livestock management, farm management, irrigation monitoring, soil health monitoring and agricultural marketing.
Common features of smartphone applications available to farmers:
Weather forecast: The Meghdoot application provides information to farmers on weather and
cloud formation detected by satellite sensors that will help in planning their farming practices;
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  Crop pest and disease diagnosis: The recommendations to mitigate and prevent major pest and disease infestations and nutritional deficiencies through the uploading of the specific crop’s image. As shown in Figure above, riceXpert and Crop Doctor applications deliver solutions to the farmers’ problems through expert knowledge reviewed by entomologists and pathologists along with preloaded photographs and recommendations.
Other popular mobile applications to disseminate different crops and livestock information are: Krishi Vigyan, KVK Mobile App, Krishi Kisan, and Mobile Farm Solutions (Q&A) They assist in disseminating agriculture-related information to the farmers and connecting them with KVKs and educational institutions.
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  Digital Farmer Profiling Platforms and Services
Platform service managing farmers’ data based on blockchain technology to allow farmers to share their data with other stakeholders (such as credit and insurance companies), such platforms shall be described further in the following section:
CGIAR Big Data Platform in Agriculture
In late 2017, during the First Annual CGIAR Convention on Big Data in Agriculture, CGIAR revealed the prototype of a searchable CGIAR-wide data harvester. CGIAR recognized that as many as 185,000 surveys are conducted each year within their own network of affiliated research institutes (Brian King, 2017). They needed a platform to organize their own data and make it discoverable, re-usable, and interoperable.
i2i Data Portal
i2i, a global resource center that seeks to improve financial inclusion through the smarter use of data, was launched in 2015 and is jointly hosted by Cenfri and FinMark Trust. It is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in partnership with The MasterCard Foundation. i2i launched their i2i Data Portal to share insights from the CGAP Smallholder Farmer Diaries and other national survey data. i2i intends to make additional relevant datasets and tools publicly available through this data portal.
Smallholder Finance Product Explorer
In 2017, the MIX Market, One Acre Fund, and the RAF Learning Lab collaborated on the design of a data framework to categorize a diverse set of smallholder finance products and allow comparison and benchmarking of financial products. Currently in beta form, the Smallholder Finance Product Explorer provides information from nearly 30 financial services providers in ten countries. They plan to continue to add to the Explorer database as other smallholder finance providers share their data. This will enable greater learning by all database users, with the goal of reducing the financing gap for smallholder farmers.
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  Global Open Data for Agriculture and Nutrition (GODAN)
GODAN was launched in 2013 and has nine core partners: US Government, the UK Department for International Development, the Government of the Netherlands, FAO, CTA, Global Forum on Agriculture Research, The Open Data Institute, CGIAR, and the Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International. Most efforts by GODAN have been to build high-level support for open data among governments, policymakers, international organizations, and businesses. A recent effort by GODAN and other actors has been to launch a beta version of the Agriculture Open Data Package (AgPack) which aims to help provide governments with a roadmap to publish agriculture data as open data Most recently, USAID, DFID, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation launched a joint effort (as funders of international agricultural research) to develop more harmonized approaches towards open data.
Digital Technology and Sustainable Agriculture: “Fog computing model” and Organic pesticides
High level of sustainability using the most cutting-edge technology to control farm inputs such as fertilizers, irrigation, herbicides and pesticides improving product quality, reducing input cost. Agricultural operations and business models for increased profit while minimizing the use of agrochemicals to promote a healthy environment and higher production quality. The submodule will provide examples of some Botanical Pesticides for Organic Farming:
1) Neem
Neem is a botanical pesticide derived from the neem tree, a native of India. This tree supplies at least two compounds, azadirachtin and salannin, that have insecticidal activity and other unknown compounds with fungicidal activity. The use of this compound is new in the United States, but neem has been used for more than 4,000 years for medicinal and pest control purposes in India and Africa. It is not highly toxic to mammals.
2) Nicotine Sulphate
Nicotine is extracted from tobacco or related Nicotiana species and is one of the oldest botanical insecticides in use today. It's also one of the most toxic to warm-blooded animals and it's readily absorbed through the skin. (Wear gloves when applying it, follow label directions and keep pets
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  away from application areas.) It breaks down quickly, however, so it is legally acceptable to use on organically grown crops.
3) Sabadilla
Sabadilla, another botanical insecticide, is derived from the seeds of the sabadilla lily. The active ingredient is an alkaloid known as veratrine. Sabadilla is considered among the least toxic of botanical insecticides, but its dust can be highly irritating to the eyes and can produce sneezing if inhaled. No residue is left after application of sabadilla because it breaks down rapidly in the sunlight.
4) Rotenone
Rotenone is a resinous compound produced by the roots of two members of the Leguminoceae family. Its common use is to control various leaf-feeding caterpillars, beetles, aphids and thrips on a wide variety of vegetables and small fruits. A slow-acting chemical, rotenone requires several days to kill most susceptible insects, but insect feeding stops shortly after exposure.
5) Pyrethrum/Pyrethrins
Pyrethrum is the most widely used botanical insecticide in the United States. The active ingredient, pyrethrin, is extracted from a chrysanthemum plant, grown primarily in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Ecuador. Most insects are highly susceptible to pyrethrin at very low concentrations. The compound acts rapidly on insects, causing immediate knock down. Flying insects drop almost immediately after exposure. Fast knock down and insect death don't, however, always go hand in hand; many insects recover after the initial knockdown phase.
“Fog computing model” is useful for a clean environment in smart agriculture. Unlike cloud computing, the fog computing model reduces carbon emissions through energy-efficient digital hardware and renewable energy resources since data are processed closer to where it is collected. Fog computing aims to push processing capabilities closer to target consumers, prevent overuse of cloud resources, and further reduce operational loads. The proposed approach to fog computing is applicable to the evolving field of precision agriculture, along with all agricultural land management strategies.
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  WUE (Water Use Efficiency/Effectiveness) - Definitions and key formula
WUE is basically defined at an input/output ratio as a measure of productivity. Main aspects such as Improving Management Capacity; Scientific Irrigation Scheduling; Managed Deficit Irrigations and Full Season Drought Management are a combination of better water management and drought-tolerant varieties that could greatly enhance the crops' resilience in future climates and enable its cultivation in regions where little or no food is currently grown, or during dry months when farmland now lays fallow.
WUE is calculated by dividing 'annual water usage' by the 'energy consumption of the IT computing equipment' The units of WUE are liters/kilowatt-hour (L/kWh).
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   In irrigation, Water Use Efficiency (WUE) represents the ratio between effective water use and actual water withdrawal. It characterizes, in a specific process, how effective is the use of water.
Efficiency is scale and process dependent. Along a canal, the conveyance efficiency is the ratio between the volume of water at delivery points and inflow at entrance. At field level, effective water use is the water transpired by the crop and some other special requirements (land preparation, salt leaching). Runoff, deep percolation and evaporation from bare soil or standing water in paddy fields, are losses.
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  Agriculture 4.0: Equipping young NEETs with basic & advanced digital and green skills
Module 2
Digital Green Skills, Green Skills, and training as a starting point for prospective green jobs
Developed by
  1

   Disclaimer:
This project is funded with the support of the European Commission.
The information and views set out in this document are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Commission. Neither the European Union institutions not any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.
2

  Contents
1. Introduction............................................................................................................................. 4 2. Content.................................................................................................................................... 5
Engineering and technical skills: Hard skills encompassing competences involved with the design, construction, and assessment of technology............................................................ 6
Science skills: Competences stemming from bodies of knowledge broad in scope and essential to innovation activities ........................................................................................... 7
Operation management skills: Know-how related to the change in the organizational structure required to support green activities ...................................................................... 7
Monitoring skills: Technical and legal aspects of business activities that are fundamentally different way from the remit of engineering or science ....................................................... 7
Green knowledge and skills using some practical examples ................................................ 7 Methodology – activities ............................................................................................................. 9 Resources: ................................................................................................................................... 9
3

  1. Introduction
Following the analysis of the findings from the literature review and field research activities there is a strong need to train and upgrade rural young people to become attractive, employable and to take up central positions in the circular and regenerative economy.
Adapted training material will be further described and developed for practical implementation within our project. The training material will provide young / women NEETs with a package of digital learning resources designed based on the concept of micro-learning: short and coherent learning nuggets delivered in multimedia formats aiming to promote blended learning methodologies. The digital learning nuggets will include a variety of resources such as interactive games, podcasts, e-learning videos, interactive case studies, infographic resources, etc.
4

  2. Content
Main objectives
● Introducing the Green Skills for the Digital Age
● What exactly is meant by the term "green skill," and how may training help to pave the way for the creation of green jobs in the near future?
Learning contents
The module consists of 5 submodules:
2.1 Engineering and technical skills: Hard skills encompassing competences involved with the design, construction, and assessment of technology
2.2 Science skills: Competences stemming from bodies of knowledge broad in scope and essential to innovation activities
2.3 Operation management skills: Know-how related to change in the organizational structure required to support green activities
2.4 Monitoring skills: Technical and legal aspects of business activities that are fundamentally different way from the remit of engineering or science
2.5 Green knowledge and skills using some practical examples
Learning outcomes
● Knowledge of tools for preventing the development of unhealthy soil by monitoring soil moisture and humidity, nutrient levels, temperature, and acidity
● Mobile applications to disseminate information about different crops and livestock
● Platform service managing farmers’ data
● Examples of Bio-pesticides and herbicides that are used in alignment with European legislation
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  ● Introduction to the “Fog computing model”
● Importance of WUE (Water Use Efficiency) Green Skills
Greening our economies is expected to have long-term benefits in the form of less damage to the environment, as well as big opportunities and challenges. Concerns are growing that the spread of environmentally friendly technologies and organizational practices could cause problems in the labor market, such as faster obsolescence of workers' skills and a rapid increase in the demand of existing and new skills, which, if they aren't available, could lead to skill gaps. As a result of these worries, the phrase "green skills" has become common in policy circles. This is especially true since government programs like Europe's 2020 strategy and the Green Jobs Act in the US have put a lot of money into supporting "green jobs" to help the economy grow in a sustainable way (OECD/Cedefop, 2014). First, we compute a skill measure. Greenness is the proportion of green specific tasks to the overall number of specified tasks completed by a profession. This enables us to classify green employment according to how much time is allocated to a certain category of duties that are more or less closely related to environmental sustainability. Interestingly, green jobs are most prevalent among high-skilled professional profiles, such as managers and engineers, and low-skilled manufacturing and production jobs, such as construction workers and maintenance and repair employees. The Green General Skill index specifies four kinds of job tasks that are particularly significant for green employment, and these groups are as follows:
Engineering and technical skills: Hard skills encompassing competences involved with the design, construction, and assessment of technology
Hard skills are those that often only engineers and technicians are able to master. These include competencies involved in the design, construction, and evaluation of technological systems. This knowledge is essential for research and development (R&D) initiatives pertaining to eco-buildings, the design of renewable energy systems, and energy-saving research and development.
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  Science skills: Competences stemming from bodies of knowledge broad in scope and essential to innovation activities
Skills that are derived from extensive banks of information that are fundamental to the processes involved in invention, such as those found in physics and biology. These competencies are in particularly high demand across all stages of value chains and in the utility sector, which is responsible for the provision of fundamental conveniences like water, sewage services, and electrical services.
Operation management skills: Know-how related to the change in the organizational structure required to support green activities
Changes in the organizational structure required to support green operations and an integrated vision of the company through life-cycle management, lean production and collaboration with external actors, including customers, necessitates knowledge of the organizational change. For instance, these abilities are essential for sales engineers, climate change analysts, specialists in sustainability, chief sustainability officers, and transportation planners.
Monitoring skills: Technical and legal aspects of business activities that are fundamentally different way from the remit of engineering or science
The scope of engineering and science does not fully encompass the technical and legal facets of business activities, which are fundamentally distinct in their own right. They are the competencies required to evaluate whether or not certain technical requirements and legal standards have been met. Inspectors of environmental compliance, nuclear monitoring technicians, directors of emergency management, and legal assistants are some examples of these professionals.
Green knowledge and skills using some practical examples
Promoting industrial skills development in poor and emerging nations, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) can play a crucial role in accelerating the global shift towards a green economy. Public Private Development Partnerships (PPDP) form the basis for UNIDO's Learning and Knowledge Development Facility (LKDF), in which both the public and
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  private sectors contribute in a third party's initiative. When it comes to local industrial training institutions, the LKDF has implemented a wide range of PPDPs across countries and industries.
The H2O Maghreb project is one such initiative; it is led by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization and has the backing of the governments of Morocco and the United States as well as organizations like FESTO Didactic SE, EON Reality, the Moroccan National Office of Drinking Water and Electricity and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Establishing a high-level training hub to provide market-oriented training in wastewater treatment and water management, and creating curricula for existing water professionals that combine different professions and specializations related to water and wastewater for municipal and industrial applications, are all steps taken by the project to improve water management practices in Morocco.
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  Agriculture 4.0: Equipping young NEETs with basic & advanced digital and green skills
Module 1
Agriculture 4.0, Introduction
 Developed by
 1

   Disclaimer:
This project is funded with the support of the European Commission.
The information and views set out in this document are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Commission. Neither the European Union institutions, nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.
2

  Contents
1. Introduction............................................................................................................................. 4 2. Content.................................................................................................................................... 5 What is Agriculture 4.0? ......................................................................................................... 5 The evolution of agriculture ................................................................................................... 7 Agriculture 4.0 in the European context................................................................................ 9 Agriculture 4.0 and education .............................................................................................. 11 Importance of Agriculture 4.0 .............................................................................................. 13 References................................................................................................................................. 14
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  1. Introduction
Following the analysis of the findings from the literature review and field research activities, there is a strong need to train and upgrade rural young people to become attractive, and employable and to take up central positions in the circular and regenerative economy.
Adapted training material will be further described and developed for practical implementation within our project. The training material will provide young / women NEETs with a package of digital learning resources designed based on the concept of micro-learning: short and coherent learning nuggets delivered in multimedia formats aiming to promote blended learning methodologies. The digital learning nuggets will include a variety of resources such as interactive games, podcasts, e-learning videos, interactive case studies, infographic resources, etc.
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  2. Content
Main objectives
Introduce the target group to the theme of Agriculture 4.0 and offer insights into its components.
Learning outcomes
The target group will be provided with the main idea of Agriculture 4.0 of the training curriculum, building a solid base for the following contents.
What is Agriculture 4.0?
There is no doubt that the increasing population around the world, creates a growing need for intensive food production. Nowadays, the conventional concept of the food industry experiences colossal changes and transforms with the support of the latest technology evolution. Agriculture 4.0 is a new notion in the field of farming where technological tools and science constitute the core of it. There are several terms created over this short period of time for reference to Agriculture 4.0. For example, the European Agricultural Machinery Association (CEMA) refers to Agriculture 4.0 as 'Smart Agriculture', 'Intelligent Agriculture', 'Digital Farming', or 'Digital Agriculture' (Sponchioni et al., 2019). Sometimes it can also be described as 'Smart Farming'. If we define the current term, Agriculture 4.0 can be viewed as the latest evolution of precision farming, attempting to incorporate a variety of digital tools such as automated equipment, sensors, data analysis and artificial intelligence in the farming process.
In other words, Agriculture 4.0 as the agricultural revolution of our era targets:
Enlarge food productivity
As we previously mentioned, population growth is a challenge for the food industry. More specifically, according to CBO (Congressional Budget Office), it has been predicted to be an average growth of 0.3% per year in the existing global community (CBO,2022). This is an addition of an extra 34 million people. Thus, the demand for more food resources becomes visible and requires immediate action measures.
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  Equal and rational spread on a worldwide scale
Another focus of Agriculture 4.0 is to combat food poverty. Reducing the food crisis with sustainable farming is vital for eliminating food hunger as 2022 is the year considered to be as a year of unprecedented hunger. About 1 billion people are experiencing hunger and earning 1 dollar or less per day to cover their needs (UN World Food Programme, 2022). With the assistance of technology, Agriculture 4.0 expands the areas suitable for agriculture, by searching lands to cultivate or convert barren areas. In addition, another aspect that is being explored currently by Agriculture 4.0 is the diminution of the water resources used for maintaining land cultivation providing further financial incentives.
Acclimatize to global warming
Climate change has been an alarming topic over the last decades. A significant factor affecting climate is the emissions of Greenhouse Gases (GHGs). In addition, side effects produced by climate change context are fires, floods, and extreme weather conditions (Althor et al., 2016). Agricultural products are now exposed to the above impacts and it seems they are lacking efforts in adapting to the new framework. As a result, there are many cases of bad-quality food.
Reduce any food waste
Food waste is inextricably linked at any stage of the agricultural cycle. First and foremost, due to the ignorance of global warming and extensive use of fertilizers, food products may appear to be unsuitable to consume, leading to massive food waste. Then, we should consider that food delivery is a time-peculiar procedure that often ends up in food waste as well. Last but not least, wasted food has proved to be harmful to the natural habitat and it would be more wasted resources than available ones (McDonough & Braungart,2017).
Reduce the cost of farming
Having control over planning all stages of cultivation, sowing and harvesting save of a great deal of money. Agriculture 4.0 can help farmers to maximize their cultivation at the minimum cost. Technology trials have shown that digital tools noted a 4% growth in crop production, a 7% decrease in fertilizers usage and a 4% reduction in water resources (De Clercq et al., 2018).
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  Time-saving of farming
Through Smart farming, people are able to control crops remotely using sensors and IoT (Internet of Things). For instance, in China, they are currently using drones to examine 20 million cotton hectares.
Agriculture 4.0 can be seen as an evolution of precision farming while implementing automated equipment, and sensors and exploiting data analysis derived from them. At the same time, it supports the creation of new knowledge in the decision-making processes of the agricultural sector nullifying rigid boundaries. The ultimate aim is to maximize profitability and socio- economic-environmental sustainability of agriculture.
The evolution of agriculture
Humankind has been occupied with farming since ancient times. These practices known also as agriculture have been evolving over time from Agriculture 1.0 to 4.0 as is visible in the figure below.
Source: https://www.seekmomentum.com/the-evolution-of-industry-from-1-to-4/
Agriculture 1.0 reflects conventional methods relying on human physical strength and animal support. At this point, simple forms of tools were used in farming occupations alongside serious manual labor forcing productivity to remain at a low level. Moving forward to the 19th century, engines using steam have been improved and used in all aspects of life including agriculture.
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  Once it came to Agriculture 2.0 era, machines were developed and operated manually by people. In addition, there is the first introduction of chemicals and fertilizers which obviously grew the productivity and effectiveness of agriculture occupation to a greater extent. It also should be noted that this evolutionary change had a significant impact alongside its facilitation of farming. These impacts make their appearance as chemical infections, pollution of the natural habitat, overindulgence of available energies and wastage of raw material.
Towards the 20th century, Agriculture 3.0 comes into sight since computers and electronic devices take over every aspect of daily life. Advanced software and machine learning systems (robotics) provide the opportunity for an effective and less time-consuming farming procedure. This step, proved to be a vital support for the Agriculture 3.0 era, improving the existing strategies and methods of Agriculture 2.0. In other words, the developed technology contributed to the downturn in chemicals used, better exploitation of water allocation and any other farming activity.
At present, we are experiencing the Agriculture 4.0 revolution based on the latest technologies such as IoT (Internet of Things), Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, Big Data, Blockchains, Scout drones, Cloud Computing, etc. These applications have managed to maximize the performance of farming procedures to a notable extent. The latest research in the field revealed that the mentioned applications resulted in a decrease of 13% in farming costs and a 30% saving in resources used such as water and fertilizers. The overall cost of Agriculture 4.0 has been estimated to be $7 billion so far on a global scale and 210 million within Europe (De Clercq et al., 2018).
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  A new path towards Agriculture 5.0?
Source: https://www8.cao.go.jp/cstp/english/society5_0/index.html
Smart farming is now inextricably linked with agricultural activities. However, as we are headed to Agriculture 5.0 era, farming technologies such as IoT, Big Data, Blockchains, etc. would not be limited to that. The main idea that lies at the heart of the upcoming evolution, combines renewable energy resources with the continuous development of technologies that seem to be particularly profitable to the sector. Thus, farmers are about to use renewable resources such as wind, solar, hydro and biomass to maximize cultivation effectiveness while 'acting green’.
Agriculture 4.0 in the European context
The first relevant reference to Agriculture 4.0 within Europe, was first detected in Germany in 2015. In 2011, the German government bodies highlighted the title of Industry 4.0 which constituted the base for Agriculture 4.0 two years later. Its aim was to create a production model based on the digitalization of products, and services within the production procedure. Αlong the way, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations uses the term "Digital Agricultural Revolution" while other sources give the title "Agriculture 4.0" (Araújo et al., 2021).
In general, the theme of social, financial, and conventional aspects of digital farming was highlighted in various scientific conferences in the EU context. Instances are the 2018 International Farming Systems Association symposium, the European Society for Rural Sociology
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  Conference (2019), and the International Rural Sociology Association Conference (2020), with multiple discussions, included and workshops taking place. In addition, there is a large-scale scientific and innovative European fund for several programs addressing digital agriculture and its features. An example is the growing popularity of the European Horizon 2020 projects which received funding of 9 billion Euros in total. Some indicative projects are: 'The Internet of Farm & Food' (IoF2020), DESIRA and Smart-AKIS. As a matter of course, there is an emerging interest regarding the policies of digital agriculture and its practices. For example, the EU Standing Committee on Agricultural Research is focusing on Smart Farming through the Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems Strategic Workgroup.
EU Green Deal
It is obvious that global trends are influencing all sectors of life including the agriculture process. At this point, the European Green Deal sets a goal to be the first continent by 2050 to has ever achieved to be climate neutral via sustainable policy strategies and approaches (European Commission, The Parliament approved the above target in 2021 adding the decrease of gas emissions by 55% until 2030 to ensure climate neutrality in the next two decades. On this milestone, the 'Farm to work strategy' is dedicated to equalizing agriculture products and promoting them towards a circular-bio-based economy system. Some further suggestions and prompts regard the usage of bio- fertilizers, protein feed and bio-chemicals which also create the framework for new job opportunities. Ιn order to achieve the above, the existence of innovation and research are essential. Consequently, a new strategy that will be adopted for agriculture purposes is the use of
digital technologies in order to maximize the capabilities of the farming sector.
The European Union's goal of digital transformation (2020) was devised by the European Commission and supports the target of a climate-neutral Europe in 2050. The mission is to incorporate the usage of the latest technology in every aspect of the workplace in line with the EU values. At the indefinite time, it is worth mentioning that the White Paper on Artificial
  Source:https://www.lifeenvision.eu/ennuvi- and-eu-farm-to-fork/2022)
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  Intelligence (AI) is one of the pillars shaping the European Commission’s Digital Strategy. It is focused on achieving excellence in the AI sector and it is expected to have investments of 1 billion years per year.
Overall, it can be said that the European Union is actively promoting technologies related to Agriculture 4.0 and encourages people towards a sustainable path. Conforming with global trends focuses on precision farming to help farmers maximize their production.
Agriculture 4.0 and education
Undeniably, the majority of the technologies used tend to be automated. Thereby, key skills are required in order for someone to cope with the current digitalized context. Automation technologies are capable of revolutionary changes saving time and maximizing results. As they are predicted to be necessary within the next years, people engaging in farming are in need of new skills. Therefore, it is crucial to raise awareness and form several types of training on a national and EU level reaching small and medium-sized farms and providing them with relevant technologies. Farming expertise and Innovative services can have a significant impact on spreading essential knowledge and information for Smart Farming. The mentioned rising opportunities are the base for ongoing learning generating vital knowledge and creating new job openings. Flexible training programs
could also be incorporated into school curricular introducing digital learning from an early stage.
Education is highlighted as the main means to address the current digital transformation. Nevertheless, the agreement around the skills essential to the professionals is still blurred. There has been little progress in terms of educating farmers and encouraging them towards adopting digitalization procedures. The European Agricultural Machinery (CEMA) published 2017 an article relevant to data management to introduce farmers' skills in managing efficiently their production
  Source: https://www.123rf.com/photo_84779997
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  (CEMA, 2022). It becomes notable that we are referring to a demanding change of direction requiring new skills and converting to sustainable practices at the same time. The available research for sustainable agriculture education is unlimited and there are a lot of debates about practices and theories, perceptions and severance of issues.
Nevertheless, there are two factors in need of attention in order to start farming a proper basis for an upcoming educational setting dedicated to Agriculture 4.0.
Life-long learning
Regarding life-long learning skills, there are three main categories needed to be conquered by professionals to step out of conventional farming.
● Adaptability
● Deal with uncertainties
● Being proactive
More specifically, the skill of being adaptive is vital during this continuous change. Even though the concept of risk is not new to the agriculture sector, there is now the additional challenge of digitalization. Therefore, farmers need to be proactive and experiment through the process of problem-solving issues that arise. This perspective presupposes the willingness to be involved in current changes and examine the late developments in terms of new technologies.
Knowledge Integration
In this section, the term 'Knowledge' is used to describe the essential data that someone needs to be aware of to address this digital/sustainable transition. This also includes the knowledge that has been acquired through personal experience in the field. Nevertheless, the practices that have been used so far, are not considered to be 'sustainable enough'. This points toward new scientific knowledge that needs to be combined with hands-on experience knowledge. Thus, the ideal model seems to be a hybrid one. The need to incorporate more and more learning material is vital to overcome conventional challenges and move towards Agriculture 4.0. This could provide farmers into a potential step of sustainable farming for covering their needs. However, taking into consideration the variety of contexts that agriculture is developing, we need to ask what kind of
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  Agriculture 4.0: Equipping young NEETs with basic & advanced digital and green skills
Module 5
Technologies used in Agriculture 4.0
Developed by
  1

   Disclaimer:
This project is funded with the support of the European Commission.
The information and views set out in this document are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Commission. Neither the European Union institutions not any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.
2

  Contents
1. Introduction.......................................................................................................................... 4 2. Content..................................................................................................................................... 5 Agricultural Drones.................................................................................................................. 6 Basic Agricultural Drone Navigation ..................................................................................... 10 Aeronautical Meteorology in Agriculture (Agricultural Meteorology) ............................... 14 Irrigation controller ............................................................................................................... 15 Agricultural Sensors and GPS tracking devices .................................................................... 20
3

  1. Introduction
Following the analysis of the findings from the literature review and field research activities there is a strong need to train and upgrade rural young people to become attractive, employable and to take up central positions in the circular and regenerative economy.
Adapted training material will be further described and developed for practical implementation within our project. The training material will provide young / women NEETs with a package of digital learning resources designed based on the concept of micro-learning: short and coherent learning nuggets delivered in multimedia formats aiming to promote blended learning methodologies. The digital learning nuggets will include a variety of resources such as interactive games, podcasts, e-learning videos, interactive case studies, infographic resources, etc.
4

  2. Content
Main objectives
Learn about the newest technologies used in agriculture: Agricultural Drones, Irrigation Controllers, Aeronautical Meteorology, Agricultural Sensors,
- Understand how and when to use new technologies
- Know the basic controls and specific areas of activity the new technologies can be used in
- Understand the basic EU regulations on the new technologies Learning outcomes
By the end of this module learners will be able to:
1. Understand and determine the differences between different types of UAS, and UAS trends, will be able to determine which type of UAS is suitable for specific tasks, they will familiarize themselves with the regulation of UAS flights and therefore how to safely operate UAS when someone is familiar with them.
2. Learners will be able to define basic maneuvering, classify drone controls, explain basic navigation in drone operation and compare different navigation sensing in the drone. They will also be able to understand the general aspects of Human Limitations and the way they are related to various aspects of drone operations
3. Learners will be able to define basic irrigation methods meaning and significance, classify different types of automated irrigation, explain basic areas of activity in automatic irrigation and compare different pros and cons of the use of each one of them.
4. Learners will be able to identify weather conditions, how they affect drone flight and assess what to do. They will receive information on relevant facilities that produce aviation- specific weather forecasts for the purpose of flying as safely as possible in certain weather conditions.
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  5. Learners will be able to define the agricultural sensors’ meaning and significance, classify different types of sensors and GPRS tracking devices, explain basic areas of use of the sensors, compare and select the appropriate one.
Learning contents
Modern farms and agricultural facilities operate quite differently than those a few decades ago. Advancements in technology helped tremendously to accelerate crop productivity, and decrease the amount of resources used like water, fertilizer, and pesticides, and the amount of chemicals that go into the natural ecosystem. These technologies help agricultural businesses be more profitable and sustainable while ensuring safer growing conditions and safer foods.
Agricultural Drones
The word “drone” is an everyday term for unmanned aircraft vehicle (UAV) or unmanned aircraft system (UAS) a pilotless aircraft that is controlled either by a remote pilot or flies automatically.
Drones in agriculture have several advantages and are one of the main tools that advance Precision Farming and Agriculture. Precision Farming and Agriculture is the science of using technology to increase efficiency, productivity, crop output, and profitability. Through drone photogrammetry, drones can assist farmers in building extremely precise maps and 3D models of their farm. Through the usage of drone mapping software, images taken by drones are stitched together to create a topographical map of the area. Drones can work with a variety of cameras depending on the kind of data that the farmer needs – for example, multispectral cameras, thermal cameras, etc.
Drone Types Used in the Agricultural Sector
There are mainly two types of drones that are widely used in the agricultural sector: Fixed-wing and Multi-rotor. Fixed-wing characteristics:
- Fixed-wing looks more like an airplane than a helicopter.
- Fixed-wing drones are more durable than Multi-rotor drones, they can resist extreme weather conditions and often have longer flight times.
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  - They also require bigger landing and takeoff space due to their design and are usually more expensive. In essence, they require a runway to fly.
- Fixed-wing drones (as opposed to ‘rotary wing’, i.e. helicopters) use a wing like a normal aeroplane to provide the lift rather than vertical lift rotors.
Multirotor drones can have several propellers, which, combined with the varying speeds of the motors, create lifting power and movement. A quadrocopter drone has four arms and four propellers: two propellers spin clockwise (CW) and two propellers spin counter clockwise(CCW). In this way, the total rotational force becomes neutral.
Multi-rotor drones are far more adaptable than fixed-wing drones. They are simpler to fly and considerably less expensive. Apart from photogrammetry, they can be utilized for precision spraying of seeds, fertilizers and pesticides. Multirotor basic characteristics:
- Multi-rotor drones are easy control and maneuver
- They have the ability to hover
- They can take off and land vertically
- They have a limited flying time (pending on layout between 15-30 minutes).
- They only have small payload capabilities.
- Most of the drone’s energy is spent on fighting gravity and stabilizing in the air.
What kind of drone is suitable for your tasks?
Depending on what kind of task you want the drone to do you should choose between a fixed wing and a multi-motor. Large drones will lift heavy loads while small ones are easier to navigate and perform photogrammetry. When you make your decision assessing flight time and payload is important.
Maximum Take-Off Mass (MTOM)
MTOM is the maximum mass defined by the manufacturer. It included all the elements onboard the drone: structural elements, motors, propellers, electronic equipment, antennas, batteries and
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  maximum capacity of fuel, oil and other fluids. It’s essentially the heaviest payload allowed by the manufacturer including sensors and equipment.
UAS Regulation
The new EU regulations establish three (3) categories of drone operations with different safety requirements, proportionate to the risk involved:
Open Category
Low risk operations that do not require prior authorizations. It can be as simple as ‘Buy & Fly’. However, they are limited to operations:
- in visual line of sight (VLOS)
- below 120 m altitude
- below 25kg MTOM (Maximum Take Off Mass)
- minimum age for remote pilots is 16 years old
- no flying over assemblies of people
- no dropping off goods
- no carriage of dangerous goods
- no autonomous flights (uploading waypoints is allowed)
- performed with a drone compliant with the technical requirements defined in the regulation.
To demonstrate this compliance drones that can be operated in the Open category will bear a class identification label, called ‘C Class’. Additional operational restrictions apply to each class of drone, in particular with regard to the distance that must be maintained between the drone and uninvolved persons.
Specific Category
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  Medium-risk operations that exceed the restrictions of the “open” category. Operations involving drones of more than 25kg MTOM and/or operated beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) will typically fall under the “specific” category. In such a case, operators must either (a) perform a risk assessment using a standardized method called the ‘SORA’ (Specific Operations Risk Assessment) and define mitigation measures or (b) verify that they comply with a specific scenario defined by EASA (or the national aviation authority). On that basis, they will be able to obtain authorization from the national aviation authority (in some cases a simple declaration may be enough). The authorization or the specific scenario will define the authorized operation and the applicable mitigation measures (drone technical requirements, pilot competence, etc.)
Certified Category
This category includes high-risk operations involving large drones in controlled airspaces. Rules applicable to the “certified” category will be the same as for manned aviation: drones must be certified for their airworthiness, pilots shall be licensed, and safety oversight will be performed by the relevant National Aviation Authorities and EASA.
➢ Subcategories of UAS operations
The ‘Open’ category of operations is divided into three Subcategories: A1, A2, A3, on the basis of operational limitations, requirements for the remote pilot and technical drone requirements. In other words, each Subcategory specifies where you can fly, what type of drone to use and what type of certificate(s) the remote pilot must have in order to comply with the regulations.
Subcategory A1: Use of small drones with Maximum Takeoff Mass (MTOM) up to 900g, can fly over people but never fly over assemblies of people, be familiarized with the drone manual and pass an online theoretical examination. Privately built drones can be used in this subcategory but they must have an MTOM < 250g and comply with the requirements of this category. Drones with C0 or C1 class mark can operate in this subcategory.
Subcategory A2: Use medium size drones with MTOM up to 4kgs, can fly close to people by keeping a horizontal distance of 30m from uninvolved persons or 5m when the drone is equipped with a low speed mode, never over assemblies of people, be familiarized with the drone manual, pass an online theoretical examination and pass an additional knowledge examination at an
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  approved organization. Only drones with C2 class mark can operate in this subcategory. The minimum horizontal distance of the UA from uninvolved persons should be defined as the distance between the points where the UA would hit the ground in the event of a vertical fall and the position of the uninvolved persons. As a reference, when the UA is operating in close proximity to people, the remote pilot should keep the UA at a lateral distance from any uninvolved person that is not shorter than the height (‘1:1 rule’, i.e. if the UA is flying at a height of 30 m, the distance from any uninvolved person should be at least 30 m). In any case, the distance from uninvolved persons should always be greater than: (1) 5 m, when the lowspeed mode function on the UA is activated and set to 3 m per second; (2) 5 m, when operating a UAS balloon or airship; or (3) 30 m in all other cases.
Subcategory A3: Use of larger drones with MTOM up to 25kgs, must fly far from people, keep a horizontal distance of 150m from residential, commercial, industrial or recreational areas, be familiarized with the drone manual and pass an online theoretical examination. Privately built drones can be used in this subcategory but they must have an MTOM < 25kg and comply with the requirements of this category. Drones with C2, C3 or C4 class mark can operate in this subcategory.
Basic Agricultural Drone Navigation
How to fly UAS in the open category
In order to fly UAS in the open category it is mandatory to pass theoretical exams with a minimum grade of 75%. For the A1 or A3 subcategories knowledge in the following fields is needed:
- Air safety
- Airspace restrictions
- Aviation regulations
- Human performance limitations and operational procedures
- Privacy and data protection
- Insurance and aviation security
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  - General knowledge of UAS.
Additionally for A2 subcategory knowledge in the following is needed:
• Familiarity with meteorology
• How to manage risks by flying close to the ground and near people ➢ Pilot certificate, UAS class and CE Marking Pilot Certificate
All remote pilot certificates are recognized and accepted in all EU members. Furthermore, the remote pilot can choose in which EU member state to conduct the training/exam. CE Marking Indicating that the product has been tested and meets the specific requirements, shall also be visibly affixed to the frame of the UAS. UAS class UAS authorized to fly in the open category are divided in 5 classes from C0-C4. It is based on:
• MTOM
• Technical specifications
• Automatic functions
• Performance of the aircraft
➢ UAS operator and Remote Pilot
UAS operator: A UAS Operator is a physical person or organization responsible for one or more UASs and is responsible for the entire operation.
Remote Pilot: A remote pilot is a person operating the UAS flight controls manually or when the UAS flies automatically by monitoring its course and remaining able to intervene at any time. Notice: The operator is usually the same natural person as the remote pilot when it comes to private use. But if a company is responsible for the UAS, the operator is usually a legal and not a natural person.
➢ Registration of UAS operator
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  Remember that it is mandatory to register as a drone operator. To do so, register on the relevant national website, display the registration number on the drone, and upload it on the remote identification system.
➢ Responsibilities of the Operator
Some of the main responsibilities of the operator goes as followed. An operator must:
• Develop operational procedures adapted to the type of operation and the risk involved.
• Ensure that all operations effectively use and support the efficient use of radio spectrum in order to avoid harmful interference.
• Designate a remote pilot for each UAS operation
• Ensure that the remote pilots and all other personnel performing a task in support of the operations are familiar with the user's manual provided by the manufacturer of the UAS
• In the case of an operation with a UAS of one of the classes C0, C1, C2, C3, C4, ensure that the drone is complying with the legislation and the rules.
➢ Responsibilities of Remote Pilot
In order to read the responsibilities of a remote pilot please follow the link below: https://www.easa.europa.eu/document-library/easy-access-rules/onlinepublications/easy- access-rules-unmanned-aircraft-systems?page=5#_Toc256000070
➢Discontinuation of flight and reporting procedures
Discontinuation of flight It is important to know that the remote pilot should discontinue the flight if the operation poses a risk to other aircraft and that he/she must maintain a thorough visual scan of the airspace to avoid any risk or a collision with manned aircraft.
Reporting procedures
If an accident or incident occurs while you are flying, you must report it to the Department of Civil Aviation. It is mandatory to report an accident under the following circumstances:
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  1) When someone is seriously injured.
2) When there has been an accident with fatal outcome
3) When the occurrence involves manned aircraft (airplanes, helicopters etc.)
Basic Navigation in Drone Operation: Specifics of Delivery
There are four main drone controls:
• Roll: Done by pushing the right stick to the left or right. Literally rolls the drone, which maneuvers the drone left or right.
• Pitch: Done by pushing the right stick forwards or backward. Tilts the drone, which maneuvers the drone forwards or backward.
• Yaw: Done by pushing the left stick to the left or to the right. Rotates the drone left or right. Points the front of the copter in different directions and helps with changing directions while flying.
• Throttle: To increase, push the left stick forwards. To decrease, pull the left stick backward. This adjusts the altitude, or height, of the drone.
Human Limitations and how they relate to various aspects of drone operations
One of the most decisive factors in terms of the successful implementation of a drone’s flight is the state in which the operator is, in what is generally called the human performance factor and its limitations. Each human being is unique and different situations may affect people in a variety of ways. But in the quest for responsible decisions and reliable, safe outcomes, a set of rules has been established. Factors that may influence a pilot’s performance:
1. Stress
2. Psychoactive Substances or Alcohol
3. Medication
4. Fatigue
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  5. Accuracy of senses ( sight, hearing, smelling, touching)
6. Peer Pressure
7. Automation
Aeronautical Meteorology in Agriculture (Agricultural Meteorology)
Agricultural meteorology draws on basic physical and biological sciences to discover, define, and apply knowledge of weather and climate to the production of food-, feed-, fiber-, and bio-based products. Agricultural meteorology is based on fundamental principles of radiation and surface aerodynamics and thermodynamics.
For any farmer or professional working in agriculture, the benefits afforded by digital technology can be of huge advantage to crop management. Monitoring local and global weather patterns is critical to helping farmers to prepare for the worst when extreme weather is likely to hit.
Apps that could be useful to farmers:
- Strawberry Advisory System: this highly useful free app allows strawberry producers to keep their crops free of devastating fruit rot like Botrytis and Anthracnose.
- AgroForecast
- Weather Impact
- AccuWeather
Aeronautical Meteorology and Drone Flights
A special branch of meteorology that supplies drone owners and operators with weather forecast is called Aeronautical meteorology. Weather conditions affect almost every aspect of our lives. Until the development of computers and smartphones, hydrometeorological institutions informed general public about the weather forecast through available media. Today, weather forecast is available through apps that can be easily downloaded to the smartphones. This fact
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  facilitates the work of a drone operator who can easily obtain information about weather conditions in real time. A drone operator poses an increased risk to people and objects on the ground and therefore he/she must have extra knowledge about how the weather and meteorological conditions affect drone and flight. The flight can be affected by different meteorological factors:
• Windy weather: Both the drone's ability to move through the air and its balance can be disturbed by strong winds. It is important to make sure that the payload is properly secured and attached; The wind can blow the drone off its desired route or make it difficult to control.
• Humid weather: Many drones are sensitive to rain, fog and snow. Drones can also attract lightning and, in addition, some of the drone's sensors can be adversely affected during rainfall or fog.
• Cold temperatures: The risk of ice build-up on the propellers and batteries getting cold at freezing temperatures must be considered.
• Air density: The propellers has less air resistance, the thinner the air is. The air gets thinner at higher altitude.
• Turbulence: Mechanical turbulence may affect your drone if you fly between buildings, mountains or other high objects that interfere with the even flow of the air. Regardless of the subcategory drone operator fly in, before each flight one must check the weather forecast for the period when he/she plans to fly and to always be aware of drone's limitations.
Irrigation controller
An adequate water supply is important for plant growth. When rainfall is not sufficient, the plants must receive additional water from irrigation. Various methods can be used to supply irrigation water to plants. Each method has its advantages and disadvantages. These should be taken into account when choosing the method which is best suited to the local circumstances. Sophisticated methods of water application are used when larger areas require irrigation. There are three commonly used methods: surface irrigation, sprinkler irrigation and drip irrigation.
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  - Surface Irrigation: Surface irrigation is the application of water by gravity flow to the surface of the field. Either the entire field is flooded (basin irrigation) or the water is fed into small channels (furrows) or strips of land (borders).
- Sprinkler Irrigation: Sprinkler irrigation is similar to natural rainfall. Water is pumped through a pipe system and then sprayed onto the crops through rotating sprinkler heads.
- Drip Irrigation: With drip irrigation, water is conveyed under pressure through a pipe system to the fields, where it drips slowly onto the soil through emitters or drippers which are located close to the plants. Only the immediate root zone of each plant is wetted. Therefore this can be a very efficient method of irrigation (Figure 6). Drip irrigation is sometimes called trickle irrigation.
Automatic Irrigation
Automatic irrigation is the use of a device to operate irrigation structures so the change of flow of water from bays can occur in the absence of the irrigator.
Automation can be used in a number of ways:
• to start and stop irrigation through supply channel outlets
• to start and stop pumps
• to cut off the flow of water from one irrigation area — either a bay or a section of channel and directing the water to another area.
These changes occur automatically without any direct manual effort, but you may need to spend time preparing the system at the start of the irrigation and maintaining the components so it works properly.
Benefits of automatic irrigation
The benefits of automatic irrigation are:
• reduced labour
• timely irrigation — plants being watered when needed
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  • management of higher flow rates
• accurate cut-off of water compared to manual checking
• reduced runoff of water and nutrients
• reduced costs for vehicles used to check irrigation. Disadvantages of automatic irrigation
The disadvantages of automatic irrigation are:
• costs for purchasing, installing and maintaining the equipment
• reliability of irrigation system (due to human error when setting up)
• increased maintenance of channels and equipment to ensure it is working properly. Developing an Automatic Irrigation System
Before installing automatic irrigation develop a whole farm plan for your property.
During the development of the farm plan, consider automatic irrigation in the planning process so you can incorporate some of the features required for automation from the start. This might involve design of the channels for channel automation if possible — or it might be the use of bay outlets and other channel structures that will suit automation at a later stage.
Installing the automatic irrigation
When it comes to installing the irrigation there are a number of ways of getting started.
1. Automate the areas chosen for irrigation at night time — so appropriate irrigation flow rates can be achieved.
2. Automate those areas that are difficult to irrigate — areas of short steep bays that require the irrigator to be present more often or require frequent changes.
Things to be aware of
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  Automation is not only suited to areas of the farm that have been laser-graded. Non-lasered areas can also be automated. This can include automation of the channel structures to irrigate sections of the non-lasered areas.
Using the information from a whole farm plan— channel structures that will be used when the development works are carried out — can be purchased and used to automate these non-lasered areas. This can be done with the knowledge that the structures will be suitable for use after the development work is carried out.
Choosing the best-automated irrigation
All systems of automation have advantages and disadvantages that need to be considered when deciding which system will suit the irrigation layout for a particular property. There is no system that will be the best system for all properties. If a system that can be moved around the property, and perhaps used on other properties, is required then you need to consider systems that are portable.
If you want a system where the components are fixed and can follow the same irrigation sequence each irrigation — a fixed system would be more appropriate.
In determining the best system for a property, you will need to consider:
• the cost of the system
• back up servicing of the system
• which system will best suit your property and irrigation layout. Types of automatic irrigation systems
Pneumatic system:
A pneumatic system is a permanent system activated by a bay sensor located at the cut-off point. When water enters the sensor, it pressurizes the air, which is piped to a mechanism that activates the opening and closing of irrigation structures.
Portable timer system:
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  A portable timer system is a temporary system which uses electronic clocks to activate the opening and closing of the irrigation structures. Because of its portable nature, 4 or 5 units are usually purchased to move around the whole property.
Timer or sensor hybrid:
As the name suggests, this system is a hybrid of portable timer and sensor systems.
Like a portable timer, it uses an electronic device to activate the opening and closing of the irrigation structures.
This system has an additional feature of the irrigator being able to place a moveable sensor down the bay. When it comes in contact with water, transmits radio signals to the timer devices at the outlets to open or close the structures. It then sends a radio message to a receiver to let the landowner know water has reached the cut-off points down the bay.
Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA)
Automation systems that use SCADA consist of a personal computer and software package to schedule and control irrigation via a radio link. Signals are sent from the computer to control modules in the paddock to open and close irrigation structures with linear actuators. Bays are opened and closed on a time basis. Some systems have the capacity to automatically alter the time a bay outlet is open, if the channel supply is inconsistent. SCADA based systems have the additional benefit of being able to start and stop irrigation pumps and motors.
Automating an irrigation layout
An irrigation layout can be automated at one of two places — in sections of channel or at individual bay outlets.
Automation of channel sections
In this system, the channel structures are automated allowing the channel level to be changed. The bay outlets do not have opening or closing structures rather each set of outlets is set at a specific level (such as a set of sills). This method of automation requires a larger amount of fall to be available in the channel system to allow for a change in water level between different areas.
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  This change in water level is required to prevent water flowing onto bays previously irrigated, when another section is to be irrigated. On many farms, this fall is not available, so this method of automation in many cases is not suitable.
Automation of individual bay outlets
This method of automation involves control of the bay outlets to change the flow of water onto the areas being irrigated. This system of automation is the most frequently used in areas where there is insufficient fall to automate channel sections. The same type of automatic devices available can be set up to operate either automation of channel sections or automation of bay outlets.
Agricultural Sensors and GPS tracking devices
Precision agriculture sensors are very efficient in agriculture because they transmit data that helps farmers not only to monitor but also to improve their products and keep abreast of changes in the field and ecosystem. Intelligent agricultural sensors help to easily identify animals, detect heat and monitor their health, thus facilitating the isolation and healing of sick cows by identifying, detecting, and following herds. Using smart sensors in agriculture, farmers can now record their crops and keep an eye on their effectiveness remotely, address crop pests and take swift action to protect their crops from any risk to the environment.
What type of sensors are used in Agriculture?
A sensor is a gadget that perceives and responds to certain inputs which could be illumination, locomotion, pressure, heat, or moisture, and transforms it into a representation or signals that can be read by humans for further reading and processing. There are various types of sensors used in agriculture that enable the need for smart agriculture incorporation.
Optical Sensors In Agriculture
This is the use of light to evaluate soil materials and track countless light prevalence. These sensors can be positioned on automobiles, satellites, drones, or robots thereby enabling the soil
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  to reflect and the gather and processing of plant color data. Optical sensors also have the ability and capacity to condition the clay, natural matter, and humidity properties of the soil.
Electrochemical Sensors For Soil Nutrient Detection
The electrochemical sensors aid in the collection, processing, and mapping of the chemical data of the soil. They are usually mounted on specially designed sleds. They supply accurate details required for agriculture. This includes the nutrient of the soil levels and pH. The soil samples are then sent out to a soil testing lab and standard procedures are carried out. Error-free measurements especially in the area of determining pH are carried out with the use of an ion- selective electrode. These electrodes notice the pursuit of specified ions, such as hydrogen, nitrate, and potassium.
Mechanical Soil Sensors For Agriculture
These sensors are used to measure soil compression or mechanical opposition. This sensor uses an application that passes through the soil. This sensor then records the force calculated by pressure scales or load cells. When a sensor passes through the soil, it documents the holding forces that result from the cutting, smashing, and displacing of soil. Soil mechanical resistance is recorded in a unit of pressure and points out the ratio of the force necessary to go into the soil channel to the frontal area of the tool engaged with the soil.
Dielectric Soil Moisture Sensors
This sensor calculates the moisture levels in the soil with the assistance of a dielectric constant. This is an electrical property that substitutes depending on the moisture content in the soil. The moisture sensors are used in association with precipitation check locations all around the farm. This allows for the scrutiny of soil moisture positioning when vegetation level is low.
Location Sensors In Agriculture
They are also known as agricultural weather stations. They are positioned at different places throughout the fields. These precision agriculture sensors are used to determine the variety, distance, and height of any position within the required area. They take the help of GPS satellites for this purpose.
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  Electronic Sensors
They are installed on tractors and other field equipment to check equipment operations. Data are transmitted via cellular and satellite communication systems to computers or mailed to individuals directly. The supervisor in charge can now have access to the information either on their office computer or their personal cell phones.
Airflow Sensors
Its measurements can be made at particular locations while on the move. They measure soil air penetration. The expected result is the pressure needed to push a decided amount of air into the ground at a prescribed depth. There are various soil properties, including moisture levels, soil type compaction, and structure, which produce a different identifying signature.
Agriculture Sensors IoT
With the increase in adoption of the Internet of Things (IoT) the ability to connect various devices have being implemented in virtually every aspect of our life. It only makes great sense that automation also finds its own application in agriculture as it will have a great impact on it.
This sensor provides real-time information on what is happening on the field such information including air temperature, soil temperature at various depths, rainfall, leaf wetness, chlorophyll, wind speed, dew point temperature, wind direction, relative humidity, solar radiation, and atmospheric pressure.
This indicates that farmers are in the know-how of when their crops are due for harvest, the quantity of water being used, the soil health, and if there’s a need for any additional input. This is measured and recorded at scheduled intervals. There is a big list of sensors used in agriculture IOT sensors which means (Solutions for Smart Farming). Making use of precision agriculture sensors will definitely transform the agricultural industry by increasing crop production, adopting a pest-free high-yield variety in crops, and keeping up with the increasing demand for food.
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