The Grant Agreement for the project WINES as Marie Skłodowska Curie Action Staff Exchange (MSCA SE) has recently been signed. Dr. Britta Niklas coordinates this ambitious interdisciplinary project on behalf of the Institute of Development Research and Development Policy (IEE). Dr. Britta Niklas initiated the endeavour of bringing together a consortium of 19 universities, 21 non-academic partners and more than 100 researchers, and successfully applied for the funding of a budget of around 1.6 Million € in last year's highly competetive MSCA SE call. The 4-year project is supposed to start in November 2026.
Project description:
Analyzing and tackling the most recent challenges of the global wine market through transnational and interdisciplinary collaborative research, innovation and knowledge exchange can enhance resilience and competitiveness of the wine industry. WINES will foster innovative solutions and strengthen international partnerships, involving countries from the so called “Old Wine World” (France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Switzerland, Spain and Portugal) and the “New Wine World” (Argentina, Brazil, Chile and South Africa), representing about 70% of wine production and close to 50% of consumption in the world, guaranteeing a comprehensive approach, global innovation, knowledge transfer and adaptive solutions. The project will synthesize and evaluate diverse adaptation strategies towards climate change and identify solutions, including a rigorous analysis of their viability, scalability, and sustainability impact. It will focus on changing consumer preferences in terms of health and sustainability and sensory trends. It will examine structural and strategic conditions shaping global wine markets (e.g., tariffs, regulations, branding, GIs) including an analysis of business model innovations and will advance a transdisciplinary framework for sustainable wine tourism emerging as a critical diversification strategy in response to climate change, market saturation, and rural depopulation. Finally, the project will focus on how diversity and gender issues shape the future of the wine industry.
A part of the consortium met recently at the 5th annual meeting of the EuAWE (European Association of Wine Economists) to start networking and to discuss the next steps (see picture). To follow WINES and to get all updates, please use the respective LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/134434272.