What stayed with us after the 3rd European Carbon Farming Summit

Back from Padua, ideas start to settle.

What happened over the past week says a lot about where the carbon farming community is today. The Summit was crafted to be participatory, and this was clearly visible in the full rooms, the active breakout sessions, and the discussions that quickly moved into solid questions and recommendations.

All these conversations were aimed at understanding how to move forward and make carbon farming work in practice across real territories, in ways that can support the transformation of land use systems.

Across the programme, different angles were addressed, including data and MRV systems, financing, governance, and the need to move beyond a carbon-only perspective. With multiple sessions happening at the same time, conversations continued whenever possible and, in many ways, that is where a large part of the Summit actually happened: between sessions or over meals.

The presence of policymakers gave a particular depth to these discussions. There was a strong representation from the European Commission, including DG CLIMA, DG AGRI and the Joint Research Centre, with people following the sessions closely and engaging with the same questions raised throughout the Summit.

Having these actors in the same space creates something that is not easy to achieve otherwise. It allows perspectives on climate, agriculture and land use to come into direct contact, making it possible to understand where approaches meet, where they diverge, and how they can evolve without stepping on each other's feet.

In that sense, coherence needs to emerge through this kind of interaction, grounded in a shared understanding of what is happening on the ground and in the realities that policies are meant to address.

Policies that need to interact cannot evolve separately, and spaces like this help create the conditions for them to align in a more meaningful and practical way.

In that context, the development of the CRCF points in a clear direction. It offers a framework that can help define how carbon removals and emission reductions linked to land use are understood and claimed, while also bringing structure to a space that is still taking shape.

Throughout the Summit, one thing remained constant: the energy of the community, with people sharing experiences, knowledge, and working to move things forward together.

What comes next is to bring all of this together, to connect what was said, and to shape it into something that others can revisit, building on the work already underway.

As this edition settles in, it also feels important to acknowledge the collective effort behind it, from the Project Credible consortium to Climate KIC, Confagricoltura Veneto, and all those who contributed their time, energy and care to make this space possible.

This moment also marks a natural transition, as the work carried forward through Project Credible continues into its next phase, opening the path for the Summit to keep evolving, now under the coordination of EIT Food, and together with the wider community that continues to shape it.

See you at ECFS 2027.