The implementation of the project “Ensuring Agricultural Production and Ecosystem Services under the lens of Climate Change” includes the implementation of nine (9) Work Units and nineteen (19) Deliverables, which cover and ensure the achievement of the project’s objectives. The Work Units and the resulting Deliverables of the project are as follows:

Unit of Work 1: Development of a Geographical Database:

An extensive survey will be conducted to collect and record all the required data and information, including meteorological, hydrological, geological, agricultural, economic and social characteristics of the study area. All the recorded information will be entered into Geographic Information Systems (GIS) databases, for the purpose of spatial visualization of the information.

Deliverable 1.1: Issue describing the development and operation of the Geographic Database.
Deliverable 1.2: Development of geospatial data in Geographic Information System (GIS) and Design Software (CAD) format.

Unit of Work 2: Forecasting Future Extreme Weather Events:

The future climate in the area of interest will be simulated in terms of the daily values of the meteorological parameters most critical for agricultural production (rainfall, temperature, air humidity, sunshine, wind speed) as well as the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events (drought, floods) . The analysis will be carried out at a high temporal (daily) and spatial (about 500 m) scale, covering the whole of the next thirty (30) years, i.e. until 2050. The prediction of future climate change will be carried out under a range of climate scenarios and climate models, in order to more safely simulate the uncertainty of the future climate. The generated future meteorological data will be channeled to farmers and other interest groups and decision-makers, through the implementation of the project results dissemination actions, presented in Work Unit 8.

Deliverable 2.1: Forecast future climate in the study area to 2050, at high temporal and spatial resolution.

Work Unit 3: Monitoring and forecasting of the quantitative and qualitative parameters of water resources:

Agricultural activity is inextricably and reciprocally linked to the adequacy of water resources, in terms of quantity and quality. Agricultural activity increases the pressures exerted on water bodies both by withdrawing significant amounts of water and by transporting pollutants into them as a result of the leaching of used nitrate and phosphate fertilizers. The investigation of the quantitative and qualitative status of the water resources of the study area will be based on detailed satellite observations of the European Copernicus Earth Observation and Monitoring Program. At the same time, for the prediction of the future quantitative and qualitative state of water resources, hydrological models will be developed to simulate the surface water balance, with input data the climate forecasts produced in Work Unit 2.

Deliverable 3.1: Issue of monitoring the quantitative and qualitative parameters of water resources.
Deliverable 3.2: Forecast issue of quantitative and qualitative parameters of water resources.

Work Unit 4: Agricultural Productivity Monitoring and Forecasting:

Observations from the Copernicus satellites will be used and analysed, regarding the type and extent of cultivated land as well as various parameters of plant health, such as the Leaf Area Index (LAF), the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and soil moisture content. In addition, predictions of future climate (produced in Work Unit 2) and future water resource sufficiency (produced in Work Unit 3) will be fed into an agronomic model to estimate future crop yields.

Deliverable 4.1: Monitoring issue of agricultural productivity influencing parameters.
Deliverable 4.2: Issue of forecasting future crop yields.

Work Unit 5: Monitoring the Conservation Status of Ecosystems:

The conservation status of ecosystems will be assessed through the analysis of a wide range of indicators, such as the Habitat Suitability Indicator, the Species Distribution Indicator and the Species Fitness Indicator. In addition, the future conservation status of ecosystems will be simulated, using projections of future climate (produced in Work Unit 2) and future water resource sufficiency (produced in Work Unit 3).

Deliverable 5.1: Ecosystem Conservation Status Monitoring Issue.
Deliverable 5.2: Forecasting the Future State of Ecosystems Issue.

Work Unit 6: Economic analysis of agricultural activities and ecosystem services:

A thorough economic analysis will be carried out to assess the economic benefits or losses associated with both the agricultural activities sector and the ecosystem services sector, linked to the agritourism areas. The change in incomes of both farmers and other interest groups of the wider study area will be estimated up to 2050, in the light of future weather (produced in Work Unit 2), water (produced in Work Unit 3), agricultural ( produced in Work Unit 4) and ecosystem conditions (produced in Work Unit 5).

Deliverable 6.1: Economic analysis issue of agricultural activities and ecosystem services.
Deliverable 6.2: Economic analysis issue of projected future agricultural activities and ecosystem services.

Work Unit 7: Development of a Decision Support System for the Economic, Environmental and Social Sustainability of Rural Areas:

A Decision Support System (DSS) will be developed, which will be a useful tool for farmers, decision-makers and other interest groups in rural and agro-tourism areas, with the aim of securing and strengthening incomes in these areas, in the context of their sustainable development. The Decision Support System will provide the optimal development strategies in the short-term (2020-2025), medium-term (2025-2035) and long-term (2035-2050) time horizons. Development strategies will include the promotion of crops that are both profitable for producers and resilient to future climate and water conditions, ensuring the economic development of rural areas as well as the sustainable and balanced management of natural resources. The proposed management strategies will simultaneously contribute to the maintenance of high agricultural productivity and the reduction of consumed energy, in the context of adaptation to the relevant national and European policies.

Deliverable 7.1: Development of a Decision Support System for the Economic, Environmental and Social Sustainability of Rural Areas.

Work Unit 8: Dissemination of Project Results:

Two (2) seminars will be organized – one (1) every nine months from the start of the project and one (1) just before the end of the project – in which farmers, competent authorities and other interest groups will be informed about the results of the project, including the future extreme weather conditions predicted in the areas of development of their activities, the risk of reduced agricultural productivity due to climate change and its adverse effects as well as the measures they need to take at the level of agricultural cultivation as well as in a wider context, with the aim of increasing their agricultural incomes, in the context of the sustainable development of their regions. Also, one (1) training seminar will be held shortly before the end of the project, in selected fields of the areas of interest, with the aim of training the farmers in the good agricultural practices that are proposed to be followed. In addition, the project logo will be created, the project poster will be developed in a minimum size of A3 and relevant promotional printed material will be produced, which will be used in all the informational and communication actions and the actions for disseminating the results of the project. In addition, a project website will be developed, where information about the project will be posted, such as the project title, duration, budget and project objectives, and in addition, all project Deliverables will be posted as well as useful advice for farmers and other interest groups. The logos of the project, of the Special Management Service of the Operational Program of the Central Macedonia Region and of the Corporate Agreement for the Development Framework (ESPA ) 2014-2020. It will also be mentioned that the project in question is part of the Action “Collaboration and networking between research bodies, educational institutions and businesses in priority areas of the Region’s smart specialization strategic plan” and is financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) in the context of Operational Program “Central Macedonia” of the NSRF 2014-2020. All information will be posted on the website in Greek and English. In addition, the results of the project are expected to be widely disseminated through announcements at two (2) international scientific conferences, related to the subject of agricultural production and environmental protection and one (1) announcement in a relevant international scientific journal.

Deliverable 8.1: Minutes of the organization of two (2) seminars to disseminate the results of the project.
Deliverable 8.2: Proceedings of the organization of one (1) educational seminar for the training of farmers in the right rural areas.
Deliverable 8.3: Creation of project logo and poster and production of project promotional printed material.
Deliverable 8.4: Development of project web site.
Deliverable 8.5: Announcements at two (2) international scientific conferences and one (1) announcement in an international scientific journal.

Task Unit 9: Project Management:

It includes the general coordination and management of the project, including monitoring the progress of the project, writing progress reports to the Special Management Service of the Operational Program of the Central Macedonia Region, organizing technical meetings of the project partners, organizing the way of communication between the partners as well as with external agencies and dealing with possible problems that may arise. In particular, it is planned to hold at least five (5) technical working meetings between the partners – one (1) at the start of the project, one (1) every four months from the start of the project, one (1) every eight months from the start of the project, one (1) every twelve months from the start of the project and one (1) every sixteen months from the start of the project.

Deliverable 9.1: Project progress reports to the Special Management Service of the Central Macedonia Regional Management Operational Program.
Deliverable 9.2: Minutes of technical meetings of project partners.