Welcome remarks - Ulrich Ryser, President of the IALB

Welcome to the 56th annual conference of the International Academy of domestic and agricultural counselling (IALB) in Münster. At the same time, the 6th EUFRAS conference (European forum for agricultural and rural advisory services) will take place. This year’s conference will be hosted by the Agricultural Chamber of North Rhine-Westphalia. I would like to express my appreciation towards the overwhelming commitment.

The topic of this conference is “Changes in agriculture and counselling – new possibilities in the view of globalized markets and regional demand”. As you can probably tell, there will be some sensitive issues on the agenda. Each one of us has to deal with these matters, so our conference offers the opportunity for all to gather useful knowledge for everyday working life.   We will learn about approaches, methods and processes of counselling in North Rhine-Westphalia and we plan to discuss how farmer families can be protected more efficiently.

IALB is an international network for sharing information and experiences. Our events are organized in various regions of our operation area and are designed to convey new impressions of distinct sceneries and territories. Our conferences offer the unique chance to broaden your horizon and to return back home along with several new ideas. It also helps to establish personal contacts in order to share knowledge and ideas, even after the conference will have ended. As you can see, IALB members enjoy a number of benefits. Everyone who is interested may join at any time. And there is one more thing I can say from my personal experience: IALB members are very open-minded and uncomplicated people, so new members will be welcomed with open arms.    

At this point I would like to thank the Agricultural Chamber of North Rhine-Westphalia, the promoters and sponsors for their support and the team of the IALB and EUFRAS conference 2017 for their organisation.

And now, dear IALB and EUFRAS members and interested people, I hope that you will draw a huge benefit from this unique opportunity. Enjoy your stay in Münster, get to know some interesting people and share your experiences.

Ulrich Ryser, President of the IALB