The international community has now faced a big problem to meet the food needs of the population, the needs of energy which has dwindling availability and environmental quality deterioration due to the pressure of exploitation and the effects of global warming. At the national scope, sovereignty is an issue that attracted attention among academics, entrepreneurs, bureaucracy and general society.
The concept of food sovereignty focuses on the method to meet the food need that is determined by a community independently, sovereignty, and sustainably. To make it real, collective and continuous massive movement is needed, involving the public at large, farmers, researchers, academics, businessmen, politicians and bureaucracy.
This issue has also received attention from the UGM Faculty of Agriculture on the 65th Anniversary or the XIII Lustrum. According to the Chairman of the Anniversary Committee, Prof.Dr.Ir.Triwidodo Arwiyanto, M. Sc, themes raised for this event is the Agricultural Development Towards Food Sovereignty For Farmers and Community Welfare. To begin a series of events, Friday (6 / 5) balloon release and delivery of catfish aid and cocoa seedlings to farmers are conducted to open the event.
"The catfish given was about 10 kg and also 2000 cocoa trees. The catfish was given to fish farmers from Jetis Bantul and Karangmojo Gunungkidul, and cocoa seedlings to farmers in Patuk, Gunungkidul," said Triwidodo.
The others events, said Triwidodo, among others are high school level writing contest, sports competitions, workshops of Agricultural Higher Education Development, family gathering, expo, publishing of reference books for agricultural development, the inaugural building of Post-graduate building, and publishing of Faculty of Agriculture history book.
At the same place, Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture, Prof. Ir. Triwibowo Yuwono, Ph.D., added that the momentum of this current anniversary has a very strategic meaning and role because it is in line with changes in current agricultural dynamic situation both in the national and global levels. Major and strategic issues such as food security, climate change and global warming as well as globalization of agricultural commodities trade should be addressed very seriously by various groups.
"Another important issue is related to the development of agricultural higher education. Graduates of agriculture faculty should not only seek for work but also open jobs opportunity. The new paradigm of human resources competency shall be raised," said Triwibowo.