Call for Application
(» download pdf)
On behalf of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) the University of Kassel and the German Institute for Tropical and Subtropical Agriculture (DITSL) in Witzenhausen are organizing the
International DAAD Alumni Seminar – “Technical and social innovations for sustainable agri-value chain development and job creation in rural areas”
10–17 September 2019 in Witzenhausen, Germany
followed by a visit to the most important conference on tropical and subtropical agriculture and natural resource management “Tropentag 2019”,
18–21 September 2019 in Kassel, Germany
Overview of the seminar
The seminar and conference visit are offered by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) in the framework of the program Alumni Special Projects (www.daad.de/alumni-special-projects). The interna-tional DAAD Alumni Seminar is organized and hosted by the Department of Agricultural Engineering in the Tropics and Subtropics of the Faculty of Organic Agricultural Sciences of the University of Kassel (www.uni-kassel.de/fb11agrar/en/sections/agrartechnik/home.html), Prof. Dr. Oliver Hensel and DITSL Witzenhausen (www.ditsl.org). The costs will be mainly covered by funds from the DAAD provided by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
The seminar targets Germany Alumni from developing countries (DAC country nationals) who studied, carried out research or worked in Germany for at least 3 months and are presently living and working in their home countries. The Alumni should be professionally involved in development oriented tropical and subtropical agriculture, natural resource management, social sciences, agricultural engineering and/or business & marketing in the framework of rural or urban, public or private sector development, and/or are working for academic, educational or development organizations, NGO's, donor agencies or private enter-prises. The prospective participants should be potential multipliers in a position to spread the acquired knowledge and experience and/or take decisions on implementation.
The main objective of the seminar is to promote exchange between the participants, facilitate international scientific cooperation and qualify the participants in the field of technical and social innovations for agri-value chain development and job creation. The seminar will foster exchange of experiences, establishment of international networks between the participants, scientific discourse with regard to innovative ideas and international academic cooperation in this field. It will stimulate and promote ideas for joint research, strat-egy development and knowledge transfer.
The seminar is scheduled in the run-up to the Tropentag 2019 in Kassel (www.tropentag.de), the most important conference on tropical and subtropical agriculture and natural resource management.
The Topics
The main topics covered during the DAAD Alumni Seminar are:
- Postharvest-technology, quality aspects of post-harvest treatments and reducing of post-harvest losses
- Quality aspects of food production and processing
- Resource efficient plant production
- Sustainable production due to technical optimization and resource conservation
- Social ecology and transdisciplinary research
Participants’ Profile
Eligible for participation are Alumni who meet the following requirements:
- Germany Alumni from developing countries (DAC country nationals) who have stayed in Germany for at least three months for study or research purposes.
- A proven working background in the field of development oriented tropical and subtropical agricul-ture, social science, natural resource management or similar disciplines.
- To act as potential multipliers, e.g. people who are in a position to spread the acquired knowledge and experience.
- Adequate language proficiency which is essential to actively participate in the workshops and discussions as the seminar will be held in English.
- Women are particularly encouraged to apply.
Tentative Program
The seminar in Witzenhausen will include:
- Papers and case studies presented by the participants (Alumni) and invited experts
- Group work and group discussions
- Lectures, seminars and practical workshops
- Excursions
- Demonstrations and field trials at the Department of Agricultural Engineering in Witzenhausen
It is necessary to participate in the whole program: seminar, conference and social program.
Cost Coverage
The project covers the following costs:
- International return ticket (economy) to Frankfurt and from Frankfurt
- Transport from Frankfurt airport to Witzenhausen (by train, 2nd class)
- Transport from Witzenhausen to Tropentag 2019 in Kassel (by bus)
- Transport from the Hotel in Kassel to Frankfurt Airport
- Entrance fees and transport to the visited projects during the excursions
- Entrance fees at the Conference in Kassel
- Accommodation and partial living expenses during the stay in Witzenhausen and Kassel
- Travel health insurance and visa costs for the stay in Germany
Please note: All other costs, such as transport costs from participants’ home town to their home airport or travel costs for visa application in the home country have to be borne by the participants.
Please keep in mind that living expenses are only covered partly during your stay in Witzenhausen as well as in Kassel.
Application Requirements and Process
If you are interested, please send your application latest by 31st of May 2019 via email to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The application (in English language) must include the following documents in one single pdf file:
- A letter of motivation, stating your motivation for participation and your special interest in the topic.
- A short CV with passport size photograph » Download the application form (docx)
- An abstract based on the participant’s own involvement in the field of technical and social innovations for sustainable agri-value chains and job creation in rural areas with reference to his/her home country (the main topics are listed above; abstracts must not exceed one page; please use font type “Arial”, font size 11, 1.5 line spacing).
- A short description of your present duties/ position and your personal professional goals, indi-cating your envisaged field of activities and duty level.
- An overview on seminars, workshops or conferences visited in Germany after finishing your studies in Germany.
The PDF-document has to be named ‘Last-name_First-name_country’ (e.g. Maier_Tobias_Germany).
Please note: Completeness of personal data mentioned in the application form will affect your eligibility as a participant. As active participation and involvement of the alumni is critical for the success of the alumni semi-nar, much emphasis will be put on the submitted abstract (cf. point 3 above).
With your application you agree that your data (name, organization, email) is given to selected company representatives and that you might appear on pictures which will be published on the DAAD website after the event.
With your application you commit yourself to participate in the whole program (expert seminar, conference and social program).
The program of the visit of theTropentag 2019 conference is prepared by the DAAD.
All applicants will be informed about the results of the selection process at the end of June 2019.
Travel Dates
The date of arrival in Germany will be 10 September 2019
(arrival at Frankfurt International Airport, FRA).
The date of departure from Germany will be 21 September 2019
(departure from Frankfurt).
Detail information for applicants
Coordination office
For any further questions please contact the organizational team:
Mrs. Franziska Böhm
DITSL Witzenhausen
Steinstrasse 19
37213 Witzenhausen, Germany
Tel: +49 (0) 5542 607 35
E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Further links:
» Department of Agricultural Engineering at the University of Kassel
