As part of World Environment Day celebrations, ERAIFT organized a conference-debate on June 4, 2025, on the theme: “Taking action for biodiversity, agricultural sectors, and against plastic pollution.” Initiated under the leadership of students from the 6th cohort of ERAIFT's master’s program, this event was held at the AUF premises at the University of Kinshasa. Two presentations enriched it: the first, given by Professor Baudouin Michel, Director of ERAIFT, focused on the management of protected areas. After briefly presenting ERAIFT as a regional school with international governance and enjoying Category 2 centre status under UNESCO auspices, the speaker discussed current models of protected area management based on public-private partnerships (PPPs). These protected areas serve as sanctuaries for biodiversity and contribute to the fight against global warming. The second presentation, given by Patrick Minyangu, an expert at the FAO and a doctoral student at ERAIFT, highlighted the impact of climate shocks on household food security in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, showing that these stresses reduce food consumption, exacerbate hunger, and lead households to adopt adaptation strategies that are sometimes harmful.

ERAIFT warmly thanks AUF for its hospitality, as well as the UNESCO, the European Union and AGRINATURA for their support. It congratulates the students on this initiative and encourages them to continue such actions, which are helpful both for their training and for the school’s reputation.