Following Student feedback the AgriFoRwArdS CDT have reimagined our Seminar Series for this academic year. Previously we have run a monthly hour-long online seminar (many of which you can still view on our YouTube channel – find out more via our Seminar Series Archive), but this year we decided to reboot, and instead are arranging two big seminar series events.

The first of these events took place at the end of January (24th to 26th), at the University of Lincoln’s beautiful Riseholme Campus, as part of the Lincoln Agri-Robotics (LAR) Mini-Conference, an exciting event focused entirely on agri-food robotics, where you can expect engaging sessions, insightful discussions, and valuable networking opportunities.

We heard from interesting speakers from across the domain of agri-robotics within the University of Lincoln, as well as keynote presentations from the Academic Leads of the new SUSTAIN CDT; Prof Simon Parsons (University of Lincoln), Prof Georgios Leontidis (University of Aberdeen), Prof Ilias Kyriazakis (Queen’s University Belfast), Dr Christos Tachtatzis (University of Strathclyde), and Prof Elizabeth Sklar (University of Lincoln).

The AgriFoRwArdS CDT also held their Quarterly Research Progress Meeting, which gave those student’s who had just begun their PhD study, an opportunity to update on the first few months of their PhD study, and their plans moving forward. Usually these updates would be given to the other students and a small group of supervisors, but on this occasion, the students got the fantastic opportunity to share their research with the wider agri-robotics community as part of the LAR Mini Conference. The meeting was hosted online too, so those who couldn’t make it to Lincoln, could still engage with the progress meeting.

The students even got a chance to get together socially. Meeting at The Swan, the University of Lincoln’s on campus pub, for dinner and drinks on Wednesday night.

We asked the student’s what they thought of the event, here’s what they had to say…

“The LAR Mini-Conference 2024 was a remarkable three-day event with insightful talks and engaging discussions. The keynote speakers shared valuable perspectives on challenges and advancements in Artificial Intelligence (AI), machine learning, and computer vision in the field of agriculture. It was a great opportunity for me to share my research with the community during the AgriFoRwArdS CDT session. I was able to make connections with fellow students, researchers, and professionals, which I believe will be beneficial for my academic growth.”

The LAR mini conference was really enjoyable and informative. I was mainly pleased with the great variety in the topics discussed and the richness of information from each presenter. If I had to pick my favourite talks, I would choose the presentations done by Dr. Grzegorz Cielniak, Dr. Marcello Callisti, and Dr. Adrian Salazar. In particular, the presentation of Dr. Adrian Salazar was quite unique with a different, more relaxed, less technical take on research than what usually gets presented in conferences.

Overall, it was a fantastic chance for AgriFoRwArdS Students to attend an event focused completely on agri-robotics, and a great opportunity to get together with their fellow students. Not to mention, it was a big AgriFoRwArdS event, combining both the progress meeting and the new-look AgriFoRwArdS Seminar Series.

Thanks to everyone who attended!