Kick-Off Meeting (WP1)

9 - 10 December 2013

The first meeting of the LinkTADs consortium took place on 9-10 December, 2013 at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) headquarters in Rome. A total of 27 participants from eleven institutions took part in the kick-off meeting. It was an opportunity for the partners to get to know one another and to clarify the work plan for the coming months.Juan Lubroth (Chief Veterinary Officer, FAO) and Bart van Ommen (Technical Cooperation Department, FAO) welcomed the project participants and highlighted the importance of the global partnership for the control and prevention of transboundary animal diseases (TADs), and the exchange and cooperation between the EU and China.  The attendees of the kick-off meeting then introduced themselves, their organizations, and their roles in LinkTADs. There were two significant outcomes created from this meeting.  First, a set of work plans was discussed and officially validated by partners. This document was a key in guiding participants throughout the first six months of the project, highlighting the milestones, deliverables and main activities that needed to be conducted as well as the responsible institutions. Second, the partners agreed on a calendar with locations and timing for future events. It was decided to arrange back-to-back events to ensure maximized attendance at the meetings, while reducing travelling costs and time.  Finally, the project partners decided upon the logo and the website design.  The meeting finished with a short training session organized by Europa Media on management and reporting for those partners who were less experienced in FP7-funded projects.

The agenda for the meeting is attached below.