Thematic Areas

Ten themes.
One living planet.

Ten themes spanning the full arc of rangeland, forage and livestock science , from the soil under our feet to the policies that shape land use at scale.

RangelandsSeedImprovementProductionLivestockTechnologyAgroforestryPolicyPastoralismFarmers' RightsRangelandsSeedImprovementProductionLivestockTechnologyAgroforestryPolicyPastoralismFarmers' Rights
Theme I
Rangeland & Grassland

Multifunctional Rangeland/Grassland

Integrating pastures, pastoralists and livestock while rejuvenating grasslands for biodiversity, ecosystem services and climate resilience.

Sub-topics

  • Pasture, pastoralist and livestock integration
  • Grassland rejuvenation, biodiversity conservation & wildlife perspectives
  • Climate-change resilience, ecosystem services & their payment
  • Restoration of degraded ecosystems for land degradation neutrality
Theme II
Forage Seed & Mechanization

Paradigm Shift in Forage Seed Research and Mechanization

Improved seeds, novel propagation and viability management, and new mechanization for forage and seed value chains.

Sub-topics

  • Forage seed research for improved pure & germinating seeds (PGS)
  • Seed quality, biotic and abiotic stresses
  • Propagation, seed biology, dormancy, storability & viability
  • Participatory seed production; mechanization for processing & value addition
Theme III
Forage Crop Improvement

Novel Approaches in Forage Crop Improvement

Conventional and cutting-edge breeding for forage quality, stress resilience and bio-energy traits.

Sub-topics

  • Conventional & recent approaches for forage varietal development
  • Breeding for forage quality, stress resilience & bio-energy traits
  • PGR, CWRs, genetics, genomics & genomics-assisted breeding
  • High-throughput genotyping & phenotyping, genome editing and apomixis
Theme IV
Production & NRM

Forage Production and Natural Resources Management

Diversified, integrated and circular forage systems with efficient, nature-based resource use.

Sub-topics

  • Forage-based cropping systems, diversification & integrated farming (IFS)
  • Circular economy and improved ecosystem services
  • One Health: PGPRs, precision, natural & organic farming, conservation agriculture
  • Non-conventional feed and forages for bio-energy
Theme V
Livestock & Dairying

Sustainable Livestock Production, Dairying and Value Chains

Advances in animal breeding, feeding, health and dairy value addition, plus fodder conservation.

Sub-topics

  • Animal breeding, designer feed & fodder, TMRs and VOC-based additives
  • Disease management, diagnostics, forewarning & Decision Support Systems
  • Dairy processing & value addition; shelf-life of milk, meat & poultry
  • Fodder conservation & post-harvest management (hay, silage, blocks)
Theme VI
Next-Gen Technologies

Next Generation Technologies in Forages and Animal Sciences

AI, drones, omics and biosensors driving data-led forage, pasture and livestock science.

Sub-topics

  • Artificial intelligence, drones & machine learning
  • Data-driven modeling and forecasting in fodder, pastures & livestock
  • Omics-technology, forage repository, DNA fingerprinting & molecular markers
  • Genetic purity testing, biosensors, neo & synthetic compounds, next-gen antimicrobials
Theme VII
Agroforestry

Alternate Land Use Systems and Agroforestry

Horti-pastures, silvi-pastures and multi-tier systems, with tree-crop management and fodder-tree improvement.

Sub-topics

  • Forage-based alternate land-use: horti-pastures, silvi-pastures & multi-tier systems
  • Tree-crop interactions and management
  • Silvicultural techniques in agroforestry
  • Genetic improvement in fodder trees
Theme VIII
Socio-Economics & Policy

Socio-Economics, Policy, Governance and Institutions

The economics, policy and institutions of forage systems, with pastoralists, FPOs and communities at the centre.

Sub-topics

  • Socio-economic perspectives of forages and forage-based systems
  • Grazing policy, financing, conflict resolution, land tenure & pastoral access
  • Capacity building, value chains, market linkages, FPOs, gender & youth
  • Advanced DSS, ITKs, community pasture management & trans-boundary grazing corridors
Theme IX
Pastoralists Panel

Special Session for Pastoralists and Stakeholders (Panel Discussion)

A panel discussion on “Revitalizing Pastoralism and Transhumance: Challenges, Innovations, and Opportunities”.

Sub-topics

  • Involving pastoralists, NGO/SEWA, FES and milk cooperatives/unions
  • Scientists and policy makers in dialogue
  • Challenges, innovations and opportunities in pastoralism
  • Transhumance and mobile pastoral systems
Theme X
PPVFRA Special Session

PPVFRA Special Session on Farmers' Rights and Protection of Fodder Crop Varieties

Creating awareness among farmers, stakeholders and delegates for community benefits.

Sub-topics

  • Creation of awareness to farmers, other stakeholders and delegates for the community benefits

Ready when you are

Submit your work to IRFC 2026.

Abstracts in MS Word, Times New Roman 12, up to 400 words excluding title, authors and affiliations, plus 3-4 keywords. Last date 31 August 2026.

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