Tommy Dalgaard will be the new section leader in SYSTEM

The section Agricultural Systems and Sustainability (SYSTEM) will be getting a new section leader with effect from October 1, 2017. Professor Tommy Dalgaard will be the one taking on the role after the present section leader John E. Hermansen.

- I am proud and pleased about the appointment, says the 46-year-old Professor Tommy Dalgaard, who is looking forward to taking on the tasks.

- I feel a team spirit where we work together for agriculture in a good way – not for special interests. The section – and the department – support the development of agriculture in a sustainable direction. We take the long perspective and carry out research in the interdependency of things. AGRO’s strategy and SYSTEM’s description on AGRO’s website make me happy; they are top-tuned and up to date, says Tommy Dalgaard, who emphasises that his approach is holistic. 

- One of the section’s greatest strengths is that we have a tradition of working holistically and in terms of chains, such as the overall connections and interactions between plants, animals, natural resources and humans, says the coming section leader.

From Copenhagen to Viborg

Tommy Dalgaard was already attracted to the research in SYSTEM when he studied at the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University, in that he moved from Copenhagen to Viborg in order to write his master thesis with the research group in Foulum.

- The group is very much on my mind. I believe that SYSTEM is a strength for AGRO because the section helps bind the department together. We build broadly based on knowledge from all the department’s sections and from the rest of the university, and international rankings show that we are very strong on the international level with regard to interdisciplinarity, he explains.

From Viborg to the outside world

Tommy Dalgaard has already had thoughts about what the future should bring for the section under his leadership. When asked to describe the section’s best case scenario in five years’ time, he says the section will be well known in the public for what it can do, will be internationally well known as a central player in e.g. EU projects, and is an attractive place to work at and collaborate with.

- I am a great admirer of John Hermansen and wish that he would continue for many years more, but I also believe that I can contribute to renewing the section, says Tommy Dalgaard, who has extensive international experience and a widespread international network. The international aspect is something that the new section leader is very taken up with.  

- One of my goals is that we must increase our internationalisation. We must work with systems and methods on an overall level so it is not only ”the Danish model” that is valid. One of the tasks will be to investigate where we publish and thereafter prepare a publication strategy. One action we should take is to increase our international publication via the PhD students, says Tommy Dalgaard. He would also like the section to increase its focus on education, including PhD courses and supervision of thesis students, offer more courses, and invite more visiting scientists.  

Partial goodbye to his darling

In connection with his appointment as section leader, Tommy Dalgaard will be saying a wistful goodbye to the task of being responsible for the master programme Agro-Environmental Management.

- The programme is still my darling and I will still be strongly involved in education development. We must work acon making our programmes attractive – including for students from other countries. I will continue to be a course leader and co-examiner and will probably continue teaching, says Tommy Dalgaard, who has taught every single student in the agricultural degree programmes since they were launched in Aarhus.

The world outside of research

The coming section leader has an eye for the fact that the agricultural sector is not the only one with an interest in the section’s research results. 

- Much of what we do, such as life cycle assessments, appeals to the general public and is very relevant for society as a whole. We have specialised knowledge about the big picture and I believe that we should increase the public’s involvement so that we can influence the development of Danish farming together with the aim of achieving a strong and sustainable agricultural production to the benefit of the whole world.

Tommy Dalgaard was appointed professor of agriculture and sustainable resource management on January 1, 2016. Read the portrait of him in the article “New sustainability professor”.  

John E. Hermansen will continue as a full time employee in the section until February 1, 2018 and part time for approximately half a year thereafter.