Georgian agricultural development has received significant attention lately, and it remains one of the most pressing issues facing the country. Yet proper development comes only as a result of comprehensive understanding, and so a study by UNDP Georgia, Swiss Cooperate South Caucasus, and the Ministry of Agriculture, in partnership with ISET and ACT, a research company, entitled 'What are the knowledge needs of Georgian farmers?' was initiated.

What can bring the brightest among Georgian university graduates to the country’s public schools? While money alone may not do the trick, it is difficult to see a solution that does not represent a radical departure from the current remuneration system which places teachers – who hold the keys to Georgia’s future as a nation! – at the very bottom of the social ladder.

Betsy’s Hotel is an establishment accustomed to hosting a wide variety of patrons from across the world. However, the gathering of mid-level and senior representatives from public, private and non-profit organizations to be awarded certificates for completing a course funded by Japan Tobacco International Georgia and run by the ISET Policy Institute is certainly unique even for a hotel with such a habitually diverse clientele.

The economic significance of bees extends far beyond honey production. As the National Resource Defense Council writes in 2011 (“Why We Need Bees: Nature’s Tiny Workers Put Food on Our Tables”), the value of the honey that bees produced in the US in that year amounted to 150 million dollars, while the value of the harvested crops that were pollinated by bees was 15 billion dollars, i.e., greater by a factor of 100! Having bees around is not primarily beneficial for the beekeepers, but even more for anyone else who grows crops, fruits, or vegetables.

On Wednesday, September 7, ISET hosted Dr. Jon Hanf, Head of the Wine Economics Program at Geisenheim University, Germany, who spoke about the prospects of Georgian wine in the highly competitive German market.