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In the Agriculture and Care sector, various sectors and thus different worlds come together, which can strengthen each other and thus better meet the societal demands in both fields. However, developments within both sectors may also occur which could hinder agricultural activities and care work at the sector and company levels. Both the societal value of operating in green spaces and the tailored care in society are receiving much attention. Positive attention for the combination of Agriculture and Care can further stimulate both developments. It sets an example and can assist in the internal discussions in both sectors focusing on diversifying businesses in the agricultural sector and the socialisation of care. Therefore, the Agriculture and Care Foundation was established in 1999.
Both agriculture and care operate in a dynamic environment where unpredictable changes are happening on many fronts. The relatively young Agriculture and Care sector, which integrates both worlds on agricultural farms, is still evolving. It is unpredictable where these developments may lead. However, the Agriculture & Care Foundation wishes to make informed plans to face the future. It aims to involve stakeholders such as policy makers, entrepreneurs, client organisations, and care institutions. Therefore, they chose to use a scenario study as a tool in their policy preparation.
The primary goal of the scenario study was 'To facilitate an interactive process, where the involved actors are encouraged to be well-prepared to respond to possible developments and then to (pro)actively steer these developments wherever possible'. This process generates widely supported strategic options for the sector and a strategic plan for the Foundation, with the national Agriculture & Care Support Center as the executing body.
In this study, search directions were developed, systematically exploring uncertainties in the future. An interactive approach was chosen because in this dynamic sector, it is more essential to search for core qualities than for quantitative data that are rapidly outdated by reality.