Astghik Sahakyan is a PhD student at the Doctoral School of Social Ecology at BOKU University in Vienna. Her PhD research focuses on assessing the transformative potential of circular alternative food networks, with case studies in Austria and Armenia.
She received her bachelor's and master's degrees in economics from the Agribusiness Teaching Center, a joint programme of the Armenian National Agrarian University (ANAU) and Texas A&M University. Since graduating, Astghik has been involved in agribusiness projects at the International Center for Agribusiness Research and Education (ICARE) Foundation, including the APPEAR-funded Building Organic Agriculture in Armenia - BOAA project.
Astghik participated in the IFSA Conference 2024 and the PhD course "Systems Thinking in Practice in PhD Research", which was part of the conference. The event took place in Trapani, Italy, from 28 June 4 July and the themes were aligned closely with Astghik’s research interests, including transition pathways, rethinking food production and consumption, and approaches to local development.
Two impressive field visits were also part of the programme: I Locandieri, a social cooperative, and Tasca d'Almerita, a winery committed to sustainable viticulture. The conference provided an ideal venue for PhD students from around the world, including Astghik, to network, reflect on their research, discuss challenges and learn from each other, as well as from experienced researchers and founders of sustainable initiatives. Astghik connected with peers working on similar topics and gained valuable insights for her PhD work.