The EU-funded REGACE project hosted on April 22, 2025, in Kafr Qara Israel an insightful and forward-thinking event centered on the integration of solar panels in greenhouses.
Organized by the Al-Zahrawi Society in collaboration with the Steinhardt Museum’s Desha Institute for Environmental Studies at Tel Aviv University, the event drew an impressive crowd of some 70 participants.
Attendees included policymakers from various government ministries, agricultural advisors, researchers in energy and agriculture, growers, civil society organizations and industry stakeholders.
The day opened with welcoming remarks by Professor Abed Azzam, Dean of the Faculty of Life Sciences at Tel Aviv University, who highlighted the groundbreaking nature of the technologies emerging from the Al-Zahrawi Society.
This was followed by Raanan Amoyal, Head of Planning at the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, who gave an overview of national agrivoltaic trends, outlining key policy directions shaping Israel’s approach to sustainable agriculture.
Participants then joined REGACE coordinator Dr. Ibrahim Yehia on a guided tour of the project’s test greenhouse site, where visitors were able to see firsthand the successful cultivation of cucumbers using the responsive tracking system, developed by REGACE partner TriSolar. The group was impressed by the thriving crops and the seamless integration of energy and agriculture.
Dr. Liron Amdur of the Desha Institute presented the sustainability findings of the REGACE research, emphasizing the advantages of greenhouse-based agrivoltaic systems over those implemented in open fields. These benefits include lower installation costs, reduced labor requirements, minimal disruption to farm operations, and a significantly smaller carbon footprint.
Dr. Yehia later moderated a panel of five experts representing the Ministry of Agriculture’s Extension Service, an energy licensing attorney, representative of the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel, the Heschel Center for Sustainability, and a farmer developing energy ventures.
The panel tackled pressing challenges facing agrivoltaic development in Israel, including regulatory hurdles, environmental concerns, and potential policy solutions.
The event concluded with breakout sessions, where participants discussed the unique challenges and opportunities of greenhouse-based agrivoltaics from different perspectives – those of farmers, policymakers, and land use specialists.
This event marked a significant step in promoting climate-smart agriculture and highlighted the REGACE project’s potential to transform the future of energy and food production in Israel and beyond.
