Wageningen Social & Economic Research

== History ==

== History ==

[[File:LEI eerste steen.JPG|thumb|right|250px|Founding stone at the Conradkade office. It reads: "Agriculture counts on its LEI".]]

[[File:LEI eerste steen.JPG|thumb|right|250px|Founding stone at the Conradkade office. It reads: "Agriculture counts on its LEI".]]

LEI – originally the Landbouw-Economisch Instituut (Agricultural Economics Institute) – was established in the late 1930s by agricultural organisations. In the 1970s it became part of the Dutch ministry of Agriculture and in the 1990s it was privatised.

LEI – originally the Landbouw-Economisch Instituut (Agricultural Economics Institute) – was established in the late 1930s by agricultural organisations. In the 1970s it became part of the Dutch ministry of Agriculture and in the 1990s it was privatised.It became part of Wageningen University and Research Centre, within which it combined with the Department of Social Sciences to form the Social Sciences Group. It was renamed in 2016 to "Wageningen Economic Research" (abbreviated "WEcR", to differentiate it from [[Wageningen Environmental Research]], WENR).<ref>{{Cite web |title=WUR voert naamsverandering onderzoeksinstituten door |trans-title=WUR implements name change of research institutes |author= |work=agf.nl |date=7 September 2016 |access-date=21 May 2025 |url=https://www.agf.nl/article/145895/ |language=nl}}</ref> On 1 January 2025, WEcR merged with Wageningen Centre for Development Innovation to form Wageningen Social & Economic Research (WSER).<ref name="merger">{{Cite web |title=New institute: Wageningen Social & Economic Research |work=WUR |date=9 October 2024 |access-date=21 May 2025 |url=https://www.wur.nl/en/research-results/research-institutes/social-economic-research/show-ser/new-institute-wageningen-social-economic-research.htm}}</ref>

Wageningen Centre for Development Innovation began its journey in 1951 as the International Agricultural Centre (IAC)—a pioneering initiative of the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture (LNV), created to support countries undergoing rapid development. Over the decades, IAC evolved through integration into Wageningen UR in 2001, becoming part of Wageningen International, and eventually launching as a separate business unit, Centre for Development Innovation, in 2009. With a focus on capacity strengthening, social learning, and complex system innovation, WCDI has grown into a key knowledge partner in global sustainable development. On 1 January 2025, WCDI merged with WEcR to form Wageningen Social & Economic Research (WSER).<ref name="merger" />

LEI became part of Wageningen University and Research Centre, within which it combined with the Department of Social Sciences to form the Social Sciences Group. It was renamed in 2016 to "Wageningen Economic Research" (abbreviated "WEcR", to differentiate it from [[Wageningen Environmental Research]], WENR).<ref>{{Cite web |title=WUR voert naamsverandering onderzoeksinstituten door |trans-title=WUR implements name change of research institutes |author= |work=agf.nl |date=7 September 2016 |access-date=21 May 2025 |url=https://www.agf.nl/article/145895/ |language=nl}}</ref> On 1 January 2025, WEcR merged with Wageningen Centre for Development Innovation to form Wageningen Social & Economic Research (WSER).<ref name="merger">{{Cite web |title=New institute: Wageningen Social & Economic Research |work=WUR |date=9 October 2024 |access-date=21 May 2025 |url=https://www.wur.nl/en/research-results/research-institutes/social-economic-research/show-ser/new-institute-wageningen-social-economic-research.htm}}</ref>

== See also ==

== See also ==