Background In order to implement the European Strategy on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 20-30% by 2020, an important decrease in the output of all these gases from their main sources is needed. In Italy, agriculture was responsible for about 7% of total emissions in 2009, with the main gas being nitrous oxide released from soil (70% of total N2O output). Nitrous oxide emissions are primarily caused by nitrogen fertilisation in cropping systems. Current N2O emissions in agriculture are estimated using IPCC guidelines, which use a simplified model that considers the amount of fertiliser applied, but does not take into account climate conditions and agricultural management. Alternatively, N2O emissions are measured by means of several techniques that are either not suitable for croplands, or require the use of time-consuming procedures involving gas sampling from accumulation chambers and laboratory gas chromatography (GC) analysis. It is therefore necessary to develop a different and more practical approach allowing on-site determination of N2O fluxes by means of accumulation chambers equipped with continuous N2O analysers. Tuscany, the target area of this project, is a suitable territory to develop and test such an approach, being characterised by distinct soil and climatic conditions, as well as extensive and varied crop management systems. Objectives The main goal of the 'IPNOA' project is to decrease N2O emissions from agricultural activities in Tuscany, by at least 20% by the end of the project (2016), in comparison with the reference year of 1990. Other specific objectives are: The development of two prototypes for monitoring N2O fluxes, one fixed and the other portable, to measure N2O emissions from soil in order to improve the present monitoring on this greenhouse gas output; The identification of the best agro-ecosystem management practices to reduce agriculture emissions in Tuscany; and A scenario analysis at the regional scale to identify the measures to be used as financial incentives for N2O mitigation. Expected results The main quantified expected results include: The development of two prototype versions for measuring N2O soil fluxes: a portable version allowing the scanning of the soil emission heterogeneity and a fixed version allowing temporal emission variability to be studied related to the environmental conditions and the agro-ecosystem management; A best practices manual targeting farmers and other stakeholders, explaining the best methods to be used in agro-ecosystems management in order to mitigate N2O emissions; The drafting of a regional-scale analysis to identify the best funding strategy to be adopted by Tuscany's policy-makers to mitigate emissions; Awareness-raising among Tuscany’s farmers, farmer organisations and consortiums on the importance of nitrous oxide emissions and the ways to reduce their negative impact; and The possibility of exporting this innovative approach to other regions and countries.