From CORDIS:

Objective: Barley is the pridominant crop in the driest land areas throughout the Mediterranean, Being annually grown on 15 million ha. Grain Yields are particularly affected by drought. The main objective of this proposal is to understand the genetic and physiological dynamics and processes underlying adaptation to drought. Novel materials will be developed and studied across a wide range of Mediterranean drought-prone environments throughout Europe, North Africa and West Asia. Contemporary genetics and plant physioloty tools will be used in order to formulate a germplasm improvement strategy for water use efficiency under rainfed Mediterranean environments.