The online workshop “Young people for Mediterranean cooperation” will take place on the 13^th of October from 11.30 to 13.00 CEST in the framework of the European Week of Regions and Cities.

As 2022 marks the European Year of Youth, the workshop aims to showcase inspiring cooperation stories of young people from both sides of the Mediterranean – including representatives of ENI CBC Med projects – and celebrate their contribution to positive and constructive Euro-Mediterranean relations. To find out more information about the event, please visit the Programme website.

If you wish to attend the event, you can register at your earliest convenience at the following link: https://bit.ly/3SiZiNn (Workshop code – 13WS22471). You will need to create an account and then add the event to your agenda but it only takes a few minutes.

On Thursday 15 September 2022 from 9.00 to 17:00 CET, Deloitte, empirica and Fondazione Giacomo Brodolini (FGB) organised a Conference, together with the European Commission’s Directorate General for Research & Innovation (DG RTD), as part of the project on “Promoting education, training and skills across the bioeconomy”.

During the conference the results of the project and the recommendations for the development of education at higher education, VET and entrepreneurship levels,  were presented and discussed in order to empower the future workforce with the skills required in an evolving, circular and sustainable bioeconomy.

The results are now publicly available and you can download all the material at the following links:

Policy brief

https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/da7a3790-330c-11ed-975d-01aa75ed71a1/language-en/format-PDF/source-266382205

The bioeconomy, as a catalyst for systemic change, tackles the economic, social and environmental aspects of the European Green Deal, seeking new ways of producing and consuming resources while respecting our planet’s limits and moving away from a linear economy based on extensive use of fossil and mineral resources. As defined in the European Commission’s updated Bioeconomy Strategy of 2018, the bioeconomy covers “all sectors and systems that rely on biological resources (animals, plants, micro-organisms and derived biomass, including organic waste), their functions and principles. It includes and interlinks land and marine ecosystems and the services they provide; all primary production sectors that use and produce biological resources; and all economic and industrial sectors that use biological resources and processes to produce food, feed, bio-based products, energy and services.” The transition to a sustainable and circular bioeconomy will be achieved through the five goals of the EU Bioeconomy Strategy: Ensuring food and nutrition security; Managing natural resources sustainably; Reducing dependence on non-renewable, unsustainable resources; Limiting and adapting to climate change; Strengthening European competitiveness and create jobs. This transition presents opportunities for jobs and economic growth. In particular, the Bioeconomy Strategy forecasts that one million new jobs could be created by 2030, supported by the “strong and fast-growing start-up ecosystem in the biotechnology sector”.

Final report

https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/6a5f6dd4-3312-11ed-975d-01aa75ed71a1/language-en/format-PDF/source-266382552

This is the Final Report of the study on “Promoting education, training and skills across the bioeconomy” conducted by Deloitte, Empirica and Fondazione Giacomo Brodolini Srl SB (FGB), mandated by the European Commission’s DG Research & innovation (DG RTD). The study assesses the current and future (2030 and 2050) needs for professional profiles and skills, bringing together a quantitative forecast exercise and a qualitative ‘foresight’ activity, which incorporates expert insights on the future of the bioeconomy. This assessment is compared against the current education and training provision in the bioeconomy at three levels: higher education, vocational education and training, and entrepreneurship training. This comparison highlights key unmet training needs that need to be addressed to realise the opportunities that the bioeconomy can provide in the future. Recommendations are provided for each of the education levels to address these skills needs, including model curricula which draw on case studies of good practices. These recommendations cover both the content of model curricula, as well as approaches to developing and updating programmes to meet the changing needs of the bioeconomy.

Factsheets:

Higher education

https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/82c681fc-2fef-11ed-975d-01aa75ed71a1/language-en/format-PDF/source-265943753

Europe needs more professionals with dedicated skills to drive the transition to a sustainable and circular bioeconomy, a core component of the Green Deal. A study was made to support the development of educational and training content, methods, tools and structures to achieve a mainstreaming of the bioeconomy in education and training. The following recommendations aim to promote upskilling and reskilling bioeconomy professionals to meet this challenge.

Vocational education and training

https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/8898756d-2ff1-11ed-975d-01aa75ed71a1/language-en/format-PDF/source-265943548

Europe needs more people with the skills needed to drive the transition to a sustainable and circular bioeconomy, a core component of the Green Deal. A study was undertaken to support the development of educational and training content, methods, tools and structures to achieve a mainstreaming of the bioeconomy in education and training. It includes recommendations to train people to work in the bioeconomy.

Entrepreneurship education

https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/e98d595a-2fee-11ed-975d-01aa75ed71a1/language-en/format-PDF/source-search

Europe needs more professionals with dedicated entrepreneurship skills to drive the transition to a sustainable and circular bioeconomy, a core component of the Green Deal. A study was made to support the development of educational and training content, methods, tools and structures to achieve a mainstreaming of the bioeconomy in education and training. It includes recommendations that aim to promote upskilling and reskilling bioeconomy professionals to meet this challenge.

On 24 – 25 November 2022, the European Commission, with the support of Ireland, will organise an event Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030: an Atlantic-Arctic Lighthouse.

This event, taking place at the National Maritime College of Ireland in Cork, aims to mobilise a wide range of stakeholders to join the Mission “Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030”, and particularly the Atlantic-Arctic lighthouse. The event will focus on the political commitments to implement the Mission and agree on concrete measures and actions in the Atlantic-Arctic basins to protect and restore marine and freshwater ecosystems and biodiversity, and boost coastal resilience.

Please note that due to the room capacity, a first come first serve principle will be applied. In the event that you are unable to attend this event in person, you will have the possibility to join virtually.

More information will be published in this page.

After the fruitful collaboration among the European Bioeconomy Network, Transition2Bio and the World Bioeconomy Forum in the context of the World Bioproduct Day, the EuBioNet is awarding 5 vouchers to participate for free to the World Bioeconomy Forum annual conference. The event will take place online next 7–8 September 2022 and will be coordinated live from a studio located in Ruka, Finland.

The World BioEconomy Forum is a global platform for circular bioeconomy stakeholders to share ideas and promote bio-based solutions.

You can find all the details about the program of the 2022 conference at this link.

To participate, fill in this form – among the applicants, EuBioNet will extract 5 participants that will get a free voucher for the event.

The winners will be contacted by Monday 5 September.

MEET THE WORLD BIOPRODUCT DAY WINNERS

In July 2022 the World Bioproduct Day campaign engaged many stakeholders of the circular bioeconomy that shared their stories via social media by using the hashtag #bioproductday2022 and/or #bioproductday, or by submitting via email their bioproducts.

Transition2Bio and EuBioNet  selected the 5 most interesting submissions, following specific categories:

• Innovation: Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology – Biosurfactants and RoKKa projects
• Societal Impact: Stefan Keppler – Amazon Kapok
• Environmental Impact: Infinited Fiber – Textile Fibers Infinna
• Communication: Carmen Scioti – Ficus Natalensis Cloth
• Innovative Youth: Università degli Studi di Trieste – Valorisation of rice husk

The winners will be interviewed by Transition2Bio and the EuBioNet and they will be part of a social media campaign in the following months, to give more visibility to their circular bioeconomy stories!

The World BioEconomy Forum is a global platform for circular bioeconomy stakeholders to share ideas and promote bio-based solutions. We are fully committed to sustainability across the board and believe that climate change is real. As there is no one-size-fits-all bioeconomy, we evaluate the status of the circular bioeconomy with the Four-Pillar Structure. All our programmes and other activities are based on the Four-Pillar Structure.