The participating universities include: University of Bologna (Italy), University of Eastern Finland (Finland), University of Hohenheim (Germany), AgroParisTech - Paris Institute of Technology for Life, Food and Environmental Sciences (France), University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (Austria) and Wageningen University and Research (Netherlands).
The consortium was created on the initiative of the University of Hohenheim (Germany) and aims to make the European economy more resource-efficient, sustainable, competitive and based on a circular perspective.
Research, training, innovation
The six institutions of the "European Bioeconomy University" are focusing on three essential pillars for the transition to bioeconomy. The core component is research, followed by excellent teaching, which is essential for developing the enormous potential of future bioeconomy, and finally innovation, which is crucial for transforming research results into new technologies, services, products and businesses.
The “European Bioeconomy University” will be a new think tank overlooking the future of the European Union. The activities of these six participating universities cover every area of bioeconomy, ranging from agriculture to food, forestry, environmental sustainability, industrial applications and biotechnology, as well as the economic and social aspects of this sector. The European Bioeconomy University can play an important role in the emergence of a knowledge-based bio-economy in Europe, contributing to the acceleration of this process.
A knowledge-based bio-economy
Knowledge-based bio-economy plays a key role in the European Union, for instance in the development of new crops for food, feed and industry, new products such as bioplastics and chemicals extracted from renewable resources, crops adapted to climate change and energy produced from biomass. In 2012 the European Union presented its Bioeconomy Strategy, thus paving the way for a sustainable and future-oriented economy based on renewable resources. The new EU roadmap for 2018 indicates a clear intention to promote further developments in this direction.
The field of bioeconomy entails a number of important challenges: the rapid growth of the world population makes it more difficult to ensure food security, and at the same time natural resources must be used in a sustainable manner. The European economy is still highly dependent on fossil fuels. Bioeconomy could change this scenario, while at the same time contributing to climate change mitigation.
A sustainable, knowledge-based bioeconomy would also benefit the European economy. This sector now employs more than 18 million jobs, and there is the potential to create at least one more million "green" jobs by 2030. New, future-oriented jobs designed for the younger European generations would also strengthen the international competitiveness of the European Union. In short, bioeconomy will benefit the environment, the economy and society and also promote the transition to sustainability.
Contacts
ARIC - Unità di processo Research development - Life Sciences & Bioeconomy
Address
Via Zamboni 33 Bologna (BO)