Bioeconomy: Bringing in the public

In three years of work, the BioSTEP experts from five European countries organised discussions, workshops, conferences or living lab meetings with bioeconomy professionals and citizens to dive into their future vision of an  ecologically and economically sustainable economy: the bioeconomy. Their conclusions were welcomed by more than 100 stakeholders at the final BioSTEP conference in Brussels.

One of the most important outcomes after showcasing existing biobased products that could replace unsustainable fossil-fuel based staple goods to more than 4,000 citicens is: bioeconomy stakeholders have to make progress more visible to potential consumers and implement projects in collaboration with organisations of the civil society to achieve broad backing for product design and development from the very beginning of bioeconomy activities at regional level. “We learned that people are very interested in sustainability and ecology, but they often didn’t recognise the connection with the political concept of bioeconomy”, said Boris Mannhardt, CEO of BIOCOM AG and head of the project’s communication. “Bringing bioeconomy to the citizens is a promising way forward for the future,” he said. BioBioSTEP has collected a lot of interesting resources to do so, i.e. a database with information on existing bioeconomy products and processes,  a review of bioeconomy strategies at regional and national levels or strategies for strengthened regional bioeconomies. However, it still has to be tested which bioeconomy communication strategy is optimal to inform the public on both potential and risks concerning the bioeconomy. 

According to BioSTEP, it is crucial for more acceptance and „socially robust innovation“ to bring science and citizens closer without diluting scientific excellence. A way forward is to create a structured approach for civil society participation in research agendas. This would democratise bioeconomy strategy building and prevent agenda setting by business interest groups, but globally agreed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Additionally, Biostep recommends to find ways for co-creation of research agendas, knowledge, and innovations, i.e. through „engagement labs“. Knowledge should be still created in labs, but it takes into account activities of citizens outside the laboratory. „ Science and technology need to be better intertwined with society”, stressed BioSTEP expert Kate Millar from University of Nottingham.

Waldmar Kütt, who heads the unit „Bioecomomy Strategy“ at the European Commission’s DG RTD, underlined the importance to adapt bioeconomy approaches to local needs. „We must link social, environmental and economic gains“, he said, but at local level. As about one third of EU regions are estimated to have low bioeconomy maturity, it will be crucial to find out the reasons and implement them in the updated EU Bioeconomy action plan due to be published this year.

The detailed recommendations of the BioSTEP project can be found here.