Project description
Assisting greenhouse gas-intensive regions transition to a regional bioeconomy
A sustainable bioeconomy is essential for achieving the goals of the Green Deal. However, implementing a regional bioeconomy comes with various challenges. Bioeconomy model regions offer a systemic approach to transitioning to sustainable development. The EU-funded BIO2REG project aims to help greenhouse gas-intensive economies unlock their bioeconomy potential by moving towards model regions. The project will encourage interregional exchange and cooperation, providing regional stakeholders with a conceptual framework for regionalisation in model regions. This involves mapping best practices in a circular and sustainable bioeconomy, assessing bioeconomy potential, offering mentoring and training, forming transition alliances, and making policy recommendations. The project adopts a multi-actor approach by collaboratively creating tools and guides with regional stakeholders and engaging with regions through guided on-site exchanges.
Objective
Sustainable bioeconomy transition is an acknowledged pathfinder to achieve the Green Deal ambitions. A regionalised bioeconomy is seen as a promising leverage point for green growth. Many European regions have already adopted bioeconomy strategies. However, the majority of regional stakeholders lack actionable knowledge to translate them into practice and embed them into society, industry and research by simultaneously considering planetary boundaries. Regions heavily relying on GHG-intensive economies - that are particularly critical for realising the Green Deal - face even more challenges to unlock their bioeconomy potential. The concept of bioeconomy model regions tackles the urgent need to concretise bioeconomy into tangible transition measures. Model regions are characterized by a systemic approach, draw on technological and societal innovations, are able to link sectors and contribute to sustainable development in economic, ecological and social dimensions. BIO2REG therefore aims to enable regional stakeholders of GHG-intensive economies to unlock their regions’ bioeconomy potential by transitioning towards model regions. BIO2REG paves the way for regional stakeholder to actively initiate and shape transition based on a regions-to-regions approach. Embedded in a network of regions for regions, interregional exchange and cooperation will be facilitated. Specifically, regional stakeholders will be capacitated by i) provision of a regionalisation concept for model regions, ii) mapping best practices on circular and sustainable bioeconomy, iii) guides for bioeconomy potential assessments, iv) mentoring and training services v) formation of transition alliances and v) policy recommendations to adapt strategies and funding. A key component is the adoption of a multi-actor approach by co-creating tools and guides with regional stakeholders as well as engaging with regions by guided on-site exchanges with stakeholders from other regions.
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HORIZON-CSA - HORIZON Coordination and Support ActionsCoordinator
52428 Julich
Germany