The HORIZON 2020 project BIOVOICES created “What’s Bioeconomy?”, a book written for children in order to raise awareness on the sustainable and circular bioeconomy and, in particular, the bio-based products. The book, available in 11 different languages, communicates scientific sound contents in an easy and comprehensive way to the European families. All the information contained has been validated by experts from academia and industry. GenB is working to increase the number of languages, we will keep you posted!
Month: May 2024
GenB represented at the Bioeconomy Changemakers Festival 2024 Vienna edition
During the successful European Bioeconomy Changemakers Festival 2024 (BCF2024), Vienna took centre stage with an innovative satellite event, marking a significant step towards integrating youth voices into the bioeconomy discourse. Organised by the Centre for Bioeconomy (ZfB) at the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU), the event highlighted the crucial role of young changemakers in steering Austria, and by extension Europe, towards a sustainable future.
The festival promoted the idea that the younger generation holds the key to overcoming the challenges society faces in adopting sustainable practices. Despite their potential, the involvement of young people in policy-making has been minimal and often reduced to symbolic participation. To address this imbalance, BCF2024 – Vienna emerged as a critical platform to empower young minds to lead the bioeconomy revolution.
A highlight of the festival was the GenB workshop, facilitated by ZSI and designed to foster dialogue and collaboration between youth groups through a blend of scientific knowledge and innovative learning methods. Central to this workshop was the implementation of an ‘inquiry-based learning’ session, using the fishbowl methodology to facilitate an engaging and interactive dialogue between participants and experts.
The workshop began with participants drawing questions from their experience of playing a bioeconomy card game from the Engage4bio project and a morning filled with presentations about (circular) bioeconomy. These questions formed the basis of a dynamic discussion in which participants, surrounded by a panel of bioeconomy experts, explored critical issues ranging from the impact of the bioeconomy on consumer behaviour and trade, to the challenges and opportunities it presents within the EU’s Green Deal.
In this unique setting, three experts took their seats at the centre of the ‘fishbowl’, with two chairs left empty for participants eager to jump in with their questions. This format allowed for a fluid exchange of ideas, with questions sparking wide-ranging debates on the efficiency of the supply chain, the interplay between free trade and the bioeconomy, and the evaluation of bioeconomy policies.
Participants had the opportunity to engage directly with the experts, seeking answers and sharing insights. When they were satisfied, they left the circle to allow others to contribute, ensuring that a wide range of perspectives and solutions were explored.
This participatory approach not only provided a deeper understanding of the potential of the bioeconomy to reshape Europe’s environmental and economic landscape, but also inspired participants to think critically about the role they can play in this transformative journey.
Empowering Youth for a Sustainable Bioeconomy Future: Highlights from You(th) for BIOregions.SK
On May 13, PEDAL, the Slovak partner of GenB, organized the You(th) for BIOregions.SK event, held as a satellite event of the Bioeconomy Changemakers Festival in Slovakia. The event was a one-day gathering aimed to foster awareness, inspire sustainable habits, promote bioeconomy careers, and empower youth to catalyze transformative change across European regions.
One of our Slovak ambassadors shared her journey, transitioning from volunteering, exploring the world as a traveler, to educating others with a strong focus on sustainability. A young professional in regional development shared her story, leading her from a scientific career to development of a circular economy in a Slovak region. Representatives of Veles Farming talked about the beginnings and development of the hydroponic agriculture business and the gradual transformation of their company into a technological one. Social entrepreneurship also plays an important role in communities, which was presented by the next, talking about the activities, benefits and also challenges faced by non-profits. Lastly, a young scientist specializing in brewing shared some innovations and outcomes of his research and highlighted the fulfillment derived from a scientific career.
Engaging Dialogue with Policy Makers
In the following discussion with policymakers, Mr. Šucha, former Director-General of JRC, Mr. Hegyi, assistant to a Member of the European Parliament, and Ms. Dana Peškovičová, representing the BIOEAST initiative, discussed about the EU-level policy-making process, with a particular focus on environmental issues, opportunities for Member States to influence these policies, and ways to engage (young) individuals.
The speakers shared examples of successful initiatives, when even small member states, such as Slovakia, can push through significant changes in the field of environmental policies within the EU. As highlighted during the debate, regional and European policies are closely linked.
Speakers emphasized the importance of open communication among regional and national representatives, urging them to actively share their needs and challenges. They highlighted the critical role of grassroots insights in informing higher-level policy decisions, emphasizing that bottom-up input fosters the development of more inclusive and effective policies.
Additionally, speakers outlined actionable steps for the public, including young individuals, to engage in the policymaking process. By encouraging civic participation and advocacy, they underscored the power of collective voices in shaping policy outcomes. In conclusion, the debate underscored the significance of citizen oversight in holding elected officials accountable for their actions, reinforcing the principle of democratic governance.
Workshop “Bioeconomy is an opportunity for innovation and entrepreneurship”
The Bioeconomy cluster and The National Agricultural and Food Center organized a workshop dedicated to business opportunities in the bioeconomy. The workshop with (young) scientists, professionals, entrepreneurs and policy makers aimed to demonstrate and discuss the opportunities and challenges of the bioeconomy in the CEE countries (run in parallel). In the first part, speakers outlined the various forms of support available to (start-up) entrepreneurs at both EU and Slovak levels. In the second part, established entrepreneurs discussed opportunities and challenges facing young people, while R&D representatives showcased ongoing research activities.
Youth Opportunities: Youth aged 15+, delve into the diverse opportunities available in the bioeconomy (professions, youth initiatives, etc.) also in the regions.
The festival attracted about 150 participants and was organized by a partnership of key actors in bioeconomy in Slovakia, within the frames of the GenB and BioGov.net projects in collaboration with the national representatives of the BIOEAST initiative, BOOST4BIOEAST, CEE2ACT, Green Youth Changemakers project, Reduce Your CO2_Help Planet, 4F – Fast Fashion? Fast Forward! projects and other EU funded projects.
Partners: PEDAL Consulting, Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra (national BIOEAST contact point), Bioeconomy cluster, Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Institute and Europe Direct Nitra, Slovak Eco-Quality.
Empowering young people to champion the bioeconomy and sustainability: GenB webinar series launched
The GenB project launched its capacity building webinar series on the 3rd of April 2024. This first session, one of three planned, aimed to lay the foundations for understanding the bioeconomy and its integral role in sustainability. The series aims to prepare GenB Ambassadors to be effective advocates for these crucial sectors.
The webinar, held online with the participation of GenB Ambassadors from different countries (Europe and beyond), ran from 18:00 to 20:00 CET and featured an agenda rich in expert presentations and interactive elements. Key presentations included an overview of the bioeconomy, its potential applications, its link to sustainability challenges and the jobs and skills it creates. The webinar also addressed controversial aspects and common misconceptions, providing a balanced view of the opportunities and challenges within the bioeconomy. The webinar concluded with a module on bioeconomy awareness and education, which also served as a preview of the second session. This segment highlighted practical ways in which ambassadors could organise awareness initiatives, setting the stage for more in-depth exploration in the next webinar.
For those who were unable to attend live, a recording of the webinar is now available on the project’s YouTube channel.
Subsequent sessions will deepen practical understanding. The next webinar, scheduled for the 16th of May 2024 (18:00-20:00 CET), will use the GenB toolkit to present practical examples and hands-on activities to help ambassadors apply what they’ve learned and imagine their active role in promoting these concepts. Join us by registering here!
The series will culminate in a session specifically tailored to the ambassadors’ needs, focusing on enhancing soft and transversal skills such as communication, copywriting and video production. This training is designed to further empower ambassadors to effectively promote bioeconomy and the GenB initiative.
In addition to these webinars, regional sessions will be held in the eight consortium countries in local languages to maximise engagement and relevance.
This initiative aims not only to educate and empower the ambassadors, but also to inspire them to share their knowledge of the bioeconomy within their communities, thus creating a network of informed, engaged young leaders committed to sustainable practices.
Are you under 30 years old and want to contribute to the sustainable and circular transition of your country and Europe? You can still join the GenB Ambassador Programme! Register here!
GENB PROJECT MEETS ADVISORS OF THE FUTURE
BTG recently started the implementation of an educational activity in close collaboration with Bonhoeffer College, a comprehensive school in Enschede.This school provides secondary education. Including a Technasium stream. In this form of education, students work in teams on current STEM assignments from practice. Working in a small group, the student gets four assignments per year. Assignments are offered by public and private companies.For GenB, 3 classes with a total of about 75 second-year Technasium students will work in groups as a youth advisory agency, according to the Advisors of the Future concept
| Advisors of the Future is a programme of Natuur en Milieu Overijssel, a federation of approx. 80 nature conservation and environmental organizations in the province of Overijssel. Advisors of the Future gives young people the opportunity to think and talk about society, today and tomorrow. At AvdT, a class works on a real assignment from an external client. Each class that participates forms its own consultancy firm and gets to work in a project-based way. Students conduct research, collect and process information, form their own vision and opinion, propose solutions to the issue, work on various competencies during the process and finally present their advice during a joint final event. In this way, students are stimulated to further develop 21st-century skills: collaboration, problem-solving, creativity, critical thinking, and professional communication. It also offers a valuable interpretation for career orientation, because young people get to work in practice and look into an organization. |
The students are asked to devise and develop an exciting and attractive game that make its designer happy. The game should be designed for their peers. They can decide on the type of game themselves. There are plenty of possibilities: card game, board game, mind game, computer game, role play, escape game – it’s all possible.The game should be educational. In terms of content, the game must address one or more of the themes sustainability, circular economy, or bioeconomy. Students are expected to create a playable version of the game, including all game materials and a manual with game rules. Plus, a promotional video.At the kick-off in mid-April 2024, the BTG team gave an introduction on the bioeconomy for each of the 3 classes. For 2 months, until mid-June 2024, students will work mostly independently, according to the educational principle of objective-oriented learning. Their teachers and the BTG team are available to answer questions from the students.Halfway through the assignment, the students will make a company visit to technology developer BTG. There they will be given some presentations and a tour.The Advisors of the Future project will be concluded with a final event at the Province of Overijssel government building in Zwolle. Here all participating classes from all over the province will have the opportunity to present their business advice. They can set up their own stall from where they can give a short pitch. After listening to all the presentations, a jury will choose three finalists. They will battle in the final for the prize for the best Youth Consultancy of 2024. Who will that be? That’s up to the audience!BTG plans to further promote the most interesting game designs (inter)nationally. Nationally, e.g. during science festivals in the autumn of 2024. Internationally through the activities of the GenB project partners in other countries.To find out more about this concept, please contact John Vos, vos@btgworld.com.