The Bioeconomy Council hands over its 1st working paper to representatives of the BMBF and BMEL
On February 7-8, 2022, the 6th council meeting of the German Bioeconomy Council (BÖR) took place in Berlin. During this meeting, the German Bioeconomy Council presented its first working paper to the state secretaries Dr. Manuela Rottmann (BMEL) and Judith Pirscher (BMBF).
During the event, the council members Prof. Daniela Thrän, Prof. Iris Lewandowski, Dr. Felix Prinz zu Löwenstein and Dr. Jürgen Eck engaged in a discussion with the state secretaries Dr. Manuela Rottmann (BMEL) and Judith Pirscher (BMBF). The council handed over its first working paper to the political representatives. The working paper sets the framework for the work of the BÖR, identifies initial fields of action and points of reference. Furthermore, it names the first concrete issues to be addressed, such as the removal of innovation barriers, the development and establishment of diversified land use systems, and competition for raw materials. With its working paper, the BÖR lays the foundation for a transparent working method for shaping consensual recommendations to implement the National Bioeconomy Strategy. The state secretaries appreciated this approach. They expect the BÖR’s work to provide essential support in shaping an economic and social transformation with the help of the bioeconomy.
Bioeconomy: Shaping a sustainable future together
Download the executive summary of the 1st working paper of the III German Bioeconomy Council.
A delegation of the Bioeconomy Youth Forum hands over their “Anklam Declaration” to the German Bioeconomy Council
The German Bioeconomy Council was also visited by six representatives of the Bioeconomy Youth Forum during its meeting. The Bioeconomy Youth Forum is a joint project of Neubrandenburg University of Applied Sciences and the University of Greifswald funded by the Science Year 2020/21. The young people presented their Anklam Declaration, which includes visions, demands and their own approach to solutions for the bioeconomy, and handed it over to the council members. Their main demands are more citizen participation, as well as more transparency for the public. In the lively discussion between council members and the representatives of the youth forum, it became clear how important future issues are for coming generations. They expect consistent action to be taken now and grandchild-friendly solutions to be implemented.
Dr. Markus Wolperdinger, Vice Chair, was pleased with the extraordinary commitment of the young people from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and invited them to visit Leuna: "It is particularly exciting for the understanding of the bioeconomy to experience the concrete implementation of the bioeconomy at a large site of the chemical industry."
In conclusion, Prof. Daniela Thrän, Co-Chair of the BÖR, remarked, "For us, it is important to incorporate the wishes and suggestions from society - and especially from young people - into our recommendations via broad participation. We take the demand of the youth delegation to make the bioeconomy better known in society very seriously. To this end, we are planning various dialog and participation opportunities in the future."
Appropriately, Prof. Thomas Brück and Dr. Markus Wolperdinger took part in the "Ask the Council" event at the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin in November 2021 and answered questions and comments from visitors. The film of the event with statements by the councilors and visitors is available here (in German).
