For the second time the German Bioeconomy Council, with financial support of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), has invited experts on bioeconomy, innovation, and sustainability from all over the world. The Summit will take place on April 19 and 20 at the Deutsche Telekom's Representative Office in Berlin. The focus will be on opportunities and challenges for an increasingly biobased and sustainable economy.
A warm and sunny morning in Berlin: Minister of Research and Education, Anja Karliczek, officially opened the second Global Bioeconomy Summit in front of 800 international experts at the Deutsche Telekom's Representative Office in Berlin. Julia Klöckner, Federal Minister of Food and Agriculture, will join the Summit as well and address the attendees on Friday, April 20.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) announced the launch of a new financing initiative that aims to unlock close to €1 billion of investment in the agriculture and bioeconomy sector. This large EIB lending programme for agriculture and bioeconomy outlines the Bank’s broader support for funding this sector. The operation will be guaranteed by the EU budget under the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), which forms a central part of the “Investment Plan for Europe” of the European Commission under the Juncker administration.
Using residual materials and conserving natural resources - these are just two of the cornerstones on the way to a sustainable and bio-based economy. However, novel green ideas in the bioeconomy need support to grow and succeed in the marketplace. This is where the start-up competition "PlanB- Biobased.Business.Bavaria" comes into play. The competition has been organized by BioCampus Straubing GmbH since 2014 and is supported by a broad partner and sponsoring network.
At DESY's X-ray light source PETRA III in Hamburg, a team led by Swedish researchers has produced the strongest bio-material that has ever been made. The artifical, but bio-degradable cellulose fibres are stronger than steel and even dragline spider silk, which had been considered the strongest bio-based material thus far.
On May 15 and 16 an estimated 200 participants from more than 22 nations met in Cologne for the “International conference on bio-based materials". The annual conference took place for the eleventh time and was once again organised by the Nova Institute. In the more than 30 talks during the two-day event the speakers highlighted the enormous potential of bio-based materials, which is reflected by the growing product range offered by many companies.
This year the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting takes place for the 68th time, but for the first time in the newly renovated “Inselhalle”. For the last two years the meeting took place at the city theater and thus counted fewer participants.
The digitalisation process is continuing and does not stop at everyday objects and materials: intelligent clothing measures our oxygen and energy consumption and pea-sized measuring spheres can be used to control the water quality or the processes in bioreactors. Researchers at the University of Freiburg have now further developed such measuring characteristics of materials.
They hang upside down from the ceiling, adhere effortlessly to steep trees and even polished glass won't make them slip: geckos. Millions of small hairs on the toes give the inconspicuous reptile adhesive forces like a magnet. For scientists, such natural wonders have always been a fascinating field of research and an incentive to transfer these abilities to technical applications and materials.
On July 25, the European Court of Justice ruled that plants created using novel genome editing methods are to be classified as genetically modified organisms (GMOs). They are therefore subject to the strict EU guidelines for GMOs.