Yesterday, the EU Commission presented the Competitiveness Compass, the first major initiative of this mandate providing a strategic and clear framework to steer the Commission’s work. The Compass sets a path for Europe to become the place where future technologies, services, and clean products are invented, manufactured, and put on the market, while being the first continent to become climate neutral.
The Commission published a detailed impact assessment on possible pathways to reach the agreed goal of making the European Union climate neutral by 2050. Based on this impact assessment, the Commission recommends a 90% net greenhouse gas emissions reduction by 2040 compared to 1990 levels, launching a discussion with all stakeholders; a legislative proposal will be made by the next Commission, after the European elections, and agreed with the European Parliament and Member States as required under the EU Climate Law. This recommendation is in line with the advice of the European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change (ESABCC) and the EU’s commitments under the Paris Agreement.
“The bioeconomy can be a catalyst for sustainable systematic change and transition, tackling key economic, societal and environmental challenges”. To say it – in this exclusive interview with Il Bioeconomista – is Nicolò Giacomuzzi-Moore, Executive Director ad interim of CBE JU, Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking.
Interview by Mario Bonaccorso
The high-level conference ‘The Bioeconomy – Enabling the European Green Deal in Challenging Times’ is taking place today in the Charlemagne building in Brussels. The EU Commission is presenting the findings of the EU Bioeconomy Strategy Progress Report, adopted in June 2022, and is highlighting the role of bioeconomy policy to enhance policy coherence and system thinking.
The EU Commission will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the first Bioeconomy Strategy, by organizing a high-level conference in Brussels. The conference “The Bioeconomy – Enabling the European Green Deal in Challenging Times” will take place on 6 and 7 October in the Charlemagne building. In addition, all sessions will also be live-streamed to allow everyone to get involved from anywhere.
John Bell is the Healthy Planet Director in DG Research and Innovation (R&I). He leads R&I transitions on climate change, bioeconomy, food systems, environment, biodiversity, oceans, Arctic, circular economy, water and bio-based innovations. This includes harnessing investments for Horizon Europe, the Circular Bioeconomy and the EU Bioeconomy Strategy. In this exclusive interview with Il Bioeconomista, he talks about the bioeconomy strategy 10 years after its first launch and the ecological transition at EU level.
Interview by Mario Bonaccorso
Chris Patermann is considered as the father of the European bioeconomy and is still a central figure in the world bioeconomy community. In this exclusive interview with Il Bioeconomista, he talks – 10 years after the first Bioeconomy strategy launched by the European Commission – about the new challenges we are facing to make the new economy based on biological resources happen.
Interview by Mario Bonaccorso
Over the last seven years, the BBI JU has established itself as a game-changer in the European bio-based economy. By replacing fossil-based materials and products with bio-based ones, using local, sustainably sourced feedstock and developing circular production processes, the BBI JU-funded projects have given an important contribution to the green transition in Europe. A new publication takes stock of BBI JU’s achievements and impacts in the 2014-2020 period.
The EU bio-based industry is quickly evolving but clear data on the development of this emerging sector are still missing. A new JRC report illustrates the work of the JRC in building an extensive database of EU facilities producing different categories of bio-based products:
“Europe needs an ambitious ‘Green Innovation Deal’ to accelerate towards our 2030 goals and to become the world’s first climate-neutral continent by 2050. Our 2030 and 2050 goals require decarbonisation at a speed at least six times faster than anything globally achieved so far.” John Bell, Director Healthy Planet at the DG Research & Innovation of EU Commission, talks to Il Bioeconomista. In this long and exclusive interview, he talks about the EU Updated Bioeconomy Strategy one year later its presentation in Brussels. “The main task for us in the next years – he says – will be the implementation of the updated European Bioeconomy Strategy. However, to fully deploy the bioeconomy across all of Europe, we need the help and engagement of the Member States and regions”.
Interview by Mario Bonaccorso
