SUSTAINABLE INNOVATIONS EUROPE organizes its second workshop in Brussels
On December 5, SUSTAINABLE INNOVATIONS EUROPE (SIE) hosted a a workshop in Brussels (Belgium), aimed at boosting European cooperation to promote research and innovation in bioeconomy. The session was entitled “Bio-Based Industries 2020: Proposal Development” and it counted with the participation of thirty organisations coming from eleven different countries. During the session, they presented the bio-based innovation projects they are involved in as part of the European Commission Horizon 2020 programme, such as Ligniox, Urbiofuture, Project 0, or Aquolive.
After the standing presentations, the participants had the chance to discuss openly the different subjects addressed in each project, as well as the challenges foreseen inside the innovation works they carry out.
Two different workshops were also organized within the day. Each of them was divided into three tables where the following topics were addressed: logistic constraints in the bio-based functional molecules market, high added-value ingredients from microalgae, scaling up the next generation of multifunctional bio-based packing, keeping up education with bioeconomy, bio-active ingredients in a circular economy and making the most out of lignin sources.
This is the second workshop of this kind, after the success of the “Shaping the Europe of tomorrow” one celebrated in September 2019. The initiative is part of the capacity building and networking activities organized by SIE to leverage its experience in European projects from different fields, such as bio-based industry, renewable energy and advanced materials, among others.
Some of the projects introduced were NOVUM, led by VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd, UrBIOFuture, coordinated by the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), and NONTOX, presented by IMDEA Energy Institute.
NOVUM’s goal is to develop cellulose-based materials and manufacturing technologies for novel production of electrical insulation components. Thus, it aims to use energy and resources more efficiently and reduce waste.
UrBIOFuture, on the other hand, focuses on boosting careers, new educational programmes and research activities within the bio-based sector.
Last, but not least, NONTOX aims to increase the recycling rates of plastics waste containing hazardous substances by developing and optimising recycling processes to produce safe and high quality secondary plastic materials and by optimising the overall process economics by integration.
In addition to the presentations, there were several round tables which focused on the four pillars of the Circular Economy: climate action, environment, raw materials and resources efficiency.