Save the date: BIO-TIC Final Conference 23 June

The SusChem inspired FP7 BIO-TIC project will be holding its final conference entitled ‘From bugs to business! Unlocking the Bioeconomy in Europe’ on the afternoon of 23 June 2015 in central Brussels. The conference will provide all you need to know about industrial biotechnology (IB) in Europe in one compact and easily digestible event. It will be the place for you to embark on the bioeconomy journey! Registration for the event is now open and is free of charge.

The conference: ‘From bugs to business! Unlocking the Bioeconomy in Europe’ will start at 13h30 and will close at 17h30 with a networking cocktail reception. The event will take place at the Royal Flemish Academy for Sciences and Arts in Brussels. The full programme will be confirmed soon and will consist of two parts:

• Part 1: Setting the scene - which will use case studies gathered during the project to illustrate the state of industrial biotechnology in Europe today
• Part 2: Making industrial biotechnology happen – during which expert panel sessions will focus on how the recommendations that have emerged from the work of BIO-TIC can be implemented

The half-day conference will enable you to:

• Learn about the opportunities provided by this key enabling technology
• Witness the state of play of industrial biotechnology in Europe with keynote speeches from companies and government bodies
• Engage in discussions during dedicated panel debates on the implementation of recommendations to build a booming industrial biotechnology sector and the European bioeconomy
• Discuss with policy makers, industrial players, entrepreneurs and academia during the networking cocktail
• Explore industrial biotechnology products and tools in the exhibition space

In addition on the following day (24 June) there will be an opportunity for delegates to visit the Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant facility in Ghent.

More details of the conference will be published on the conference website and the twitter hashtag #bioeconomy4EU has been created for the event.

IB for development
As well as examining the potential for the impact of industrial biotechnology in Europe, the BIO-TIC final links in with the focus for the European Year of Development (EYD2015) during the month of June, which is ‘Sustainable Green Growth, Decent Jobs and Businesses.’

The green economy and the bioeconomy have particular relevance for developing countries, as many are vulnerable to external shocks such as climate change, natural disasters or food and fuel crises. Sustainable green growth should be able to simultaneously alleviate poverty, protect the natural environment and ensure decent work with labour rights and standards, social protection and social dialogue all upheld.

Businesses are job creators and lead innovation and change, they are key to ensuring decent work and forging responsible and sustainable development. At the end of the day, development is about making investment and economic activity work for everyone, while also protecting our planet.

This ethos is very much at the heart of what SusChem and projects like BIO-TIC are striving to enable.

About BIO-TIC
This conference marks the final stage of the BIO-TIC project. BIO-TIC was launched in 2012 with the vision to investigate hurdles and critical success factors to deploy industrial biotechnology in Europe. Find out more at the project’s website.