On 25 October, BIOLOC partners gathered in Brussels to officially kick off their project. On this occasion, the partnership fine-tuned project activities that aim to advance the role and impact of social innovation to revitalise European local communities and accelerate the transition to the circular bioeconomy (CBE).
BIOLOC will achieve this ambitious goal through comprehensive methodological work and specific actions to be implemented in 12 locations in Spain (Aragon), Greece (Western Macedonia), Bulgaria (Plovdiv), Slovakia (Nitra), Slovenia, Croatia (Adriatic), Hungary (North), Romania (West), the Czech Republic, the Netherlands (Apeldoorn), Germany (Bad-Wurtenberg), and Italy.
After assessing biomass potentials and CBE value chains in participating regions and analysing barriers that hinder the engagement of the socially disadvantaged in related economic activities, BIOLOC will elaborate on innovative solutions and business models and transpose them into region-specific toolsets.
The Project will provide specific recommendations and tailored measures to foster the socio-economic impact of the CBE on a broader population. To this aim, permanent public-private multi-stakeholder working tables will be established (BIOLOC Hubs) to discuss innovative and inclusive CBE as a leveraging factor for sustainable and resilient local development.
The CEI-Executive Secretariat leads the consortium of 16 project partners, ranging from research institutions, universities, public administrations, and innovation centres. The project is funded by the Horizon Europe Programme, with a total duration of 36 months (October 2022 – September 2025).
For more info: canciani@cei.int