Following the successful outcome of the European Workshop on Advanced biofuels, biorefinery and bioeconomy, in Bratislava on 25-27 March and jointly organised by the CEI and the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (JRC), further activities are under organisation.
In particular, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovakia has proposed to organise a comprehensive conference, in Bratislava, in the framework of Slovakia’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union during the second semester of 2016.
The conference will focus on the most promising state-of-the-art developments in applied research, leading to industrial innovation based on the most efficient procedures. The full value chain in bioeconomy is indeed still to be quantified and is likely to determine impressive results already in the short-medium term.
According to Giorgio Rosso Cicogna, Special Advisor to CEI Secretary General, the roadmap recommended by the Workshop in Bratislava fully complies with the mandate and expectations expressed by the Meeting of the CEI Ministers for Science and Technology in Trieste in September 2014. He expressed satisfaction with the cooperation relations between the CEI Secretariat and the JRC, and confidence that they could produce further results in the framework of the CEI PRAISE Programme, aimed at promoting research, technology transfer and innovation in all 18 CEI Member States through excellence in science. Over 80 centres of excellence in CEI countries are already engaged in the implementation of the above Programme.
Professor Stanislav Miertus from the University of SS. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava, and ICARST in Bratislava confirmed this favourable evaluation of the Bratislava workshop especially for the promising perspective it brings about, emphasising the need to strengthen collaboration of CEI countries within EU programmes such as Horizon 2020. He pointed out that among the follow-up proposals there was an intention to setup a Central European Cluster and related CEE Competence Centre on Advanced biofuels, biorefinery and bioeconomy in Slovakia in 2016 – 2017. The project would seek joint support from Horizon 2020 and EC Structural funds, and should include the industrial partners from CEE countries interested in a development of advanced biofuels/bio refineries. This initiative, to be developed in cooperation with CEI and JRC, will also be one of the key topics of the Conference in 2016.
Professor Miertus underlined that as a follow-up of the Bratislava Workshop, international PhD programmes (such as European industrial doctorate programmes) in the field of ABBE would also be organised, involving CEE countries.
Professor Miroslav Veskovic, advisor for the implementation of the EU Macro-regional policies at the JRC, recalled that energy production was one of the key challenges faced by the Danube Region. He highlighted that the DG JRC established the 'Danube Bioenergy Nexus' flagship cluster, which is addressing the challenges of energy production in the Danube Region while focusing on the development of bioenergy and its possible impacts on the agriculture sector in the Region as well as on the environment.
In particular, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovakia has proposed to organise a comprehensive conference, in Bratislava, in the framework of Slovakia’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union during the second semester of 2016.
The conference will focus on the most promising state-of-the-art developments in applied research, leading to industrial innovation based on the most efficient procedures. The full value chain in bioeconomy is indeed still to be quantified and is likely to determine impressive results already in the short-medium term.
According to Giorgio Rosso Cicogna, Special Advisor to CEI Secretary General, the roadmap recommended by the Workshop in Bratislava fully complies with the mandate and expectations expressed by the Meeting of the CEI Ministers for Science and Technology in Trieste in September 2014. He expressed satisfaction with the cooperation relations between the CEI Secretariat and the JRC, and confidence that they could produce further results in the framework of the CEI PRAISE Programme, aimed at promoting research, technology transfer and innovation in all 18 CEI Member States through excellence in science. Over 80 centres of excellence in CEI countries are already engaged in the implementation of the above Programme.
Professor Stanislav Miertus from the University of SS. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava, and ICARST in Bratislava confirmed this favourable evaluation of the Bratislava workshop especially for the promising perspective it brings about, emphasising the need to strengthen collaboration of CEI countries within EU programmes such as Horizon 2020. He pointed out that among the follow-up proposals there was an intention to setup a Central European Cluster and related CEE Competence Centre on Advanced biofuels, biorefinery and bioeconomy in Slovakia in 2016 – 2017. The project would seek joint support from Horizon 2020 and EC Structural funds, and should include the industrial partners from CEE countries interested in a development of advanced biofuels/bio refineries. This initiative, to be developed in cooperation with CEI and JRC, will also be one of the key topics of the Conference in 2016.
Professor Miertus underlined that as a follow-up of the Bratislava Workshop, international PhD programmes (such as European industrial doctorate programmes) in the field of ABBE would also be organised, involving CEE countries.
Professor Miroslav Veskovic, advisor for the implementation of the EU Macro-regional policies at the JRC, recalled that energy production was one of the key challenges faced by the Danube Region. He highlighted that the DG JRC established the 'Danube Bioenergy Nexus' flagship cluster, which is addressing the challenges of energy production in the Danube Region while focusing on the development of bioenergy and its possible impacts on the agriculture sector in the Region as well as on the environment.