The origins of the University of Bologna (UNIBO) go back to 1088, and it is considered to be the oldest university in the Western world. Its history is intertwined with that of the great names of science and literature, it is a keystone and a point of reference for European culture.

UNIBO offers over 200 degree programmes to more than 81,000 students, and 5,000 graduates are enrolled in PhDs and 3rd cycle programmes. One of the most active universities leading and participating in European research and academic cooperation projects, UNIBO has participated in over 300 Research projects funded by the European Union within H2020.

From July 2019, UNIBO is co-founding member of the European Bioeconomy University, an alliance of the six leading European universities most active in the bioeconomy sector.

Founded as an agricultural research and education institution in 1818, the University of Hohenheim (UHOH) has since not only been engaged in basic research but also traditionally committed to developing innovative solutions for society’s most pressing challenges. Today, UHOH is one of the leading research universities in Agricultural and Food Sciences worldwide, and unparalleled in both Natural Sciences, and Economics and Social Sciences. UHOH has the comprehensive expertise necessary to cover the entire value chain of the bioeconomy, from plant and animal production, through to new technical processes and the necessary transformation in society and the economy.

In July 2019, UHOH joined forces with five European universities to establish the European Bioeconomy University.

With approximately 15,500 students and 2,700 members of staff, the University of Eastern Finland (UEF) is one of the largest universities in Finland. In addition, UEF is the most multidisciplinary university in Finland, offering teaching in nearly 100 major subjects and training experts for tomorrow’s changing labour market needs.

Research carried out at UEF covers several bioeconomy-related themes, such as forest and peatland ecology; forest health; forest management and ecosystem services; forest planning and mensuration; forest technology and energy technology; forest economy and policy; wood technology and wood materials science; and bioeconomy and biotechnology.

The Irish Bioeconomy Foundation is Ireland’s national bioeconomy association and innovation cluster. IBF was founded in 2017 to establish a forum of industry, academia and policy leaders around Ireland’s bioeconomy.

IBF promotes the conversion of Ireland’s natural land and sea resources to high value products for the development of a sustainable bioeconomy that is globally competitive and creates local development. IBF facilitates relations among innovative agribusiness, forestry, marine, energy and bioeconomy champions; Generates synergies between sustainable initiatives; Enables innovative projects to reach their next level; Creates an integrated ecosystem of converging assets and ambitions.

Munster Technological University (MTU) is a university-level institution home to the Circular Bioeconomy Research Group, a multi-disciplinary team integrating expertise in bioresources, sustainability, green chemistry, biotechnology and biorefining. It participates on a wide range of European funded circular bioeconomy research initiatives, such as ICT-BIOCHAIN, BIOSWITCH, INGREEN, AgriForValor, AgroBridges and COOPID, and nationally funded circular economy projects such as Biorefinery Glas, Farm Zero C and EfficientFood. In addition, MTU’s Circular Bioeconomy Research Group leads delivery of Ireland’s first postgraduate programme in Bioeconomy alongside UCD and Teagasc.

CTA (Technological Corporation of Andalusia) is a private foundation with more than 15 years of experience and made up of more than 165 companies, that is dedicated to promoting R&D, innovation, and technology transfer. It contributes to improve the competitiveness of companies, professionals and organisations, facilitates their access to R&D activities and promotes technological innovation and continuous improvement processes.

The National Research Council (CNR) is the largest public Research Institution in Italy and it develops multidisciplinary research activities in many fields. CNR is distributed all over Italy through a network of institutes. CNR leads several breakthrough research activities on micro /nanotechnologies focused and applied on development of new processes for the substitution of metals and conventional fossil-based materials obtained from non-renewable sources by renewable carbon and bio-based innovative materials. Moreover, CNR has a long experience in dissemination activities.

Food & Bio Cluster Denmark is accelerating innovation and business development in companies working with food and bioresources. We facilitate cooperation between knowledge institutions and private companies through networking and matchmaking activities in Denmark and internationally. We develop and implement research, innovation and demonstration projects with private and public funding. We assist entrepreneurs to succeed with product and business development. As a specific commitment, we promote sustainable solutions for accelerated transition to the circular bioeconomy. Food & Bio Cluster Denmark has 40 employees placed in 5 offices throughout Denmark.

AgroParisTech is a higher education and research institution aiming at addressing some of the main global challenges of the 21st century: feeding a growing population while sustainably managing territories, preserving natural resources, supporting innovation and developing the bioeconomy. While doing so, it addresses the following fields: agricultural sciences and technologies, forestry, life sciences, food technology, biotechnologies, environment, nutrition, health, land and natural resources management, as well as related public policies.

The institute offers high level training for Master of Science in Engineering, Master of Science and PhD students as well as lifelong learning programs, while focusing on research and innovation thanks to its joint research units.

The Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) is a multidisciplinary young university that works in teaching, basic research, technological platforms, technology transfer and creating start-ups. It has more than 3.500 professors and researchers and more than 40.000 students. The UAB is occupying an outstanding position among the best international rankings and it’s being considered between the 200 better universities of the world and between the 100 better universities of Europe, where it’s recognized for its quality and innovative research, as well as for the quality of its training programs in areas of social sciences, humanities, experimental sciences, biosciences, health sciences, engineering and technology.

The UAB is participating in the project through the Center for Research and Studies for Organizational Development, an academic institution linked to the analysis and development of organizations in general, and those linked to training and education at all levels, working in areas such as training needs analysis, informal learning, knowledge management and organizational governance.

Pro Civis Foundation for Education and Social Dialogue is an independent, non-governmental organization working to integrate business and science. The Foundation actively supports cross-sectoral dialogue by initiating partnerships between institutions. It is a member of the BIC Bio-based Industries Consortium and is actively involved in popularisation of bioeconomy and circular economy.

The Foundation also works for development of European technological potential, taking into account sustainable management of natural resources. It also supports works on modern education systems and on human resources development, which constitute key factors for building an innovative environmentally friendly economy.

SUSTAINABLE INNOVATIONS is a Spanish consultancy company that provides innovative services to a wide range of sectors throughout Europe: bio-based industry, renewable energy, or advanced materials, among others. The capabilities that SUSTAINABLE INNOVATIONS offers are structured around three main pillars that serve as a bridge between the conception of innovative ideas and the market: Innovation Management, Market Uptake, and Capacity Building. Our main asset is the highly qualified team of engineers, environmentalists, communication experts, and business strategists who work with us.

IHE Delft is the largest international graduate water education facility in the world and is based in Delft, the Netherlands. Since 1957 the Institute has provided water education and training to professionals from over 160 countries, the vast majority from Africa, Asia and Latin America. Also, numerous research and institutional strengthening projects are carried out in partnership to strengthen capacity in the water sector worldwide. Through our overarching work on capacity development, IHE Delft aims to make a tangible contribution to achieving all Sustainable Development Goals in which water is key.

Wageningen University (WU) was founded in 1918. In recent decades, it has evolved into a world’s leading education and research centres in the plant, animal, environmental, agro-technological, food and social sciences, and since 2015 the World’s best in the field of Agriculture & Forestry according to the QS World University Rankings. WU is very well connected with industry, as it hosts on-campus several Industrial key players in agriculture and food sciences but is also a preferred place for new start-ups.

FVA is an Italian SME operating since 1990 in the field of new media communication and advanced ICT solutions for research and organizations contexts. Since 1998 FVA is involved in EU funded projects as technical partner specialized in:

• Strategic Dissemination and Communication to promote science
• Stakeholder engagement
• Training, co-creation workshops and focus groups with stakeholders
• Media and New Media production
• Social media strategies and ICT solutions (Applications, Widgets, Animated Commercials, E-games)
• Serious games, advergames and entertainment
• Technology Enhanced training platforms
• ICT solutions, Graphic design, 3D modelling and animation, HCI and interface design

In the following domains:

• Bioeconomy
• Learning
• Health
• SSH Social Sciences and Humanities
• Social innovation and security

FVA is the promoter and main contact of the European Bioeconomy Network (EuBioNet www.eubionet.eu)

The University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU) founded in 1872, comprises 15 departments and 3 scientific centres. One of them is the Centre for Bioeconomy, which was established in 2019 to initiate and support bioeconomy-relevant activities in the field of research, education, innovation and knowledge transfer. As more than 80% of all institutes are doing research related to bioeconomy, BOKU is the research and training centre for bioeconomy in Austria.

At European level BOKU is actively engaged in several networks (e.g. EBU, ELLS, ICA, ESEIA) and projects, focusing on bioeconomy-related issues in research and education.

The Educational Research Institute (IBE) is an institution that conducts interdisciplinary research on the functioning and effectiveness of the overall educational policy in Poland, including research and initiatives devoted to competences and qualifications desired in specific sectors of the economy. One of such sectors is the bioeconomy which is concentrated in Poland around traditional sectors: agriculture, forestry and food processing.

The Institute cooperates with central public administration, representatives of local government authorities, key institutions in the Polish education system, stakeholders from the labour market and social partners (employers’ organisations, trade unions). Its growing network of cooperation also includes a broad scope of key VET institutions and stakeholders involved both in the provision of various forms of vocational education and training.

Trakia University, Stara Zagora, Bulgaria is an autonomous state institution, established in 1995. Teaching and research activities play a central role in our mission of being a diverse, vibrant and inspirational learning environment, while training tomorrow’s scientists and qualified labor force; and sharing benefits of research and innovation. Our academic structure includes: Faculty of Agriculture; Faculty of Veterinary Medicine; Faculty of Medicine; Faculty of Education; Faculty of Economics; Faculty of Technics and Technologies; Branch in Haskovo for training of medical staff; and the Department for information and in-service teacher training. Priority areas of the scientific research are focused on the following: Biotechnologies, Food and health, Biodiversity and natural environment; Economics; Educational Strategies, Agriculture sciences and social environment; Technics, Information and communication technologies.

Zemědělský výzkum, spol. s r. o. [Agriculture Research, Ltd. (ART)] is an independent expert organisation providing consultancy in the area of innovation management, R&D management and evaluation, and it often cooperates with the Czech Ministry of Agriculture and supports it in the bioeconomy development.

ART is one of the partners supporting the Central-Eastern European Initiative for Knowledge-based Agriculture, Aquaculture and Forestry in the Bioeconomy – BIOEAST – which offers a common political commitment and shared strategic research and innovation framework for working towards sustainable bioeconomies in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries.