Regional bioeconomy as a key driver to build up resilient economies - Lessons learned from Latin America and the Caribbean

The Bioeconomy is becoming a prominent field of action of development strategies in Latin-American and the Caribbean region, striving for increasing value creation from their bio-based resources by applying Bioeconomy principles and approaches. The objective of this workshop is to offer a platform for discussing experiences from a structurally- weak region in transitioning towards a knowledge-based Bioeconomy.

The workshop contributes to provide background and lessons for understanding and proposing the Bioeconomy as a promising field for innovative change and a new economic development path creation, by contrasting existing experiences in regions with different resource endowments, but common challenges, such as those related to the revitalization of rural areas.

Key topics of the workshop are:

a) identification of enabling factors for a transition towards a Bioeconomy in Latin-American and the Caribbean region

b) analysis of the policies, strategies and businesses of the bioeconomy that have advanced in the region, and

c) identification of policy options and market supports to promote the bioeconomy as a sustainable development strategy for the region.

Among the expected outcomes of the workshop is also the formation of new networks of scientists, policy makers and entrepreneurs, and a better understanding of the main drivers and barriers to the transition to Bioeconomy in a structurally weak region. Based on the results of the workshop, a brief including the main conclusions will be prepared by the organizers.