Sustainable bioeconomy

As part of the German Sustainability Strategy, the SYMOBIO 2.0 project aims to establish regular monitoring of the bioeconomy (BÖ) in Germany. The first pilot report has already highlighted important trends. Technological developments and political support have increased the use of bio-based resources worldwide, but have also revealed conflicting goals. The effects on soils, climate, biodiversity, water availability, the economy and food security are complex. The globalization of the bioeconomy requires in-depth knowledge of global material flows. SYMOBIO 2.0 aims to deepen and expand the monitoring of the German bioeconomy. This includes the development of indicators, the consolidation of the database and modeling, as well as the extension of monitoring to biodiversity, water and climate change indicators. The project promotes stakeholder participation through workshops, targeted communication and strengthens public understanding through an interactive website, a second pilot report and policy briefs.

The project includes the development of a systemic monitoring for the bioeconomy (BÖ) in Germany by systematizing the expectations of politics, business, NGOs and science. It includes the development of a multi-scale modeling and assessment system that combines material flow models, input-output databases and econometric models to analyze the environmental and socio-economic impacts of the bioeconomy. Key drivers of the transformation of the eco-system will be identified and trends and their impacts will be modeled. The project examines the potential use of certification and LCA data for monitoring. A prototype monitoring report and an interactive website will be developed using remote sensing methods for land use change and biodiversity mapping. The project coordination promotes the exchange of information within the network and with parallel bioeconomy projects through committees, project meetings and status conferences.

The interim results can be followed on the project website. These are organized on a monthly basis and include the latest publications related to the project.

• University of Kassel
  - Kassel Institute for Sustainability, Center for Environmental Systems Research (CESR)
  - Department of Grassland and Renewable Resources (GNR)
• Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research (UFZ)
• German Biomass Research Center (DBFZ)
• Society for Economic Structures Research (GWS)
• Öko-Institut
• German Center for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv)
• Global Risk Assessment Services (GRAS)
• Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (ifeu)
• Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research (ISI)