Elaine Cullinan, Tipperary Co. Co., Kevin Lynch, SRA and Cllr. Terry Shannon, Cathaoirleach. Photo: John Power
On Monday 16th October 2023, our ROBIN partners the Southern Regional Assembly with the Department of Agriculture, and Food co-hosted the launch event of Bioeconomy Ireland Week 2023 in Assembly House, Waterford.
Bioeconomy Ireland Week is an annual, week-long series of events that took place this year from the 16th to the 23rd of October, aimed at raising awareness of the Irish and European Bioeconomy and enabling stakeholder engagement.
The kick-off event Communities, Regions & Cities – The ‘Bioeconomy in Action’ in your Region highlighted ongoing bioeconomy research to support regional governance advancements and examined policy, scientific and industrial efforts, and activities to address key challenges in scaling up the bioeconomy.
Rebecca Walsh, representative of our valuable partner the Southern Regional Assembly presented the ROBIN Project and James Gaffey of CircBio in Munster Technological University provided an overview of the projects that they are working on such as the INFORMBIO, MainstreamBIO & Farm Zero C projects.
James Gaffey, CircBio, Robert Ludgate, MTU and Rebecca Walsh, SRA. Photo; John Power
The event also included several bioeconomy insights such as developing Cascading Biomethane Biochemicals and Biofertilizer Systems for a circular bioeconomy in Ireland and the project CABBBIE which aims to identify sustainable pathways for co-producing biomethane with biofertilizer in a circular bioeconomy system and information on the Irish Bioeconomy Foundation and their plans for the National Bioeconomy Campus in Lisheen, Tipperary.
Munster Technological University’s workshops, both in person and online, took place to gather important information for boosting Ireland’s Bioeconomy. Representatives from Regional Assemblies, Local Authorities, Universities, Local Action Groups, and Energy Agencies participated in identifying available support and recognizing the support needed for bioeconomy development. They also exchanged opinions on the connections required between national, regional, and local organizations so as to make the bioeconomy successful.
General. Photo: John Power
During the panel discussion session, multiple bioeconomy discussions took place and the Minister of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Minister Heydon concluded by stating that:
‘’The bioeconomy is a key area for us to be able to deliver those tangible alternative income streams to keep farmers on their farms in the next generation but also to tell the public of the really positive role that farming and agriculture can play in our rural economies.’’
Moving towards the 2nd year of the ROBIN project we see how bioeconomy can be a key pillar for the upscale of rural and regional economies.
Stay tuned to discover how ROBIN’s toolbox can provide thorough support in enhancing bioeconomy practices at a regional level.
