SCALE-UP Showcases Three Years of Rural Bioeconomy Impact at European Rural Circular Bioeconomy Conference

Horizon Europe initiative showcases tools, success stories, and collaborative strategies for a sustainable bioeconomy in Brussels

The SCALE-UP project took a central role in the highly successful European Rural Circular Bioeconomy Conference (EuRCBC) held on May 13-14, 2025, at Comet Louise in Brussels. As a member of the Rural Bioeconomy Alliance, SCALE-UP alongside five other EU-funded projects (MainstreamBIO, ROBIN, BioRural, BIOMODEL4REGIONS, and RuralBioUP) brought together stakeholders from local communities, policymaking, industry, and rural areas to discuss concrete pathways for accelerating Europe’s rural bioeconomy.

Shaping the Future of EU Bioeconomy Strategy

The conference served as a crucial platform for high-level policy dialogue. Keynote speakers Michael Losch (DG AGRI, European Commission) and Marco Rupp (Bio-based Industries Consortium) emphasized the vital role of region-anchored projects like SCALE-UP in informing the forthcoming update of the EU Bioeconomy Strategy. Tomasz Calikowski (DG Research & Innovation, European Commission) further detailed the "Pathway towards the new EU Bioeconomy Strategy," outlining expected priorities, closer integration with biotechnology, and the anticipated publication of the revised strategy by the end of 2025.

In this forward-looking context, SCALE-UP actively contributed to the "Joint Policy Brief" on ‘Bridging Gaps and Addressing Challenges in the Rural Bioeconomy,’ translating project learnings into actionable policy recommendations.

SCALE-UP Highlights

The SCALE-UP team presented its key achievements and insights through various engaging formats:

• Project Perspective: Holger Gerdes, SCALE-UP Coordinator from Ecologic Institute, delivered a compelling "fire-pitch," outlining the project's mission to empower regional actors across its six diverse focal regions: Northern Sweden, Mazovia (Poland), the French Atlantic Arc, Upper Austria, Strumica (North Macedonia), and Andalusia (Spain). Zoritza Kiresiewa, also from Ecologic Institute, participated in a dynamic panel discussion, exploring how SCALE-UP and other projects employ complementary approaches to enhance the EU’s bioeconomy.

SCALE-UP Coordinator Holger Gerdes and Zoritza Kiresiewa showcasing our concepts and perspectives

• Tools for Advancing Bioeconomy:
  • Alexander Pindur from Business Upper Austria presented SCALE-UP's demand-driven training programme and knowledge exchange activities, designed to build capacity among regional stakeholders.
  • Frans Feil from Biomass Technology Group showcased the comprehensive SCALE-UP Information Packages, which provide practical knowledge on biomass availability, nutrient recycling, and bio-based solutions tailored to regional contexts.

SCALE-UP Project Partner Frans Feil and Alexander Pindur presenting our results

• Inspiring Change through Success Stories: Gerardo Anzaldúa from Ecologic Institute shared insights from SCALE-UP’s work, highlighting real-world applications and policy needs identified through the project’s innovation support programme, which has engaged with innovators like Copano (straw-based insulation) and Bioliza (olive waste pyrolysis).

SCALE-UP Coordinator Gerardo Anzaldúa underscore the key takeaways

"The European Rural Circular Bioeconomy Conference was an invaluable event for SCALE-UP to share its progress and collaborative tools," said Rainer Janssen, Managing Director at WIP Renewable Energies, "Our focus is on empowering local and regional actors with the knowledge and networks they need to transition towards a truly sustainable and circular bioeconomy. The engagement and shared learnings from this event will further fuel our efforts in our six focal regions and beyond."

The spirit of collaboration and knowledge-exchange was palpable throughout the EuRCBC. Roundtables, interactive corridor conversations, and live tool demonstrations armed participants with critical data, new contacts, and actionable playbooks to implement Green Deal-compliant bio-based value chains in their respective regions.

A unique highlight was a live-scribe artist who captured the conference's intellectual flow in real time, creating a sweeping “river of ideas.” This visual narrative artfully threaded together the six projects, the innovative training and information toolkits, and key takeaways from the diverse panel discussions, serving as a living agenda and a vibrant shared memory that continually sparked new dialogue among delegates.

EuRCBC’s “river of ideas”

About SCALE-UP

SCALE-UP (Concepts, tools and applications for community-driven bioeconomy development in European rural areas) is a Horizon Europe funded project. It supports regional multi-actor partnerships, consisting of private businesses, governments and policymakers, civil society organisations, and researchers in identifying and scaling-up innovative and sustainable bio-based value chains that build on regional resource.

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