EBU joins the Global Bioeconomy Partnership as a founding partner

The Global Bioeconomy Partnership is a new international initiative that brings together bioeconomy networks from different regions and sectors to strengthen cooperation and coordinate efforts toward a sustainable global bioeconomy. The Partnership was launched at the Global Bioeconomy Summit 2026 in Dublin. It focuses on three priorities: strengthening the role of the bioeconomy in global policy agendas beyond 2030 (post-SDG era), developing a shared understanding of the bioeconomy across regions, and accelerating private-sector engagement and investment in bioeconomy development.

Joining the Global Bioeconomy Partnership marks a concrete step in implementing EBU’s Global Collaboration Framework, which aims to strengthen the Alliance’s global connections and international partnerships in research, education and innovation while maintaining its European identity.

“After building a strong, well-functioning alliance among the eight European universities, we see global cooperation as the next step. We want to become a partner in a global, continuously growing and powerful community that can speak with a strong voice for the global bioeconomy”, says Teppo Hujala, Speaker of the EBU Presidency Chair and Professor at the University of Eastern Finland.

The Partnership builds on a call made at the 2024 Global Bioeconomy Summit in Nairobi for stronger cooperation among existing bioeconomy initiatives. Its founding Joint Charter, presented in Dublin, outlines shared commitments to cooperation, knowledge exchange and joint action.

“We see strong demand for more structured coordination and exchange among bioeconomy networks, including university alliances, industry-led networks, and platforms established by international organisations”, says Iris Lewandowski, EBU Coordination Group member and Professor at the University of Hohenheim.