On April 7, the first public lecture series "Meet the Circular Economy - Sustainable Innovation in Practice" took place at RWTH Aachen University. After the introductory lecture by Prof. Sandra Venghaus, speakers from the nova-Institut and Covestro presented examples of sustainable approaches in companies. Further dates of the lecture series will take place from May to July.

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is funding a new network of universities, research institutions and companies with a total of around 72 million euros to drive the transformation in the Rhenish mining area towards sustainable value creation. More than 70 individual projects combine research approaches with economic implementation possibilities. The BioSC's research over the last ten years has laid a variety of foundations for this.

Microbiomes have crucial roles in maintaining life on Earth, and their functions drive human, animal, plant and environmental health. In the 26th BioSC Lecture, Dr. Tanja Kostic from the Austrian Institute of Technology presented the EU Coordination & Support Action “Microbiome Support” which has established an international network of experts and stakeholders to boost research and innovation in the microbiome food systems research field.

Prof. Dr. Nick Wierckx has been awarded one of the prestigious ERC Consolidator Grants. In the PROSPER project, he plans to make Pseudomonas bacteria tolerant to aromatic hydrocarbons such as styrene or benzene in order to be able to produce the latter sustainably through biotechnology. Over a period of five years, he and his team will now receive around two million euros in funding for this purpose. Nick Wierckx is a member of the BioSC.

Now in its third year, the "Circular Bioeconomy as an Innovation Driver in Structural Change" was the focus of the BioökonomieREVIER business forum, streamed live from the Medio.Rhein.Erft in Bergheim. With around 200 participants, the afternoon offered different, sometimes unexpected perspectives with high-level keynotes and a multi-faceted look at strategies, opportunities and challenges.

With the founding of the BioökonomieREVIER initiative at the beginning of 2020, 15 „innovation labs“ were also launched. They are intended to facilitate the rapid transfer of new, bio-based approaches from different areas of science into the economy in the structural change in the Rhenish mining area - based on the principles of sustainability. Six of the labs will now receive further funding for up to five years in an innovation cluster called „Innovative Agriculture“ (InnoLa).