GoDanuBio presented in the event “Sustainable Value Creation in the Danube Region” organized on 16/11/2021 in Stuttgart

The dialogue and knowledge exchange with institutions and companies committed to sustainability between Baden-Württemberg and Hungary was held as a hybrid event in Stuttgart on 16th November 2021. It was a good opportunity to have a grasp of the sustainability plans in both regions from a political perspective and to learn about good practices related to themes such as circular (bio)economy, sustainable tourism, and social innovation.  The event was organized by the General Consultate of Hungary in Stuttgart and the PA8 of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region. It was attended by around 50 attendees, from which 15 attended physically in the “Haus der Wirtschaft” in Stuttgart.

The keynotes of Mr. Johannes Jung (Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour and Tourism Baden-Württemberg) and Mr. Attila Steiner (Ministry of Innovation and Technology of Hungary) referred to the status-quo of both regions on initiatives supporting sustainability and the European Green Deal. The programme was followed by three best practice examples regarding the implementation of the sustainability goals of the regions through Interreg DTP projects such as GoDanuBio, Transdanube Travel Stories and RESTART_4Danube.

Sergi Costa, senior project manager at BIOPRO Baden-Württemberg GmbH, presented the current status of GoDanuBio after sixteen months of implementation. Through a helicopter view he summarized the achievements so far of a project that advocates for more participative governance and strives for a rural renaissance in the Danube macro-region. According to him, the deployment of policies related with the bioeconomy should help to lever the untapped bioeconomic potential of the region. The final part of the presentation focused on the contribution of GoDanuBio towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the socio-economic awareness achieved, and what outcomes are expected once it will finish by end of 2022.

The ceremony concluded with an array of projects related to sustainability with participation of partners from Baden-Württemberg and Hungary. The presentation of the Innovation park model for a green economy by Tihamér Tóth (University of MOL-Pannon) should be highlighted for ist specific interest for GoDanuBio. This Innovation park, that follows a systemic approach related to circular economy, hydrogen economy, and waste and water management, is being implemented through a public-private partnership in the hungarian county of Zala.

The event was moderated by Dr. Judit Schrick-Szenczi from the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour and Tourism Baden-Württemberg, who is also coordinator of the Priority Area 8 (Competitiveness of SMEs) of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region, and concluded with a short video compelling the best moments of the day.

For further details:

BIOPRO Baden-Württemberg GmbH

GoDanuBio Lead Partner
Sergi Costa, costa@bio-pro.de

Katrin Stökle, stoekle@bio-pro.de

The GoDanuBio consortium is composed of: BIOPRO Baden-Württemberg (Lead Partner), Cluster Agentur Baden-Württemberg, Poly4EmI/Anteja ECG d.o.o, CLUSTERO - Romanian Cluster Association, IFKA - Public Benefit Non-profit Limited Company for the Development of the Industry, BRAIT - Bulgarian Employers‘ Association of Innovative Technologies, Ministry of Education, Science and Sport of Slovenia, Bioeconomy Cluster of Slovakia, Ministry of Economy, Entrepreneurship and Tourism of Romania, NCA - National Cluster Association, BSMEPA - Bulgarian Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion Agency, CWC - Croatian Wood Cluster, Ministry of Economy and Sustainable development of the Republic of Croatia, Ghelinta Commune, Business Upper Austria, Styrian Technology Park, ISC Konstanz e.V., Kosice Self-governing region, and Alma Mons Ltd.