Bio-economy Research and Technology Council

The Bio-economy Research and Technology Council advises the government of Germany on measures to promote the bioeconomy in Germany. The Council makes policy recommendations to policy makers, science and industry in the corresponding fields of research and action. The members of the Council are respected senior figures drawn from across the fields of science.

In developing its reports and recommendations, the Council works independently on its own authority. It is administratively associated with acatech. The Council is financed by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

The BMBF links the Council to the Federal Government and the respective Ministries. The first project phase is scheduled to last three years. The Council is supported by a secretariat located in Berlin.

Tasks

The Council’s task is to advise the Government on strategic fields of action to improve the framework for innovation and new technologies, to promote the development and diffusion of innovative technologies, as well as to identify prospective needs for research.

The BioEconomyCouncil produces expert reports including recommendations for action. Reports are handed over to policy makers during public events. Such events serve to promote the exchange between science and industry.

The Council moreover issues expert opinions on current topics in response to requests from policy makers, science, and industry. Reports and recommendations are published and made available to the public online and in print.

The Council meets regularly. It draws on additional expertise by commissioning studies and reports as well as by hosting hearings and workshops.

Members

• Reinhard F. Hüttl (Chair), Chair of the Executive Board, GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences Potsdam and President of acatech
• Bernd Müller-Röber (Deputy Chairman), Professor of Molecular Biology, Max-Planck-Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology and University of Potsdam
• Andreas J. Büchting (Deputy Chairman), Chairman of the Supervisory Board KWS SAAT AG
• Achim Bachem, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH
• Helmut Born, Secretary-General of the German Farmers’ Union (Deutscher Bauernverband e.V.)
• Prof. Dr. Thomas Hirth, Director, Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology (IGB) and Institute for Interfacial Engineering at the University of Stuttgart
• Andreas Kreimeyer, Member of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE
• Manfred Schwerin, Professor of Animal Breeding, University of Rostock and Director, Research Institute for the Biology of Farm Animals
• Carsten Thoroe, Retired president of the Johann Heinrich von Thünen-Institut (vTI) Braunschweig
• Wiltrud Treffenfeldt, Director Bioprocess R&D, Dow AgroSciences LLC, Indianapolis, USA
• Fritz Vahrenholt, Chief Executive Officer, RWE Innogy GmbH
• Joachim von Braun, Director General, International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington DC, USA
• Alexander Zehnder, Director, Water Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
• Christian Patermann (permanent guest), NRW Government Advisor on Knowledge-Based Bio-Economy
• Claus Gerhard Bannick, Head of Office

External links

de:Forschungs- und Technologierat Bioökonomie