Policy dialogue on a bioeconomy for sustainable development in the Baltic Sea region

Authors: Nella Canales, Ganna Gladkykh, Ekaterina Bessonova, Matthew Fielding, Francis X. Johnsson and Kaja Petersson.

Type of publication: SEI Workshop report

Abstract
Advances in the bioeconomy could help achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in high-income, emerging and low-income economies alike (Johnson and Silveira 2014; Johnson and Altman 2014) by alleviating dependency on fossil fuels and improving overall levels of well-being and productivity. However, the transition pathways to a bioeconomy will differ widely with different starting points for the use of bio-based resources. Low-income countries still rely significantly on bio-based resources, albeit at low efficiency (sometimes referred to as “the natural economy”) while high-income countries rely heavily on a fossil-based economy. The Policy Dialogues are being implemented as part of the SEI Initiative on Governing Bioeconomy Pathways. A series of dialogues, or stakeholder engagement workshops, are conducted in different countries to identify and discuss various potential pathways to achieving a sustainable and inclusive bioeconomy. The dialogues have national and regional scope and connect to local concerns and global markets by convening and engaging with a diverse group of stakeholders. This workshop brief presents the results of the first in the series, the Policy Dialogue on a Bioeconomy for Sustainable Development in the Baltic Sea Region, which was held in Tallinn, Estonia on 27 February 2019. This workshop served as a pilot of the stakeholder engagement methodology developed for the project. This brief provides some background on the bioeconomy in the Baltic region and a summary of the stakeholder engagement methodology developed for the project. It also summarizes the group discussions during the workshop and reflects on the methodology and its future evolution.

Citation
Gladkykh, G., Bessonova, E., Fielding, M., Johnsson, F. X., and Petersson, K. 2020. Policy dialogue on a bioeconomy for sustainable development in the Baltic Sea region. SEI Workshop report January 2020.