9.00-9.30 Welcome and registration of participants9.30-11.00 SESSION IWHY MOVING TOWARDS A BIO-BASED ECONOMY? Moving to a bio-based economy could be a powerful tool to respond to the continuing demand for energy, chemicals and materials while boosting economic growth and employment and contributing to environmental protection. To unlock the innovation potential of the bio-economy, the European Commission is proposing a European action plan up to 2020. But what technical and commercial challenges need to be overcome if a large-scale shift towards bio-based industries can succeed? Is a bio-based economy a silver bullet for Europe’s environmental and natural resource problems, or could it have negative socio-economic and environmental effects? How can Europe ensure it retains its technological leadership and avoid it is implemented first in other regions like Asia and the US?Moderated by Giles Merritt, Secretary General of Friends of Europe11.00-11.30 Coffee break11.30-13.00 SESSION IIHOW TO MAKE IT HAPPEN? WHO IS GOING TO PAY?Among the major obstacles to a bio-based economy is the lack of financing. Governments need to encourage investment in biotechnologies by creating markets and smartly regulating the industrialisation process. Agriculture will be core to the bio-based economy: Europe’s 1.22 bn tonnes of yearly agricultural residues could be sustainably harvested without altering land-use patterns and in the future municipal waste could be use of the same purposes. The question is how could the Common Agricultural Policy and other EU funding instruments be used to unlock this potential? Can public procurement of bio-based products be used as a tool, and could public spending be directed towards public-private partnership and demonstration projects across Europe? What can the EU and its member states do to create a clear political commitment and a better coherence of policies?Moderated by Giles Merritt, Secretary General of Friends of Europe13.00-14.00 Lunch