Exploring the Blue Bioeconomy


Book Description

Exploring the Blue Bioeconomy: Marine Bioresources and Sustainable Applications provides an overview of marine bioresources in the blue bioeconomy for readers curious about the blue bioeconomy. It delivers potential applications of marine macro and microorganisms in different industries such as biomedical, functional food, pharmaceutical, cosmeceutical, ecotourism, industrially important minerals, and enzymes. Besides the potential industrial applications, the book gives the readers an overview of conversion and sustainable utilization techniques for marine bioresources. Key Features Discusses the major sectors associated with the blue bioeconomy and the future potential of each industry for both developed and developing countries. Covers the most important aspects of seaweeds with respect to commercialization and conservation, including botanical information. Includes a discussion about potential future applications of marine microorganisms in the blue bioeconomy with research highlights. Explores the potential industrial applications of marine nematodes and their role in future agriculture and heavy metal remediation applications. Summarizes circular economy principles, upcycling, and recycling approaches to marine litter management under the context of the blue bioeconomy. The book begins by providing an overview of the blue bioeconomy and then advances through the chapters to discuss potential industries, organisms, and conservation techniques to protect ecosystems and associated organisms from overharvesting and pollution. Thus, readers with any level of educational background can easily understand the content of this book. The content of this book is suitable for undergraduates, postgraduates, industrialists, and policymakers who are working in the different fields of blue bioeconomy.




Building Industries at Sea - ‘Blue Growth’ and the New Maritime Economy


Book Description

Throughout the world there is evidence of mounting interest in marine resources and new maritime industries to create jobs, economic growth and to help in the provision of energy and food security. Expanding populations, insecurity of traditional sources of supply and the effects of climate change add urgency to a perceived need to address and overcome the serious challenges of working in the maritime environment. Four promising areas of activity for ‘Blue Growth’ have been identified at European Union policy level including Aquaculture; Renewable Energy (offshore wind, wave and tide); Seabed Mining; and Blue Biotechnology. Work has started to raise the technological and investment readiness levels (TRLs and IRLs) of these prospective industries drawing on the experience of established maritime industries such as Offshore Oil and Gas; Shipping; Fisheries and Tourism. An accord has to be struck between policy makers and regulators on the one hand, anxious to direct research and business incentives in effective and efficient directions, and developers, investors and businesses on the other, anxious to reduce the risks of such potentially profitable but innovative investments.The EU H2020 MARIBE (Marine Investment for the Blue Economy) funded project was designed to identify the key technical and non-technical challenges facing maritime industries and to place them into the social and economic context of the coastal and ocean economy. MARIBE went on to examine with companies, real projects for the combination of marine industry sectors into multi-use platforms (MUPs). The purpose of this book is to publish the detailed analysis of each prospective and established maritime business sector. Sector experts working to a common template explain what these industries are, how they work, their prospects to create wealth and employment, and where they currently stand in terms of innovation, trends and their lifecycle. The book goes on to describe progress with the changing regulatory and planning regimes in the European Sea Basins including the Caribbean where there are significant European interests. The book includes:• Experienced chapter authors from a truly multidisciplinary team of sector specialisms• First extensive study to compare and contrast traditional Blue Economy with Blue Growth• Complementary to EU and National policies for multi-use of maritime space







Resilience in the blue bioeconomy: What can COVID-19 teach the Arctic about the impact of crises on value chains?


Book Description

Available online: https://pub.norden.org/nord2021-058/ Drawing on the key findings of the report, Resilience in the blue bioeconomy, food and agriculture, and forestry sectors: What can COVID-19 teach the Nordic region, this brochure focuses on how blue bioeconomy value chains were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in the Arctic region. Through additional expert interviews, the brochure outlines the possibilities and challenges after the pandemic and points to the central role policy can play in light of future crises.




The Role of Seaweeds in Blue Bioeconomy


Book Description

This comprehensive volume is a review on the pivotal role of seaweeds in the blue bioeconomy. It begins by introducing the blue bioeconomy concept which encompasses the use of renewable biological marine resources to produce food, materials and energy. The book then continues to explore the applications of seaweeds. Chapters cover the biomedical applications (nutraceuticals), functional applications (functional ingredients, biofertilizers), and commercial applications (cosmeceuticals, animal feeds) of seaweeds. Each chapter is structured into sections to provide an easy to understand summary of respective topics, with detailed discussions that reveal the intricate nature of seaweeds. The book shares perspectives from experts in environmental science and biology, with references for advanced readers. The book is for anyone who wants to understand the role of seaweeds in the bioeconomy and for sustainable development.




The Sunken Billions


Book Description

'The Sunken Billions: The Economic Justification for Fisheries Reform' shows the difference between the potential and actual net economic benefits from marine fisheries is about $50 billion per year, or some $2 trillion over the last three decades. If fish stocks were rebuilt, the current marine catch could be achieved with approximately half the current global fishing effort. This illustrates the massive overcapacity of the global fleet. The excess competition for the limited fish resources results in declining productivity, economic inefficiency, and depressed fisher incomes. The focus on the deteriorating biological health of world fisheries has tended to obscure their equally critical economic health. Achieving sustainable fisheries presents challenges not only of biology and ecology, but also of managing political and economic processes and replacing pernicious incentives with those that foster improved governance and responsible stewardship. Improved governance of marine fisheries could regain a substantial part of this annual economic loss and contribute to economic growth. Fisheries governance reform is a long-term process requiring political will and consensus vision, built through broad stakeholder dialogue. Reforms will require investment in good governance, including strengthening marine tenure systems and reducing illegal fishing and harmful subsidies. Realizing the potential economic benefits of fisheries means reducing fishing effort and capacity. To offset the associated social adjustment costs, successful reforms should provide for social safety nets and alternative economic opportunities for affected communities.




Ensuring Gender Equality in Nordic Blue Economy


Book Description

Available online: https://pub.norden.org/nord2024-004/ For most of the Nordic countries, fisheries and aquaculture are important economic sectors. Their labour markets are however male-dominated, and strongly gender-segregated. This report serves as a critical resource for understanding the current state of gender equality in the maritime sector. It offers actionable recommendations for policymakers, industry leaders, and educational institutions to promote gender equality and harness the potential and value of women in this field.




Bioeconomy


Book Description

This book is open access under a CC BY 4.0 license. This book defines the new field of "Bioeconomy" as the sustainable and innovative use of biomass and biological knowledge to provide food, feed, industrial products, bioenergy and ecological services. The chapters highlight the importance of bioeconomy-related concepts in public, scientific, and political discourse. Using an interdisciplinary approach, the authors outline the dimensions of the bioeconomy as a means of achieving sustainability. The authors are ideally situated to elaborate on the diverse aspects of the bioeconomy. They have acquired in-depth experience of interdisciplinary research through the university’s focus on “Bioeconomy”, its contribution to the Bioeconomy Research Program of the federal state of Baden-Württemberg, and its participation in the German Bioeconomy Council. With the number of bioeconomy-related projects at European universities rising, this book will provide graduate students and researchers with background information on the bioeconomy. It will familiarize scientific readers with bioeconomy-related terms and give scientific background for economists, agronomists and natural scientists alike.




Safeguarding the Bioeconomy


Book Description

Research and innovation in the life sciences is driving rapid growth in agriculture, biomedical science, information science and computing, energy, and other sectors of the U.S. economy. This economic activity, conceptually referred to as the bioeconomy, presents many opportunities to create jobs, improve the quality of life, and continue to drive economic growth. While the United States has been a leader in advancements in the biological sciences, other countries are also actively investing in and expanding their capabilities in this area. Maintaining competitiveness in the bioeconomy is key to maintaining the economic health and security of the United States and other nations. Safeguarding the Bioeconomy evaluates preexisting and potential approaches for assessing the value of the bioeconomy and identifies intangible assets not sufficiently captured or that are missing from U.S. assessments. This study considers strategies for safeguarding and sustaining the economic activity driven by research and innovation in the life sciences. It also presents ideas for horizon scanning mechanisms to identify new technologies, markets, and data sources that have the potential to drive future development of the bioeconomy.




The Ocean Economy in 2030


Book Description

This report explores the growth prospects for the ocean economy, its capacity for future employment creation and innovation, and its role in addressing global challenges. Special attention is devoted to the emerging ocean-based industries.