“Bioeconomy in my life”

En rond (Original version)

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Un poème a deux voix entre un jeune et la planète qui met en lumière l'éco-anxiété de la jeunesse et les solutions proposées par la bioéconomie pour y faire face. La planète montre au jeune les différentes formes que prend cette bio économie à travers l'union européenne.  

Planète, ce soir je tourne en rond,
Calfeutrée dans ma maison,
Il fait si chaud que je ne veux prendre l’avion,
Malgré ma soif de découvrir de nouveaux horizons.

Planète je n’ai que toi,
Et pourtant je me comporte comme un roi,
Apprends-moi à te réutiliser,
A comprendre comment avec toi mon économie peut fonctionner.

Mon enfant, écoute un peu.
Des ressources, il y en a peu.
Mais bien utilisées, elles te rendront heureux.
    
Toi qui rêves de paysages,
Tu contempleras avec joie ces images,
De ces dizaines de jeunes européens,
Qui inventent le monde de demain.
    
Ils recyclent, réutilisent et réparent,
Ils savent qu’avec ces gestes il n’est pas trop tard,
Pour que la bioéconomie,
Prenne une place dans leur vie.

Ils s’appellent Maja, Agathe ou Markus,
Ils vivent à Berlin, Tallin ou Fréjus,
Peu importe qu’il ne se connaissent pas,
Car ils sont tous locataires d’un même endroit.
   
Janis étudie la filière du bois,
Tandis que dans l’agriculture durable travaille François.
Lysandra donne aux associations écologistes une voix,
Tandis que Petro rédige des propositions de loi.
   
Planète, essaie-tu de me dire que la bioéconomie a empli ma vie,
Sans même que je ne l’ai compris ?
Que je peux être ingénieure, économiste, ou juriste,
Sans craindre de rendre la terre triste ?
     
Moi du haut de mes vingt ans,
Je crois que l’engagement c’est maintenant,
Pour faire que notre si belle sphère,
Accueille à présent une économie circulaire.
  

In circles (Translated version)

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A poem in two voices between a young person and the planet that highlights young people’s eco-anxiety and the solutions offered by the bio-economy to deal with it. The planet shows the young person the different forms this bio-economy takes across the European Union.

Planet, this evening I’m going round in circles,
Cosy in my home,
It’s so hot I don’t want to take the plane,
Despite my longing to discover new horizons.

Planet, I have only you,
And yet I behave like a king,
Teach me how to reuse you,
To understand how my economy can work with you.
  
My child, listen a little.
Resources, there are few.
But used well, they’ll make you happy.
  
You, who dreams of landscapes,
Will gaze with joy upon these images,
Of these dozens of young Europeans,
Who are inventing the world of tomorrow.
  
They recycle, reuse and repair,
They know that with these acts it isn’t too late,
For the bio-economy,
To play an important role in their lives.
 
Their names are Maja, Agathe and Markus,
They live in Berlin, Tallinn and Fréjus,
It doesn’t matter that they don’t know each other,
Because they’re all tenants of the same place.
 
Janis studies the wood industry,
While François works in sustainable agriculture.
Lysandra gives a voice to environmental associations,
While Petro drafts legislation.
  
Planet, are you trying to tell me that the bio-economy has permeated my life,
Without me even realising it?
That I can be an engineer, economist, or lawyer,
Without being afraid of making the earth sad?
  
Me, at the grand age of twenty,
I believe now is the time for commitment,
To make our beautiful sphere,
Welcome a circular economy.

Burcu Akkoyunlu, 27, Ireland

Flowers of Bioeconomy: Recycling Plastic Waste into Embroidery Hoop Art

An original embroidery piece that represents how waste gas can be returned to nature. The chimneys represent the iconic Poolbeg Chimneys from Dublin, next to where I live. Gas lines coming out from the chimneys are sewn using hollow fiber membranes. Flowers are made by modifying pipette tips and inoculum loops are used for the sea. The whole piece is made by using the waste materials from my research to represent the work that I’m doing which is turning waste gas into biodegradable plastics.

Laura Genovese, 35, Italy

Interconnections

Humankind and natural resources interrelate closely. We form an integral part of the environment that we are helping to destroy, so in truth, we are harming ourselves. Nature provides us with every resource we need: not just energy, food, water and air but also inspiration, peace and regeneration for our body & soul. We ought to take this kind of awareness as a fresh starting point. Bio-resources are all around us. The ability to treat them with care and use them consciously would be enough.

Carmen Scioti, 25, Denmark

Loading change

The artwork represents the most sharable approach to Bioeconomy: food. Many people go through what I like to define as 3 steps of consciousness. Step 1: The alertness state, in which the human being is guided by the mere need of eating. Step 2: Self-awareness, in which humans are only focused on what could be good for their body. Step 3: Meta-self-awareness, wherein we relate our way of living to the environment.

A plant-based diet ≠ vegan is a key factor to reduce our impact on the planet.

Esin Esendemir, 17, The Netherlands

School poem – connections

This is a poem I wrote at school, as I was being questioned on why I was writing on sheets of paper that were already 'used'. But how privileged must I be to access so many materials for school, and how ungrateful would I be to let it all go to waste so easily? 'Connections' describes the red dreads amongst nature and humanity. From cast-off pages to worn-out paper bags, from clueless children to innocent birds; this is how earth connects.

Connections

Used. That's what you see.
A blank sheet, a lifeless tree.
It was once a home;
to the mockingbird.
Free;
not yet overthrown.

One biodegradable bag
Some might look and laugh.
A tabula rasa might notice
maybe hopeful
maybe clueless.

The change is ours
pick your character,
pick new goals.
That tree, bird and boy who once shared souls.

We still can connect;
we can rebound, resurrect.
Don't play foul with earth,
please don't devour.
Mother, waiting to be nourished
help me rebalance her power.

Anne-Sofie De Rop, 23, Belgium

Microbial world of Jörmungandr

In my daily life, I engineer micro-organisms for the production of chemicals. The serpent Jörmungandr from Norse mythology is drawn with bacteria from my lab. This creature refers to threatening problems related to the climate change. He is often represented chasing his own tail, making circles for eternity. As such, the Jörmungandr represents the opportunity of microorganisms to contribute to a circular bioeconomy. He is flying around the world, drawn with soil, a habitat of microorganisms.