Support Theme: Dissemination via BioMatNet

Support Theme leader: Dr Jim Coombs

Database and website manager: Katy Hall

Summary

This Support Theme aims to disseminate information from the EPOBIO workshop, Flagship Themes and other activities through this website. In addition, it maintains a database of relevant European-funded research and players involved in non-food use of crops, BioMatNet. Working in parallel with the research activities, it builds on the database and information dissemination service (www.biomatnet.org) which has been supported by the European Commission (AIR, FAIR, FP5 QLK5 and now FP6) since the early 1990s. Its purpose is not only to feed information into EPOBIO, but also to serve as a portal for those working on renewable bioproducts and sustainable biofuels.

Detailed information

Since February 2006, information concerning developments in non-food agro-industrial research and development funded by the EC, has once again become available through EPOBIO. This Support Theme in part represents a continuation of previous activities that bore the acronym BioMatNet. However, EPOBIO has a much wider remit than that of the previous BioMatNet activity as described in the first issue of the EPOBIO Newsletter, which also falls within the dissemination Support Theme. The scope of information reported on the BioMatNet dissemination website will be widened as the project progresses to reflect this. The dissemination site is being extend to include relevant aspects of environment, economics, legislation and public perception on a more global basis, extending to the US in particular.

The underlying structure of the BioMatNet site and the existing ITEMS covering previous RTD Framework Programmes (ECLAIR, AIR, FAIR, JOULE) and FP5 activities will remain in a familiar format. The BioMatNet website address - www.biomatnet.org - is also retained, so existing bookmarks need not be updated.

Established features, such as News, Legislation, Events and the Database of Websites are being retained with links from both EPOBIO and BioMatNet. All entries in the existing database have been checked and marked for revision, deletion or retention. While at the same time new information is beein collected in order to maintain the site as the premier source of information on relevant EC-funded RTD and related activities. Priority has been given to producing updated information on FP6, the EU/US collaboration and the increasing emphasis in both regions on the concept of the Bioeconomy and the role to be played by Biorefineries. At the same time, this Support Theme will review develops related to the emergence of the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7), to which EPOBIO will contribute suggestions for the work programme, along with those arising from the various Technology Platforms with which EPOBIO is interacting.

Another major role of this Support Theme was to maintain a list of organisations and individuals involved in all topics covered by EPOBIO. This served as the basis for the period dissemination information about EPOBIO (including newsletters). An online form was provided to enable interested people to register with EPOBIO. In addition, contributions from such registrants to the database, newsletters and calendar of events were welcomed.