MarginUp! Is Heading to the Global Bioeconomy Summit 2026 in Dublin
From 19 to 22 October 2026, the Convention Centre Dublin will host the Global Bioeconomy Summit (GBS 2026), bringing together researchers, policymakers, industry and investors from across the world to shape the future of the bioeconomy. MarginUp! will be there with a flagship satellite event, an exhibition booth, a policy session and a collaborative workshop — four opportunities to discover how marginal lands can become a source of sustainable industrial feedstock for Europe and beyond.
Unlocking Marginal Lands for the Global Bioeconomy – Satellite Event
MarginUp! opens the summit week with a full-day satellite event: Unlocking Marginal Lands for the Global Bioeconomy: Industrial Feedstocks for Socioeconomic Transformation and Climate Action through Policy Dialogue, Investment, and Partnerships.
The session brings together researchers, policymakers, industry, investors and practitioners to share lessons learnt from innovative biomass value chains on marginal lands in Europe and beyond, and to explore how these pathways can create value for people, nature and the climate. The session will be hybrid, so participants can attend in person or online.
- 19 October | 9:00–17:00
- Convention Centre Dublin | Wicklow Hall 1
- Register for in-person participation here.
- Register for online participation here.
Preliminary Agenda
| Time | Session | Lead / format |
| 09:00–09:30 | Welcome coffee and registration | Registration and arrival |
| 09:30–10:00 | Opening and welcome remarks | Patrick Rembe (G!E) Philipp Grundmann (ATB) Lukas Varnas (REA-EU) |
| 10:00–11:00 | Keynote session: From underused land resources to sustainable value chains | Rocio A. Diaz-Chavez (Imperial College) – TBD Barna Kovacs (BIOEAST) – TBD Tomasz Calikowski (DG-EU) – TBD Moderation: Philipp Grundmann (ATB) |
| 11:00–11:30 | Coffee break | |
| 11:30–12:15 | From marginal lands to value creation: lessons from emerging pathways | James Claffey (IRL) | Irish rural perspectives on marginal lands and place-based bioeconomy. Efi Alexopoulou (CRES) | MIDAS: industrial crops and low-ILUC biomass pathways Philipp Grundmann, Trang Dam, Thomas Hoffmann and Shahsharif M. Shaikh (ATB); Dora Kalea (CluBE); Clara Amaro (INNOMINE); Michael Glemnitz (ZALF); Pambos Panayiotou (Atlantis), and Karen Haman (IFAU) | MarginUp! pathways and pilot use cases in Europe, Africa and South America Moderation: Shahsharif M. Shaikh (ATB) |
| 12:15–12:45 | Expert roundtable: What makes marginal-land feedstock pathways credible, viable and responsible? | Barna Kovacs (BIOEAST), Rocio A. Diaz-Chavez (Imperial College), James Claffey (IRL), Clara Amaro (INNOMINE), Michael Glemnitz (ZALF) Moderation: Shahsharif M. Shaikh (ATB) |
| 12:45–14:00 | Networking lunch and marketplace of ideas | Informal exchange around projects, cases and collaboration interests |
| 14:00–15:30 | Parallel dialogue and workshop forums | Scaling circular bioeconomy solutions for marginal lands across Europe and beyond. 1. Technology development and road-mapping (Thomas Hoffmann, Shahsharif M. Shaikh and Clara Amaro). 2. Business, products and markets (Pambos Panayiotou, Karen Haman, Duduzile Ngwenya, Juliane C. Jimenez and Philipp Grundmann). 3. Policy and governance for rural impact and sustainability safeguards – Hyunjin Park (ATB) and Michael Glemnitz (ZALF). 4. Partnerships, engagement and capacity building – Konstantin Engelbrecht (inter3), Dora Kalea (CluBE) Moderation: Philipp Grundmann / Shahsharif M. Shaikh (ATB) |
| 15:30–16:00 | Coffee break | |
| 16:00–17:00 | Harvesting the Dublin Agenda | Cross-forum reports and synthesis. Pitches EU-Projects | Clara Amaro: SUSTAINCROPs Juliane Corredor Jimenez: NEXRUR Hyunjin Park: GBR-ACT Panel discussion | Clara Amaro (MarginUp! & SUSTAINCROPs); Nikolaos Damatis (HELLABIOM); Eduardo Corchero Madruga (CICYTEX); Uwe R. Fritsche (IINIAS); Barbara Sturm (ATB). Speakers are to be confirmed. Moderation: Philipp Grundmann (ATB) |
| 17:00 | Closing remarks and outlook | Philipp Grundmann (ATB),Patrick Rembe (G!E) |
Visit Us Throughout the Summit
Beyond the satellite event, MarginUp! will have a presence across the whole of GBS2026:
Exhibition booth (No. 52) — 20 – 21 October
Stop by to browse our project magazine, research posters, videos and digital demos, explore our replication tools, and meet the consortium in person.
Policy Session — 20 October | 12:55 – 13:25 | Wicklow Hall 2A
From Research to Policy: MarginUp! presents its policy paper, including key recommendations for enabling sustainable biomass production on marginal lands, and opens the floor for discussion on future European bioeconomy policies and frameworks for industrial feedstock from marginal lands.
Policy Workshop — 21 October, 11:00-12:30
From Feedstock to Market: Building the Value Chain for a Competitive Bioeconomy. This workshop will explore how sustainable biomass can be scaled into competitive, circular bioeconomy value chains that support rural development and industrial decarbonisation, identifying the policies, finance, infrastructure, markets and partnerships needed from feedstock to end-of-life.
The workshop is co-organised by MarginUp! partner Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy with Avantium, Munster Technological University, Novamont, and Renewable Gas Forum of Ireland (RGFI).
Check back on this page for all programme updates.
Why Join Us?
- Discover solutions and exchange knowledge with worldwide business initiatives and bioeconomy value chains.
- Learn how innovative biomass value chains from marginal lands can provide industrial feedstock for the emerging bioeconomy.
- Explore replication opportunities and tools for scaling impact.
- Discuss market uptake and exploitation.
- Exchange with a diverse community of experts, policymakers and innovators.
- Engage with European Commission representatives and decision-makers.
Who should attend? Farmers and landowners, industry, NGOs and networks, investors, clusters and innovation hubs, EU and policy makers, and researchers.
Registration
Registration for the Global Bioeconomy Summit 2026 is required. All costs are detailed on the conference website (gbs2026.org).
Don’t miss the MarginUp! Satellite Event on Marginal Lands — register today to save your seat.
