Linking Education to Socially-Relevant Bioentrepreneurship for Sustainable Development

Abstract

Sustainable development requires, inter alia, that efforts be made to eliminate poverty and reduce the number of hungry people. Many of the poor do not have access to the means to improve their livelihoods. Those involved in agriculture generally find difficulty in increasing the value of outcomes from their efforts. The 20th Century saw humankind dramatically expand in the diversity and magnitude of bioscience enterprises, i.e. enterprises which create value using biology. These bioscience enterprises include raw bio-commodities like rubber and palm oil produced using modern plantation technology, high quality seed material using hybrids, high quality seed material using tissue culture, biofermentation, biofertilizers, biopesticides, biofuels, bioremediation and biotech seeds. Each of these enterprises is based on sound science and contributes to key needs of modern societies.