Bioeconomy – an emerging meta-discourse affecting forest discourses?

• Published in: Scandinavian journal of forest research Vol. 29; no. 4; pp. 386 - 393
• Main Authors: Pülzl, Helga, Kleinschmit, Daniela, Arts, Bas
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oslo Taylor & Francis 01.01.2014; Taylor & Francis LLC
• Subjects: Biodiversity; bioeconomy discourse; Climate change; Discourse analysis; discourse theory; Forest management; Forest Science; forests; General Language Studies and Linguistics; global forest policy; governance; Jämförande språkvetenskap och lingvistik; Modernization; movement; neoliberalism; opportunities; perspective; policy; scientists; Skogsvetenskap; Social Sciences Interdisciplinary; Sustainable development; sustainable forestry; trees; Tvärvetenskapliga studier
• ISSN: 1651-1891; 0282-7581; 1651-1891
• DOI: 10.1080/02827581.2014.920044

The term bioeconomy and closely related notions like bio-based economy or knowledge-based bioeconomy (KBBE) are increasingly used by scientists and politicians in the last years. It does therefore have the potential of becoming an influential global discourse. Its role is however so far unclear. The general assumption that guides this paper is that discourses, resulting ideas and arguments are generally said to have performative power. They shape actors' views, influence their behaviour, impact on their beliefs and interests and can cause institutional change in a given society. Thus, the aim of this paper is twofold: first, it aims to analyse whether the ideas used in a bioeconomy discourse differs from those in other global meta-discourses of the last decades affecting forest discourses, such as the ecological modernization discourse or the sustainable development discourse. Second, this paper aims to analyse whether and how the bioeconomy discourse has started (or not) to reshape or overshadow the “classical” forest discourses, such as sustainable forest management, forest biodiversity or forest and climate change.