THE FACULTY OF SCIENCE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN INVITES YOU TO THE 2026 SEMINAR SERIES

This seminar series is organised by the Faculty of Science Research Committee.
Everyone interested is welcome to attend.

Speakers
Prof Rachel Wynberg
Department of Environmental and Geographical Science
SARChI Research Chair on Environmental and Social Dimensions of the Bio-economy
 

Title
Securing Biodiverse and Socially Just Bio-economies in a Rapidly Changing World

Abstract

The bio-economy has emerged as a powerful promissory discourse over the past three decades, portrayed by governments and industry alike as a solution for healthcare, food security and the human-induced polycrises of climate change and biodiversity loss. Yet visions of the bioeconomy differ substantially, ranging from those that are utilitarian, focused on high-technology approaches, genetic sequence databases, and modern biotechnologies; those centred on bioresources, and the replacement of fossil-fuel based raw materials with biomass and biological renewables; and an emerging agro-ecological or biodiversity-based vision which is more rights-based, and relational, recognising the reliance of communities on biodiversity, and acknowledging the importance of both scientific and traditional knowledges and associated ontologies and worldviews. This seminar explores how these distinctive visions lead to different research and innovation pathways and partnerships, their social and environmental impacts, and their manifestation in international and national policy and governance landscapes. In doing so, it asks what an inclusive, transformative and socially just bioeconomy might look like in the context of a biodiversity-rich but economically challenged Global South.

Speaker Biography

Prof Rachel Wynberg - A Professor in the Department of Environmental and Geographical Science at UCT where she holds a SARChI Research Chair focused on Environmental and Social Dimensions of the Bio-economy. With a background in both the natural and social sciences, her interdisciplinary research spans topics relating to agroecology and food sovereignty; seeds, farmers’ rights and agrobiodiversity; the governance of wild species; access and benefit sharing; and emerging technologies and equity in science. She advises international agencies, governments, NGOs and communities on these issues and is actively involved with civil society movements across the southern Africa region and beyond.