The International Centre for Science and High technology (ICS), located in the Area Science Park in Trieste, Italy, and operating under the aegis of the United Nation Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) has organised, on 21-23 April, a workshop entitled: "Next generation biofuels and bio-based chemicals", followed, on 24 April, by a seminar on the same topics, open to the public, held at the AREA Science Park.

The 25 participants, among whom were some renowned international experts (C. Apesteguya (Argentina), D. Aranda (Brazil), E. D'Addario (ENI, Italy), D. Liu (China), F. Trifiro (Italy), A. Varma (India), P. Venturi (European Commission, Belgium)), discussed the following subjects: technologies for exploitation of agricultural waste for production of biofuels and high added value chemicals from the renewable feedstock with emphasis on next generation (including biofuels production from algae); overview of the situation in selected developing countries and countries in economic transition, sharing relevant application experiences regarding research and development of technologies for exploitation of renewable feedstock for production of fuels and chemicals; identification of countries' priorities and preparation of relevant follow-up initiatives , including possible collaborative projects concepts with ICS-UNIDO related to R&D activities on next generation biofuels and bio-based chemicals; elaboration of e-learning tools on biofuels and bio-based chemicals.

"Olive oil industry generates huge amounts of liquid and solid bio-wastes that can be converted into valuable products.  Indeed, olive tree derivates (fruits, leaves, oil, wood and olive mill wastewaters) have been considered as a rich source of biophenols endowed with a wide biological activities array", says the Tunisian expert. In other words, to summarise the leit-motive of the workshop, other agricultural wastes are a mine to be exploited everywhere in the world.

Prof. Arturo Falaschi, ICS Rector, comments: "Agriculture my significantly contribute to relieving the thirst for energy of humankind in the twenty-first century, but it is imperative to invert the present tendency to use to this purpose alimentary products, thus "robbing" the poor of their food to fill our tank.  It is essential to exploit instead low-grade sources, like alimentary wastes, sawdust, marginal land shrubs, etc. The utilization of this kind of sources requires the elaboration ov innovative, scientifically demanding technologies, a field to which the ICS intends to give significant contributions."