BISC-E Bio-based Innovation Student Challenge - Europe

What is BISC-E?

BISC-E is a Europe-wide student competition designed to raise awareness of the bio-based economy and its role in building a sustainable future. It invites students from all disciplines to develop bio-based products or processes that help drive the transition toward a circular economy.

The Bio-based Industries Consortium (BIC) coordinates BISC-E on European level and holds the European finals, where the best national teams will go head-to-head to showcase their solutions.

For Austria’s first-ever participation we at the Centre for Bioeconomy of BOKU together with BIOS Science Austria serve as national coordinators and points of contact.

Discover the other countries involved in the competition by visiting this link.

Who can participate?

BISC-E is open to Bachelor’s and Master’s students, as well as first-year PhD students  (European Qualification Framework Level 7). Teams of 3 to 6 students are encouraged to join, ideally bringing together expertise from different disciplines, including at least one team member with a scientific background. Team members can be from different universities or universities of applied sciences. 

To participate, every team must appoint a team leader responsible for registration and communication with the organizers. Each team needs a supervisor, such as a PhD student or professor, to guide them through the challenge. Both students and supervisors can only participate in one team.

What’s the Challenge?

Student teams develop innovative bio-based products or processes that address technological, environmental, or societal challenges, fully or partly based on renewable biological resources.

While the development of new food or feed ingredients is allowed, the production of final food and feed products is not included in the program. See regulations. 

Throughout the challenge, teams further develop their ideas with the support of coaching sessions and expert feedback. At the Austrian final, teams present their concepts to a jury of industry and academic experts, with a focus on:

• sustainability
• technical feasibility
• economic viability

The winning team of the Austrian final will represent Austria in the European competition phase of BISC-E.

To get an impression of past projects and team journeys, explore videos from previous BISC-E competitions on the BIC YouTube Channel!

Why Participate? What’s in it for You?

By joining BISC-E, you will:

• Tackle real-world challenges in the bio-based sector
• Develop key skills in teamwork, problem-solving, and solution presentation
• Connect with students and experts from Austria and across Europe
• Take part in coaching sessions with professionals from industry and the start-up ecosystem
• Receive constructive feedback from a jury of academic and industry experts to further develop your concept

Beyond the challenge itself, BISC-E offers visibility within the bio-based innovation ecosystem, potentially opening doors to start-up activities, internships, or future career opportunities.
In the previous edition, participants also benefited from monetary and non-monetary prizes. Details on prizes for this year’s BISC-E Austria will be announced in due course.

Organisational Process

The Bio-based Innovation Student Challenge Europe (BISC-E) follows a structured, learning-oriented process designed to support students in developing and refining innovative bio-based products or processes.

Interested students can pre-register for the Connect & Team-Up Event, which offers the opportunity to meet like-minded peers and form interdisciplinary teams of 3 to 6 participants.

After official team registration, participants enter the national competition phase, where teams work collaboratively on their ideas.

Each team is required to appoint at least one supervisor from their host institution (e.g. lecturer, postdoctoral researcher, or professor).
If team members are enrolled at different universities or universities of applied sciences, additional supervisors from those institutions may be appointed. Supervisors support and guide the teams throughout the competition but are not part of the official team membership.

During the national phase, teams are accompanied through check-ins, coaching or mentoring formats and thematic inputs.

The national phase concludes with the Austrian Final, where teams present their projects to a jury of academic and industry experts. The winning team advances to the European competition phase, continuing their development in an international context.

Specific formats, workshops, and activities for BISC-E Austria 2026 will be announced once confirmed.