Engineering Biology: A Research Roadmap for the Next-Generation Bioeconomy is a critical assessment of the current status and potential of engineering biology. It is intended to provide researchers and other stakeholders (including government funders) with a compelling set of technical challenges and opportunities in the near and long term. The matrixed framework of the roadmap considers challenges, bottlenecks, and other limitations observed or predicted in the research, development, and application of advancements in engineering biology tools and technologies toward addressing broad societal challenges. The roadmap’s four technical themes form the foundation of engineering biology research and technology and illustrate where our current abilities lie and what we might achieve in the next 20 years. Complementarily, the five roadmap application and impact sectors demonstrate the breadth and impact of technical advancements in real-world application areas and exemplify how engineering biology tools and products could be oriented towards some of the most complex problems we face as a society. The technical themes represent a “bottom-up” approach focusing on tool and technology innovations to move the field forward, while the five application and impact sectors are a “top-down” look at how engineering biology could contribute toward addressing and overcoming national and global challenges.
Visit roadmap.ebrc.org/2019-roadmap to view or print the roadmap.