One objective of the BBChina project is strengthening interactions and networking between HEIs, industry and institutions in China and EU. This is achieved by mean of the networking for internships activity, that is part of the Work Package 6.

As soon as the syllabus of the Master Course was ready, Chinese HEI’s operatives were committed to contact companies through the standard University channels to obtain availability for hosting reliable and active internships or project development for the thesis work to be performed from the second year on of the BBChina Master Program.

Companies involved on an individual basis sign an Expression of Interest (EOI). Through the EOI the legal representative declares the interest of the Company he/she is representing to support the BBChina action by offering the possibility for students to host internships and/or period of the thesis to be spent during the last year of the BBChina Master Program on “Bio-Based Circular economy”. The aim of the period spent within their Company will be to get the students in touch with the working environment and to facilitate their transition from education to the labour market.

Meanwhile, the Associated Partner Chamber Of Commerce Italy-China (CCIC) involved its members operating in the Green Economy (Renewable Energies, Circular Economy, Waste Management etc.). A memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was drawn up and agreed upon to establish the cooperation between the BBChina Consortium and the CCIC. The main scope of the MoU is to facilitate BBChina students to get in contact with CCIC members operating in the Green Economy for a link with the Labour Market. This will be achieved through Internships or Master Thesis implementation periods to be spent in the involved companies during the second or third year of the Master Program. The CCIC members operating in the Green Economy Field are the ones joining the “Energy and Environmental Protection Working Group” (EEPWG) and/or the companies of the “Italian Energy and Environmental Protection Technologies and Management” (EEP) section. Through the signature of the MoU, in August 2019, these Companies are made available to offer to BBChina Students Internships or Master Thesis implementation periods.

This activity is important also because the network established within the project with Chinese stakeholders (i.e. enterprises working in the biobased economy that host internships) can represent a strong basis for EU HEIs to establish new research projects and Industry/University cooperation activities.