Since the industrial age, fossil resources have been increasingly utilised to provide the material and energy basis for societal health. However, climate changes are increasingly occurring as a result of the increasing atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases (GHGs). Hence, the urgent need to accelerate the transition to truly equitable, sustainable, postefossil carbon societies. Additionally, the global population is expected to grow to nine billion or more people by 2050: therefore, all societies will be increasingly confronted by bio-diversity losses, food and water insecurities and resultant economic and political disruptions. There will be urgent needs for all to face the planetary boundaries, which are already being exceeded in many locations. Amongst them, water scarcities, emptying of aquifers, rapid deforestation, spreading deserts, agricultural land erosion and land contamination, water and air with numerous toxic pollutants (Blok et al., 2015; Ingrao et al., 2015; Lopes, 2015; Pellegrini et al., 2016). In response to the knowledge about our exceeding the planetary boundaries, we must take our responsibilities seriously to accelerate the transition to equitable, sustainable, postefossil carbon societies. Therefore, responsible human reproduction limits must be addressed along with building comprehensively upon improved energy efficiency and renewable energy. In that context, people have the societal challenge to develop societies, that are increasingly based upon bio-based economies or ‘bio-economies’, and so are characterised by both reduced dependence upon imported fossil fuels and reduced GHG emissions (Philp, 2015). Those bio-economies should be sustainably implemented and managed in the short and long-term to ensure the essential production and consumption transitions to reduce fossil GHG emissions, whilst boosting innovation to increase both productivity and profitability (Pülzl et al., 2014; Huisingh et al., 2015). Dedicated strategies have been developed over the years in such a