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Programme Timeline

Learn to master the needs-driven approach and apply it in the agri-food sector. You get to use your professional skills, learn new creativity-tools, and work in interdisciplinary teams close to practice.

The BioSustainability Design programme educates one cohort per year. Each cohort follows a fixed 10-month structure consisting of a Bootcamp and a four-step process containing Field Immersion, Need validation, Invention, and Commercial skills which is outlined below.

Please note, that the programme curriculum and contents is still under development. This page will be updated with further information once the curriculum is finalized.

Programme structure and the five stages including in the timeline

The timeline of the fellowship programme

January-August 2026 (before programme start)
  • Recruitment campaign and applications
  • Assessment and selection of fellows accoring to our requirements.
  • Matching hosts and planning field immersions
September: Bootcamp
  • Introduction to the full agri‑food value chain
  • Deep dive into the three BSD themes
  • Training in design thinking and need‑driven innovation
  • Team formation and team mission
  • Preparation for field immersion at host organizations

(The Bootcamp last 3 weeks)

September – November: Field Immersion 
  • Observations at the Host
  • Field immersion at a minimum of two host organizations per team
  • Shadowing staff across functions and processes
  • Systematic logging of data and observations
  • Discover needs 

(The Field Immersion phase lasts 8 weeks)

November–January 2027: Need validation
  • Systematic observation and need identification
  • Initial validation through interviews, data review, and mentor feedback
  • Selection and defining of ~5 key needs per team for further work 

(The Need validation phase last 5 weeks)

February-March: Invention
  • Ideation sessions and concept generation (20+ ideas per team)
  • Concept selection and refinement
  • Technical, operational, and market validation with hosts, mentors, and users
  • First prototypes (when relevant) and value chain impact assessment

(The Invention phase last 11 weeks)

April–June: Implementation and commercial skills
  • Selection of one main concept per team
  • Further prototyping and pilot testing where possible
  • Business model development and commercialization strategy
  • Regulatory and IP considerations
  • Final presentations to hosts, partners, and external stakeholders

(The Commercial skills phase last 14 weeks)

If you have questions about the programme or whether it is right for you, please read through our Why become a fellow og Do you fit the programme pages or consult our FAQ section. If this did not answer your question, please send us an email at info@biosustainabilitydesign.dk, and we will get back to you as soon as possible.