The cross-cutting perspective of bioeconomy guides the transition away from non-renewable resources and towards biological resources, including the use of bio-based products, processes, and practices. Different countries and regions have quite different resource endowments and socio-economic conditions. There is a diverse range of stakeholders involved in developing, implementing, and governing the bioeconomy across different levels from local to global. The visions adopted by stakeholders also significantly influence the approaches taken and tend to fall into the three categories of biotechnology, bioresource, and bio-ecology visions. Bioeconomy strategies and policies are shaped by these visions and their application in the context of biomass resource endowments, alongside emerging sustainability constraints and development opportunities. Bioeconomy strategies have tended to be national endeavours, but the examples of the EU and Eastern Africa illustrate the potential for regional cooperation to enhance bioeconomy development and take advantage of the biological and socio-economic diversity within a wider region.