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Challenges
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Challenges: 10th Anniversary
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Challenges: 10th Anniversary

A special issue of Challenges (ISSN 2078-1547).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 February 2021) | Viewed by 27227

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Palmiro Poltronieri

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
National Research Council of Italy, AgroFood Department, Institute of Sciences of Food Productions, Lecce, Italy
Interests: biotechnologies for the quality and safety of food productions; microbiology and quality of food productions
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Susan Prescott

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. School of Medicine, University of Western Australia, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia
2. ORIGINS Project, Telethon Kids Institute at Perth Children’s Hospital, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia
3. NOVA Institute for Health of People, Places and Planet, 1407 Fleet Street, Baltimore, MD 21231, USA
Interests: planetary health; ecological and social justice; immunology and inflammation; microbiome science; NCDs (noncommunicable diseases); nutrition; life-course wellness and ‘DOHaD’ (development origins of health and disease); integrative approaches to wellness and disease prevention
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In 2019, Challenges is celebrating its 10th anniversary. To celebrate this milestone, we are pleased to announce a Special Issue that will address important global challenges that have evolved over this time.
In particular, given our association with inVIVO Planetary Health, and that Challenges has a particular emphasis on collaborative efforts towards grand challenges, we will consider all manuscripts dealing with diverse aspects of planetary health, climate change, biodiversity lossand urbanization on all scales, as well as all possible actions towards decreasing global warming and environmental degradation, CO2 and greenhouse gases containment, alternative energy sources, sustainable food systems, policy-making actions, hydrogen and alternative fuels, pragmatic, ideological, and/or philosophical perspectives on the next decade, including obstacles faced, and creative solutions that include diverse disciplines across basic sciences, social sciences, and humanities that will faciliate change and alternate actions.
The scope will include historical perspectives on associated issues, timely reviews of currently important topics, and original research reports on any relevant topic within the scope of Challenges. Article and communication formats will also be considered.
All researchers who have published in or reviewed for Challenges within the last 10 years are invited to contribute to this Special Issue. We also welcome submissions from all others who wish to contribute.
The submission deadline is 30 November 2020. In order to benefit both authors and readers, we would like to grant a discount for submissions based on evaluation.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors before submitting a manuscript: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/challenges/instructions. The reference guide is at https://www.mdpi.com/authors/references. Manuscripts should be submitted through the online manuscript submission and editorial system at https://susy.mdpi.com. You need to choose Challenges as the journal title, and Challenges: 10th Anniversary as the Special Issue title. Additionally, put a note in your cover letter that your submission is intended for the 10th Anniversary Special Issue.

We anticipate that this issue will attract considerable attention.

Dr. Palmiro Poltronieri
Prof. Dr. Susan L. Prescott
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Challenges is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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24 pages, 357 KiB  
Article
Report on Digital Literacy in Academic Meetings during the 2020 COVID-19 Lockdown
by Carol Nash
Challenges 2020, 11(2), 20; https://doi.org/10.3390/challe11020020 - 7 Sep 2020
Cited by 28 | Viewed by 10933
Abstract
COVID-19, a novel coronavirus, was deemed a pandemic during mid-March 2020. In response, lockdowns were imposed for an indefinite period world-wide. Academic institutions were no exception. Continuing meetings of academic groups consequently necessitated online communication. Various platforms were available from which to choose [...] Read more.
COVID-19, a novel coronavirus, was deemed a pandemic during mid-March 2020. In response, lockdowns were imposed for an indefinite period world-wide. Academic institutions were no exception. Continuing meetings of academic groups consequently necessitated online communication. Various platforms were available from which to choose to encourage digital literacy. Despite alternatives, the almost overnight closure of all non-essential services at one post-secondary institution resulted in the selection of Zoom as the preferred platform for meetings until social distancing ended. In contrast, the facilitator of a unique, health-related, narrative research group at the institution—a group tailored to critical thought, communication, cooperation and creativity—considered a hybrid format private Facebook group likely to provide a more appropriate and satisfying group experience than possible with synchronous Zoom meetings. Pros and cons of both online platforms are presented along with the conditions under which each one is preferable. Positive results were evident in promoting digital literacy for this particular academic group using the hybrid format of a private Facebook group. As such, private Facebook groups hold promise in supporting digital literacy for collaborative online health-related group meetings. Unique in examining and evaluating private Facebook groups, this report holds significance for digital literacy regarding academic meetings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges: 10th Anniversary)

Other

Jump to: Research

13 pages, 246 KiB  
Viewpoint
How Should We Respond to the Global Pandemic: The Need for Cultural Change
by Ben Gray
Challenges 2021, 12(1), 8; https://doi.org/10.3390/challe12010008 - 3 Mar 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3505
Abstract
The Covid pandemic has had a terrible effect on the world and government responses have been described as “Catastrophic Moral Failure”. The approach of bioethics of developing “normative ethics” has provided frameworks on how to act but despite the fact that we knew [...] Read more.
The Covid pandemic has had a terrible effect on the world and government responses have been described as “Catastrophic Moral Failure”. The approach of bioethics of developing “normative ethics” has provided frameworks on how to act but despite the fact that we knew what to do to prevent the pandemic, we did not do it. In this paper I argue that ethics is culture bound: it is the stories that “we” live by. I illustrate this with examples of cultures with differing values that were developed as a result of the particular circumstances of those cultures. I then argue that after World War 2 in response to the risks of further large wars and atrocities, work was done to further establish a “global culture” and a detailed normative ethical framework was developed by negotiation through the United Nations for that “culture”. Whilst this approach has been necessary, it has not been sufficient. I argue that we need to reframe the approach as one of achieving cultural change rather than complying with ethical norms. Some societies that were unable to adapt to changed circumstances failed to survive, others failed to thrive. A similar fate awaits the whole planet if we cannot change the stories we live by. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges: 10th Anniversary)
10 pages, 3206 KiB  
Concept Paper
Concept of a Sino-German Summer School on Multiscale Processes in Oceans and the Atmosphere
by Gerrit Lohmann, Xueen Chen, Xun Gong and Shuang Li
Challenges 2020, 11(2), 24; https://doi.org/10.3390/challe11020024 - 24 Sep 2020
Viewed by 3470
Abstract
A concept for an interdisciplinary summer school for “multiscale processes in oceans and the atmosphere” is presented. It aims to deepen students’ understanding of scientific issues as well as their experience in multicultural communication. The theme covers climate evolution, which is partially dominated [...] Read more.
A concept for an interdisciplinary summer school for “multiscale processes in oceans and the atmosphere” is presented. It aims to deepen students’ understanding of scientific issues as well as their experience in multicultural communication. The theme covers climate evolution, which is partially dominated by far-reaching anthropogenic changes and their possible consequences on the Earth’s system. An integrated approach helps to change rigid subject-specific mindsets among faculties and students and across cultures, so as to broaden their horizons in both research and life. Research has shown, however, that the development of intercultural competence in students does not happen automatically but needs to be fostered and supported. Therefore, a primary goal is also to provide young researchers from several countries (mainly China and Germany) with the opportunity to gain more indepth knowledge on research in Germany, to be exposed to scientific culture, and thus to prepare for foreign research visits either during the PhD phase or as postdoctoral fellows, supporting the internationalization of education and opportunities in marine sciences. Finally, the students have the chance to further develop their scientific profiles by attending scientific talks, lab exercises, and excursions and by combining rigorous scientific disciplines with the awareness of multidisciplinary issues related to the topic of global climate change. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges: 10th Anniversary)
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12 pages, 1297 KiB  
Concept Paper
Dozy-Chaos Mechanics for a Broad Audience
by Vladimir V. Egorov
Challenges 2020, 11(2), 16; https://doi.org/10.3390/challe11020016 - 31 Jul 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3348
Abstract
A new and universal theoretical approach to the dynamics of the transient state in elementary physico-chemical processes, called dozy-chaos mechanics (Egorov, V.V. Heliyon Physics2019, 5, e02579), is introduced to a wide general readership. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges: 10th Anniversary)
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24 pages, 1720 KiB  
Concept Paper
Action Research to Enhance Inter-Organisational Coordination of Climate Change Adaptation in the Pacific
by Daniel Gilfillan, Stacy-ann Robinson and Hannah Barrowman
Challenges 2020, 11(1), 8; https://doi.org/10.3390/challe11010008 - 27 May 2020
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 4886
Abstract
Pacific regional organisations focusing on climate change have overlapping adaptation-related mandates. With the growing importance of regional organisations in supplying financial and technical resources for climate adaptation in small island developing states, it is important to understand how well these supranational organisations work [...] Read more.
Pacific regional organisations focusing on climate change have overlapping adaptation-related mandates. With the growing importance of regional organisations in supplying financial and technical resources for climate adaptation in small island developing states, it is important to understand how well these supranational organisations work together on these issues. In this paper, theories of regionalism and neofunctionalism, complex systems, and superordinate group identity are used to design an action research project that tests the level of coordination between Pacific regional organisations. It presents and discusses a pre-analysis plan for the project, the goal of which is to determine the ways in which virtual team structure can be used to enhance inter-organisational coordination of adaptation interventions across small, dispersed, resource-constrained country jurisdictions. The proposed study represents an important intermediary step in developing more robust climate-related organisational policies at the regional scale in the Pacific and beyond. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Challenges: 10th Anniversary)
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