Hello and welcome to Issue 21 of The Innovation Platform, exploring the latest developments in climate science, energy, health, and much more.
Whilst the impacts of climate change and global warming are widely publicised, the urgency of the issue has been further amplified in 2025 already. January’s wildfires in Los Angeles had a devastating impact, causing a number of deaths and destroying thousands of buildings. A study by World Weather Attribution found that climate change increased the likelihood of the disaster by more than 30%. January also saw The European Copernicus Climate Change Service report that 2024 was the world’s hottest year on record, and the first calendar year to pass the threshold of 1.5°C of global warming. This issue features climate change as a strong theme throughout and covers the topic across a variety of settings, from space to graphene science.
In today’s world, our understanding of the carbon cycle and factors impacting climate change is more important than ever. As a major carbon sink, forests play a key role in the carbon cycle, yet current measurements of forest biomass are poor in many parts of the world. With the aim of greatly advancing our knowledge of forest biomass, the European Space Agency is set to launch its Biomass mission to collect important data to help reduce the major uncertainties in calculations of carbon stocks and fluxes on land. I spoke to Biomass Project Manager Michael Fehringer to find out more about the mission.
Elsewhere in our Science focus, CERN’s Edda Gschwendtner, project leader of the AWAKE experiment, discusses the potential for plasma wakefield acceleration as an alternative method of particle acceleration. On the health side of our Science section, we delve deeper into the issue of antimicrobial resistance, as well as infection prevention and control. I spoke with the UKRI’s Dr Louisa Jenkin, Leader of the UKRI AMR Flagship Programme, to learn about the UKRI’s key activities contributing to UK and global efforts to reduce antimicrobial resistance. I also had a very interesting conversation with Dr Ron Daniels, Founder and Chief Medical Officer of the UK Sepsis Trust, about the true realities of sepsis in the UK today and what we can do to help reduce the number of cases and preventable deaths.
This edition’s Energy section is bursting with articles covering a variety of topics predominantly focused on sustainability, from fusion energy to the use of graphene in electronics and energy storage solutions. With nuclear power holding strong promise for a cleaner and sustainable future, more and more countries are considering building nuclear power facilities to secure their energy supply and reduce carbon emissions. With this, the effective radioactive waste management from these facilities is paramount. In our focus on nuclear energy, the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency’s Rebecca Tadesse and Gabriele Grassi discuss the importance of international collaboration for efficient radioactive waste management and disposal.
Our Environment section has an interesting addition in this issue, with a new extensive focus on animal health. Within this, AnimalhealthEurope’s Secretary General, Roxane Feller, explains how the non-profit organisation works to not only secure a healthier future for animals but for everyone. The section also features insightful comment from the likes of John Crane on carbon capture, and the Alliance to End Plastic Waste outlines findings from its recent progress report looking at strategies to combat plastic pollution.
This is just a small snapshot of the things to come in this issue. You can also expect a look at Horizon Europe research collaborations, with a particular focus on research excellence in Canada, as well as a section dedicated to electric vehicles and critical raw materials.
I hope you enjoy the read!
Georgie Purcell
Editor
The Innovation Platform
Maddie Hall
Editor
The Innovation Platform
