A recent tide observed at the beaches of Crete has reasonably aroused public interest or concern, for upcoming consequences. But was it just a local phenomenon? Which areas were most affected? How does it evolve over time?

Honey bees pollinate the majority of crops, but their survival is under threat and the parasitic mite Varroa destructor may be a major cause of honey bee decline. Beekeepers use selective chemical acaricides with low bee toxicity to control Varroa infestation, a powerful “pro-drug” approach relying on species-specific bioactivation, to attain this selective toxicity and protect bees.

Advent Technologies (https://www.advent.energy/), an innovative company in the sectors of fuel cells and hydrogen technology, announces its entry into the NASDAQ Stock Exchange in New York on February 5, 2021, following merger with AMCI Acquisition Corp.

The group of Prof. John Vontas at IMBB-FORTH, in collaboration with the Agricultural University of Athens, several major European Research Institutes and Industrial partners and the University of Kentucky (USA), won an important grant, within the framework of the EU Horizon 2020 Programme.

Research by the teams of Prof. Athanasios Nenes and Spyros Pandis of the Center for Studies on Air Quality and Climate Change (C-STACC; http://cstacc.iceht.forth.gr) of the Institute of Chemical Engineering Sciences at the Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas (ICE-HT/FORTH; http://www.iceht.forth.gr) led to the discovery of a chemical mechanism that rapidly produces air pollution from biomass burning, during the night.

Nektarios Tavernarakis, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Foundation for Research and Technology – Hellas (FORTH) and Professor at the Medical School of the University of Crete, was unanimously re-elected Chairman of the Board and Director of the Central Administration of FORTH, by a 7-member Evaluation Committee of distinguished scientists, headed by Dr. George Pavlakis (Head of Human Retrovirus Section, National Cancer Institute – NCI).

The Coastal and Marine Research Laboratory of FORTH, carried out field surveys at the coastal zone of the Municipality of Chersonissos on Friday 11 December 2020, to have an overview of the situation of the areas that were affected by the recent storm, in the framework of its collaboration with the Directorate for Environment and Hydro-economy of the Region of Crete.

Prof. Athanasios Nenes, Affiliated Scientist of FORTH/ICE-HT,Coordinating Member of the Center for the Study of Air Quality and Climate Change (C-STACC) and Professor at the School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland has been selected as a Highly Cited Researcher in the field of Geosciences (https://publons.com/researcher/4043389/athanasios-nenes/) by Web of Science (WoS). The methodology of this selection is based on the number of his publications and citations, those published and cited during 2009-2019, regarding the population of Researchers in the same field. It is also based on the number of highly cited papers that he has published (Source: Highly Cited Researchers Powered by Web of Science). It is a great honor for Prof. Nenes, as WoS is a widely recognized and reliable platform for the evaluation of scientific work for every Researcher worldwide.

Nektarios Tavernarakis, Chairman of the Board of Directors at the Foundation for Research and Technology Hellas (FORTH) and Professor at the Medical School of the University of Crete, was elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). This significant distinction comes as recognition of the scientific quality and the highly competitive research conducted at FORTH and the University of Crete. According to the Constitution of the prestigious AAAS, Fellowship is bestowed to scientists who have scientifically or socially distinguished themselves by efforts on behalf of the advancement of science, or its applications. Nominations for AAAS Fellows are evaluated for election by the Council of the Association. Nektarios Tavernarakis was honored for his distinguished contributions to the fields of ageing, neuroscience, mitochondrial biology, cell death and neurodegeneration.

The unprecedented rainfall of high amount and intensity that hit the island of Crete during the 9-10th of November, 2020 had as a result the occurrence of extensive floods and landslides in residential and rural areas of the island. Among the severely affected areas was the Regional Unit of Rethymno, with the effects of severe weather on both infrastructures (damages to constructions and road network) and in its primary sector (destruction of crops) being characterized as incalculable.