MRV4SOC aims at designing a comprehensive, robust, and cost-effective Tier 3 approach, accounting for changes in as many C pools as possible, to estimate GHG and full C budgets, coupling C and N cycles, quantify Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) accumulation, and assess the results of traditional management practices and C farming. The main challenges addressed in MRV4SOC are: i) monitoring changes in SOC accumulation due to climate change and socio-economic pressures; ii) accounting for C and N cycles in full C budgets; iii) development of scientifically-sound, standard, and transparent Tier 3 methodology at different scales, iv) implementation of high-quality in-situ and RS data for testing methods and scale-up purposes; iv) standardisation of Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification schemes to ensure transparency, robustness, and cost-effectiveness; and v) a lack of trust in Voluntary Carbon Markets. To overcome these challenges, MRV4SOC will develop 6 specific objectives, which will be measurable, verifiable, and monitored through KPIs pointing at specific targets. MRV4SOC proposes a comprehensive 3-year work plan that ranges from the assessment of C pools in 9 land use/ land cover classes located in 14 Demonstration Sites (DS); to the potential integration of the approacMRV4SOC aims at designing a comprehensive and robust Tier 3 approach accounting for changes in as many C pools as possible (above-ground biomass, below ground-biomass, litter, dead wood, soil organic carbon, and harvested wood products) fully aligned with national GHG reporting. MRV4SOC seeks to develop solutions applicable for different spatio- temporal scales and climate change scenarios and validated for a wide variety of ecosystems in arid, temperate, and continental climate zones in collaboration with local stakeholders. The proposed approach will help establish reliable and transparent C farming credits within a cost-effective monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) methodological framework.

Climate crisis and unsustainable development increasingly threaten Europe’s tangible cultural heritage (CH), yet environmentally hazardous chemicals persist in CH conservation practice. The Sustainable Development Goals of the EU’s Green Deal vision call for change in CH conservation, but cannot be implemented without effective and affordable green alternatives. Soiling and deposition of carbon-based contaminants (CBC) such as fine particulate pollution, smoke and vandalism all increasingly present formidable challenges to conservators, and are an emerging threat to CH because of the inherent vulnerability of CH surfaces created with unconventional materials and studio practices. Existing CH cleaning methods require toxic solvents, physical contact and water, which can damage many sensitive CH materials, and conservators, equipped with only conventional means, now encounter fragile and untreatable CH where soiling cannot be removed at all. MOXY aims to redefine the paradigm in cleaning methodology towards an eco-conscious approach by creating a transformative green, non-contact technology based on atomic oxygen (AO) to selectively remove CBCs from surfaces that are otherwise untreatable. AO cleaning methodology is a selective, non-mechanical and liquid-free cleaning action, without health or environmental risks, residues or waste. By leveraging a sophisticated yet simple technology, MOXY will enable practitioners to achieve unprecedented results that are green, safer and more effective. To achieve its goals, MOXY will bring together expertise from plasma physics, conservation science, sustainability science, and conservators to conduct a novel investigation of the physical and chemical aspects of AO generation and flux to develop a proof-of-concept AO system, test the viability of AO technology for diverse CH materials, and roadmap AO innovation, to propel AO technology to the bench practice in CH conservation and beyond, with its full potential yet to be realized.

SNIP-AFRICA aims to establish a clinical research network and architecture to implement adaptive platform trials in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), responding to the urgent need for improved treatment of childhood infection in an era of increasing antimicrobial resistance (AMR). SNIP-AFRICA focuses on the high-burden, high-impact group of inpatient neonates and infants with sepsis. This is a group especially affected by escalating rates of AMR in SSA healthcare facilities contributing to much slower than desirable improvements in neonatal mortality across SSA. The project will address all aspects of APTs in neonatal sepsis from defining potential treatments of interest to translation into clinical guidance, and will deliver interventional studies in the two domains of neonatal dose confirmation and drug regimen selection. The network and architecture could be readily extended to include older children in hospital with infections with epidemic potential. SNIP-AFRICA will achieve its aim by bringing together partners from the global North and SSA, including several with experience in designing and running adaptive platform trials and complex randomised controlled trials in SSA. The project therefore builds on existing expertise and capacity to enable an innovative response to the major threat to child health of AMR through a new architecture and extended network. The work plan includes Project Management, Coordination and Communication (WP1), Clinical and Microbiological Surveillance (WP2), Adaptive Platform Core Protocol and Governance (WP3), Pharmacokinetics for Adaptive Platform Trial (WP4), Complex Adaptive Drug Regimen Trial (WP5), Training and Capacity building for Adaptive Trials (WP6) and Stakeholder Engagement and Integration (WP7). SNIP-AFRICA aims to trigger a paradigm shift in interventional research in severe childhood infection and to equip a network of SSA institutions and researchers to conduct innovative, efficient, targeted research in this area.

Esophageal adenocarcinoma is the most rapidly increasing form of cancer in the Western world characterized by short survival times. Its precursor lesion is Barrett’s oesophagus, which is present long before oesophageal adenocarcinoma arises. This offers an opportunity for prevention. However, the cell of origin of Barrett’s oesophagus is unknown. This represents a huge knowledge gap and impairs the development of preventative and curative therapies. My research has shown homeobox transcription factor HOXA13 is expressed in both Barrett’s oesophagus and in a fraction of oesophageal submucosal gland cells, but not in differentiated epithelial cells of the oesophagus or stomach. The submucosal glands have been proven to have positional and mutational kinship with Barrett's oesophagus. Therefore, they likely contain its cell of origin. Currently, the only models with oesophageal submucosal gland cells are large laboratory animals. These don't contain human cells, are impractical, costly and unethical in their use. Therefore, I propose to establish and validate the first human, 2D, organoid based, model of these glands. I propose to test if submucosal glands contain the (HOXA13+) tissue specific stem cell of Barrett's oesophagus by employing single cell culture and single cell visualisation techniques. If proven, the resulting identification of the cell of origin of Barrett’s oesophagus would open a clear path to understanding mucosal plasticity and early stage oesophageal carcinogenesis. I propose to elucidate the characteristics of this cell of origin and identify which signaling pathways mediate the emergence of Barrett’s oesophagus. The proposed host group of Prof. Krishnadath is well-positioned for executing this project due to their access to relevant tissues and experience with handling submucosal glands, organoid technology and Barrett’s oesophagus experimental models. The results and experience gained will be instrumental for my further scientific career.