Fundación General CSIC (FGCSIC) is launching an audiovisual series entitled “ComFuturo, a public-private commitment to Science and the Future”, which brings us closer to the research being carried out as part of the second edition of the ComFuturo programme through its protagonists, the young scientists who are leading it.
The production is made up of eleven informative videos in which the researchers explain briefly and simply the objective, relevance and applications for society of each of their research projects, as well as the life and professional experience that ComFuturo has meant for them.
FGCSIC thus opens a window onto the different research projects carried out in this programme, which cover a wide range of topics. Several projects are aimed at reducing environmental impact through different approaches such as the detection of toxic substances in the environment and in water; the biodegradation of marine plastic; and, in the field of agriculture, obtaining fruit trees with greater resistance to drought and the development of organic biofertilisers from the recovery of urban by-products. The latter represents a clear example of circular economy, as does the one that seeks the economic and safe recovery of industrial CO2 emissions to obtain high added value products and the one that transforms iron and steel slag into intelligent construction materials for healthy cities. In this field of materials, another project proposes new bio-inspired technologies for the sustainable manufacture of functional components.
The series of eleven videos is completed with research into the conservation of cultural heritage through the study of a disease that affects historic pieces of glass; another related to the computing systems of the future to improve the performance of processors based on quantum computing; and, in the area of nanotechnology applied to health, the one that develops sensors for the rapid detection and identification of viruses and bacteria.
High impact and innovation
The series “ComFuturo, a public-private commitment to Science and the Future” highlights the innovative nature and high applicability of these projects, but also their significant social impact, endorsed by their alignment with a good part of those of the Sustainable Development Goals defined by the United Nations to achieve the 2030 Agenda, such as among others: Climate action (goal 13); Responsible production and consumption (goal 12); Sustainable cities and communities (goal 11); Industry, innovation and infrastructure (goal 9); Health and well-being (goal 3) and Zero hunger (goal 2).
ComFuturo is a public-private collaboration initiative, created by Fundación General CSIC, which aims to attract and keep the best young research talent in the Spanish science and technology system and enable them to develop projects of scope in centres of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC). The programme, in its second edition, is supported by six entities committed to research and innovation: Banco Santander, Acerinox, Fundación Cepsa, Fundación Domingo Martínez, Naturgy and Suez.
