Announcements
9 January 2026
MDPI’s Newly Launched Journals in December 2025
We have expanded our open access portfolio with eight new journals publishing their inaugural issues in December 2025, as well as three journal transfers. These additions span physical sciences, social sciences, arts and humanities, environmental and Earth sciences, medicine and pharmacology, and public health and healthcare. We extend our sincere thanks to the Editors-in-Chief, Associate Editors, and Editorial Board Members who are shaping these journals’ direction. All journals uphold strong editorial standards through a thorough peer review process, ensuring impactful open access scholarship.
Please feel free to browse and discover more about the new journals below.
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New Journals |
Founding Editor-in-Chief(s) |
Journal Topics (Selected) |
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Dr. Elisa Felicitas Arias, Université PSL, France |
atomic clocks; time and frequency metrology; GNSS systems; relativity and relativistic timekeeping; fundamental physics in space | |
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Prof. Dr. José F.F. Mendes, University of Aveiro, Portugal |
complex systems; network science; nonlinear dynamics and chaotic behaviour; information theory and complexity; computational complexity | |
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Prof. Dr. Roberto Morandotti, Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique—Énergie, Matériaux et Télécommunications (INRS), Canada |
light generation; light sources and applications; light control and measurement; human responses to light; lighting design | |
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Prof. Dr. Savvas A. Chatzichristofis, Neapolis University Pafos, Cyprus |
generative AI and large language models in education; multimodal and embodied AI; personalization and adaptive systems; assessment, feedback, and academic integrity; learning analytics | |
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Prof. Dr. Jon Andoni Duñabeitia, Universidad Nebrija, Spain |
cognitive psychology; cognitive neuroscience; psycholinguistics; applied linguistics; experimental psychology | |
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Prof. Dr. Caiwu Fu, Wuhan University, China; Prof. Dr. Longxi Zhang, Peking University, China |
cultural practices; cultural theory; cultural policy; cultural heritage; transregional and transnational cultural flows| |
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Dr. Ghassem R. Asrar, iCREST Environmental Education Foundation, USA |
biosphere interactions, processes, and sustainability; ecosystem science and dynamics; biodiversity conservation; global change and environmental adaptation; biogeochemical cycles | |
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Dr. Giuseppe Mulè, University of Palermo, Italy |
cardiorenal syndromes; chronic heart failure and chronic kidney disease; cardiorenalmetabolic syndrome; hypertension and diabetes in relation to the abovementioned syndromes; diagnostic techniques | |
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Transferred Journals |
Editor-in-Chief |
Journal Topics (Selected) |
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Prof. Dr. Peter Matt, Lucerne Cantonal Hospital (LUKS), Switzerland |
cardiology; cardiovascular and aortic surgery; cardiovascular anatomy, physiology and pathophysiology; congenital heart disease and pediatric cardiology; cardiovascular regenerative and reparative medicine | |
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Prof. Dr. Oana Săndulescu, Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Romania; National Institute for Infectious Diseases “Prof. Dr. Matei Bals”, Romania |
infectious diseases across clinical and public health domains; epidemiology of communicable diseases; clinical microbiology and applied virology; vaccinology and immunization; host–pathogen interactions and immunity | |
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Dr. Roxana Elena Bohiltea, “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Romania |
public health; disease prevention; screening and early detection; lifestyle interventions and health education; digital and innovative prevention | |
We would like to thank everyone who has supported the development of open access publishing. If you would like to create more new journals, you are welcome to send an application here, or contact the New Journal Committee (newjournal-committee@mdpi.com).
31 December 2025
MDPI INSIGHTS: The CEO's Letter #30 - Scaling with Integrity, Highly Cited Researchers, KEMÖ Consortium, Michele Parrinello, and Best PhD Thesis Awards
Welcome to the MDPI Insights: The CEO's Letter.
In these monthly letters, I will showcase two key aspects of our work at MDPI: our commitment to empowering researchers and our determination to facilitating open scientific exchange.
Opening Thoughts
With colleagues at MDPI headquarters in Basel, representing the people behind our global growth and shared commitment to integrity.
Scaling with Integrity: A Year of Growth, Responsibility, and Trust
When I look back on 2025, one phrase seems to sum up the year: “Scaling with integrity.” That was our watchword for 2025, and it will remain so as we move forward in to 2026.
Our journal portfolio continued to grow in 2025, reflecting the trust of a widening proportion of the scholarly community.
Today, MDPI has 355 journals indexed in Scopus and 330 in Web of Science – a testimonial to the scale at which our journals meet established external quality criteria. During the year, 45 of our journals were newly accepted into Scopus and 29 into Web of Science (this excludes transferred journals to our portfolio that were already indexed), following rigorous, independent evaluation by the world’s leading indexing bodies
Meeting external quality benchmarks
These results underline the fact that scaling responsibly is not only about expanding our catalogue, but also about meeting external quality benchmarks consistently, transparently, and at scale. Our indexing performance remains one of the strongest independent validations of MDPI’s commitment to rigor, trust, and long-term sustainability.
Over the course of 2025, we made targeted investments to ensure that the integrity of our editorial process scaled to keep pace with our growth. We strengthened our editorial governance by doubling down on our dedicated Publication Ethics department, appointing a Head of Ethics, and expanding our research integrity team by the addition of new specialists plus the creation of embedded editorial ethics roles across key journals. We also introduced new internal ethics guidelines, pre-review integrity checks, and monitoring dashboards to help teams identify potential issues and apply consistent standards across our portfolio.
Besides investing in systems and tools, we of course also invested heavily in our people and culture, delivering organisation-wide training on topics such as image integrity, AI use in publishing, and ethical oversight, while actively engaging with the wider publishing community through COPE and STM forums.
All these efforts reflect a simple principle: growth only matters if it is matched by rigor, responsibility, and trust.
Technology and AI: Supporting the editorial decision-making process
At MDPI, AI is designed to assist, not replace, editorial decision-making. It is one element in a broader system that combines people, technology, and processes to support scale responsibly.
In 2025, we continued to invest heavily in technology that supports quality rather than shortcuts. Our AI team doubled in size, ensuring that increased automation goes hand-in-hand with expertise and oversight. Proprietary AI tools such as Scholar Finder have significantly improved the precision of reviewer matching, while Ethicality has been widely adopted across editorial workflows to identify contextual signals, such as scope alignment and citation behaviour, so that human judgment can be applied where it matters most.
Partnerships: Institutional Open Access Program (IOAP) agreements and Societies
Our recent growth is also reflected in the strength of our partnerships. In 2025, we entered into more than 150 new IOAP agreements, bringing our total to 975 active agreements worldwide. This activity included the signing of our first-ever consortium agreements in North America, renewals of all major national consortia in the UK, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Austria, and Croatia, and the conclusion of several flat-fee agreements. At the same time, we concluded a total of 30 agreements, encompassing 24 new Society affiliations, four strategic publishing partnerships, and two journal acquisitions.
In 2025, we opened MDPI USA in Philadelphia – our latest global office, which complements our Toronto office in representing North America. MDPI USA is responsible for accelerating Open Access in the US through ongoing support of our scholars and for expanding our institutional and society partnerships.
On the other side of the globe, meanwhile, we signed an IOAP agreement in India, allowing researchers discounted Article Processing Charges (APCs), streamlined APC management for universities, and visibility into submissions, supporting India’s push for wider Open Access by offering flexible models and helping institutions meet national mandates such as Plan S.
Sustainability, sponsorships and awards
We continued to expand our sustainability efforts during 2025, hosting the 11th World Sustainability Forum, awarding CHF 125,000 in sustainability-related funding, and launching the Z-Forum on Sustainability and Innovation conference, which will officially take place in January 2026.
We also saw a record year for conference sponsorships and awards (while establishing new awards such as the Michele Parrinello Award), recognising scholars across disciplines and reinforcing our commitment to supporting the global research community at every stage of the academic journey.
Deepening our relationships
In 2025, I had the opportunity to travel more widely than ever before on MDPI business, meeting many of our stakeholders face to face and relishing the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of their science communication needs. It was also excellent to visit a large number of MDPI offices and witness the commitment and service orientation of so many of our colleagues around the world. I shall resume my itinerary in the new year, and I look forward to many more such interactions.
Looking ahead to 2026, we will be celebrating a very significant milestone: 30 years of MDPI. From our foundation as a single Open Access journal in 1996 to the global publishing organisation we are today, our mission has remained consistent: advancing Open Access through rigorous and trustworthy scientific communication.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our stakeholders – authors, Editors-in-Chief, Editorial Board members, and reviewers – who have placed their trust in us during 2025. On behalf of the entire MDPI team, I look forward to deepening our relationships yet further in 2026 and celebrating 30 Years of Open Science at MDPI, something we’ve built together.
Basel, Switzerland, where MDPI was founded in 1996.
Impactful Research
621 MDPI Editors Named Highly Cited Researchers in 2025
I am pleased to share an important milestone for our editorial community and for MDPI. In late November, Clarivate announced the 2025 Highly Cited Researchers, and 621 MDPI Editorial Board Members were included among the most influential scientific contributors over the past decade!
The 621 editors come from 33 countries, representing 21 scientific disciplines, and account for nearly one in every ten Highly Cited Researchers globally. This recognition speaks to the depth of expertise across our Editorial Boards and the strength of the scientific communities that choose to collaborate with MDPI. It is important to note that while citation metrics are not in themselves a proxy for quality, they do offer one lens on sustained scientific influence.
“Our strength comes from the scientific communities who choose to work with us”
Why this is important
Having more than 600 editors recognized on this list highlights:
- The high level of expertise guiding peer review across our journals
- The global and disciplinary diversity within our Editorial Boards
- Our commitment to maintaining strong, knowledgeable, and engaged editorial oversight
Impactful science is of course shaped by broad, diverse research communities, and no single metric captures the full picture of research quality. However, this recognition does serve as meaningful, independent affirmation of the calibre of many editors who contribute to MDPI’s work.
A closer look at the recognition
Clarivate’s methodology highlights researchers whose publications rank in the top one per cent by citation count, reflecting consistent influence over the past decade. The process includes:
- Evaluation of c. 200,000 highly cited papers
- Removal of retracted publications
- Filtering of papers with unusually large authorship groups to focus on clear contributions
That so many of our editors meet these thresholds reflects the impact of the communities behind our journals.
What this means going forward
This recognition underlines the fact that our strength comes from the scientific communities who choose to work with us.
For authors, partners, and readers, it confirms that:
- MDPI journals benefit from editorial guidance grounded in active, high-impact research
- Our Editorial boards include leaders who are helping shape the future direction of their fields
- MDPI continues to attract experts who value openness, efficiency, and scientific integrity
For our internal teams, it is a reminder that the work we do every day (supporting editors, refining workflows, and improving systems) directly contributes to the trust placed in MDPI by researchers worldwide.
Thank you to all our editorial teams, publishing staff, and journal relationship specialists, and to everyone who collaborates with our Editorial Boards. Achievements like this are only possible because of your ongoing hard work, dedication, and collaboration.
From our first annual MDPI UK Summit in Manchester, bringing together over 30 Chief Editors and Editorial Board Members to discuss MDPI’s mission, achievements, and collaborations in the UK.
Inside MDPI
MDPI Launches the Michele Parrinello Award for Computational Physical Science
In case you missed it, in November, we announced the launch of the Michele Parrinello Award. This new biennial international award will recognize pioneering contributions in computational physical science. The award honours Michele Parrinello, one of the most influential scientists of the past half-century in atomistic simulations and computational materials research.
This award reflects MDPI’s long-standing commitment to recognizing scientific excellence, supporting foundational research, and inspiring the next generation of scholars across disciplines.
“Be confident that what you do is meaningful”
Honouring a transformative scientific legacy
Professor Parrinello’s work has fundamentally reshaped how scientists model matter at the atomic scale. Together with Roberto Car, he introduced ab initio molecular dynamics, widely known as the Car–Parrinello method, opening new pathways in electronic structure calculations and molecular simulations. His subsequent contributions, including the Parrinello–Rahman method and metadynamics, have become core tools across physics, chemistry, materials science, and increasingly biology.
“Do not be afraid of new things. I see it many times when we discuss a new thing that young people are scared to go against the mainstream a little bit, thinking, ‘What is going to happen to me?’ and so on. Be confident that what you do is meaningful, and do not be afraid, do not listen too much to what other people have to say.”
– Professor Michele Parrinello
A global, community-led award
The award committee is chaired by Xin-Gao Gong, Professor of Physics at Fudan University and academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
The Institute for Computational Physical Sciences at Fudan University will serve as the supporting institute, reinforcing the award’s international and cross-cultural foundation.
Nominations for the first edition of the Michele Parrinello Award opened on 1 November 2025, with submissions accepted until March 2026. The award will recognize scientists whose work has advanced computational physical science across physics, chemistry, and materials research – fields increasingly central to energy, sustainability, advanced manufacturing, and technological innovation.
Why this matters for MDPI
The Michele Parrinello Award is part of the MDPI Sustainability Foundation, which supports science as a driver of long-term societal progress.
Alongside other foundation-level honours, including the World Sustainability Award, the Emerging Sustainability Leader Award, and the Tu Youyou Award, this new prize builds on our role in supporting excellence across career stages and disciplines.
MDPI journals and programs continue to recognize researchers through Best Paper Awards, Young Investigator Awards, Travel Awards, Best PhD Thesis Awards, and Outstanding Reviewer Awards. Together, these initiatives reflect a simple belief: strong scientific communities are built through recognition, trust, and sustained support.
As MDPI approaches its 30th anniversary, the launch of the Michele Parrinello Award highlights our commitment not only to publishing research but also to helping shape the future of science by celebrating those who expand its boundaries.
Coming Together for Science
KEMÖ Consortium (Austria) Extends Open Access Agreement with MDPI until 2027
I’m pleased to share that MDPI has renewed its Institutional Open Access Program (IOAP) agreement with the Austrian library consortium KEMÖ, extending our partnership through 2027.
The renewed agreement now includes 23 Austrian institutions, with the Medical University of Vienna and the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU) joining the partnership. Participating institutions benefit from APC discounts across MDPI’s more than 495 journals, with centralized funding options further reducing the administrative burden for researchers and libraries.
“This renewal reflects shared commitment to advancing Open Access publishing in Europe”
Austria continues to be an important and engaged research community for MDPI, with 525+ Austrian Editorial Board Members, eight Editors-in-Chief, and 15 Section Editors-in-Chief contributing to our journals.
This renewal reflects long-term trust and shared commitment to advancing Open Access publishing in Europe, and improves MDPI’s collaboration with national OA infrastructures such as the Open Access Monitor Austria. Such long-term agreements show how MDPI’s growth is increasingly built on institutional trust, collaboration, and shared commitment to Open Access.
A big thank-you to the IOAP team and everyone involved in supporting this partnership.
Closing Thoughts
Celebrating the Next Generation of Scholars: MDPI’s 2024 Best PhD Thesis Awards
One of the privileges of working in scholarly publishing is supporting the beginning of new scientific journeys. We recently announced the recipients of MDPI’s 2024 Best PhD Thesis Awards, recognizing some of the most promising emerging researchers across disciplines.
These awards do more than celebrate academic excellence. They reflect something deeper about our mission: supporting the next generation of authors and the future of Open Science.
Recognition of Excellence
This year, we made awards to 55 early-career researchers across seven fields:
- Biology and Life Sciences
- Chemistry and Materials Science
- Computer Science and Mathematics
- Engineering
- Environmental and Earth Sciences
- Medicine and Pharmacology
- Interdisciplinary ‘Other’ fields
For those of you who have completed a PhD, you’ll know first-hand that behind each number is a story of perseverance, curiosity, and sustained effort. These researchers represent institutions around the world, with thesis topics spanning:
- Brain–machine interfaces and neural engineering
- Sustainable materials and next-generation batteries
- Cancer genomics, tumour microenvironments, and immunotherapy
- AI-driven image analysis, robotics, and computational models
- Climate change monitoring and environmental risk assessment
- Regenerative medicine, biomaterials, and drug development
These dissertations are early signs of the scientific directions that will shape the coming decade.
“Our mission is about building a global community of authors”
Why this is important
Every year, millions of scholars begin their research careers with limited visibility and few platforms for sharing their work. By recognizing outstanding PhD theses, we elevate authors early in their academic journeys, build MDPI’s connection to the global research community, reinforce our commitment to quality and rigor, and highlight the depth and breadth of scholarship published across our portfolio (from biology to materials science to mathematics).
A foretaste of the future
These 55 awardees represent the next generation of researchers whose work will influence science, policy, and society in the years ahead. What we support today helps shape the scientific ecosystem of tomorrow. Our mission goes beyond publishing papers. It is about building a global community of authors who will define the next era of scientific discovery.
To explore more about MDPI Awards, including current and upcoming Best PhD Thesis Awards, please click here.
Thank you to the editors, reviewers, and teams across MDPI who make these awards possible each year.
Everything we achieved this year was made possible by the collective effort of our global teams and the trust placed in us by the scholarly community. Thank you again, and here’s to the successful continuation of our collaboration in 2026!
Chief Executive Officer
MDPI AG
29 December 2025
Horticulturae | Title Story Papers from the First Half of 2025
We are delighted to present a list of title story papers selected for display at the top of the Horticulturae (ISSN: 2311-7524) homepage for the first half of 2025. These articles cover a wide range of topics, including edible coatings, reproductive biology, plant nutrition diagnosis models, micropropagation, stress mitigation, the grape variety “Malvasia”, the effects of nutrient deficiency, fertilization strategies, and non-destructive techniques. We hope you will find something of interest among these exceptional publications.
1. “Edible Coatings Enhance Storability and Preserve Quality of Kiwiberry (Actinidia arguta L.) cv. Ken’s Red”
by Adriana C. Guerreiro, Custódia Gago, Dário Passos, Jaime Martins, Sandra Cruz, Fernão Veloso, Rui Guerra and Maria D. Antunes
Horticulturae 2025, 11(1), 105; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11010105
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/1/105
2. “Why Olive Produces Many More Flowers than Fruit—A Critical Analysis”
by Julián Cuevas
Horticulturae 2025, 11(1), 26; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11010026
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/1/26
3. “Compositional and Machine Learning Tools to Model Plant Nutrition: Overview and Perspectives”
by Léon Etienne Parent
Horticulturae 2025, 11(2), 161; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11020161
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/2/161
4. “Efficient Micropropagation by Ex Vitro Rooting of Myrtus communis L.”
by Raimondo Pardi, Giuseppe Natale Basile, Giuseppe De Mastro, Maria Letizia Gargano, Anna Tagarelli and Claudia Ruta
Horticulturae 2025, 11(2), 207; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11020207
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/2/207
5. “Ascorbic Acid Mitigates Aluminum Stress Through Improved Antioxidant Mechanism in Highbush Blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.)”
by Paz Cárcamo-Fincheira, Adriano Nunes-Nesi, Braulio Soto-Cerda, Ricardo Tighe-Neira, Jaime Tranamil-Manquein, Rodrigo Mora-Sanhueza, Claudio Inostroza-Blancheteau and Marjorie Reyes-Díaz
Horticulturae 2025, 11(3), 330; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11030330
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/3/330
6. “Origin and Possible Members of the ‘Malvasia’ Family: The New Fuencaliente de La Palma Hypothesis on the True ‘Malvasia’”
by Francesca Fort, Luis Ricardo Suárez-Abreu, Qiying Lin-Yang, Juancho Asenjo, Leonor Deis, Joan Miquel Canals and Fernando Zamora
Horticulturae 2025, 11(6), 561; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11060561
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/6/561
7. “Over Half a Century of Research on Blackberry Micropropagation: A Comprehensive Review”
by Luca Regni and Arianna Cesarini
Horticulturae 2025, 11(5), 556; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11050556
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/5/556
8. “Nitrogen Forms and Nitrogen Deficiency Regulate Theanine Accumulation Patterns in Tea Plants (Camellia sinensis) During Winter Dormancy”
by Yi Chen, Jingwen Li, Ni Yang, Zhihang Hu, Wei Luo, Chen Chen, Yuhua Wang, Xuan Chen, Xinghui Li and Jing Zhuang
Horticulturae 2025, 11(4), 444; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11040444
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/4/444
9. “Comparative Effects of Nitrogen Fertigation and Granular Fertilizer Application on Pepper Yield and Soil GHGs Emissions”
by Antonio Manco, Matteo Giaccone, Luca Vitale, Giuseppe Maglione, Maria Riccardi, Bruno Di Matteo, Andrea Esposito, Vincenzo Magliulo and Anna Tedeschi
Horticulturae 2025, 11(6), 708; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11060708
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/6/708
10. “Assessment of Melon Fruit Nutritional Composition Using VIS/NIR/SWIR Spectroscopy Coupled with Chemometrics”
by Dimitrios S. Kasampalis, Pavlos Tsouvaltzis and Anastasios S. Siomos
Horticulturae 2025, 11(6), 658; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae11060658
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2311-7524/11/6/658
26 December 2025
Horticulturae | Invitation to Read the 2025 Highly Viewed Papers in the “Protected Culture” Section
26 December 2025
Horticulturae | Invitation to Read the 2024 Highly Cited Papers in the “Protected Culture” Section
24 December 2025
Horticulturae | Scope Update
17 December 2025
Meet Us at the Plant & Animal Genome Conference 33 (PAG 33), 9–14 January 2026, San Diego, CA, USA
12 December 2025
Horticulturae Webinar | New Strategies for Revalorisation and Postharvest Maintenance of Fruit and Vegetables, 16 December 2025
Message from the webinar chair Dr. Noelia Castillejo:
We would like to invite you to attend a special webinar celebrating the 10th anniversary of Horticulturae (ISSN: 2311-7524). I am Noelia Castillejo from the Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena (Spain), and it is my pleasure to serve as the Chair for this webinar, “New Strategies for Revalorisation and Postharvest Maintenance of Fruit and Vegetables”.
Over the past decade, Horticulturae has provided a vibrant forum for advancing horticultural science and accelerating the translation of research into practice. This program will reflect that spirit—bringing together complementary perspectives on how we can extract more value from fruit and vegetable resources while preserving quality throughout the postharvest chain.
We will be honored to host three distinguished talks:
- “Innovative Uses and Extractions of Fruit and Vegetable By-Products: A New Frontier in Plant-Based Foods”—with Dr. Lorena Martínez-Zamora, we will explore cutting-edge extraction and valorization approaches that transform side streams into high-value ingredients;
- “Revalorisation of Agro-Industrial By-Products to Develop New Valuable and Functional Foods Through Fermentation Processes”—with Dr. José Ángel Salas-Millán, we will highlight bioprocessing strategies—especially fermentation—to unlock functionality, safety, and sensory appeal in novel foods;
- “Non-Destructive Analysis for Food Products with Applications to Fruit and Vegetables”—with Dr. Danial Fatchurrahman, we will examine rapid, non-invasive tools that enable real-time quality assessment and better decision-making from harvest to consumer.
Date: 16 December 2025
Time: 4:00 p.m. CET | 10:00 a.m. EST | 11:00 p.m. CST Asia
Webinar ID: 882 9295 5534
Register now for free.
Program
| Speaker/Presentation | Time in CET | Time in EST |
| Dr. Noelia Castillejo Chair Introduction |
4:00–4:10 p.m. | 10:00–10:10 a.m. |
| Dr. Lorena Martínez-Zamora Innovative Uses and Extractions of Fruit and Vegetable By-Products: A New Frontier in Plant-Based Foods |
4:10–4:30 p.m. | 10:20–10:30 a.m. |
| Dr. José Ángel Salas-Millán Revalorisation of Agro-Industrial By-Products to Develop New Valuable and Functional Foods Through Fermentation Processes |
4:30–4:50 p.m. | 10:30–10:50 a.m. |
| Dr. Danial Fatchurrahman Non-Destructive Analysis for Food Products With the Application on Fruit and Vegetables |
4:50–5:10 p.m. | 10:50–11:10 a.m. |
| Q&A Session | 5:10–5:25 p.m. | 10:10–10:25 a.m. |
| Dr. Noelia Castillejo Closing of Webinar |
5:25–5:30 p.m. | 10:25–10:30 a.m. |
After registering you will receive a confirmation email with information on how to join the webinar. Registrations with academic institutional email addresses will be prioritized.
Unable to attend? Feel free to register anyway; the session will be recorded, and we will let you know when the recording is available for viewing.
Webinar Chair and Speakers:
- Dr. Noelia Castillejo, Postharvest and Refrigeration Group, Department of Agronomical Engineering and Institute of Plant Biotechnology, Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena, Cartagena, Spain;
- Dr. Lorena Martínez-Zamora, Departamento de Biología Aplicada, Universidad Miguel Hernández, Avda. De la Universidad, s/n (Edificio Vinalopó), Elche, Alicante, Spain;
- Dr. José Ángel Salas Millán, APC Microbiome, University College Cork, Ireland;
- Dr. Danial Fatchurrahman, Postharvest Technology, Department of Agriculture, Food, Natural Science, Engineering, University of Foggia, Foggia, Italy.
Relevant Special Issue:
“Postharvest Biology and Technology of Horticultural Crops”
Guest Editors: Dr. Noelia Castillejo and Dr. Danial Fatchurrahman
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 29 April 2026
For more information about this webinar, please visit the following website: https://sciforum.net/event/Horticulturae-4?subscribe.
If you have any questions about this event, please contact horticulturae@mdpi.com.
Horticulture Webinar Secretariat
11 December 2025
Article Layout and Template Revised for Future Volumes
5 December 2025
World Soil Day—“Healthy Soils for Healthy Cities”, 5 December 2025
World Soil Day, celebrated annually on 5 December, was established by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations to highlight the vital importance of healthy soils for human well-being, food security, and ecosystem balance. This global observance brings together scientists, policymakers, and communities to recognize soil as a living resource that sustains biodiversity, regulates water, and supports agricultural productivity. It serves as a reminder that protecting soil health is fundamental to addressing global challenges such as climate change, deforestation, and land degradation.
The 2025 theme, “Healthy Soils for Healthy Cities” highlights the crucial role of soil in supporting sustainable food systems, urban resilience, and thriving ecosystems. It underscores the need for collective action to protect and restore soil resources through sustainable management practices, pollution prevention, and the rehabilitation of degraded land. MDPI is committed to supporting this global effort by featuring research that advances soil science and sustainability—from soil fertility and hydrology to biodiversity, carbon sequestration, and environmental protection. Through continued collaboration and scientific innovation, we can safeguard the soils that sustain us, laying the foundation for healthier cities, resilient ecosystems, and a more sustainable future for all
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Environment & Earth Sciences:
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Biology & Life Sciences:
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Engineering:
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Invited Speakers:
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| Dr. Elisa Pellegrino, Institute of Crop Science, Italy |
Dr. Cátia Venâncio, University of Aveiro, Portugal |
Dr. Ali El-Naggar, Western EcoSystems Technology, Canada |
Free to register for this webinar here!
“Using Date Palm Residues to Improve Soil Properties: The Case of Compost and Biochar”
by Victor Kavvadias, Elie Le Guyader, Mohamed El Mazlouzi, Maxime Gommeaux, Belkacem Boumaraf, Mohamed Moussa, Hafouda Lamine, Mahtali Sbih, Ines Rahma Zoghlami, Kamel Guimeur et al.
Soil Syst. 2024, 8(3), 69; https://doi.org/10.3390/soilsystems8030069
“Eco-Sustainability of Soils in Baby-Leaf Crop Systems under Tunnel through the Application of C-Rich Inputs: Towards Combating Soil Degradation”
by Enrica Picariello, Flavio Fornasier, Maurizio Bilotto, Emiliana Mignoli, Salvatore Baiano and Luigi Morra
Horticulturae 2024, 10(5), 476; https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae10050476
“Residual Effect of Compost and Biochar Amendment on Soil Chemical, Biological, and Physical Properties and Durum Wheat Response”
by Rita Leogrande, Carolina Vitti, Mirko Castellini, Pasquale Garofalo, Ignazio Samarelli, Giovanni Lacolla, Francesco Fabiano Montesano, Matteo Spagnuolo, Marcello Mastrangelo and Anna Maria Stellacci
Agronomy 2024, 14(4), 749; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14040749
“Optimizing Biochar Application Rates to Improve Soil Properties and Crop Growth in Saline–Alkali Soil”
by Xin Chen, Li Liu, Qinyan Yang, Huanan Xu, Guoqing Shen and Qincheng Chen
Sustainability 2024, 16(6), 2523; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16062523
“The Role of Soils in Sustainability, Climate Change, and Ecosystem Services: Challenges and Opportunities”
by José Telo da Gama
Ecologies 2023, 4(3), 552-567; https://doi.org/10.3390/ecologies4030036
“The Hydroponic Rockwool Root Microbiome: Under Control or Underutilised?”
by Phil Thomas, Oliver G. G. Knox, Jeff R. Powell, Brian Sindel and Gal Winter
Microorganisms 2023, 11(4), 835; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms11040835
Special Issues:
| “Soil Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services: Foundations for Sustainable Agriculture” Guest Editors: Dr. Mohamed Idbella, Dr. Rihab Djebaili and Prof. Dr. Giuliano Bonanomi Submission deadline: 26 March 2026 |
“Application of Organic Amendments in Agricultural Production—3rd Edition” Guest Editor: Dr. Elena Baldi Submission deadline: 31 March 2026 |
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| “Soil Fertility Management, Mitigating GHG Emissions and Sustainable Agriculture: 2nd Edition” Guest Editor: Dr. Yam Kanta Gaihre Submission deadline: 30 April 2026 |
“Influence of Environmental Changes on Forest Soil Quality and Health: 2nd Edition” Guest Editor: Dr. Yuanying Peng, Prof. Dr. Xiaoyong Chen and Prof. Dr. Wende Yan Submission deadline: 31 May 2026 |
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“Soil–Plant Indicators for Assessing Nutrient Cycling and Ecosystem Functionality in Urban Forestry”
by Cristina Macci, Francesca Vannucchi, Andrea Scartazza, Grazia Masciandaro, Serena Doni and Eleonora Peruzzi
Urban Sci. 2025, 9(3), 82; https://doi.org/10.3390/urbansci9030082
“Relationship among Soil Biophysicochemical Properties, Agricultural Practices and Climate Factors Influencing Soil Phosphatase Activity in Agricultural Land”
by Patrícia Campdelacreu Rocabruna, Xavier Domene, Catherine Preece and Josep Peñuelas
Agriculture 2024, 14(2), 288; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14020288
“Divergent Effects of Topography on Soil Properties and Above-Ground Biomass in Nepal’s Mid-Hill Forests”
by Sandhya Nepal, Mohan KC, Nabaraj Pudasaini and Hari Adhikari
Resources 2023, 12(11), 136; https://doi.org/10.3390/resources12110136
“Effects of Climate on Variation of Soil Organic Carbon and Alkali-Hydrolyzed Nitrogen in Subtropical Forests: A Case Study of Zhejiang Province, China”
by Xuekun Cheng, Tao Zhou, Shuhan Liu, Xiaobo Sun, Yufeng Zhou, Lin Xu, Binglou Xie, Jianping Ying and Yongjun Shi
Forests 2023, 14(5), 914; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14050914
“Past and Future Responses of Soil Water to Climate Change in Tropical and Subtropical Rainforest Systems in South America”
by Santiago M. Márquez Arévalo, Rafael Coll Delgado, Douglas da Silva Lindemann,Yuri A. Gelsleichter, Marcos Gervasio Pereira, Rafael de Ávila Rodrigues, Flávio Barbosa Justino, Henderson Silva Wanderley, Everaldo Zonta, Romário Oliveira de Santana and Renato Sinquini de Souza
Atmosphere 2023, 14(4), 755; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos14040755
Special Issues:
| “Soils and Land Management Under Climate Change (Second Edition)” Guest Editors: Prof. Dr. Dionisios Gasparatos and Dr. Ioannis Charalampopoulos Submission deadline: 18 January 2026 |
“Intelligent Systems Supporting the Assessment of Soil Influence on Crop Yields” Guest Editors: Dr. Magdalena Piekutowska amd Dr. Patryk Hara Submission deadline: 31 March 2026 |
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| “Water Saving and Soil Amendments: Advances in Research, Use and Optimization and Testing of Innovative Materials” Guest Editor: Dr. Mirko Castellini Submission deadline: 20 April 2026 |
“Soil and Water Conservation in Forestry” Guest Editors: Dr. Jiangkun Zheng, Dr. Filippo Giadrossich and Dr. Miriam Fernanda Rodrigues Submission deadline: 31 May 2026 |
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“Estimating Urbanization’s Impact on Soil Erosion: A Global Comparative Analysis and Case Study of Phoenix, USA”
by Ara Jeong, Dylan S. Connor, Ronald I. Dorn and Yeong Bae Seong
Land 2025, 14(8), 1590; https://doi.org/10.3390/land14081590
“Soil and Sediment Organisms as Bioindicators of Pollution”
by Samir Ghannem, Ons Bacha, Sondes Fkiri, Sabri Kanzari, Abdelwaheb Aydi and Samir Touaylia
Ecologies 2024, 5(4), 679-696; https://doi.org/10.3390/ecologies5040040
“A Framework for Upgrading Contaminated Urban Land and Soil by Nature-Based Solutions: Demonstration with a Swedish Case”
by Shaswati Chowdhury, Yevheniya Volchko and Jenny Norrman
Urban Sci. 2024, 8(4), 198; https://doi.org/10.3390/urbansci8040198
“Microplastic Pollution in Terrestrial Ecosystems and Its Interaction with Other Soil Pollutants: A Potential Threat to Soil Ecosystem Sustainability”
by Meera Rai, Gaurav Pant, Kumud Pant, Becky N. Aloo, Gaurav Kumar, Harikesh Bahadur Singh and Vishal Tripathi
Resources 2023, 12(6), 67; https://doi.org/10.3390/resources12060067
“Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) Based Soil Erosion Susceptibility Mapping in Northwestern Himalayas: A Case Study of Central Kashmir Province”
by Fayma Mushtaq, Majid Farooq, Anamika Shalini Tirkey and Bashir Ahmad Sheikh
Conservation 2023, 3(1), 32-52; https://doi.org/10.3390/conservation3010003
Special Issues:
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“The Adsorption and Degradation Pathways of Pollutants in Agricultural Soil” |
“Brownfield Redevelopment: Soil Remediation for Sustainable Cities” |
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“Restoring Forests, Restoring Soils: Integrated Approaches for Sustainable Land Management” |
“Anthropogenic Pollutants in Environmental Geochemistry (2nd Edition)” |
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The 2nd International Electronic Conference on Land Organizer: MDPI and Land Volume Editor: Hossein Azadi Highlights
Click here to read the full list of papers. |
