Announcements

6 November 2025
MDPI Launches the Michele Parrinello Award for Pioneering Contributions in Computational Physical Science


MDPI is delighted to announce the establishment of the Michele Parrinello Award. Named in honor of Professor Michele Parrinello, the award celebrates his exceptional contributions and his profound impact on the field of computational physical science research.

The award will be presented biennially to distinguished scientists who have made outstanding achievements and contributions in the field of computational physical science—spanning physics, chemistry, and materials science.


About Professor Michele Parrinello

"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

Born in Messina in 1945, he received his degree from the University of Bologna and is currently affiliated with the Italian Institute of Technology. Professor Parrinello is known for his many technical innovations in the field of atomistic simulations and for a wealth of interdisciplinary applications ranging from materials science to chemistry and biology. Together with Roberto Car, he introduced ab initio molecular dynamics, also known as the Car–Parrinello method, marking the beginning of a new era both in the area of electronic structure calculations and in molecular dynamics simulations. He is also known for the Parrinello–Rahman method, which allows crystalline phase transitions to be studied by molecular dynamics. More recently, he has introduced metadynamics for the study of rare events and the calculation of free energies.

For his work, he has been awarded many prizes and honorary degrees. He is a member of numerous academies and learned societies, including the German Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften, the British Royal Society, and the Italian Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, which is the major academy in his home country of Italy.


Award Committee

The award committee will be chaired by Professor Xin-Gao Gong, a computational condensed matter physicist, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and professor at the Department of Physics, Fudan University. Professor Xin-Gao Gong will lead a panel of several senior experts in the field to oversee the evaluation and selection process.

The Institute for Computational Physical Sciences at Fudan University (Shanghai, China), led by Professor Xin-Gao Gong, will serve as the supporting institute for the award.

"We hope the Michele Parrinello Award will recognize scientists who have made significant contributions to the field of computational condensed matter physics and at the same time set a benchmark for the younger generation, providing clear direction for their pursuit—this is precisely the original intention behind establishing the award."

——Professor Xin-Gao Gong

The first edition of the award was officially launched on 1 November 2025. Nominations will be accepted before the end of March 2026. For further details, please visit mparrinelloaward.org.


About the MDPI Sustainability Foundation and MDPI Awards

The Michele Parrinello Award is part of the MDPI Sustainability Foundation, which is dedicated to advancing sustainable development through scientific progress and global collaboration. The foundation also oversees the World Sustainability Award, the Emerging Sustainability Leader Award, and the Tu Youyou Award. The establishment of the Michele Parrinello Award will further enrich the existing award portfolio, providing continued and diversified financial support to outstanding professionals across various fields. 

In addition to these foundation-level awards, MDPI journals also recognize outstanding contributions through a range of honors, including Best Paper Awards, Outstanding Reviewer Awards, Young Investigator Awards, Travel Awards, Best PhD Thesis Awards, Editor of Distinction Awards, and others. These initiatives aim to recognize excellence across disciplines and career stages, contributing to the long-term vitality and sustainability of scientific research.

Find more information on awards here.

20 February 2026
MDPI Virtual Academic Publishing Workshop (New Harvest), 25 February 2026


This Academic Publishing Workshop will be led by MDPI Regional Journal Relations Specialist, Dr. Sally Wu, on “Author Training”. Participants will receive practical advice on essential aspects of writing academic articles. Participants will leave with a clearer understanding of the academic publishing landscape and how to successfully contribute to it.

Date: 25 February 2026
Time: 11:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m. EST

Schedule:

Speaker

Program

Time in EST

Dr. Sally Wu

Introduction

11:30–11:40 a.m.

Dr. Sally Wu

Tips for Writing Great Research Papers

  • Structuring a research paper
  • Tips for every section of a research paper
  • Q&A Session

11:40 a.m.–12:15 p.m.

Dr. Sally Wu

How to Respond to Peer Reviewers

  • Peer Review Reports
  • Examples of Response to Reviewers
  • Q&A Session

12:15–12:50 p.m.

Dr. Sally Wu

AI in Publishing: Challenges and Opportunities

  • AI in scientific publishing
  • How to use AI ethically
  • Q&A Session

12:50–13:30 p.m.

Speakers:

Dr. Sally Wu received a PhD in medical science from the University of Toronto in the fall of 2025. She joined MDPI in February 2025 as an Assistant Editor for Cells. She was recently promoted to Regional Journal Relations Specialist position in August. In this role, she works with many journals, liaising with authors, board members, and EiCs. She has attended several conferences across North America, hosted scholar visits, and taken part in other outreach events.

18 February 2026
MDPI’s Open Access Program Reaches 1,000 Institutions Worldwide

MDPI has surpassed the milestone of 1,000 partners within the Institutional Open Access Program (IOAP). The agreements span 59 countries, covering North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Oceania.

Last year alone, more than 150 new libraries and academic institutions joined MDPI’s IOAP. With the expansion of an existing consortium deal in Sweden we welcomed a further 75 partners to the program in January 2026, enabling us to surpass the 1,000-partners milestone.

The IOAP supports affiliated researchers by streamlining submission processes, reducing administrative burdens, and offering discounted Article Processing Charges (APCs). Through IOAP membership, more than 61,300 research articles received APC discounts in 2025, driving greater visibility and accessibility for partner institutions and global research communities alike.

"This milestone marks a significant step towards expanding MDPI’s global impact," said Stefan Tochev, MDPI's CEO. "Reaching 1,000 IOAP partnerships is a true testament to the growing trust and collaboration we’ve built with universities, libraries, and research organizations worldwide. We are proud to lead the way in Open Access publishing, ensuring researchers have the support they need to reach global audiences." "The success of our program is reflected in the growing global demand for Open Science and quality publishing services," said Becky Castellon, MDPI institutional partnerships manager. "Equally, institutions are increasingly seeking Open Access publishing options that support funder and national mandates. Joining the IOAP makes compliance simple."

4 February 2026
Acknowledgment to the Reviewers of Climate in 2025


The editorial office of Climate would like to extend its sincere gratitude to all reviewers who contributed to the improvement of the journal quality by providing their expert opinion and evaluation of the submitted research. 

We appreciate that thorough peer review demands considerable time and intellectual investment from our reviewers. In 2025, Climate received 1634 review reports from contributors across 89 countries and territories, demonstrating the breadth of international expertise and scholarly engagement that has strengthened our publication standards. 

The reviewers who agreed to have their names published this year are listed below in alphabetical order by first name. The editorial team acknowledges with gratitude all reviewers, named and anonymous alike, for their vital role in maintaining the scholarly standards of Climate

Abd Wahid Rasib Lovely Euphrasie-Clotilde
Abdulazeez Y. H. Saif-Alyousfi Loyde Vieira de Abreu-Harbich
Adarsh Sankaran Luchen Wang
Adeyeri Oluwafemi Lucio Souza
Adilson Pacheco de Souza Luminda Niroshana Gunawardhana
Adnan Arshad Lyes Rabhi
Adnan Masic Mahdi Salehi
Adolfo Maza Majid Javari
Agustiyara Agustiyara Mantravadi Venkata Subrahmanyam
Ahmet Durap Manuchehr Farajzadeh
Akhouri Pramod Krishna Marc Davidson
Aleksandra Figurek Marek Zieliński
Alessandro Crise María del Carmen Casas-Castillo
Ali Arda Sorman Mariam Elizbarashvili
Ali Danandeh Mehr Marina Baldi
Ali Darub Kassar Marinos Markou
Ali Kadhim Resen Marta Cebulska
Alireza Nouri Marta Luffarelli
Alok Wankar Mathieu Mure-Ravaud
Aman Srivastava Maurice Osewe
Amanullah Khan Maxim G. Ogurtsov
Amitesh Gupta Md. Mizanur Rahman
Amjad Ali Md. Rafique Ahasan Chawdhery
Amy D. Lykins Mengyun Chung
Ana Rodriguez-Olalla Michael Goss
Andre L. Belem Michel Jancloes
Andre Lanfer Marquez Miguel Imaz
André Luiz Toledo Mikhail Taschilin
Andreas Gobiet Mohammad Nazeri Tahroudi
Andres Annuk Mohammad M. Jaber
Andrés M. Vélez-Pereira Mona Riza Mohd Esa
Andrey Lavrinenko Muhammad Nda
Aneta Masternak-Janus Muhammad Azher Hassan
Anirban Middey Murat Öztürk
Anthony Brazel Mustafa Al-Mukhtar
António M. Raimundo Mustafa Serkan Isik
Anxiao Zhang Mustafa Ustuner
Aparna Satsangi Nazario Tartaglione
Argyro Zisiadou Nektaria Eleni Adaktylou
Arif Atak Nick Martin
Arturo Corrales-Suastegui Nikola M. Milentijević
Arturo Sousa Nina Nikolova
Aseem Pal Singh Nivin Abdelmeguid
Ashenafi Yohannes Battamo Olena Borysiak
Ashwani Vasishth Oluwatoyin Dare Kolawole
Asim Qayyum Butt Pabrício Marcos Oliveira Lopes
Atabek Atabekov Pantazis E. Georgiou
Atef M. F. Mohammed Paolo Ceci
Babak Ghazi Patricia Drach
Beata Zofia Filipiak Paula Stoicea
Bernard Stanisław Twaróg Paweł Rydzewski
Borbala Szeles Peipei Pan
Brantley Liddle Peng Zhao
Brian W. Sloboda Pengle Cheng
Cécil J. W. Meulenberg Peter Nojarov
Chandima Dilrukshi Tilakaratne Petri Räisänen
Cheng Li Philippe C. Forêt
Chengzhi Yu Ping Li
Chuanhong Zhao Piotr Borowski
Claudia Bita-Nicolae Pramod Kumar
Claudio Stefanini Pronob Das
Cristian Banciu Qiang Wei
Cristian Gabriel Anghel Qimin He
Csaba Horváth Qitao Xiao
Daniel Kibirige Quang Chi Truong
Daniel Santos Radhakrishnan Shanthi Priya
Dariia Kholiavchuk Rajendran Shobha Ajin
David Pereira Jerez Rajkumar Guria
David Stadelmann Ranko Gantner
David Turbow Ravindra Madhukar Moharil
Defi Yusti Faidah Riccardo Vecellio Segate
Diosey Ramon Lugo-Morin Richao Cong
Djanna Koubodana Houteta Rick Lader
Dmitry Erokhin Ricky Anak Kemarau
Eftstahia Tringa Ridouane Kessabi
Elena Lioubimtseva Rilka Valcheva
Eleonora Nistor Robert Twardosz
Eliza Kalbarczyk Roberta Valentina Gagliardi
Emmanuel Eze Roberto Avelino Cecílio
Ender Buğday Roberto Franco Plata
Erginbay Uğurlu Romário Oliveira De Santana
Erica Russell Rueiyuan Wang
Erick Arturo Betanzo-Torres Ruth Irwin
Ettiyagounder Parameswari S. Duygu Sever
Eugene A. Silow Saad Aldulaimy
Euripides N. Avgoustoglou Sameera Qayoom
Eusebio Mercedes Ingol-Blanco Sampad Kumar Panda
Evan Mallen Sangeeta Kumari
Faten Mouldi Derouez Sarah M. Hirsh
Fengwei Wang Sergio Ugarte
Francesco Mancini Sevda Zuhal Akyürek
Franz Pablo Antezana Lopez Shaohong Wu
Fuguang Zhang Shaohua Lei
Fulya Islek Shashikant Verma
Gabriel Williams Shenliang Chen
Gamil Gamal Shiming Zhang
Gaurav Tiwari Slaheddine Khlifi
George Kwame Agbanyo Sorin Cace
Giada Varra Sreelash Krishnan Kutty
Gideon Uchechukwu Nwafor Stanislav Myslenkov
Gláuber Pontes Rodrigues Stefanie Kagone
Gneneyougo Emile Soro Stephen Balaka Opiyo
Gokmen Ceribasi Steven Soon Kai Kong
Guanxi Yan Sumit Chakravarty
Gustavo J. Nagy Susana Bastos
Hafzullah Aksoy Susana Paixão
Haitao Wang Szemethy László
Hamadjam Abboubakar Tajen Chu
Haonan Zhang Talha Bin Nadeem
Haosu Tang Tao Zhu
Hubert Kryszk Teerawong Laosuwan
Huseyin Cetin Tiejie Cheng
Ifeanyi Chukwudi Achugbu Tom Elijah Volenzo
Inga Grinfelde Toni Kekez
Ioannis Logothetis Tungyu Hsieh
Ishtiaq Hussain Usman Mazhar
Jafar Azizpour Valentina Davydova Belitskaya
James Booker Valeria Gagiu
Janusz Majewski Vanesa Yael Bohn
Jason T. Ortegren Veli Yavuz
Jayanarayanan Brema Venugopal Reddy Thandlam
Jean El Achkar Veronika V. Vodopianova
Jian Liu Victor Andre Ariza Flores
Jian Shang Victor Hugo Guerra Cobián
Jiasheng Li Victor M. Rodriguez-Moreno
Jiaxi Cao Victor Quej
João A. Santos Viktorija Šipilova
John Van Boxel Vincent Itai Tanyanyiwa
Joonho Lee Vitaliy Salnikov
Jordana Marques Kneipp Vũ Hoàng Thái Dương
Jório Bezerra Cabral Júnior Weichao Yang
José Luis Aragón-Gastélum Weijun Zhao
José Sandoval-Díaz Wenjian Pan
Josef Křeček William P. L. Carter
Jouni Räisänen Xiangyang Zhang
Julio Angeles Suazo Xiaolu Ling
Julio Cesar Calvo-Alvarado Xidong Chen
Jun Du Xinchen Gu
Jung-Jun Lin Xingbi Lei
Junichi Ninomiya Xingyu Xue
K. Alphonsa Jose Xuan Ma
K. M. Aarif Xueliang Wang
Katarzyna Baran-Gurgul Yameng Wang
Kazım Onur Demirarslan Yanfeng Wu
Kazimierz Warmiński Yang Chen
Kenneth Karl Mikael Möllersten Yang Wang
Kenneth Okechukwu Ekpetere Yanling Li
Konstantinos A. Dimitriadis Yigen Qin
Kresimir Pavlic Yudi Zhou
Kristina Gartsiyanova Yurdanur Sezginer Ünal
Larry Hughes Zeinab Salah Abdullah
Lei Jiang Zerihun Berhane Weldegebriel
Leke Lin Zhan Shu
Leonardo Nania Zhijun Li
Leszek Sobkowiak Zhixiang Wu
Lidija Tadić Zhongjun Zhang
Lijie Gao Zikri Abadi Baharudin
Lili Ji Zilong Qin
Liyan Sun Zubia Masood

2 February 2026
MDPI INSIGHTS: The CEO's Letter #31 - MDPI 30 Years, 500 Journals, UK Summit, Z-Forum Conference, APE

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

MDPI at 30: Three Decades of Open Science, Built Together

As we begin 2026, we approach a meaningful milestone in MDPI’s history: 30 years of advancing Open Science.

What began in 1996 as a small, researcher-driven initiative has grown into a global open-access publisher, supporting hundreds of journals, millions of researchers, and a shared belief that scientific knowledge should be openly available to all. Over these three decades, Open Access has moved from the margins to the mainstream, and MDPI has been proud to help shape that transformation.

To mark this anniversary year, we are pleased to share our MDPI 30th Anniversary logo.

The Anniversary logo is intentionally simple, confident, and enduring, designed to work across cultures, disciplines, and digital environments. It reflects both continuity and progress, honouring MDPI’s established identity while representing the company we are today. The green accent symbolizes our connection to the research communities we serve and the collaborative nature of Open Science itself.

Alongside the visual identity, we are also introducing our 30th Anniversary tagline:

30 Years of Open Science, Built Together.

This phrase captures what has always defined MDPI. Open Science is not the work of a single organization: it is a collective effort shaped by researchers, editors, reviewers, institutions, and the many teams who support the publishing process every day. MDPI’s role has been to provide the infrastructure and commitment that allow this collaboration to thrive.

Throughout 2026, we will mark this anniversary through regional events, global conversations, and editorial initiatives that reflect on MDPI’s evolution, its impact across disciplines, and the communities that make this work possible.

“Open Science is a collective effort”

Whether you have been part of MDPI’s journey for decades or are engaging with us for the first time this year, this milestone belongs to all of us. The past 30 years have shown what is possible when openness, trust, and collaboration are placed at the centre of scholarly communication.

As we look ahead, our focus remains clear: continuing to strengthen quality, integrity, and partnership – so that Open Science can keep moving forward, together.


Impactful Research

A Shared Milestone: MDPI’s Journal Portfolio Reaches 500 Titles

MDPI has reached an important milestone: our journal portfolio grew to more than 500 academic journals last year, spanning the fields of chemistry, engineering, biology, medicine, environmental sciences, the social sciences, and beyond.

The number itself is significant, but what matters more is what supports it: hundreds of scholarly communities that have chosen to collaborate, grow, and publish with MDPI.

From our beginnings nearly 30 years ago with a single Open Access journal (Molecules), MDPI has been guided by a simple aim: advancing Open Science. Reaching 500 journals is not an endpoint. It reflects the diversity of disciplines, ideas, and research cultures that now form part of our shared ecosystem. 

Growth with Purpose

Every journal exists because a specific community believes there is a need for focus, visibility, and dialogue in a particular field. As our portfolio has expanded, so has our responsibility to ensure that scale is matched with strong editorial standards, robust research integrity practices, and meaningful academic leadership.

This milestone comes as we enter MDPI’s 30th anniversary year, a fitting moment to reflect on what scale in scholarly publishing truly requires: not only reach, but also dedicated long-term stewardship.

New Journals, New Communities

In December 2025 alone, MDPI welcomed eight newly launched journals and three journal transfers (details below), all of which published their inaugural issues by year-end.

Each of these journals is shaped by its Editors-in-Chief, Associate Editors, and Editorial Board Members, who define its scope, standards, and direction. We are grateful for the time, expertise, and commitment they bring to building these new communities.

Welcoming Transferred and Acquired Journals

We were pleased to publish the first MDPI issues of three recently transferred or acquired journals:

  • Cardiovascular Medicine – advancing research on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cardiovascular disease
  • Germs – addressing infectious diseases through clinical, public health, and translational perspectives
  • Romanian Journal of Preventive Medicine (RJPM) – supporting population health, early detection, and preventive care in collaboration with the Romanian Society of Preventive Medicine

Each of these journals brings an established identity and legacy. Our role is to support their continued development with the same editorial rigor, transparency, and Open Access principles that guide our broader portfolio.

A Collective Achievement

Reaching more than 500 journals is not the achievement of any single team or individual. It is the result of collaboration across the entire scholarly ecosystem. As such, I would like to thank our authors, reviewers, academic editors, and Editorial Board Members, as well as our colleagues across MDPI, who support these communities every day.

As we look ahead, we will continue to expand the breadth and depth of our publishing activities while remaining attentive to the evolving expectations of Open Science, research integrity, and responsible growth.

This milestone is a reminder that Open Access publishing is not only about making research available. It is about building platforms where knowledge can be shared, challenged, improved, and trusted, at scale, and with care.

Inside Research

MDPI UK Summit 2026 in Manchester (21–22 January)

On 21–22 January, we had the pleasure of hosting the MDPI UK Summit 2026 in Manchester. Over two days, we welcomed more than 20 Editors-in-Chief (EiC), Section Editors-in-Chief (SEiC), and Associate Editors for an open, in-depth conversations about how MDPI supports Open Science, editorial independence, and research standards across our journals. 

What stood out most was not just the quality of the discussions, but the openness, curiosity, and mutual respect that shaped every session.

What We Covered 

The programme was designed to give insight into how MDPI works behind the scenes and how different teams collaborate to support our journals and editors. Topics included:

  • MDPI overview and the evolving Open Access market
  • MDPI–UK collaboration and local engagement
  • Editorial and peer-review processes
  • Research integrity and publication ethics
  • Institutional partnerships
  • Indexing, journal development, and academic community engagement

Sessions were led by MDPI colleagues across editorial, research integrity, indexing, partnerships, and UK operations, showing how cross-functional our work truly is. 

What We Heard

The feedback from editors was both encouraging and grounding:

  • 92% rated the Summit Excellent (8% Good)
  • 100% said their understanding of MDPI’s values, editorial processes, and local collaborations had significantly improved
  • 69% attended primarily to stay informed about academic publishing and research integrity
  • 85% felt fully heard and engaged

A few comments that stayed with me:

  • “Today’s event truly gave me the opportunity to see the heart of MDPI UK.”
  • “The summit was very informative – I really enjoyed seeing the behind-the-scenes operations.”
  • “Keep being open to discussions and making editors feel part of the MDPI family.”

These reflections remind us that transparency, listening, and dialogue are not nice-to-haves: they are foundational to trust.

Looking Ahead

The UK Summit is one of more than 10 MDPI Summits we are organizing this year across North America, Europe, and APAC. Each one is an investment in relationships, shared understanding, and improvement.

Thank you to the MDPI UK team and supporting colleagues across departments who made this event possible. This was a positive step in strengthening our editorial engagement and kicking off a year of MDPI Summits.

Coming Together for Science

Recapping the Z-Forum 2026 Conference on Sustainability and Innovation (15–16 January 2026)

In January, MDPI supported and participated in the Z-Forum on Sustainability and Innovation, held across Zurich (ETH Zurich) and the city of Baden. With 96 participants and more than 30 speakers and panellists, the forum brought together leaders from government, academia, industry, and innovation ecosystems to explore how sustainability, Open Science, and innovation intersect in practice.

Why this mattered for MDPI

As a Swiss-based publisher with global reach, our investment in Z-Forum reflects a strategic intent: to anchor MDPI more deeply within Swiss research networks while contributing to national and international conversations on sustainability and innovation.

This was not only about visibility; it was also about relationship-building and long-term engagement with institutions shaping research policy and practice in Switzerland.

High-level participation and credibility

The forum was supported and sponsored by several key Swiss institutions, including:

  • The Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) – Switzerland’s central research funding body
  • ETH Zurich
  • The University of Zurich
  • The University of Basel
  • Swiss Innovation Park Central

The sponsorship of SNSF lent the forum strong institutional credibility and signalled the relevance of the themes discussed, especially around sustainability, innovation frameworks, and responsible research practices.

Beyond the Room: Extending the Conversation

While attendance was intentionally focused to encourage dialogue, the forum’s reach extended well beyond the venue. Multiple LinkedIn posts before and during  the event (e.g., Link 1, Link 2, Link 3, and more) built on the discussions and helped position MDPI as an active and credible contributor within Switzerland’s research and innovation landscape.

A Broader Strategic Signal

Z-Forum is part of a wider effort to:

  • Build on MDPI’s Swiss institutional relationships
  • Reinforce our leadership in Open Science and sustainability
  • Engage proactively with funders, universities, and innovation bodies
  • Ensure MDPI remains a visible and constructive partner in the ecosystems where research policy and practice are shaped

Thank you to our Conference team and everyone involved in supporting this event, both behind the scenes and on the ground. These moments of engagement may be small in scale, but they are foundational in impact.

Closing Thoughts

Reflections from the Academic Publishing in Europe Conference

During 13-14 January, I attended the Academic Publishing in Europe (APE) Conference in Berlin, a long-standing forum for discussing scholarly publishing and the deeper principles that support it.

MDPI was proud to be a Gold Sponsor of the 20th Anniversary of the APE conference, reflecting our continued commitment to supporting the scholarly community to engage in critical industry discussions.

This year’s program covered a range of topics, from AI and research integrity to policy, infrastructure, and trust, but one theme stood out clearly for me: academic freedom, and what it means to protect the conditions under which knowledge can be produced, evaluated, and shared responsibly.

Before turning to that, I would like to highlight the opening keynote by Carolin Sutton (CEO, STM), which helped set the tone for the conference.

An Independent Publishing Industry: The Case for Checks and Balances

In her opening remarks, Carolin focused on the importance of continually evolving systems of checks and balances, both operationally and at the marketplace level, to prevent any single actor from dominating knowledge production. Her framing emphasized shared responsibility across publishers, institutions, and research communities, rather than placing the burden on any one group.

As part of this, she revisited the work of sociologist Robert K. Merton, and his CUDOS norms of scientific ethos, first articulated in his 1942 work, The Normative Structure of Science.

Merton outlined four ideals that support healthy scientific systems:

  1. Communalism – knowledge as a public good
  2. Universalism – evaluation based on merit, not status or identity
  3. Disinterestedness – orientation toward truth over personal or financial gain
  4. Organized Skepticism – systematic, critical scrutiny of claims

While these are ideals, and not guarantees that are perfectly lived up to, they remain powerful reference points today for research systems and organizations as they aim to grow and scale.

It was interesting to see how closely these norms align with foundational principles of Open Access. For example, making research openly available supports communalism. Transparent peer review and editorial processes reinforce universalism and organized skepticism. Strong ethics frameworks and governance help counter conflicts of interest and support disinterestedness.

“Merton’s ideals remain powerful reference points today”

 Safeguarding Research: Academic Freedom

Several of the conference sessions touched on the pressures faced by researchers, editors, and institutions: geopolitical tensions, online harassment, misinformation, reputational risk, shrinking resources, and politicized narratives around science.

“Integrity is not static. It must be actively maintained as systems grow.”

A particularly timely presentation came from Ilyas Saliba, who talked about academic freedom. His remarks resonated strongly and underlined the fact that safety in academia is not only physical or digital, but also intellectual.

Academic freedom means safeguarding the ability to ask difficult questions, challenge consensus, publish negative or unexpected results, and participate in scholarly debate without fear of undue personal, political, or commercial consequences. These discussions were a reminder that publishers play an important role in supporting the integrity, accessibility, and credibility of scholarly knowledge, particularly as researchers and institutions face mounting external pressures.

Looking Ahead

The discussions at APE reminded me that integrity is not static. It must be actively maintained as systems grow, expectations evolve, and pressures increase. This applies equally to research integrity, academic freedom, and the broader trust placed in scholarly communication.

I left APE encouraged by the openness of the dialogue and the willingness across publishers, institutions, and communities to engage with difficult questions rather than avoid them. Forums like this play a pivotal role in helping our industry pause, reflect, and recalibrate.

As MDPI continues to grow and as we enter our 30th anniversary, these conversations remind me of the core purpose of science: advancing knowledge for the benefit of society.

Stefan Tochev
Chief Executive Officer
MDPI AG

26 January 2026
MDPI at AGU 2025: Celebrating Open Science and Academic Excellence

From 15 to 19 December 2025, MDPI participated in the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting 2025 held in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA at booth #922  in the Entrance Hall. The conference attracted over 25,000 attendees from more than 100 countries, with academic participants from universities accounting for 70.5% of the total.

Academic Engagement: Dialogue and Collaboration

Meet the Editors
We hosted several insightful sessions with editorial leaders from top journals:

  • Prof. Dr. Magaly Koch (Section Editor-in-Chief of Remote Sensing);
  • Prof. Dr. Xi Chen (Editorial Board Member of Water);
  • Dr. Elizabeth Silber (Guest Editor of Atmosphere);
  • Dr. Andrea Zerboni (Guest Editor of Water).

These discussions fostered meaningful connections between attendees and editors, strengthening our commitment to supporting scholarly exchange.

Environmental and Earth Sciences Journal Editorial Board Meeting

Leaders from MDPI’s environmental and earth sciences journals and editorial board members gathered for an in-person Editorial Board Meeting held on 16 December at the Hilton Riverside Hotel in New Orleans during the conference to exchange updates and discuss editorial practices, peer review developments, and key challenges in the field. The discussion highlighted the importance of collaboration and shared efforts to maintain high scientific and publishing standards. The meeting was attended by Dr. David L. Feldman, Prof. Dr. Zong-Liang Yang, Dr. Paul Kucera, Dr. Pavel Grosiman, Prof. Dr. Carlo De Michele, Prof. Dr. Xi Chen, Dr. May Wu, Prof. Sayed M. Bateni, Prof. Dr. Assefa M. Melesse, Prof. Pietro Milillo, Prof. Peng Fu, Dr. Dongdong Wang, Prof. Dr. Hatim Sharif, Prof. Dr. Jie Shan, Prof. Dr. Soe Win Myint, and Prof. Dr. Brian Horton.

Looking Ahead: Advancing Open Science

Participating in the AGU Annual Meeting was a profoundly enriching experience. We engaged in profound dialogue not only with authors, reviewers, and members of the Editorial Boards associated with MDPI, but also had the invaluable opportunity to disseminate our institutional mission to emerging scholars.

As an entity steadfastly committed to fostering open scientific exchange across all academic disciplines, MDPI reaffirms its unwavering dedication to advancing global scholarship. We earnestly look forward to connecting with researchers from around the world, collaborating in unison to expand the frontiers of knowledge and advocate for open science.

23 January 2026
Meet Us at the Ocean Sciences Meeting 2026, 22–27 Febuary 2026, Glasgow, UK

Conference: Ocean Sciences Meeting 2026
Date: 22–27 Febuary 2026
Location: Glasgow, UK 

MDPI will attend the Ocean Sciences Meeting 2026 as an exhibitor. This meeting will be held in Glasgow, UK, from 22 to 27 Febuary 2026. 

The Ocean Sciences Meeting (OSM) is a unique gathering, designed to foster connection and collaboration among researchers and solution scientists in the greater ocean-connected community. Every two years, scientists from across the globe gather to share the latest research findings, collaborate on solutions, and establish lasting partnerships, with the goal of advancing scientific knowledge and impacts. 

The Ocean Sciences Meeting is an Endorsed Decade Action program with the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. Co-sponsored by the American Geophysical Union (AGU), the Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO), and The Oceanography Society (TOS), we welcome a diverse community of scientists, students, journalists, policymakers, educators, and organizations who are working toward a world where scientific discovery leads to scientific solutions, and where our global collaborations and partnerships can carry us into a sustainable future. 

The following open access journals will be represented:

If you are attending this conference, please feel free to start an online conversation with us. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person at booth #71 and answering any questions that you may have. For more information about the conference, please visit the following website: https://www.agu.org/ocean-sciences-meeting.

23 January 2026
International Day of Clean Energy—“Clean Energy: For All and for Our Planet”, 26 January 2026


26 January marks the International Day of Clean Energy, a global initiative that aims to drive equitable and sustainable energy transitions, leaving no one behind and protecting our planet. As emphasized by the UN, clean energy is essential for closing the energy access gap (an estimated 1.5 billion people in rural areas still use unsafe, unhealthy and inefficient cooking systems) and for combatting climate change (over 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions are caused by fossil fuel energy production). Clean energy fuels socio-economic progress, empowering vulnerable communities in terms of education, healthcare and livelihoods, while also addressing the issue of polluting fuels, which are linked to 3.2 million premature deaths each year.

Join us in celebrating this International Day of Clean Energy by exploring research that turns global goals, such as Sustainable Development Goal 7, into actionable solutions. Together, these works amplify the UN’s call to action, uniting researchers, policymakers, and innovators to build a future in which clean energy benefits everyone and safeguards our planet.

Solar, Wind, Hydrogen, and Bioenergy-Based Hybrid System for Off-Grid Remote Locations: Techno-Economic and Environmental Analysis
by Roksana Yasmin, Md. Nurun Nabi, Fazlur Rashid and Md. Alamgir Hossain
Clean Technol. 2025, 7(2), 36; https://doi.org/10.3390/cleantechnol7020036

Quantifying Cybersecurity Impacts on Clean Energy Market Volatility: A Time-Frequency Approach
by Catalin Gheorghe and Oana Panazan
Mathematics 2025, 13(8), 1320; https://doi.org/10.3390/math13081320

Lifecycle Management of Hydrogen Pipelines: Design, Maintenance, and Rehabilitation Strategies for Canada’s Clean Energy Transition
by Myo Myo Khaing and Shunde Yin
Energies 2025, 18(2), 240; https://doi.org/10.3390/en18020240

A Comprehensive Review of Green Energy Technologies: Towards Sustainable Clean Energy Transition and Global Net-Zero Carbon Emissions
by Vinod Kumar Sharma, Giulia Monteleone, Giacobbe Braccio, Cosmas N. Anyanwu and Nneoma N. Aneke.
Processes
2025, 13(1), 69; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr13010069

Integration of Crops, Livestock, and Solar Panels: A Review of Agrivoltaic Systems
by Diego Soto-Gómez
Agronomy 2024, 14(8), 1824; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14081824

Long-Term Energy System Modelling for a Clean Energy Transition and Improved Energy Security in Botswana’s Energy Sector Using the Open-Source Energy Modelling System
by Ranea Saad, Fernando Plazas-Niño, Carla Cannone, Rudolf Yeganyan, Mark Howells and Hannah Luscombe
Climate 2024, 12(6), 88; https://doi.org/10.3390/cli12060088

Long-Term Energy System Modelling for a Clean Energy Transition in Egypt’s Energy Sector
by Anna Gibson, Zen Makuch, Rudolf Yeganyan, Naomi Tan, Carla Cannone and Mark Howells
Energies
2024, 17(10), 2397; https://doi.org/10.3390/en17102397

Magnesium-Based Hydrogen Storage Alloys: Advances, Strategies, and Future Outlook for Clean Energy Applications
by Yaohui Xu, Yang Zhou, Yuting Li, Yechen Hao, Pingkeng Wu and Zhao Ding
Molecules 2024, 29(11), 2525; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29112525

Real-Time Monitoring of Wind Turbine Bearing Using Simple Neural Network on Raspberry Pi
by Tianhao Wang, Hongying Meng, Rui Qin, Fan Zhang and Asoke Kumar Nandi.
Appl. Sci.
2024, 14(7), 3129; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14073129

A Sustainability Approach between the Water–Energy–Food Nexus and Clean Energy
by Gricelda Herrera-Franco, Lady Bravo-Montero, Jhon Caicedo-Potosí and Paúl Carrión-Mero
Water 2024, 16(7), 1017; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16071017

Energy Management Strategy for DC Micro-Grid System with the Important Penetration of Renewable Energy
by Christian Bipongo Ndeke, Marco Adonis and Ali Almaktoof
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(6), 2659; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14062659

Energy Transition in Vietnam: A Strategic Analysis and Forecast
by Minh Phuong Nguyen, Tatiana Ponomarenko and Nga Nguyen
Sustainability
2024, 16(5), 1969; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16051969

Natural Gas Matters: LNG and India’s Quest for Clean Energy
by Subhadip Ghosh, Rajarshi Majumder and Bidisha Chatterjee
Gases 2024, 4(1), 1-17; https://doi.org/10.3390/gases4010001

Assessment of Bioenergy Potential from Biomass Waste to Improve Access to Clean Energy for Cooking in Mali
by Iván Segura-Rodríguez and Ramchandra Bhandari
Sustainability 2024, 16(1), 455; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16010455

Sustainable Valorization of Biomass for Clean Energy and High-Value Products
Guest Editor: Dr. Soyeon Jeong
Submission Deadline: 24 April 2026

Clean Energy Technologies for Climate Change Mitigation
Guest Editors: Dr. Mulualem Gebreslassie and Dr. Augustine Ikpehai
Submission Deadline: 31 May 2026

Unconventional Energy, Clean Energy and Carbon Sequestration: Progress in Technology
Guest Editors: Dr. Lei Qin, Dr. Quangui Li, Dr. Xu Yu and Prof. Dr. Guanhua Ni
Submission Deadline: 30 June 2026

New Challenges in Clean Energy Technologies: Waste-to-Energy for Circular Economy
Guest Editor: Dr. Barbara Bielowicz
Submission Deadline: 30 November 2026

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.

New Journals

Founding Editor-in-Chief(s)

Journal Topics (Selected)

Dr. Elisa Felicitas Arias,

Université PSL, France

Editorial | view inaugural issue

atomic clocks; time and frequency metrology; GNSS systems; relativity and relativistic timekeeping; fundamental physics in space |

view journal scope | submit an article

Prof. Dr. José F.F. Mendes,

University of Aveiro, Portugal

Editorial | view inaugural issue

complex systems; network science; nonlinear dynamics and chaotic behaviour; information theory and complexity; computational complexity |

view journal scope | submit an article

Prof. Dr. Roberto Morandotti,

Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique—Énergie, Matériaux et Télécommunications (INRS), Canada

Editorial | view inaugural issue

light generation; light sources and applications; light control and measurement; human responses to light; lighting design |

view journal scope | submit an article

Prof. Dr. Savvas A. Chatzichristofis,

Neapolis University Pafos, Cyprus

Editorial | view inaugural issue

generative AI and large language models in education; multimodal and embodied AI; personalization and adaptive systems; assessment, feedback, and academic integrity; learning analytics |

view journal scope | submit an article

Prof. Dr. Jon Andoni Duñabeitia,

Universidad Nebrija, Spain

Editorial | view inaugural issue

cognitive psychology; cognitive neuroscience; psycholinguistics; applied linguistics; experimental psychology |

view journal scope | submit an article

Prof. Dr. Caiwu Fu,

Wuhan University, China;

Prof. Dr. Longxi Zhang,

Peking University, China

Editorial | view inaugural issue

cultural practices; cultural theory; cultural policy; cultural heritage; transregional and transnational cultural flows|

view journal scope | submit an article

Dr. Ghassem R. Asrar,

iCREST Environmental Education Foundation, USA

Editorial | view inaugural issue

biosphere interactions, processes, and sustainability; ecosystem science and dynamics; biodiversity conservation; global change and environmental adaptation; biogeochemical cycles |

view journal scope | submit an article

Dr. Giuseppe Mulè,

University of Palermo, Italy

Editorial | view inaugural issue

cardiorenal syndromes; chronic heart failure and chronic kidney disease; cardiorenalmetabolic syndrome; hypertension and diabetes in relation to the abovementioned syndromes; diagnostic techniques |

view journal scope | submit an article

Transferred Journals

Editor-in-Chief

Journal Topics (Selected)

Prof. Dr. Peter Matt,

Lucerne Cantonal Hospital (LUKS), Switzerland

Editorial | view first issue

cardiology; cardiovascular and aortic surgery; cardiovascular anatomy, physiology and pathophysiology; congenital heart disease and pediatric cardiology;

cardiovascular regenerative and reparative medicine |

view journal scope | submit an article

Prof. Dr. Oana Săndulescu,

Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Romania;

National Institute for Infectious Diseases “Prof. Dr. Matei Bals”, Romania

Editorial | view first issue

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 |

view journal scope | submit an article

Dr. Roxana Elena Bohiltea,

“Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Romania

Editorial | view first issue

public health; disease prevention; screening and early detection; lifestyle interventions and health education; digital and innovative prevention |

view journal scope | submit an article

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).

6 January 2026
Meet Us at the EGU General Assembly 2026, 3–8 May 2026, Vienna, Austria


Conference: EGU General Assembly 2026
Date: 3–8 May 2026
Location: Vienna, Austria 

MDPI will attend the EGU General Assembly 2026 as an exhibitor. This meeting will be held in Vienna, Austria, from 3 to 8 May 2026 in a hybrid format.

The EGU General Assembly 2026 is organized by the European Geosciences Union (EGU), aiming to bring together geoscientists from all over the world to one meeting covering all disciplines of the Earth, planetary, and space sciences. 

Topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Atmosphere, Climate, and Space Sciences;
  • Hydrology and Environmental Earth Systems;
  • Solid Earth, Hazards and Measurement Technologies. 

The following open access journals will be represented:

If you are attending this conference, please feel free to start an online conversation with us. Our delegates look forward to meeting you in person at booth #19 and answering any questions that you may have. For more information about the conference, please visit the following website: https://www.egu26.eu/.

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