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Urban growth is a continuous process of occupation of space leading to significant concentrations of population and economical activities. Urban land use suitability is influenced by a set of environmental, economic, and social factors, such as ecological values, legal constraints, population growth, the degree of economic development, as well as the integrated planning processes in the territory. To properly zoning the future urban areas, is crucial to use adequate cartography of the area available for urban expansion of the city. It is, therefore, essential to proceed with the analysis of the geographic information including geomorphology, soils, transport network, hydrography, restrictions of public utility and soil cover. In this work it was intended to evaluate the influence of biophysical and legal constraints on the urban growth, using a set of spatial analysis techniques. The biophysical factors analyzed were classified into three levels of factor-use compatibility, allowing the detection of the most suitable areas for the urban expansion of the city, using the spatial analysis methods provided by ArcGIS 10.8 software and the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). A pairwise comparison between factors was performed to calculate their relative weights. As a result of the AHP analysis a suitability map was produced. This decision support GIS method could be useful for local development authorities in the aim of urban planning and management.

In recent years there has been an increase of investment in so called emerging fruit crops. It is agreed that the choice of uses and practices best suited to soil and climate conditions promotes the sustainable use of rural areas, with positive economic impacts. The objective of this study is to determine the suitability of emerging fruit crops based on the analysis of the limiting factors. The suitability was examined for the present time and in the face of two future emission scenarios (RCP 4.5 and 8.5). For this purpose, the biophysical criteria determining the cultivation of pistachio tree, strawberry tree and almond tree were processed using ArcGIS 10.8. The Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) was used to determine suitability for the crops. A pairwise comparison between environmental criteria (temperature, rainfall, chilling hours, crop heat units, relative humidity, topography, and soil proprieties) was performed to calculate the weights of these criteria. As a result of the AHP suitability maps for each crop in the present conditions, for the RCP 4.5 and the RCP 8.5 scenarios were produced. In the present conditions about 16.4% of the study area is classified as highly suitable for almond tree, 15.8% to strawberry tree, and 15.9% to pistachio tree. For the future scenarios, the area with high suitability will increase for almond tree and pistachio tree and will decrease for strawberry tree. It is the essential to be aware of the suitability and resilience of new crops to meet the need to adapt to climate change.

The international research project EISUFOOD - Edible Insects as Sustainable Foods.

Development of the EISUFOOD questionnaire : Edible Insects as Sustainable Foods

Application of Near-Infrared Spectroscopy to characterize volatile phenols and sensory profile of aged wine spirits.

Antioxidant ativities of wine spirits aged by a sustainable technology using chestnut wood staves and micro-oxygenation.

Introduction: Higher Education Institutions (HEI) are allegedly preparing students for a globalized working area where people will need to be ready to communicate effectively in one or more foreign languages in international working environments, which puts a lot of pressure on how foreign languages (FL) are learned in Higher Education (HE). Methods: This article explores how a FL or learning through a FL could be approached in HEI, focusing mainly on what employers claim in terms of skills of recent graduates or on-the-job workers. Case studies are used, combining interviews to employers and questionnaires to HE students to find out their perceptions on FL learning requirements for greater employability. Conclusions: A series of recommendations are made for HEI on how to promote students’ employability skills; on the best practices for the development of intercultural communicative competence and FL skills to communicate effectively in international or digitally-mediated working environments; as well as on how to prepare the teaching staff for emerging trends that involve using a FL as medium of instruction or CLIL, a content and language integrated approach. These testify to the importance of learning a FL or through a FL, as well as the need to combine transversal skills development in connection to FL learning.