Editorial

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

5-27-2020

Publication Title

Applied Earth Science

Volume

129

Issue

2

First page number:

55

Abstract

The most astonishing thing about the pandemic was the complete mystery which surrounded it. Nobody seemed to know what the disease was, where it came from or how to stop it. Anxious minds are inquiring to-day whether another wave of it will come again’ – George A. Soper, 1919 on the 1918–1919 pandemic: Science, Vol. 49, Issue 1274, pp. 501–506. I welcome you to the second issue of Volume 129 of Applied Earth Science in unusual and unsettling times, and first and foremost I hope you and your families, colleagues, and friends are all managing to keep safe and healthy during the COVID-19 crisis. This crisis has been and continues to be a challenge for all of us, especially those within the healthcare sector who are doing so much to ensure that those affected by the COVID-19 virus are looked after. As I write a number of countries have seemingly passed their peaks in terms of numbers of infections but the future remains uncertain. Nevertheless, life goes on, albeit at an appropriately safe physical distance. On the academic side I have seen colleagues and friends globally work hard and come together as a community to support each other during the transition to online teaching; sharing tips, techniques, lesson plans and much more to ensure that the education of the students that represent the future of our science are impacted as minimally as possible by this crisis. Online lectures, seminars and conferences such as those being produced by OreDepositsHub (https://oredepositshub.com/) and both EGU and Goldschmidt are providing new opportunities for learning, networking, and social interaction. And large parts of the extractive industries that we as a geoscience community are heavily involved in have been classified as essential and continue to provide the raw materials that form the basis of modern society. All of this and many other positive actions, be they large or small, remind us that we as a community, and as humanity, will get through this crisis. It will be tough, and certainly, some parts of the world will be hit harder than others. But I hope that when we as a global community come out of this the bonds that we forge during this time bring us closer together rather than pushing us further apart. Keep safe and healthy, look after yourselves, be kind, and see you in Issue 3.

Disciplines

Metallurgy | Natural Resource Economics

Language

English

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