The development of the oil industry and the fossil fuel economy has historically improved the quality of life for many people, but it has also led to significant environmental degradation. As a response, the concept of ‘sustainable development’ has gained prominence recently, emphasizing the importance of balancing economic progress with environmental protection. Among the many environmental challenges we face today, preserving water resources is one of the most pressing. To tackle this issue, researchers are focusing on strategies to reduce water consumption and enhance the efficiency of wastewater treatment. In this context, the present review explores recent advancements in a novel coupled treatment process that integrates adsorption in activated carbon fiber (ACF) and photocatalytic oxidation using TiO₂ to remove micropollutants from wastewater. This innovative approach would allow for the in situ and continuous regeneration of ACF with TiO₂ photocatalysis, increasing the oxidative degradation efficiencies of the supported semiconductor thanks to the adsorbent material, all under the possibility of a durable and low-cost process using solar radiation. In addition, this is vital for meeting regulatory standards, protecting aquatic ecosystems, and safeguarding human health.

The journal retracts the article, “Assessing Mercury Contamination Levels in the Sediments of Two Pyrenean Lakes”

The growing trend in the southern hemisphere of incorporating workers with lower educational levels into the informal economy has raised concerns, especially in Colombia, where between 50% and 74% of workers lack adequate contractual conditions. There is a close relationship between informality and the educational level, with informal employment being the one that hosts the largest proportion of people with low levels of education, generating conditions of poverty or economic vulnerability, especially in Latin America. The construction sector, vital for GDP and employment, attracts workers with little academic training, raising concerns about occupational health, occupational risks, and informality. The objective of this article is to present statistics of occupational accidents in the formal sector in various regions of the country, through a correlation between accidents in the formal and informal sector and to make a statistical inference where the accident rate in the informal sector is established, raising the urgency of specific strategies to improve the working conditions of workers in this sector.

The development of strategies to carry out modeling and simulation are fundamental for digital engineering that has application in all fields of engineering and that allows possible difficulties to be foreseen and cost overruns to be avoided. On the other hand, without the recognition of planetary limits, added to the lack of forceful actions towards sustainable development, it will not be possible to guarantee the preservation of life and the application of industry 4.0 developments. Thus, it is essential that engineering training presents a curriculum that is sensitive to the environmental crisis. Validation and simulation techniques is a transversal engineering class, since 2020. The need to strengthen programming skills oriented to the analysis of statistical data has been identified, especially for Civil Engineering students. For this reason, strategies have been implemented such as the use of MATLAB, the integration of online mini-courses, participation in the Python Fundamentals Marathon and the development of projects in an environment in which different engineering students coexist. The activity allowed students to experience the process of data collection, development of a simulation based on the analysis of their behavior, using. Likewise, the integration with the tropical dry forest, given that Cerro Seco is located next to a City Quarry, the environmental experience and the analysis of the potential impacts derived from their professions allowed them to raise awareness about their future professional performance.