Scientists, politicians and the public are increasingly aware of the dangers of global warming and of the threats to the environment. At one time, when we switched on the lights in our homes or offices, we were perhaps aware that energy resources were being depleted-remember Upton Sinclair's King Coal of 1917-but we did not necessarily worry about the hole in the ozone layer or the greenhouse effect. Today we live in a different world.

In this issue of The Polish Science Voice, we report extensively on issues connected with environmental problems. We interview former Polish prime minister Jerzy Buzek, now a member of the European Parliament, who is involved in tackling such problems as a scientist and politician. We also report on Polish wind power plants and on a research program known as the Polish Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology Platform.

Energy supplies are not the only pressing problem of the future for the international community. Many politicians, economists and scientists warn that the world faces an imminent food crisis. Apart from problems in finding ways of providing enough food, we are also witnessing an ongoing dispute about genetically modified food. An important contribution to this debate comes from Prof. Tomasz Twardowski, head of the Polish Biotechnology Federation, who argues in this issue that, "It is in our interest to be something more than only consumers of products. It is important for us to become producers, to earn money and to introduce innovative technologies to our economy. If we fail to exploit this opportunity, other countries will do so. The market does not tolerate a vacuum. We will all be made to pay for a failure to develop modern biotechnology-with higher food prices and the loss of markets and jobs."

Of course, money is needed if science is to deal with such challenges. We report on the funding challenges faced by Polish science. We also report about a major effort under way to persuade international decision makers to base the European Institute of Innovation and Technology in the city of Wrocław.

Readers can also learn in this issue about a reputable old institution, the Warsaw University of Technology, which has 2,387 academic teachers, 1,137 doctoral students, 1,961 staff members other than teachers and 29,847 students taking courses in 17 departments and the university's Interdepartmental Center. Between 1945 and 2004, a total of 6,221 doctoral and 1,190 postdoctoral theses were defended at the university, and some 130,000 people received their master of science, bachelor of science and other degrees here.

We also report on award-winning Polish inventions, including an innovative system designed to help the blind.

To conclude, I would like to mention an interesting article in the previous issue of The Polish Science Voice by Ewa Dereń about Poland's first elevated tram network, which in two years will connect all housing estates in Opole, a southern Polish city with a population of 120,000. I would like to thank engineer Olgierd Mikosza, who came up with this innovative transport system, for the help he and his associates offered to our reporter in researching the article. I regret that due to editorial constraints we were not able to print all the photographs provided.