Carinthia II / Part 3 - Carinthia Nature Tech

How fast must one run to stay in the same place?
On the second issue of Carinthia Nature Tech

According to the 2024 Science Barometer of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, 77% of Austrians are “proud of the country’s natural beauty,” 73% “trust science very much” or “strongly,” and as many as 80% are convinced that “science and research improve our lives” [1]. These encouraging statistics stand in contrast to the daily experiences of many scientists. Alongside medicine and climate change, biodiversity research is increasingly becoming a target of a science-skeptical public. Against this backdrop, transparent methods and clearly explained results are essential. The first issue of the young journal Carinthia II part 3 - Nature Tech has already demonstrated that these methods are currently undergoing significant transformation due to digitalization.

On October 17, 2024, the Natural Science Association for Carinthia (NWV, Naturwissenschaftlicher Verein für Kärnten) and Carinthia University of Applied Sciences (CUAS, Fachhochschule Kärnten) jointly presented the new journal Carinthia Nature Tec (Figure 1). The presentation took place in the NWV’s clubrooms at the Carinthian State Museum, at the symbolically significant “Round Table” where the association’s founding is said to have occurred during the revolutionary year of 1848 (Figure 2). NWV President Helmut Zwander spoke about the long and varied history of the journal Carinthia, which dates back to 1811. He emphasized the need for constant innovation with a quote from Alice in Wonderland: “My dear, here we must run as fast as we can, just to stay in place. And if you wish to go anywhere, you must run twice as fast as that.” CUAS CEO Siegfried Spanz discussed CUAS’s future strategies and the significance of the newly established collaboration for the future development in Carinthia and beyond. The digitalization of the sector, he noted, presents new opportunities (Figure 3). CUAS shall be considered as Carinthia´s major driver in applied sciences. Daniel Dalton from the Carinthia Nature Tech Editorial Oce introduced the individual contributions, illustrating the mission of the  new journal: to combine classical scientific and field biology methods with modern technologies to achieve new levels of quality results.

In the long term, technology-based methods will enable a more systematic, reliable, and—
arguably—more transparent evidence base regarding the state of nature in general and
biodiversity in particular. A continuous challenge remains: integrating these findings into
political and societal discourse. The articles in the second issue of Carinthia Nature Tech
are intended to contribute to this ongoing dialogue.
In the current issue of the journal, there are two peer-reviewed Short Papers, two Short
Notes, and two Book Reviews. There are no Full Papers in this issue. The editorial team
has decided that regular publication of the young journal is more important than representing
all categories of contributions. However, Full Papers will appear again in the
next issue of Carinthia II part 3 -Nature Tech. The reception of the first issue of the new
Carinthia II part 3 -Nature Tech was very positive. Nevertheless, it is now important to
increase awareness and outreach of the journal. Therefore, we warmly invite interested
authors to submit their contributions. The Editorial Oce is very happy to provide support
in this regard.
We wish the contributions in this volume a positive reception in the spirit that these articles
inspire and motivate the advancement of new technologies for the assessment and
monitoring of biodiversity and ecosystem services.

Susanne Aigner, Michael Jungmeier