The Spanish Network for Safe and Sustainable Nanotechnologies (SustainableNano – SNSSN), to which INMA belongs, publishes the Third White Paper on Nanotechnologies
The Third White Paper on Nanotechnologies sets the course for a more sustainable future
The work, the result of the collaborative efforts of more than 80 specialists from the Spanish Network for Safe and Sustainable Nanotechnologies (SustainableNano, SNSSN), offers a comprehensive overview of the role of nanotechnology in the major global challenges of the present and future.
Co-funded by the Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology of the University of Barcelona (IN2UB) and the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (through the SNSSN Network), the book is presented as a reference document on science, innovation and sustainability.
Zaragoza, 21 October 2025.
Nanotechnology is a discipline that is already transforming many areas of our society: from health and electronics to engineering and energy transition. And its potential to continue doing so is enormous. That is why it is essential that its challenges and objectives are aligned with those of sustainable development and with policies that promote a fairer and more respectful future for the planet. This is the premise that inspires the Third White Paper on Nanotechnologies.
This is a collective work, published at a key historical moment, in which science must confront the proliferation of hoaxes and denialist discourse, offering real solutions to major global challenges. As Professor Pablo Ordejón, director of the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2) and coordinator of the SNSSN Network, points out, ‘the scientific community has an obligation to combat anti-scientific discourse and offer solutions based on science and technology. This book is a decisive contribution in that direction, in the field of nanotechnologies.’
The Third White Paper on Nanotechnologies is presented as a bridge between science and society, between innovation and sustainability, between cutting-edge research and everyday life. With scientific rigour, but also with a clear informative vocation, the work is aimed at researchers, teachers, institutional leaders and politicians, and aspires to become a reference for understanding how nanotechnology — from nanomaterials to quantum computing — will be key in building a more sustainable and equitable future for our society.
A collaborative and multidisciplinary work
Coordinated by Jordi Díaz Marcos, Joan Mendoza Gonzálvez (CCiTUB) and Pedro A. Serena Domingo (ICMM, CSIC), the book brings together the collaboration of a large number of specialists from the scientific community of the SustainableNano – SNSSN network, made up of 13 research centres (including the Institute of Nanoscience and Materials of Aragon, INMA, a joint CSIC-UNIZAR institute). The work is divided into six chapters that address different areas in which nanotechnology plays a key role:
The impact of nanotechnology on science, politics and society
The potential of nanomaterials in innovation
The relationship between energy and sustainability: from catalysts to smart buildings.
Achievements and challenges in relation to water, the environment and agri-food
Nanomedicine, with a special focus on early diagnosis, personalised medicine and tissue regeneration
Information and communication technologies (ICT) and their role in sustainable development
Nanotechnology and sustainability are two pillars that, when combined, have enormous potential to define the future of our society and our planet. In the words of Guillem Aromí, director of the Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology at the University of Barcelona (IN2UB) and also coordinator of the SNSSN network, ‘development can no longer be conceived without the adjective “sustainable”. And nanotechnology has a lot to say about this, because it is already transforming our present with real solutions and applications.’
The III White Paper on Nanotechnologies is, in short, an invitation to look to the future with responsibility and ambition. Through collaboration between leading research centres and the active participation of the SNSSN network, this work demonstrates that nanotechnology can (and must) be a driver of social transformation.
Book available at this link..
For more information on the SNSSN network’s projects, please visit its website.
Contact:
–Marta Delgà (Strategy Development Area, ICN2): marta.delga@icn2.cat
21-10-2025
