Overview: Literacy is all about having the knowledge and understanding of a subject that is key to evolving informed opinions, developing objective policies, and taking appropriate decisions on issues with which we are challenged. It is also vital to our wellbeing. This is true of our personal lives, those of our families and our communities, and of our professional activities. It is also pivotal to our ability to fulfil our stakeholder responsibilities to ourselves and society.
And, crucially, it is key to fulfilment of our role as stewards of the planet and its biosphere. Let’s get familiar with some of the microbially-influenced issues that really demand us to be microbiologically literate!
Creation of the TFs is a work in progress: those already available are indicated by titles that are live links. Titles of those still in the pipeline are shown for context.
Microbes rule the world
- Microbiology literacy must be part of the world citizen job description
- How microbiology knowledge improves our well-being
- We need our microbes!
Health
- The antimicrobial resistance crisis
- The dearth of new antimicrobials crisis
- The ageing population crisis
- The obesity crisis
- The endocrine disruptor crisis
Sustainability
- The sustainability crisis
- Planetary boundaries
- The global nitrogen crisis
- The marine sustainability crisis
- The biodiversity crisis
- The waste crisis
- The pollution crisis
- Microplastics
- Medicines in the drinking water supply
- Heavy metals
- The clean water crisis
- The Looming Phosphate Crisis
- The clean air crisis
Climate Change
- The loss of cryosphere crisis
- The desertification crisis
- The coral reef crisis
Socio-Economic Issues
- The poverty–employment crisis
- The cost externalisation issue
- The germophobia problem
- The misinformation crisis
- Rethinking chocolate for the future