Introduction: Some challenges for adaptive and innovative systems in the next future

Abstract

One of the most efficient ways to investigate new directions and to find innovative solutions to unsolved problems is certainly to encourage the crossover between several research domains, including various business, economics and logistical, as well as scientific and technological disciplines comprising energy and resource industries, environmental and ecological systems, computer and automation sciences, risk and engineering management, human and material organisations. A lot of unsolved problems exist in all these research areas. Some examples of challenging issues are presented in this introductory paper according to a non-exhaustive selection of domains.