bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Public Concern and Awareness of National Parks in China: Evidence from Social Media Big Data and Questionnaire Data
Authors: Dou Yaquan , Wu Changhao , He Youjun
Published: February 2023

The high quality development of national parks plays an important role in promoting the formation of a reasonable, moderate and orderly land space protection pattern and building a harmonious coexistence of human and nature. However, a lack of public participation has limited the development of high-quality national parks in China. Understanding public concern and awareness of national parks is necessary for promoting greater public participation. This paper provides insight into this problem by combining Weibo and questionnaire survey data, then uses a combination of text mining, a Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) theme model, and descriptive statistics to analyze the current state of public concern and awareness of national parks. By analyzing Weibo data, we find: (1) Public concern for national parks is increasing year by year. (2) More economically developed regions may pay more attention to national parks. (3) Public concern for national parks focuses on the construction of national parks in other countries and the institutional reform and ecotourism of national parks in China. Meanwhile, we also find that: (1) Most of the public are willing to actively pay attention to the construction of national parks. (2) The public is not yet fully aware of national parks in China; for example, the number of national parks, their construction, and other issues are still not widely known. (3) Public awareness of the construction goals, functional positioning, and other issues are not generally understood. To sum up, there is still much room for the public to improve their control and awareness of national parks. Finally, we put forward some suggestions to improve the public’s concern with and awareness of national parks, which can promote public participation in their development. This study will be important for sustainable development of the natural reserve system and global biodiversity protection in China.
Sustainable Business Model of Modern Enterprises in Conditions of Uncertainty and Turbulence
Authors: Pimenowa Olena , Pimenov Serhii , Fyliuk Halyna , Sitnicki Maksym W. , Kolosha Vasylyna , Kurinskyi Dmytro
Published: February 2023

The purpose of the article is to analyze the impact of the openness of a company to stakeholders on the effectiveness of the business model of the enterprise. The hypothesis. We believe that conducting a socially responsible business, i.e., disclosing non-financial information about the activities of enterprises, leads to the improvement of their financial indicators and is therefore evidence of a more effective implementation of their business models. Methods of the study. The following methods were used in the study: analysis and synthesis, comparative, induction and deduction, scientific abstraction, decomposition and logical generalizations in the analysis of scientific literature; computational–analytical, diagnostic, tabular and economic–statistical methods to assess the effectiveness of the implementation of business models of enterprises; diagnostic, statistical, index, method of expert assessments and rating to assess the corporate sustainability and transparency of enterprises; the use of the method of integrated indicators allowed the grouping of enterprises by classes of efficiency of business models, corporate sustainability and transparency. According to results of the study, it was determined that an effective business model is formed on the basis of maximum transparency and corporate sustainability in conditions of unpredictability and instability of the external environment.
A Hierarchical Coordinated Control Strategy for Power Quality Improvement in Energy Router Integrated Active Distribution Networks
Authors: Cui Xianyang , Liu Yulong , Yuan Ding , Jin Tao , Mohamed Mohamed A.
Published: February 2023

The energy router (ER) is a current power electronic device which can integrate distributed energy, provide power for different types of loads, and simultaneously realize the free flow of energy. In traditional active distribution networks, power quality is affected due to the access of photovoltaics (PV) and various loads. Hence, this problem can be improved by accessing the ER. This paper shows the power quality improvement of the grid when the ER is used to integrate PV, energy storage, and AC/DC loads. At the same time, an energy coordination strategy for ER is proposed. The IEEE 13 node model is developed to analyze power quality fluctuations when distributed energy and AC/DC loads are directly connected to the grid. For the power quality analysis, five indicators were selected and the hierarchical analysis method was used to obtain the indicators of power quality. After the use of ER under the coordinated control of ER, the energy is distributed twice and the power quality of the grid improves. The feasibility of ER topology and the control strategy have been verified through an established active distribution networks model with ER. It is verified that when the ER is connected to active distribution networks, the power quality improves accordingly, and it can effectively deal with the characteristics of distributed energy fluctuations and improve the flexibility of the power grid.
A Study on Model of Psychotherapy Narration Focused on Mental Well-Being for Stress Management in the Elderly
Authors: Kim Eunyoung , Kim Seongjoon , Rhee Jongtae
Published: February 2023

Psychological well-being is vitally important for the quality of life of the elderly and is only increasing in importance with the rapidly increasing elderly population worldwide. Emerging elderly problems include a deterioration in physical function, loss of friends or spouse, reduced social participation, and reduced economic ability. Hence, the importance of coping with and managing stress in the elderly is also rapidly increasing. This study proposed psychotherapy narration was designed to assist elderly mental well-being by combining person-centered therapy, positive psychology, and cognitive behavioral therapy. Extending from current mainstream psychotherapeutic methods, postmodern psychotherapeutic techniques based on various psychological theories or techniques have begun to be more widely applied. However, almost no previous studies have developed a systematic psychotherapy narration for the elderly. Therefore, this study developed a postmodern psychotherapeutic narration and confirmed its aspects by analyzing elderly satisfaction regarding the corresponding emotion. This satisfaction analysis study found the value of the psychotherapy-narrative model according to the elderly’s stressful situations and emotions. This study can be an initial model of postmodernist-psychotherapy narration for the elderly. Therefore, based on the model of this study, future-oriented development and research on the diversity of the elderly and the effects of each narration are important. The future of this study will give mental self-sustainability to clients who need psychotherapy.
Have China’s Regional Carbon Emissions Trading Schemes Promoted Industrial Resource Allocation Efficiency? The Evidence from Heavily Polluted Industries at the Provincial Level
Authors: Lu Chunhua , Li Hong
Published: February 2023

Based on the data of A-share listed companies in China, this paper examines how China’s regional carbon emissions trading scheme (ETS) affects the resource allocation efficiency of China’s provincial heavily polluted industries through the DID method. The empirical results show that China’s regional carbon ETSs have reduced the TFP dispersion of enterprises in the industry, thus improving the industries’ resource allocation efficiency. The heterogeneity analysis shows that China’s regional carbon ETSs have more significantly promoted the resource allocation efficiency in industries with high competition and high external financing dependence, while the policy effects in industries with low competition and low external financing dependence are less significant. Further mechanism analysis shows that, on the one hand, China’s regional carbon ETSs have promoted the flow of capital resources from low-TFP enterprises to high-TFP enterprises. On the other hand, China’s regional carbon ETSs have promoted low-TFP enterprises to improve TFP to a higher degree than high-TFP enterprises, which reduces the TFP dispersion among different enterprises in the industry. In addition, China’s regional carbon ETSs have promoted the market share of high-TFP enterprises and restricted low-TFP enterprises entering the market, which raises the TFP threshold for new enterprises entering the market.
A Conceptualization of Tourists’ Food Behavior from a Habit Perspective
Authors: Wang Saerom
Published: February 2023

This research aims to conceptually delineate how tourists make food consumption decisions in line with their home habits and why they may or may not follow their habitual trajectory. Grounded in an extensive review of the existing literature, concepts of habit and food behavior are synthesized to outline a series of propositions in explaining tourists’ food behavior from the habit perspective. Subsequently, a conceptual model is proposed for tourists’ food behavior and habits. Habit enacting factors have been identified in explicating the underlying processes through which tourists make food choices in line with their habits. This article highlights how tourists’ food behavior while on a trip can be dependent on their habitual food behavior at home. The findings of this research not only contribute to expanding the understanding regarding characteristics of habitual behavior that have been studied under limited contexts, but also establishes a theoretically valuable extension of prior research on tourists’ food behavior.
Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Policy Analysis in China: A Framework of Policy Instrumentation and Industrial Chain
Authors: Wang Xin , Wang Jinfeng , Xu Chunqiu , Zhang Ke , Li Guo
Published: February 2023

As a strategic guarantee for the rapid development of electric vehicles, the construction and development of electric vehicle charging infrastructure (EVCI) is closely related to the industrial policies formulated by the government. This paper takes policy texts relevant to EVCI in China since 2014 as the research materials, taking policy instruments and the industrial chain as analysis dimensions. Policy content analysis is conducted to explore the EVCI policy content, structure characteristics of policy instruments, and evolution characteristics of EVCI policy in China. Our research reveals that China’s EVCI policy system is relatively perfect, but the use of policy instruments is not balanced and, in particular, is not coordinated with the EVCI industrial chain they supported. In this regard, the government should pay more attention to the use of demand-side policy instrument to enhance the driving force for the development of the EVCI industry. With more scientific and reasonable arrangement of the distribution and implementation of policy instruments in the EVCI industrial chain, the benign development of China’s EVCI industry can be promoted. This research contributes to strengthening the management and policy instrumentation of the central Chinese government, in order to support the realization of good governance of EVCI and the new energy vehicle development.
Establishment of a Thermal Comfort Model for Young Adults with Physiological Parameters in Cold and Hot Stimulation
Authors: Cheng Chin-Chi , Tsai Hsin-Han , Chin Ding-Yuan , Lee Dasheng
Published: February 2023

From the ASHRAE Global Thermal Comfort Database II, several researchers in East and South Asia utilized personal and environmental variables to establish the thermal comfort model. Body temperatures at several locations were the most utilized personal input. The collected papers from 2003 to 2022 were utilized to analyze the progressive development of the thermal comfort model by using VOSviewer. The results indicate that scant research discusses the relationship between multiple physiological parameters and thermal comfort index under dynamic environments and neutral thermal comfort threshold. Therefore, this study establishes the physiological thermal comfort model under cold and hot environments for young subjects in Asia. The results indicate that people are more sensitive to cold stimulation than hot due to the cold sensors of human skin closing to the surface. The human temperature-regulated mechanism operates spontaneously to manage heat conservation and dissipation during cold/hot stimulation. During cold/hot stimulations, the neutral thermal comfort threshold of three physiological parameters adjusts with the level and properties of the stimulation. For the TSV models established by the single physiological parameter, the forehead skin temperature had a closer relationship with TSV than the other two parameters. However, the TSV model established by the multiple physiological parameters is the closest one to TSV among them all. This information could benefit air conditioner manufacturers and household occupancy decision makers to select a better controlling strategy for air conditioners for saving air-conditioning electricity but not sacrificing dwelling comfort.
A Social Resources Perspective of Employee Innovative Behavior and Outcomes: A Moderated Mediation Model
Authors: Li Li , Bai Xinwen , Zhou Yiyong
Published: February 2023

Employee innovation is becoming increasingly important when organizations strive for sustainable competitive advantage. Different from previous research on employee innovation and relational/structural perspectives of social networks, the present study is the first attempt to empirically examine how social resources per se influence employee innovation. Drawing on social-resources theory, this study proposes that social resources for innovation boost employee innovation, which is strengthened by supervisor support. By conducting a field survey on 154 employees in a high-tech company and collecting the archival data of their innovative outputs, we found that employees who can access and mobilize more social resources demonstrate more innovative behavior and subsequently achieve better outputs, such as patents and invention disclosures. Supervisor support amplifies social resources’ effects on employee innovative behavior and innovative outcomes. This study contributes to the literature on social networks and employee innovation by introducing a new theoretical perspective. Practically, it also adds new insights to boost innovation performance from a social-resources approach.
Factors That Influence the Livelihood Resilience of Flood Control Project Resettlers: Evidence from the Lower Yellow River, China
Authors: Duan Yuefang , Chen Shaopeng , Zeng Yan , Wang Xuetong
Published: February 2023

Land requisition and resettlement of migrants are two major parts of flood control projects. After a large land area was allocated for flood control projects, livelihood resilience of resettlers became a great challenge. In this paper, Puyang County, Taiqian County, and Fan County, Henan Province, China, are chosen for a household survey. An index system to assess farming households’ livelihood resilience is constructed. After that, regression analysis and variance analysis are adopted to examine influencing factors of resettlers’ livelihood resilience. Results suggest the following: (1) Livelihood resilience of resettled farming households is on the whole lower than that of non-resettled farming households; (2) Response to policies, family scale, livelihood strategy, and skill training are major influencing factors of resettled farming households’ livelihood resilience; (3) Compared with other types of farming households, livelihood resilience of farming households with land expropriated is significantly different. In order to enhance resettlers’ livelihood resilience, the government should expand the application scope of follow-up support policies of reservoir resettlement, enhance capability construction of resettlement management departments, strengthen support for resettlers’ employment, combine resettlement with rural revitalization strategy, and improve the social security system for flood control project resettlers.
Modelling Road Work Zone Crashes’ Nature and Type of Person Involved Using Multinomial Logistic Regression
Authors: Vieira Adriana , Santos Bertha , Picado-Santos Luís
Published: February 2023

The sustainable development goals “Good health and well-being” and “Sustainable cities and communities” of the United Nations and World Health Organization, alert governments and researchers and raise awareness about road safety problems and the need to mitigate them. In Portugal, after the economic crisis of 2008–2013, a significant amount of road assets demand investment in maintenance and rehabilitation. The areas where these actions take place are called work zones. Considering the particularities of these areas, the proposed work aims to identify the main factors that impact the occurrence of work zones crashes. It uses the statistical technique of multinomial logistic regression, applied to official data on road crashes occurred in mainland Portugal, during the period of 2010–2015. Usually, multinomial logistic regression models are developed for crash and injury severity. In this work, the feasibility of developing predictive models for crash nature (collision, run off road and running over pedestrians) and for type of person involved in the crash (driver, passenger and pedestrian), considering only one covariate (the number of persons involved in the crash), was studied. For the two predictive models obtained, the variables road environment (urban/rural), horizontal geometric design (straight/curve), pavement grip conditions (good/bad), heavy vehicle involvement, and injury severity (fatalities, serious and slightly injuries), were identified as the preponderant factors in a universe of 230 investigated variables. Results point to an increase of work zone crash probability due to driver actions such as running straight and excessive speed for the prevailing conditions.
The Effects of Financial Attitudes, Financial Literacy and Health Literacy on Sustainable Financial Retirement Planning: The Moderating Role of the Financial Advisor
Authors: Mustafa Wan Mashumi Wan , Islam Md. Aminul , Asyraf Muhammad , Hassan Md. Sharif , Royhan Pradip , Rahman Shafiqur
Published: February 2023

Financial planning for retirement is essential to ensure that people have enough money to live the lifestyle they desire when they retire. Self-employed business owners in developed countries widely do financial retirement planning. However, in Malaysia, the percentage of self-employed individuals concerned about financial retirement planning is lower than in other countries. This study aims to identify the relationship between the financial attitude, financial literacy and health literacy of self-employed individuals toward sustainable financial retirement planning in Malaysia and find out the moderating effect of the role of financial advisors. The study utilized structural equation modelling. Data were collected through a survey questionnaire and analyzed using SMART PLS 3.3. The total sample size was 416 self-employed individuals from the northern Malaysian region. The findings revealed that financial attitude and financial literacy significantly impact retirement planning. Moreover, the role of financial advisors moderates the relationship between financial attitude–financial retirement planning and financial literacy–financial retirement planning. The result of the study will fulfil the needs of self-employed individuals to plan their retirement by including the financial planning determinants needed for a well-planned retirement.
Geothermal Pavements: Experimental Testing, Prototype Testing, and Numerical Analysis of Recycled Demolition Wastes
Authors: Ghorbani Behnam , Arulrajah Arul , Narsilio Guillermo A. , Horpibulsuk Suksun , Buritatum Apinun
Published: February 2023

Geothermal pavements have the potential to reduce the pavement surface temperature by circulating fluid in pipes within the pavement structure. This research investigated an innovative geothermal pavement system with multiple benefits, such as reducing the surface temperature and harvesting heat energy for power generation. This research aimed to provide an understanding of the mechanical properties of geothermal pavements constructed with construction and demolition (C&D) waste materials through large-scale physical testing, experimental testing, small-scale prototype testing, and numerical simulation. The mechanical properties of the geothermal pavement system were assessed under long-term traffic loading conditions using a prototype test system. The repeated load triaxial and repeated-load California bearing ratio tests were also undertaken to evaluate the effect of pipe inclusion on the permanent deformation, stiffness, and strength of the pavement base. A numerical model was subsequently developed and calibrated using the data from small-scale prototype testing. In addition, the effects of the flow rate and pipe materials on the thermal performances of the geothermal pavements were also investigated in this research. The inclusion of pipes in the pavement base layer was found to have negligible detrimental effects on the deformation behavior of RCA. The resilient moduli of recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) samples slightly decreased with the inclusion of pipes. An HDPE pipe reduced the stiffness of the RCA + HDPE mix. On the other hand, a copper pipe’s high stiffness improved the mix’s strength. The numerical simulations indicated that for the HDPE pipe, increasing the flow rate from 500 mL/min to 2000 mL/min reduced the surface temperature by approximately 1.3%, while using the copper pipe resulted in an approximately 4% further decrease in the surface temperature compared to the HDPE pipe.
Enhancing Organizational Resilience through Mindful Organizing
Authors: Buranapin Siriwut , Limphaibool Wiphawan , Jariangprasert Nittaya , Chaiprasit Kemakorn
Published: February 2023

Organizational resilience and mindfulness are inextricably connected and have specific characteristics related to responding to challenging events. This mixed-method research study aimed to explore the relationship between mindful organizing and organizational resilience. A qualitative critical incident analysis was conducted with executives to explore insights into mindfulness and resilience at the organizational level. Using the analysis of a moment structures (AMOS) program, the structural equation modeling method was employed to assess the relationships between mindfulness, mindful organizing, and organizational resilience. A total of 639 usable cross-sectional questionnaires from diverse organizations in Thailand were used for data analysis. The findings of the current study reveal that mindful organizing has a positive influence on organizational resilience. This paper discusses the implications and limitations of these findings, along with suggestions for future research.
Digital Marketing’s Impact on Rural Destinations’ Image, Intention to Visit, and Destination Sustainability
Authors: Rodrigues Sónia , Correia Ricardo , Gonçalves Ramiro , Branco Frederico , Martins José
Published: February 2023

The relevance of the tourism industry to the overall sustainability of rural territories grows along with the demand for rural tourism destinations. Likewise, as the digital transition of rural tour operators takes place, their marketing initiatives also evolve towards a digital nature, which is why it is crucial to comprehend how the overall calibre of these activities might affect the perception of rural places, while also motivating tourists’ travel intentions and, as a result, promoting the general sustainability of the destination. Thus, in this paper, we propose a novel conceptual model based on Delone and McLean’s representative model of Information Systems Success Model, on Tan and Wu’s arguments on tourism destinations’ image relationship with tourists’ visit intentions, and also on Verma’s tourism destination brand equity concept. To validate the proposed model, an online focus group was developed involving several specialists whose opinions and perspectives corroborated the potential adequacy of the proposed artefact and, consequently, assumed its contribution and value. From this validation process, it was possible to highlight that digital marketing initiatives’ overall quality influences both rural destinations’ image and tourists’ intention to visit these territories, that a positive image will trigger tourists’ visit behaviour, and that these behaviours represent a valuable asset to rural destinations’ global sustainability.
Community Governance Based on Sentiment Analysis: Towards Sustainable Management and Development
Authors: Zhang Xudong , Yan Zejun , Wu Qianfeng , Wang Ke , Miao Kelei , Wang Zhangquan , Chen Yourong
Published: February 2023

The promotion of community governance by digital means is an important research topic in developing smart cities. Currently, community governance is mostly based on reactive response, which lacks timely and proactive technical means for emergency monitoring. The easiest way for residents to contact their properties is to call the property call center, and the call centers of many properties store many speech data. However, text sentiment classification in community scenes still faces challenges such as small corpus size, one-sided sentiment feature extraction, and insufficient sentiment classification accuracy. To address such problems, we propose a novel community speech text sentiment classification algorithm combining two-channel features and attention mechanisms to obtain effective emotional information and provide decision support for the emergency management of public emergencies. Firstly, text vectorization based on word position information is proposed, and a SKEP-based community speech–text enhancement model is constructed to obtain the corresponding corpus. Secondly, a dual-channel emotional text feature extraction method that integrates spatial and temporal sequences is proposed to extract diverse emotional features effectively. Finally, an improved cross-entropy loss function suitable for community speech text is proposed for model training, which can achieve sentiment analysis and obtain all aspects of community conditions. The proposed method is conducive to improving community residents’ sense of happiness, satisfaction, and fulfillment, enhancing the effectiveness and resilience of urban community governance.
A Critical Realist Approach to Reflexivity in Sustainability Research
Authors: Nastar Maryam
Published: February 2023

In sustainability science, the research is expected to go beyond disciplinary thinking and incorporate different concepts, methods, and data to explore nature–society interactions at different levels and scales. In realizing these expectations, reflexivity is often noted as an influential factor in inter- and transdisciplinary research processes in sustainability science, wherein researchers reflect on their assumptions, judgments, roles, and positions in the research processes, rethink their ways of knowing and doing, and open up new possibilities for actions. Despite the growing literature on the notion of reflexivity in sustainability science and how it emerges during the research processes, the debates and discussions are often based on lessons learned from sustainability research projects, drawing on individuals’ experiences and motivations. This paper aims to grapple with the notion of reflexivity from a structural point of view, which is less discussed in sustainability research, by drawing on critical realist literature. The paper first presents how reflexivity is understood and analyzed in inter- and transdisciplinary research processes by reviewing the recent studies of reflexivity in sustainability science research. Second, it highlights the knowledge gaps and the need to engage with an alternative view on reflexivity offered by Margaret Archer, one of the leading critical realist scholars. Third, it takes Archer’s framework on reflexivity into sustainability research to explain the causal mechanisms impeding the emergence of meta-reflexivity in the process of knowledge integration and production in contemporary marketized and managerialized universities. Finally, the paper argues that in establishing practices (modus vivendi) that could address the structural barriers (not observable challenges), we need collective agency. To this end, it discusses different collective initiatives and courses of action that could lead to the emergence of collective agency, capable of tackling the cultural and material barriers to reflexivity.
Impact of Green Transformational Leadership on Employees’ Environmental Performance in the Hotel Industry Context: Does Green Work Engagement Matter?
Authors: Suliman Mohamed Ahmed , Abdou Ahmed Hassan , Ibrahim Moatazbellah Farid , Al-Khaldy Dayal Ali Waheer , Anas Ashraf Mohamed , Alrefae Wael Mohamed Mahmoud , Salama Wagih
Published: February 2023

This study primarily aimed to investigate the impact of green transformational leadership on employees’ environmental performance and green work engagement in the hotel business. In addition to this, it sought to empirically examine the potential mediating effect of green work engagement in the association amid green transformational leadership and employees’ environmental performance in three- and four-star hotels in Egypt. For this purpose, a questionnaire was designed and sent to the chosen workforce to ascertain their thoughts on the study’s components (GTL, green work engagement, and hotel employees’ environmental performance) using their connections with HR managers and hotel staff at popular Egyptian tourist sites. The questionnaire was organized to take account of four main aspects: (1) the demographic attributes of the investigated participants, (2) green transformational leadership matters, (3) green work engagement, and (4) employees’ environmental performance matters. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed with a bootstrapping technique to examine the study’s hypotheses. The findings of the study revealed that green transformational leadership has a significant positive effect on green work engagement and environmental performance among hotel employees. Furthermore, the link between green transformational leadership and the hotel employees’ environmental performance was found to be significantly positively and partially affected by green work engagement.
Development and Standardization of an Innovative Scale for Measuring the Socio-Economic Status of Agroforestry Farmers in South Gujarat, India
Authors: Deshmukh Harshavardhan , Dobriyal Manmohan , Tandel Minalkumar B. , Gunaga Rajesh , Sharma Om Prakash , Garde Yogesh A. , Thakare Umesh , Kunwar Ripu , Chavan Sangram , Salunkhe Sumit , Thakur Narender Singh , Singh Narendra , Chinchmalatpure Umesh , Mevada Ram
Published: February 2023

Although trees in the agroforestry system play diverse roles in meeting the food, fodder, wood, and energy requirements of the agrarian community, their multifunctional contribution often remains understudied, especially while assessing the socio-economic status (SES) of farmers. Therefore, we conceptualized, developed, and standardized an instrument to appraise the SES of the farmers who practice agroforestry in semi-arid and sub-humid regions of India. We also determined the consistent performance of the scale by testing the reliability using the test–retest method. We found that the validity of the scale was accepted with a high correlation, confirming the validity and reliability of the new scale. We also prepared certain norms to identify different socioeconomic levels of agroforestry farmers. The scale used 9 major, 14 moderate, and 115 relevant minor indicators to address the dynamism of the SES and the diversification of farming systems. The proposed scale was specially designed and elastic in nature so that it has a wide scope regarding local applicability and utility, such as in multi-farming systems. Hence, this scale might be considered for measuring the SES of farmers who practice agroforestry at cross-regional and national levels.
A Methodological Tool to Integrate Theoretical Concepts in Climate Change Adaptation to Spatial Planning
Authors: Salata Konstantina-Dimitra , Yiannakou Athena
Published: February 2023

Climate change adaptation has become an important policy domain, as it has the potential to substantially reduce many of the adverse impacts of climate change. Several scientific terms and general concepts have been used to comprehend adaptation, including vulnerability, exposure, sensitivity, adaptability, and resilience. However, most of these concepts are often used in inconsistent ways and their relationship is to a large extent unclear. As a result, there is a lack of clear understanding of adaptation and its practical implementation in fields such as spatial planning, whose role in tackling climate change, especially through ecosystem approaches, is critical. This paper attempts to investigate the practical integration of adaptation in the context of spatial planning, specifically through Green Infrastructure (GI) planning. Applying a thematic analysis to 91 scientific and major policy documents, the main determinants of the critical concepts that relate to adaptation were identified, classified, and intertwined with key determinants of GI planning and design. The analysis led to the development of a methodological tool, named REAd GrIn. This model can be used to prepare and evaluate spatial plans and policies, which integrate the concepts of resilience, vulnerability, and adaptability to achieve adaptation through spatial planning.
The Acceptance Model of Smart City Service: Focused on Seoul
Authors: Lee Seulki
Published: February 2023

The goal of providing smart city services is not only simply building smart technology and infrastructure but also improving the quality of life of citizens who use smart city services and have positive experiences. This requires establishing service supply strategies considering citizens’ satisfaction levels by identifying the factors that affect the will or behavior of citizens who use smart city services. However, decision making regarding smart city policies and service supply in Korea is conducted through the central government-centered top-down mode, which lacks the consideration of how to improve citizens’ satisfaction levels or their intention to use technology. Thus, we proposed an acceptance model for smart city services, which is a theoretical model that offers a foundation for a model to evaluate the interaction levels of citizens toward smart city services based on the technology acceptance model, which is the most widely used tool to evaluate what factors affect the acceptance and use of information technology and system-based services. In addition, we defined research models by discussing previous studies that proposed factors that affect the acceptance of smart city and U-City services and urban public services. To empirically verify the research models proposed herein, we surveyed citizens in Seoul and conducted structural equation modeling using AMOS 28. As a result, we derived a total of eight factors (Quality, User Characteristics, Positive Attitude, Perceived Risk, Social Influence, Perceived Ease of Use, Perceived Usefulness, and Acceptance Intention) that affected the acceptance of smart city services and 42 assessment items from these factors. The results of this study are expected to be foundational data for establishing policies and systems for the improvement of citizens’ interaction level and continuous use of smart city services.
Healthcare Built Environment and Telemedicine Practice for Social and Environmental Sustainability
Authors: Sun Chongling , Chrysikou Evangelia , Savvopoulou Eleftheria , Hernandez-Garcia Eva , Fatah gen. Schieck Ava
Published: February 2023

The practice of telemedicine started at the beginning of the 20th century but has never been widely implemented, even though it is significantly sustainable compared to traveling to healthcare However, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic pushed organisations and patients to accept this technology. During the pandemic, telemedicine consultations took place in ad hoc environments without much preparation and planning. As a result, there is a knowledge gap in the field between telemedicine’s clinical care services and healthcare built environment, in terms of design. This research focused on addressing the quality of service and experience of telemedicine in primary healthcare settings and how this could be influenced by the digital infrastructure. Our aim was to understand the correlations between telemedicine and healthcare built environment and whether the latter could have a significant impact on telemedicine practice. The methodology included interviews with professionals involved in healthcare planning, architecture and ethnography, and end user research involving telemedicine sessions. The interviews highlighted that professionals involved in the design of healthcare environments demonstrated limited consideration of telemedicine environments. Yet, the ethnographic, end-user research identified areas where the telemedicine environment could affect user experience and should be taken into consideration in the design of such spaces.
An Explanatory Model of Materiality in Sustainability Accounting: Integrating Accountability and Stakeholder Heterogeneity
Authors: Zhou Yining , Lamberton Geoff , Charles Michael B.
Published: February 2023

This study aims to advance the conceptualisation of materiality in sustainability accounting by tackling theoretical deficiencies that remain unresolved in the current understanding of materiality. In doing so, we integrate accountability and stakeholder heterogeneity into a new conceptual model of materiality that is used to explain how an organisation sets priorities in reporting and in managing different sustainability issues in a heterogeneous stakeholder environment. The model is illustrated with reference to events involving the multinational organisation Exxon. The empirical accounts of the Exxon case presented herein fortify our knowledge claims for this model and, moreover, confirm its explanatory potential with respect to the materiality phenomenon, including how unaccountable behaviour is dealt with in materiality practices.
Environmental Information Disclosure-Environmental Costs Nexus: Evidence from Heavy Pollution Industry in China
Authors: Wang Liping , Shang Yuqi , Li Shuqin , Li Chuang
Published: February 2023

Environmental disclosure has gained momentum in the past decades due to increasing pressure from different stakeholders, especially in Chinese practice. In the background, previous research focused on the financial performance of environmental information disclosure, and little literature discussed the nexus between environmental information disclosure and environmental costs. The paper made an initial attempt to link environmental disclosure to different aspects of environmental costs (i.e., quality, enterprise size, market orientation, and ownership) based on 234 listed enterprises of heavy pollution industry from Shanghai and Shenzhen A-shares in China from 2013 to 2017. The results showed the following: (i) Environmental information disclosure increased environmental costs in the short term, but the long-term effects were not significant; (ii) Enterprise size could weaken the positive impact of environmental information disclosure on environmental costs; (iii) marketization disrupted the positive link between environmental information disclosure and environmental costs; (iv) Enterprise ownership (state-owned vs. private) had an insignificant effect on the environmental information disclosure and environmental costs nexus. This study could identify the causes of inertia in environmental information disclosure from the perspective of environmental costs, so as to provide practical guidance for activating the initiative of corporate environmental information disclosure.
Coupling Coordination Relationship and Dynamic Response between Urbanization and Urban Resilience: Case of Yangtze River Delta
Authors: Peng Kunjie , He Xiaorong , Xu Chunxiao
Published: February 2023

In the context of rapid urbanization, urban resilience, as a new way of thinking to seek solutions to urban risk crises, has become an important direction and a new development trend in the continued acceleration of urbanization. This study takes the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) as the study object, establishes a comprehensive evaluation index system of urbanization and urban resilience from a multi-dimensional perspective based on the improved entropy value method, and uses the coupling coordination degree (CCD) model, the kernel density estimation method, and the exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA) method to investigate the spatio-temporal evolution trends of the CCD level of urbanization and urban resilience. Further, the dynamic response relationship of the coupling between the two systems is revealed by the PVAR model. The study results are shown as follows: (1) The urbanization level and the urban resilience level show a box-shaped clustering of overall urbanization values and urban resilience values, with a widening absolute gap between extreme value cities. (2) The kernel density estimates of CCD values for urbanization and urban resilience show an upward trend in the overall level of CCD, with regional integration replacing multi-level differentiation. (3) The level of CCD shows a continuous upward trend in terms of the spatial distribution characteristics of CCD, and the high-class area shows regional integration. (4) The spatial agglomeration trend of CCD continues to develop, reaching a region-wide hot spot agglomeration. (5) The PVAR model indicates that there is a dynamic response relationship between the urbanization system and the urban resilience system. Finally, based on the above research results, this study gives policy recommendations for the coordination and sustainable development of the urbanization system and the urban resilience system, providing some academic references for the relevant departments in the YRD to accelerate urbanization, enhance the urban resilience level, and promote regional integration.
Factors Affecting the Usage Intention of Environmental Sustainability Management Tools: Empirical Analysis of Adoption of Greenhouse Gas Protocol Tools by Firms in Two Countries
Authors: Ning Xue , Lu Yang , Yim Dobin , Khuntia Jiban
Published: February 2023

Mitigating the greenhouse gas (GHG) emission problem is one efficient way to respond to climate change challenges. Firms must proactively manage GHG emissions, with increasing pressure from various stakeholders to be environmentally responsible. GHG Protocol Tools help in managing GHG emissions. However, besides responsibility, the factors that influence the adoption and implementation of GHG Protocol Tools is sparsely investigated in empirical research, although studies point to different benefits and pressures influencing adoption. This study examines the factors affecting GHG Protocol Tool usage in organizations in China and South Korea. We consider two contrasting perspectives, affordance-based perceived benefits and constraint-based perceived pressures through imitating others, for GHG Protocol Tool adoption. Survey data from samples of firms from both countries are used for analysis. Results of empirical analyses indicate that perceived benefits and pressures have a positive relationship with the usage intention of GHG Protocol Tools. In comparison, the perceived benefits play a more critical role than the perceived pressures. Comparative analysis is conducted to explore the differences between Chinese and Korean firms, and study implications are discussed.
An Eco-Friendly Modification of a Walnut Shell Biosorbent for Increased Efficiency in Wastewater Treatment
Authors: Enache Andra-Cristina , Samoila Petrisor , Cojocaru Corneliu , Apolzan Roxana , Predeanu Georgeta , Harabagiu Valeria
Published: February 2023

Herein, we report the performance of some low-cost biosorbents developed by environment-friendly modification of walnut shells. Two types of biosorbents were prepared by ecological modification of walnut shell surfaces: (1) biosorbents obtained by hot water treatment (WSH2O) and (2) biosorbents produced by mercerization (WSNaOH). Different techniques were used to evaluate the morphological, elemental, and structural modification of the biosorbents, by comparison with raw materials. These characterization techniques involved scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray analysis, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The biosorbents were employed for the removal of methylene blue (MB) and crystal violet (CV) cationic dyes (as model organic pollutants) from aqueous solutions. The kinetic adsorption data mainly followed the pseudo-first-order model. The maximum adsorption capacities of the produced biosorbents ranged from 102 to 110 mg/g and were observed at 330 K. Equilibrium data for adsorption were fitted to Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models. The calculated values of thermodynamic parameters suggested that the investigated adsorption processes were exergonic (ΔG < 0) and exothermic (ΔH < 0). In addition, a possible valorization of the cost-effective and eco-friendly spent biosorbents was tested by performing secondary adsorption of the anionic dyes.
Sustainable Yield Prediction in Agricultural Areas Based on Fruit Counting Approach
Authors: Saddik Amine , Latif Rachid , Abualkishik Abedallah Zaid , El Ouardi Abdelhafid , Elhoseny Mohamed
Published: February 2023

A sustainable yield prediction in agricultural fields is a very critical task that aims to help farmers have an idea about agricultural operations. Generally, we can find a variety of applications proposed for this purpose that include fruit counting. These applications are based on Artificial Intelligence, especially Deep Learning (DL) and Machine Learning (ML) approaches. These approaches give reliable counting accuracy, but the problem is the use of a large database to achieve the desired accuracy. That makes these approaches limited. For this reason, in this work, we propose a low-complexity algorithm that aims to count green and red apples based on our real dataset collected in the Moroccan region, Fes-Meknes. This algorithm allowed us to further increase sustainability in agricultural fields based on yield prediction. The proposed approach was based on HSV conversion and the Hough transform for fruit counting. The algorithm was divided into three blocks based on image acquisition and filtering for the first block. The second block is the conversion to HSV and the detection of fruits. Finally, the counting operation for the third block. Subsequently, we proposed an implementation based on the low-cost Raspberry system and a desktop. The results show that we can reach 15 fps in the case of the Raspberry architecture and 40 fps based on the desktop. Our proposed system can inform agricultural policy by providing accurate and timely information on crop production, which can be used to guide decisions on food supply and distribution.