bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Solar—A New Open Access Journal for Solar Technologies
Authors: Werner Juergen H.
Published: August 2021

Climate change and the consequential environmental catastrophes are real, not only in less developed countries of the so-called “Global South” but also in so-called industrialized and “well-developed” areas of the world! Just within the last few months and years, we have seen high-temperature records in the United States, fire disasters in Canada, Australia, Greece, Italy, and Spain [...]
The Effect of Land Management Practices on Soil Quality Indicators in Crete
Authors: Kairis Orestis , Aratzioglou Chrysoula , Filis Athanasios , van Mol Michel , Kosmas Costas
Published: August 2021

The effects of four main practices tillage versus no-tillage, and intensive grazing versus extensive grazing, applied in characteristic agricultural and grazing lands of Crete Island were evaluated in situ using nine soil quality indicators. The following nine representative indicators of soil quality were evaluated using the rapid visual assessment methodology adopted at European level in the context of the EU research project iSQAPER: susceptibility to water and wind erosion, surface ponding (under cropping), formation of tillage pan, soil color, soil porosity, soil structure, susceptibility to slaking, infiltration rate, and biodiversity status. These indicators were measured in 48 agricultural field-plots to adequately represent the four above-mentioned practices and the different types of geomorphological patterns existing in the area. Additionally, 38 agricultural fields were sampled in the topsoil to assess cultivation practices (tillage, no-tillage) on soil organic carbon, cation exchange capacity, exchangeable potassium, available phosphorous, and soil aggregate stability. Based on the indicators rating methodology, the appropriate statistical tests were applied and the soils under different managements were characterized in terms of their potential quality and their general agricultural value. The obtained data showed that in agricultural areas, significant differences were detected between tillage and no-tillage management practices for the indicators of soil structure and consistency and infiltration rate. In grazing land, significant differences were found for the soil quality indicators of susceptibility to erosion and infiltration rate for the corresponding practices of intensive and extensive grazing. Organic carbon content, exchangeable potassium content and aggregate stability were greatly affected in tillage versus no-tillage management practices.
Exploring the Potential Risk of Heavy Metal Pollution of Edible Cultivated Plants in Urban Gardening Contexts Using a Citizen Science Approach in the Project “Heavy Metal City-Zen”
Authors: Ziss Elisabeth , Friesl-Hanl Wolfgang , Götzinger Sophia , Noller Christoph , Puschenreiter Markus , Watzinger Andrea , Hood-Nowotny Rebecca
Published: August 2021

Urban gardening has become increasingly popular, creating green oases in cities; however, many of these activities are undertaken in areas of high traffic density or on ex-brown field sites. As a consequence, there are still some barriers to the adoption of these urban gardening practices for food production. One of the public concerns is the transfer of urban pollutants such as heavy metals into the consumer’s food chain, however, city-wide data is often difficult and expensive to collect. In the citizen science project described herein, we conducted simple citizen-led common collaborative experiments in urban community gardens. These data provided information on the potential risk of heavy metal contaminants and ways in which to mitigate those risks in an urban gardening context. Generally, values were below guideline thresholds, however, at a few garden sites, soil trace metal concentrations (Pb, Cd, Zn) exceeded Austrian recommended limits. Moreover, only at two sites were plant trace metal concentrations shown to be above European food standards limits. Given the citizen’s positive response to the project, we suggest expanding this study to the whole of Vienna, giving newly established gardens a chance to predetermine the risks posed by their local soils.
Green and Sustainable Entrepreneurial Intentions: A Mediation-Moderation Perspective
Authors: Hussain Iftikhar , Nazir Mehrab , Hashmi Saadia Bano , Di Vaio Assunta , Shaheen Imrab , Waseem Muhammad Arfaq , Arshad Adeel
Published: August 2021

This research was aimed to investigate the connection between the social networking sites and green entrepreneurship intentions through a mediated-moderated model. The study was based on the Shepero’s model of entrepreneurship intentions and Ajzen’s theory of planned behavior. The study design reflects that social networking sites and green entrepreneurship intentions are mediated by risk propensity and self-efficacy, while self-efficacy and green entrepreneurship intentions’ relationship is further moderated by subjective norms. A well-structured and self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from 500 respondents. The data were analyzed, and hypotheses were tested using PLS-SEM. The study findings confirmed that there exists a positive and significant link between social networking sites and green entrepreneurship intentions through the indirect effect of risk propensity and self-efficacy. However, the findings regarding moderating effect indicated that subjective norms have no significant impact between the self-efficacy and green entrepreneurship intentions. The study findings have significant academic and practical implications for government representatives, policymakers, and entrepreneurial educational institutes that can use these findings.
An Integrated Sustainable Construction Project’s Critical Success Factors (ISCSFs)
Authors: El Touny Ahmed S. , Ibrahim Ahmed H. , Mohamed Hossam H.
Published: August 2021

A construction project is a dynamic and complex process that involves the identification and accurate fulfillment of the predetermined needs and requirements of the clients by the project team. There are many challenges and constraints that prevent the achievement of these predetermined and various requirements effectively and successfully, so the project team must face and overcome these challenges by identifying all the factors that help the project’s success. However, it is still unclear how to measure success for Egyptian construction projects. Despite the fact that several lists of literature-based factors have been compiled, the individual factors appear to be tabulated rather than grouped according to some criteria to aid in the analysis of their interactions and potential consequences. As such, the objective presented in this paper was to identify and prioritize integrated sustainable critical success factors (ISCSFs) that influence the performance of Egyptian construction projects to ensure successful construction projects. Critical success factors were identified and grouped into 2 major categories—(1) internal related factors and (2) external related factors—and 10 subcategories—(1) company-related factors; (2) project-related factors; (3) project management related factors; (4) resource/procurement-related factors (labors, materials, equipment and subcontractors); (5) human capital-related factors; (6) support-related factors (financial, human resources, security and legal and administration); (7) stakeholder-related factors (clients, consultants, project managers and end-users); (8) innovation, learning and growth-related factors; (9) country-related factors; and (10) industry-related factors in three distinct stages. In total, 140 factors were gathered from the literature review in the first stage. In the second stage, a brainstorming session was held in order to reduce the number of those factors and focus on the most important ones that influence project success; thus, 100 factors were identified, filtered and developed. In the third stage, a questionnaire was created based on the significant factors identified. As a result, the 40 most important factors influencing the success of performance of construction projects have been identified, which are integrated between all factors (internal and external) and take into account the three pillars of sustainability (economic, social and environmental) as a decision-making tool to evaluate and improve project performance.
Effect of Fractured Aggregate Particles on Linear Stress Ratio of Aggregate and Resilience Properties of Asphalt Mixes—A Way Forward for Sustainable Pavements
Authors: Rizvi Mujasim Ali , Khan Ammad Hassan , Rehman Zia ur , Masoud Zubair , Inam Aasim
Published: August 2021

The interlocking and packing of aggregate particles play a key role in achieving high level of linear viscoelastic properties and rutting resistance in asphalt mix for sustainable pavements. In this study, the quantitative effect of fractured aggregate particles (FAPs) on loading (i.e., 500 kPa normal stress), along with the resilience properties of asphalt mixes, was evaluated. Linear and nonlinear stress behaviors of aggregates (from direct shear test) and asphalt mixes (from resilient modulus test) were analyzed. A new quantitative parameter (linear stress ratio), i.e., linear stress (Pi)/maximum stress (Pmax), is proposed to be used in selection of aggregates for asphalt mixes. It was observed that 15.5% increase in FAPs caused 19.5% increase in ϕ and 70.7% increase in linear stress ratio (LSR). The same content of FAPs resulted in 29.4% and 36% increases in total resilient modulus (MRT) and 34.2% and 24.5% increases in instantaneous resilient modulus (MRI) for 0.1 and 0.3 s load durations, respectively. The proposed LSR is observed to be superior to conventionally used ϕ for aggregate resistance in design of flexible pavements.
A Collaborative Trans-Regional R&D Strategy for the South Korea Green New Deal to Achieve Future Mobility
Authors: Lee Doyeon , Kim Keunhwan
Published: August 2021

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, South Korea is moving to establish a national industry strategy to reduce regional inequalities within the country through the Green New Deal. Thus, it is important to closely integrate the aim of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the Green New Deal with that of reducing deepening regional inequality from the Regionally Balanced New Deal. To accomplish these dual aims, this study provides a collaborative trans-regional R&D strategy and a precise framework with three key dimensions: regional, technological, and organizational. We demonstrate that future mobility is the most important project of the Green New Deal, comprising 1963 nationally funded projects worth USD 1285.4 million. We also illustrate the level of government investment in nationally funded research projects related to future mobility for 17 different regions and seven different technology clusters related to future mobility, and determine which research organizations played an important role in each cluster for all 17 regions between 2015 and 2020. Our results indicate that the capital region and Daejeon have high innovation capability in many future mobility-related research fields, whereas some regions have capabilities in specific research fields such as hydrogen infrastructure, indicating their relative competitiveness.
Shared Low-Speed Autonomous Vehicle System for Suburban Residential Areas
Authors: Zhou Yefang , Sato Hitomi , Yamamoto Toshiyuki
Published: August 2021

In the context of global suburbanization and population aging, a low-speed, automated vehicle (LSAV) system provides essential mobility services in suburban residential areas. Although extensive studies on shared autonomous vehicle (SAV) services have been conducted, quantitative investigations on the operation of suburban LSAV systems are limited. Based on a demonstration pilot project of an autonomous vehicle called “Slocal Automated Driving”, we investigated the performance of an SAV system considering several scenarios in Kozoji Newtown, a suburban commuter town in Japan. The agent-based simulation results revealed that 40 LSAVs can satisfy the demands of 2263 daily trips with an average wait time of 15 min. However, in the case of a high-speed scenario, the same fleet size improved the level of service (LOS) by reducing the average wait time to two and a half minutes and halving the in-vehicle time. By contrast, the wait time in terms of the average and 95th percentile of the no-sharing ride scenario drastically deteriorated to an unacceptable level. Based on the fluctuations of hourly share rates, wait times, and the number of vacant vehicles, we determined that preparing for the potential fleet insufficiency periods from 7:00–13:00 and 15:00–18:00 can improve the LOS.
Influence of Social Capital, Social Motivation and Functional Competencies of Entrepreneurs on Agritourism Business: Rural Lodges
Authors: Khazami Nesrine , Lakner Zoltan
Published: August 2021

This study is aimed at examining the relationships between social capital, social motivation and functional competencies and their effects on the participation in the development of an agritourism business among Tunisian entrepreneurs who already have rural lodges in the agritourism sector in Tunisia. The authors applied structural modeling of the partial least squares equation to analyze 100 questionnaires completed by participants and test the hypotheses. The results showed positive and direct effects concerning the two variables, namely, the social capital and functional competencies on the participation in the development of a business in agritourism. On the other hand, the mediating role of social motivation between social capital and participation in the development of an agritourism business has shown an insignificant effect. This study creates a distinctive theoretical contribution to the literature on social entrepreneurial factors by analyzing the relationships between social capital, social motivation and functional competencies of an entrepreneur on participation in the development of a business in agritourism. In addition, this study investigates numerous practical implications of these results.
Parental Education and Good Child Habits to Encourage Sustainable Littering Behavior
Authors: Herdiansyah Herdis , Brotosusilo Agus , Negoro Habibulloh Adi , Sari Ravita , Zakianis Zakianis
Published: August 2021

Proper habits formed since childhood represent the ideal head start to help keep the environment clean, although this is not a standalone vital factor for a person to dislike littering behavior. The data used in this study were derived from the compilation of primary data. This paper concerns littering behavior of children and presents a survey conducted with 2349 individuals who completed a survey with relevant items and demographic information. The respondents were sampled with a purposive random sampling survey method. Then, by means of logistic regression, we found that low-income households need to be supported by disposal facilities and formal education, while high-income households need to be supported by awareness-raising on the issue. Moreover, it was found that in terms of environmental protection during the pre-school period, self-initiative and parental assistance were not sufficient to drive individual responses on littering behavior. However, there is the need to analyze, in further research, religious education and other extrinsic and intrinsic motivations about environmental care and waste management for children.
Financial and Labour Obstacles and Firm Employment: Evidence from Europe and Central Asia Firms
Authors: Bui Anh , Pham Thu
Published: August 2021

This paper examines how obstacles in access to finance, labour regulations, and employment quality affect employment growth and the permanent worker ratio at the firm level. Using firm-level data of 11,691 firms in 33 low-income and middle-income countries in Europe and Central Asia, where unemployment rates are the highest worldwide, this paper demonstrates that access to finance and employment quality obstacles hinder employment growth. The paper also shows that the greater the obstacles in access to finance and labour regulations, the lower the permanent worker ratio. The findings are robust when applying a two-stage least-squares method to address endogeneity issues. Furthermore, quantile regression analysis shows that access to finance obstacles impede the lowest-growth firms the most and the highest-growth firms the least. Our results indicate that significant financial and regulatory reforms are needed to spur sustainable employment growth.
Exploring the Interrelationship between COVID-19 Phobia, Work–Family Conflict, Family–Work Conflict, and Life Satisfaction among School Administrators for Advancing Sustainable Management
Authors: Karakose Turgut , Yirci Ramazan , Papadakis Stamatios
Published: August 2021

This study aims to investigate the relationships between the COVID-19 phobia experienced by school administrators and their work–family conflict, family–work conflict, and life satisfaction. This descriptive research, designed according to the relational survey model, was conducted with the participation of 356 school administrators. The study data were collected through online questionnaires, and then t-test, ANOVA, correlation analysis, and simple linear regression analysis were employed for the statistical analyses. The results revealed that female school administrators experienced greater levels of COVID-19 phobia than their male peers and that COVID-19 phobia is felt more intensely in the psychological and social sub-dimensions. However, female school administrators’ life satisfaction levels were significantly higher than those of male school administrators. In the current study, it was determined that school administrators in the younger age group experienced greater levels of COVID-19 phobia and family–work/work–family conflict than their peers from other age groups. The results of this study revealed a positive and moderate relationship between school administrators’ COVID-19 phobia and their levels of both work–family and family–work conflict. The findings of the study offer significant implications for policy makers in education, showing the importance of developing strategies that will reduce the effects of the pandemic for a more sustainable and efficient employee performance.
A Methodological Approach to Designing Circular Economy Indicators for Agriculture: An Application to the Egg Sector
Authors: Rukundo Roger , Bergeron Stéphane , Bocoum Ibrahima , Pelletier Nathan , Doyon Maurice
Published: August 2021

Analysing production systems from a circular economy (CE) perspective helps to pinpoint interventions to mitigate the environmental footprint by improving resource use efficiency, waste recovery, and prolonged product usage, recycling and reuse. Few studies exist on the measurement of CE at the micro-level. Additionally, available metrics/indicators address only certain aspects of the CE’s socio-economic metabolism, ignoring important components of the CE concept. Other frameworks propose a single indicator that aggregates and summarizes several facets of CE. This study develops a holistic approach for designing indicators with a structured methodology and an analytical framework to assess CE at the micro (unit of production) level in agriculture. The proposed approach is based on the ECOGRAI method for indicator development, and on validation of the methods with experts and final users via an application to egg production in Canada. Twenty-five performance indicators (PI) were generated for 11 decision variables that were selected as important for the sector. This resulted in a practical tool that proposes fourteen actions to improve the economic circularity (EC) of egg farms. Our methodological approach could be replicated to assess CE performance in other agricultural sectors.
EDUROVs: A Low Cost and Sustainable Remotely Operated Vehicles Educational Program
Authors: Cufí Xavier , Figueras Albert , Muntaner Eduard , Calm Remei , Quevedo Eduardo , Vega Daura , Loustau Josefina , Gil José Juan , Brito Joaquín H.
Published: August 2021

EDUROV is an educational underwater robot proposal from the researchers of the Oceanic Platform of Canary Islands (PLOCAN) and the Computer Vision and Robotics research group of the University of Girona (VICOROB), launched in January 2012 with the support of the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECyT). This program has evolved in the last decade in order to make it more sustainable, allowing the teleoperation of underwater vehicles from anywhere in the world. EDUROVs have passed through several phases, beginning with a basic electronics robot, followed by the incorporation of open-source electronic prototyping platforms and finally reaching the current state of teleoperation. Results based on 1–5 Likert scale questions show that both students and teachers consider the program useful to introduce technical and scientific concepts. It is concluded that the use of low-cost materials and tools that are easy to obtain, following education on sustainability approaches, also makes them possible for use in high schools, and science teachers can easily carry out the activity. Moreover, the possibility of remote teleoperation of underwater vehicles, together with the collaboration among groups of students in different locations that are in contact through these online tools, allows one to motivate students to work on the project from a different perspective.
State Ownership and Accounting Quality: Evidence from State-Owned Enterprises in China
Authors: Gong Yu , Choi Seung Uk
Published: August 2021

The inherent problems of state-owned enterprises (SOEs), such as the lack of external monitoring, may harm their accounting quality. However, the results from prior research are not consistent. Therefore, this study investigates the effect of state ownership of SOEs on accounting quality, measured by earnings management. Using the samples of listed SOEs in the A-share market in China from 2009 to 2017, the results indicate that there is a significant and positive relationship between state ownership and earnings management. Furthermore, the results show that higher competition within the industry can effectively inhibit the negative effect of state ownership on accounting quality. Interestingly, the positive relationship between state ownership and earnings management has weakened in recent years, suggesting that the recent mixed-ownership reform of SOEs is effectively working. Collectively, current study extends prior research by focusing on SOEs in a planned economy and by combining the mixed-ownership reform with earnings management. Consequently, this study provides practical implication to regulatory bodies by showing that state ownership plays an important role in the accounting quality of SOEs.
Multi-Objective Particle Swarm Optimization-Based Decision Support Model for Integrating Renewable Energy Systems in a Korean Campus Building
Authors: Sim Minjeong , Suh Dongjun , Otto Marc-Oliver
Published: August 2021

Renewable energy systems are an alternative to existing systems to achieve energy savings and carbon dioxide emission reduction. Subsequently, preventing the reckless installation of renewable energy systems and formulating appropriate energy policies, including sales strategies, is critical. Thus, this study aimed to achieve energy reduction through optimal selection of the capacity and lifetime of solar thermal (ST) and ground source heat pump (GSHP) systems that can reduce the thermal energy of buildings including the most widely used photovoltaic (PV) systems. Additionally, this study explored decision-making for optimal PV, ST, and GSHP installation considering economic and environmental factors such as energy sales strategy and electricity price according to energy policies. Therefore, an optimization model based on multi-objective particle swarm optimization was proposed to maximize lifecycle cost and energy savings based on the target energy savings according to PV capacity. Furthermore, the proposed model was verified through a case study on campus buildings in Korea: PV 60 kW and ST 32 m2 GSHP10 kW with a lifetime of 50 years were found to be the optimal combination and capacity. The proposed model guarantees economic optimization, is scalable, and can be used as a decision-making model to install renewable energy systems in buildings worldwide.
Coalition Formation among the Cooperative Agents for Efficient Energy Consumption
Authors: Malibari Areej A. , Alghazzawi Daniyal , Lashin Maha M. A.
Published: August 2021

Energy saving is a significant research area in Saudi Arabia; however, significant problems have emerged related to its distribution and consumption. Use of an agent is assumed to combat these problems by forming efficient coalitions to control the energy consumption and energy distribution process. This study presents a novel algorithm for distributing the value calculation among the cooperative agents. This is likely to reduce the consumption of energy and extend the coalition lifetime used. The developed algorithm is compared with the basic modified coalition formation algorithm for evaluating its effectiveness. The results showed a reduction in cooling consumption by 20% after applying optimization algorithms. The amount of reduction in the cooling consumption reflects a 31% reduction in expected cooling costs, without affecting the household comfort. Therefore, the study concludes that DNsys provided better performance than the NNsys.
Science for Good Environmental Status: A European Joint Action to Support Marine Policy
Authors: Sprovieri Mario , Ribera d’Alcalà Maurizio , Roose Patrick , Drago Aldo , De Cauwer Karien , Falcini Federico , Lips Inga , Maggi Chiara , Mauffret Aourell , Tronczynski Jacek , Zeri Christina , Moretti Pier Francesco
Published: August 2021

In the last decade, several initiatives have been taken at a European level to adopt the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) by promoting coordination and stimulating integrated actions leading to consistent views on its final goal: the achievement of good environmental status (GES). In its holistic approach, the MSFD fully acknowledges the complexity and variability of marine ecosystems and demands constant scientific support for its actual implementation. Recently, the Joint Programming Initiative on “Healthy and Productive Seas and Oceans” (JPI Oceans) launched the joint action “Science for Good Environmental Status” (Science4GES), building on the contribution of different scientific disciplines and communities to better fulfill the scope of the MSFD. In this paper we illustrate and discuss a few crucial aspects of endeavors to implement the MSFD specifically implied in the definition of the metrics for the 11 descriptors and GES in its complexity, as well as improving the strategy governing its implementation. This presentation also describes the challenges, aims and implementation plan for the JPI-O joint action, where a transdisciplinary approach may help in progressing from the comprehensive and far-reaching vision of the MSFD to the achievement of a durable GES.
Evaluation of the Implementation Effect of the Ecological Compensation Policy in the Poyang Lake River Basin Based on Difference-in-Difference Method
Authors: Lu Yu , Kong Fanbin , Huang Luchen , Xiong Kai , Xu Caiyao , Wang Ben
Published: August 2021

Watershed environments play an important supporting role in sustainable high-quality economic development in China, but they have been deteriorating. In order to solve environmental problems in the Poyang Lake River Basin brought about by economic development, the Jiangxi Provincial Government promulgated relevant river basin protection policies in 2015. However, after several years of this policy, the specific effects of its implementation are a matter of general concern to the government and academic circles. After years of policy implementation, the implementation effect of the watershed ecological compensation policy needs to be evaluated. Based on 4248 observations from the Jiangxi and Hunan Provinces, we adopt the difference-in-difference method to analyze the impact of the ecological compensation policy on the Poyang Lake River Basin. The empirical results show that the ecological compensation policy has a significant effect on water-quality improvement. Water quality in the upstream area is better than that in the downstream area; areas with small administrative areas have a smaller population, which in turn leads to better water quality in the river basin; and the higher the per capita GDP, the worse the water quality. Our results highlight the need for the following policy improvements: ecological priority, customizing measures to local conditions, tracing the main body, and strengthening supervision.
Setting Up a Flipped Classroom Design to Reduce Student Academic Procrastination
Authors: Gonda Dalibor , Pavlovičová Gabriela , Tirpáková Anna , Ďuriš Viliam
Published: August 2021

The transfer of educational activities to the online environment within blended learning, which was also accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, increases the risk of growing student procrastination. This article describes the design of the flipped class, which is designed so that students are supported and motivated to continuously perform individual tasks. Great emphasis in the described design of the flipped classroom is placed on supporting students in their activities outside the classroom. It is in this part of blended learning that procrastination is a frequent cause of students’ failure, not just in mathematics. The effectiveness of our proposed inverted class design has been experimentally verified. Statistical analysis of the data showed that students had a statistically significant reduction in procrastination behavior during the course of the experiment. The proposed flipped classroom design has the potential to increase students’ self-regulatory skills, which has been reflected in a change in their approach to learning responsibilities. Students’ approach to online learning outside the classroom has changed, and thus their probability of successfully completing the combinatorics course has increased statistically significantly.
Guess What …?—How Guessed Norms Nudge Climate-Friendly Food Choices in Real-Life Settings
Authors: Griesoph Amelie , Hoffmann Stefan , Merk Christine , Rehdanz Katrin , Schmidt Ulrich
Published: August 2021

Social norms, also called social comparison nudges, have been shown to be particularly effective in promoting healthy food choices and environmentally friendly behaviors. However, there is limited evidence on the effectiveness of these nudges for promoting sustainable and climate-friendly food choices and their potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support the related SDGs. The paper reports a field experiment that tests the effectiveness of two social norms in a real-life setting based on revealed preferences. The study distinguishes between the widely researched descriptive norms and guessed norms, the latter being tested in this context for the first time. While descriptive norms communicate typical patterns of behavior (e.g., 50% of canteen visitors choose vegetarian meals), guessed norms are determined by the individual’s best guess about the norm in a specific context. The results confirm a remarkable nudging effect of guessed norms: The higher the presumed proportion of vegetarian dishes sold, the lower the probability of choosing a vegetarian dish. Surprisingly, this effect is independent of the respective norm specification (meat or vegetarian norm). The paper provides advice for policy makers about when and how to use guessed norms.
Shared E-Scooters: A Review of Uses, Health and Environmental Impacts, and Policy Implications of a New Micro-Mobility Service
Authors: Bozzi Alberica Domitilla , Aguilera Anne
Published: August 2021

Shared e-scooters refer to a micro-mobility service that enables the short rentals of e-scooters. The rapid growth of e-scooter sharing has sparked a heated discussion about its role in the urban mobility sector. This article presents a systematic review of the current knowledge on its uses and users, health and environmental impacts, and policy issues. The analysis is based on academic literature, identified with Google Scholar by using keywords and publication years from 2017, and relevant gray literature. Firstly, we highlight that the profiles of e-scooter renters seem to highly match the characteristics of other micro-mobility services users. Secondly, e-scooters are often associated with a high perception of risk from the public and an increasing occurrence of related road accidents. Thirdly, even if promoted as a green mobility option, the true environmental impact of shared e-scooters has only started to be investigated. Early studies point out negative impacts around their production, usage, and maintenance. Fourthly, the integration of shared e-scooters into the existing transport systems requires policy changes, both at the local and national level, including traffic regulations, safety rules, and physical infrastructure. Finally, this paper reveals the ambiguity of the term “e-scooter” and stresses the need for more research, as the future of cities is tied to the development of low-car lifestyles.
Techno-Assessment of the Use of Recycled Plastic Waste in RE
Authors: Biswas Wahidul K. , Zhang Xihong
Published: August 2021

Effectively consumed plastic waste is an emerging technical and social issue for Australia. Adding plastic waste into construction material and ensuring minimised impact to the mechanical performance of the construction material could bring significant benefits. In this study, plastic waste material was mixed into cement-stabilised rammed earth (RE) material for brick manufacture. Techno framework consisting of compressive strength test and split tensile strength derivation for structural performance assessment and life cycle assessment for determining EE(EE) performance was applied to compare recycled high-density polyethylene (HDPE) added RE with conventional bricks. The compressive properties of different mixtures were studied. The replacement of conventional rock aggregates in stabilised RE brick with recycled plastic waste was found to improve the structural mechanical performance with the developed composition. Following this, an EE analysis was important to assess whether these waste-based bricks can improve environmental performance in a cost-competitive manner while maintaining structural performance. The increase of recycled HDPE in RE was found to likely affect the EE performance of RE, which could possibly be overcome by using less energy-intensive cementitious materials and recycled HDPE.
Creating Sustainable Cities through Cycling Infrastructure? Learning from Insurgent Mobilities
Authors: Soliz Aryana
Published: August 2021

As policy makers grapple with rapid motorization processes, cycling facilities are gaining new urgency, offering non-polluting and affordable alternatives to automobility. At the same time, urban sustainability paradigms tend to focus on purely technical solutions to transportation challenges, leaving questions of history and social power aside. Drawing from ethnographic fieldwork in Aguascalientes Mexico, this article contributes to the transportation and mobility justice literature by focusing on the work of social movements in confronting a variety of challenges in the provision of active-transportation services. First, this research explores how social movements express and negotiate transportation-justice concerns to government and planning authorities. Next, I build on the concept of insurgent citizenship to highlight the processes through which residents contest ongoing injustices and formulate alternatives for building inclusive cities. From the creation of makeshift cycling lanes in underserved urban areas to the search for socially just alternative to policing, social movements are forging new pathways to re-envision sustainable transportation systems. These insurgent forms of citymaking—understood here as insurgent mobilities—underscore the creative role of citizens in producing the city as well as the enormous amount of care work involved in these processes.
Corporate Social Responsibility and Customer Loyalty in Food Chains—Mediating Role of Customer Satisfaction and Corporate Reputation
Authors: Ali Waris , Danni Yu , Latif Badar , Kouser Rehana , Baqader Saleh
Published: August 2021

The study examined the role of perceived CSR in deriving customer loyalty by exploring direct and mediated effects of corporate reputation and customer satisfaction in Pakistan’s food chains. The data were collected through a survey method from 322 customers of McDonald’s in Pakistan during October 2019 and January 2020. The collected information was then analyzed through the Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) technique to test the hypothesized relationships. The results revealed a significant positive impact of perceived CSR on customer loyalty, corporate reputation, and customer satisfaction. Further, customer satisfaction and corporate reputation appeared to mediate the relationship between perceived CSR and customer loyalty.
Routes Planning Models for Railway Transport Systems in Relation to Passengers’ Demand
Authors: Severino Alessandro , Martseniuk Larysa , Curto Salvatore , Neduzha Larysa
Published: August 2021

Nowadays, transport systems efficiency plays a key role for communities’ liveability and economy, being in addition an important factor in the economic integration of countries. The purpose of the article is to develop multi-stage models of tourist activities for optimizing the development of operating companies. For the implementation of models, the authors evolved the relevant system of organizational-functional support for the development of railway tourism. The research will enable us to take into consideration risks when planning tourist routes by railway, determine the order of construction or start of routes, and assess their profitability. This will provide to earn the expected incomes of all interested parties in tourist activities for the specified period. The authors created economic-mathematical models of the discrete optimal planning of the railway tourism operations. This takes into account conditions of risks and cooperation, and allows to determine which sets of effective routes are the most profitable ones. The results of the realization of the developed models include the task of the succession of the tourist route introduction according to the present and future infrastructure, availability of the rolling stock, etc. In this, consideration is given to obtaining maximum profit from tourism businesses for every participant during an established period.
Can Urban Forest Settings Evoke Positive Emotion? Evidence on Facial Expressions and Detection of Driving Factors
Authors: Liu Ping , Liu Mengnan , Xia Tingting , Wang Yutao , Wei Hongxu
Published: August 2021

There is increasing interest in experiences of urban forests because relevant studies have revealed that forest settings can promote mental well-being. The mental response to a forest experience can be evaluated by facial expressions, but relevant knowledge is limited at large geographical scales. In this study, a dataset of 2824 photos, detailing the evaluated age (toddler, youth, middle-age, and senior citizen) and gender of urban forest visitors, was collected from Sina Weibo (a social media application similar to Twitter in China) between 1–7 October 2018, in 12 randomly chosen cities in China. Happy and sad expressions were rated as scores by FireFACE software V1.0, and the positive response index (PRI) was calculated by subtracting sad scores from happy scores. Regional environmental factors were collected to detect driving forces using regression analyses. Happy scores were higher in forests than in urban settings, while sad scores for toddlers were lower in forests than in promenades and squares. Females showed more positive emotional expressions than males. Increases in happy scores were driven by the increase of daily minimum temperature; while PRI declined with increases in latitude. Overall, an urban forest experience can evoke positive emotions, which is likely due to comfortable feelings in warm temperatures.
Spatio-Temporal Change of Land Use in a Coastal Reclamation Area: A Complex Network Approach
Authors: Xu Caiyao , Pu Lijie , Kong Fanbin , Li Bowei
Published: August 2021

Coastal ecological protection and restoration projects aimed to restore and recover the ecological environment of coastal wetland with high-intensity human reclamation activity, while the integrity of the coastal wetland system with human reclamation activity and the ability of individual land use types to control the overall system were not fully considered. In this study, a six-stage land use conversion network was constructed by using a complex network model to analyze coastal land use dynamic changes in the coastal reclamation area located in eastern China from 1977 to 2016. The results showed that land use types had gradually transformed from being dominated by natural types to artificial types, and the speed of transformation was accelerating. The proportion of un-reclaimed area decreased from 93% in 1977 to 46% in 2007, and finally fell to 8% in 2014 and 2016. Tidal flat and halophytic vegetation were the main output land use types, while cropland, woodland and aquaculture pond were the main input land use types. Cropland had the highest value of betweenness centrality, which played a key role in land use change from 1992 to 2014. The land use system of the coastal reclamation area was the most stable in 2002–2007, followed by 1984–1992, and the most unstable in 2007–2014. The Chinese and local government should carry out some measures to improve the land use in coastal wetland ecosystems, including the allocation and integration of land use for production space, living space, and ecological space, and develop multi-functionality of land use to realize the coastal high-quality development and coastal ecological protection and restoration.
Biodegradation of Keratin-Rich Husbandry Waste as a Path to Sustainable Agriculture
Authors: Shestakova Anna , Timorshina Svetlana , Osmolovskiy Alexander
Published: August 2021

Every year, the size of the human population grows; with it, the need for agricultural products increases. This leads to an increment in the volume of waste, including hard-to-degrade keratin-rich ones, such as feathers. Currently, most of the agro-industrial complex protein by-products are utilized by incineration, landfilling, and chemical hydrolysis. Such methods do not meet modern trends in the development of a sustainable economy, negatively affecting the environment and humans, and preventing the reusing of waste. An alternative is biodegradation, which consists of the application of living organisms and their enzymes to recycle by-products. This approach is not only sustainable, but also makes it possible to obtain products of waste hydrolysis that are in demand for the manufacture of fertilizers and feed additives. This brings the development of agriculture closer to a circular economy and makes the recycling process more profitable. This review article emphasizes the significance of keratinolytic microorganisms and keratinases for the improvement of green methods for processing hard-to-degrade protein waste of the agro-industrial complex, which is necessary for sustainable economic development.
Policies for Sustainable Agriculture and Livelihood in Marginal Lands: A Review
Authors: Ahmadzai Hayatullah , Tutundjian Seta , Elouafi Ismahane
Published: August 2021

Despite the substantial improvements in agricultural productivity owing to technological progress, the poor in agriculturally marginal areas are overlooked and left behind. Nearly a billion people still live in poverty, the majority of whom happen to be in developing countries, with a larger share of those who are poor living on marginal lands. Food insecurity is a vicious reality in the everyday lives of these marginalized poor, and the threat of food insecurity and hunger is becoming even more serious and imminent, with increasing trends in population growth. Climate change is expected to add yet more weight to this equation and to pose greater risks for the livelihoods of these communities. In spite of the challenges faced, addressing marginal agriculture systems and poverty is vital to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this paper, we investigate the historical policy perspective towards marginal areas to pinpoint potential shortcomings in the policy environment. Subsequently, we present a roadmap to future research engagement and develop a policy framework, with instruments and strategies focusing on the food–poverty–environment nexus, to target poverty reduction, preserve biodiversity, and restore marginal lands. Our analysis of historical policies reveals that conventional policy approaches towards marginal agriculture have been conducive to favorable areas (specific to input-responsive crops only), neglecting marginal areas. Future policies to address the food–poverty–environment nexus within marginal environments must evolve around a framework that is all-inclusive but context-specific. Agricultural and other public investments should be prioritized geographically in accordance with the characteristics of marginality hotspots. Policy instruments should encourage long-term solutions to enhance productivity through regenerative production systems and preserve the environmental resource base.
Design and Development of a Variable Rate Applicator for Real-Time Application of Fertilizer
Authors: Mirzakhaninafchi Hasan , Singh Manjeet , Bector Vishal , Gupta O. P. , Singh Rajvir
Published: August 2021

Variable rate technology offers a sustainable, efficient, and cost-effective solution for fertilizer application. A study was conducted to design and develop a variable rate fertilizer applicator to detect real-time deficiency of N within the field and apply it per requirement of the crop. The microcontroller system was designed to receive a signal from the N sensor and send a signal to the pulse-width-modulation valve to vary the rotational speed of the hydraulic motor resulting in variation in the rotation of the metering mechanism drive shaft based on the recommended amount of fertilizer. During the field study, three replications were conducted, each of which was divided into four plots. The response time between the N sensing and fertilizer discharging fell within the range of 3.49 to 4.90 s. Fertilizer applied using the developed variable rate applicator indicated that when the fertilizer rate is increased from N1 to N4 (kg ha−1), NDVI increased from 0.56 to 0.78 and drive shaft rotational speed decreased from 20 to 0 rpm in order to apply the fertilizer at a rate of 0.00 instead of 78.36 kg ha−1. Using the developed applicator demonstrates that this technology could reduce environmental impact, making farming more sustainable.
SLICE: An Innovative Photovoltaic Solution for Adaptive Envelope Prototyping and Testing in a Relevant Environment
Authors: Monteleone Angelo , Rodonò Gianluca , Gagliano Antonio , Sapienza Vincenzo
Published: August 2021

The development of adaptive architectural envelopes is one of the goals of researchers that aim to improve the energy performance of buildings. Traditional devices often have drawbacks linked to the complexity of the kinetic systems used, as the mechanical systems for guaranteeing proper operation are complex and expensive (e.g., hinges). Adaptive envelopes require energy for driving the mechanical components and management systems. Thus, it is useful for such adaptive elements to be self-sufficient, generating the energy necessary for their functioning. This study presents a prototype of a lightweight and stand-alone component for dynamic envelopes, characterized by a flexible composite material integrated with high-efficiency photovoltaic cells called the Solar Lightweight Intelligent Component for Envelopes (SLICE). The management and control of the SLICE is based on the Arduino platform. This paper describes the multidisciplinary design process that led to the realization of the current prototypes, the laboratory test phases, as well as the results of the preliminary experiments carried out under real environmental conditions.