bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Strategies Alignment Approach to Manage Disruptive Events in Collaborative Networks
Authors: Andres Beatriz , Marcucci Giulio
Published: April 2020

Enterprises of the supply chain are currently embedded in dynamic and turbulent environments, having to deal with the appearance of disruptive events. When an enterprise is affected by a disruptive event, the consequences of the disruption not only impact in the enterprise itself, but also influences on the other partners of the network to which it belongs. Thus, disruptive events exceed the capability of individual actors, impacting on the network performance. Consequently, network partners have to collaboratively make decisions to soften the negative impacts on the performance. In this regard, after a disruption takes place, network enterprises should be aware of activating a set of sustainable and resilience strategies that attenuate the performance loss and reduce the disruption recovery time. Nevertheless, the diverse nature of disruptions means that a wide range of varied and sometimes contradictory strategies can be formulated, resulting in conflict situations among the collaborative network (CN) partners. The current paper proposes an approach that makes it possible to collaboratively manage the strategies to activate when a disruptive event occurs, so that the selected strategies are aligned. The strategies alignment approach, proposed in the paper, makes it possible to select those strategies that have a positive impact, or a minimum negative impact, on the objectives defined, not only in the enterprise itself, but also in the objectives defined by the rest of CN partners. The alignment of strategies makes it possible to reduce the performance level loss when a disruption takes place. Thus, the strategies alignment approach aims at activating those strategies that maximize the performance of the CN, achieving levels of performance equal or higher than the levels previous to the disruption, limiting the adverse effects produced by the disruptive events, and contributing to a more sustainable–resilient CN. Finally, in order to validate the proposal, a case study is presented. The proposed model is validated to deal with a drop in demand due to a political embargo, in a textile CN.
Analysis of Coupling Coordination Variance between Urbanization Quality and Eco-Environment Pressure: A Case Study of the West Taiwan Strait Urban Agglomeration, China
Authors: Lin Xiaoqing , Lu Chunyan , Song Kaishan , Su Ying , Lei Yifan , Zhong Lianxiu , Gao Yibin
Published: April 2020

Rapid urbanization has affected the eco-environment in China. A clear understanding of the coupling relationship between urbanization quality and eco-environment pressure is needed for sustainable urban development. This study focused on the relationship between urbanization quality and eco-environment pressure in the West Taiwan Strait Urban Agglomeration (WTSUA) with panel data collected from 2003 to 2017. An index system was established to measure urbanization quality from four urbanization subsystems: demographic urbanization, spatial urbanization, economic urbanization, and social urbanization. An index of eco-environment pressure was developed from resource availability, energy consumption, pollution emissions, and pressure response. The level of urbanization quality and eco-environment pressure was assessed using analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and entropy method (EM). The coupling process was described using a coupling coordination degree model. Results showed the following: (1) Economic urbanization contributed the most to urbanization quality. The contribution of the four subsystems to eco-environment pressure was similar. (2) Eco-environment pressure decreased with improving urbanization quality. The coupling coordination degree between urbanization quality and eco-environment pressure increased. Spatially, the coupling coordination degree of eastern cities was higher than that of western cities. The findings of this paper will help government in planning and implementing sustainable urban development and eco-environment conservation.
Renegotiation Strategy of Public-Private Partnership Projects with Asymmetric Information—An Evolutionary Game Approach
Authors: Xing Huige , Li Yuelin , Li Hongyang
Published: April 2020

The characteristics of public-private partnerships (PPPs) determine that renegotiation is inevitable. Moreover, the strategic choice of the government and investors during renegotiation is critical for the project to continue. Previous studies suggested that the government’s decision-making mistakes and investors’ opportunism during renegotiation are the significant reasons for project failures. However, most of the research focused on the behavioral decision of one party while few have applied evolutionary game theory to study the mutual influence of the strategy choices of both parties involved. To address this issue, this paper established an evolutionary game model of the government’s and investors’ renegotiation strategies, and analyzed the evolutionary stability strategy and related parameters. The results showed that the government’s selection of strategy is based on two values, i.e., the buyback cost and the difference between subsidy cost and the expected social benefit of the project in the future. The higher the expected social benefit, the higher the probability that the government chooses to maintain the project. Besides, investors’ strategy is mainly determined by speculative net benefit and financial status. The probability of investors’ opportunism is positively correlated with the speculative net benefit and negatively correlated with the project benefit of non-opportunism. In addition, cooperative benefits created by reasonable participation in the project will effectively restrict opportunistic behaviors, and the interactive behavior of both game players will move toward the optimal portfolio strategy. This study can provide relevant management suggestions for avoiding excessive subsidies and restraining opportunistic behaviors, which are conducive to the sustainable development of PPP projects.
Sustainability Assessment of Construction Technologies for Large Pipelines on Urban Highways: Scenario Analysis using Fuzzy QFD
Authors: Alinizzi Majed , Haider Husnain , Almoshaogeh Meshal , Alharbi Fawaz , Alogla Saleh M. , Al-Saadi Gamal A.
Published: April 2020

Urban highways users frequently face disruptions due to construction and maintenance of buried infrastructure. In conventional open cut construction, social costs (vehicle operating and traffic delay costs) are generally high at work zone construction areas (WZCA). Municipalities also bear additional costs due to early maintenance of alternate routes, i.e., non-work zone construction area (NWZCA). Besides, work zone and non-work zone areas together experience significant potential socio-economic and environment impacts. In addition to minimal disturbance to existing socioenvironmental setting and user cost savings, trenchless construction result in agency cost savings by avoiding early maintenance at NWZCA. Past studies primarily focused on social costs associated to WZCA. In present research, a sustainability assessment framework has been developed that includes agency and user costs at both the work zone and non-work zone area. The framework evaluates various traffic detoured scenarios (for open cut construction) and trenchless technology scenario based on all three dimensions of sustainability. Fuzzy Quality Function Deployment (Fuzzy QFD) method has been used to incorporate the interaction between the agency’s sustainability objectives and public expectations for large-sized pipeline construction projects in urban areas. The framework effectively handles the uncertainties associated to data limitations and vagueness in expert opinion for subjective assessment criteria. To evaluate the pragmatism of proposed framework, it was applied on the case of a storm sewer construction project in Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia. Trenchless technology was found to be the most sustainable construction scenario followed by the open cut scenario with 50% traffic detoured to NWCA. The proposed methodology is also sought to enhance decision making process pertaining to the viability of trenchless technologies in KSA and elsewhere.
Sustainable Processes and Chemical Characterization of Natural Food Additives: Palmyra Palm (Borassus Flabellifer Linn.) Granulated Sugar
Authors: Huynh Thi Le Dung , Lu Wen-Chien , Li Po-Hsien
Published: April 2020

Palmyra palm (Borassus flabellifer Linn.) is an important sugar-producing plant that is widely distributed in tropical Asian countries. Its jaggery and sweet sap are prevalent in Cambodia as a substitute for table sugar. They contain essential minerals, vitamins, and biological compounds. We investigated the changes in the nutritional composition, antioxidant properties, and biological activity of palm granulated sugar prepared by using three different drying–solidification processes under vacuum conditions: the drying temperature was controlled at 80 °C, 90 °C, and 100 °C, and the drying time was 60, 75, and 90 min, respectively. Palm granulated sugar contains 10 kinds of vitamins (mainly vitamin E 52.15–55.12 mg/100 g), 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (2.18 to 41.92 mg/100 g), and 38 volatile compounds that belong to the alcohol, ketones, pyrazines, acids, and phenols groups, and an aldehyde group. Moreover, palm granulated sugar exhibits a high total phenolic content (2.77–8.94 mg gallic acid equivalent/100 g), 2,2-diphenyl-1-1picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity (20.15%–37.88%), and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) value (322.68–378.23 μmol Fe2+/mL). Furthermore, palm granulated sugar-treated NIH3T3 cells showed a higher cell viability of 18.10% to 23.68%. This study confirmed that palm granulated sugar prepared at 90 °C for 75 min can have a better product quality with increased vitamin and mineral contents, antioxidant properties, and biological activity, while also being low in 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) content.
Sustainable Development of Human Society in Terms of Natural Depleting Resources Preservation Using Natural Renewable Raw Materials in a Novel Ecological Material Production
Authors: Grădinaru Cătălina Mihaela , Muntean Radu , Șerbănoiu Adrian Alexandru , Ciocan Vasilică , Burlacu Andrei
Published: April 2020

In the last few years, the building industry experienced a significant development as a response to the demographic growth of human society and to the increasing demand for housing. Their construction involves the traditional use of concrete as a material that provides added strength to the finished building. This is manufactured respecting standard recipes depending on the way of its use. Anyway, all concrete recipes involve the use of mineral aggregates extracted from the riverbed, as is happening in Romania, or rock blocks crushing, as reported in other countries. Under these conditions, the rationalization of the use of natural mineral resources and the identification of new possibilities to reduce their consumption through their replacement with vegetal waste has become an important research issue. In this study, two types of vegetal waste—namely, shredded corn cobs and sunflower stalks—were used to manufacture novel ecological concretes. The vegetal wastes, both in untreated and treated forms (with 20% and 40% of sodium silicate solution), were used to replace 50% of the river (mineral) aggregate volume. The obtained concretes were tested, and the values of some important parameters in the concrete characterization (such as bulk density, water adsorption capacity, compressive strength and splitting tensile strength) were compared with the concrete contains cement CEM II/A-LL 42.5R. The obtained results show that these vegetal wastes have the potential to be used in the manufacturing of new ecological concrete. In addition, this alternative material meets the requirements for the sustainable and healthy development of the environment, offering low-polluting solutions in the context of an increasing demand for constructions.
Community-Supported Agriculture as a Perspective Model for the Development of Small Agricultural Holding in the Region
Authors: Struś Mirosław , Kalisiak-Mędelska Magdalena , Nadolny Michał , Kachniarz Marian , Raftowicz Magdalena
Published: April 2020

Globalization and the related processes of land and capital concentration are also present in Polish agriculture. As a result of the occurring changes in agriculture itself and in its environment, the importance of small agricultural holdings is permanently declining. The gradual disappearance of small family farms not only disrupts the direct relationships between food producers and consumers, but also puts food security at risk, primarily on a local and regional scale. The purpose of the article is an attempt to present that the development of Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) can offer an alternative to the occurring current distribution channels. The article is focused on the possibilities of CSA development in the Wrocław district resulting from the proximity of the largest market in the Lower Silesia region—Wrocław (the capital of Lower Silesia in Poland). The survey covered 400 agricultural holdings located in nine municipalities of the Wrocław district. The conducted research has shown that the CSA model opens opportunities for a long-lasting cooperation between farmers and consumers, but its implementation requires an increase in the prices of agricultural products offered by farmers by about 50%, as well as solutions to the cost-related problems of agricultural product transport.
Evaluating Innovation in European Rural Development Programmes: Application of the Social Return on Investment (SROI) Method
Authors: Courtney Paul , Powell John
Published: April 2020

The quest for innovation lies at the heart of European rural development policy and is integral to the Europe 2020 strategy. While social innovation has become a cornerstone of increased competitiveness and the rural situation legitimizes public intervention to encourage innovation, the challenges of its effective evaluation are compounded by the higher ‘failure’ rate implied by many traditional performance measures. Social Return on Investment (SROI) is employed to assess the social innovation outcomes arising from implementation of Axes 1 and 3 of the 2007-13 Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE). Analysis of primary data gathered through structured face-to-face interviews from a weighted sample of 196 beneficiaries reveal that social innovation outcomes generate a total of £170.02 million of benefits from Axis 1 support measures, compared to £238.1 million of benefits generated from innovation outcomes from Axis 3 measures. Benefits are generated through four social innovation outcome categories: individual, operational, relational, and system; and range from changes in attitudes and behaviour to institutional change and new ways of structuring social relations. The paper calls for more comprehensive evaluation approaches that can capture, and value, the multiple benefits arising from social innovation, and further bespoke applications of SROI to help develop and legitimise innovation indicators that will enable stronger linkages back into the policy process.
Does Working Capital Affect Family Firms’ Decision-Making in Laos? Evidence from a Two-Wave Cross-Lagged Approach
Authors: Daovisan Hanvedes , Shen H. L.
Published: April 2020

Family firms are the backbone of the socialist transition to a market-oriented economy in Laos. Working capital is an important area of finance that has not been widely studied in relation to family firms’ decision-making. We hypothesize that working capital has a positive cross-lagged effect on decision-making. The hypotheses were tested on a sample of 779 Laotian family firms from 2016 to 2017 ( t 1 ) and from 2018 to 2019 ( t 2 ) . The analysis was performed using a two-wave cross-lagged model under structural equation modelling. Our results confirm that working capital (access to finance, cash, debt financing, inventory, growth, and profitability) has a positive cross-lagged effect on decision-making. In addition, the findings also suggest that family firms’ early-debt financing could have a vital influence on decision-making. The practical implications of the results are discussed.
No polarization–Expected Values of Climate Change Impacts among European Forest Professionals and Scientists
Authors: Persson Johannes , Blennow Kristina , Gonçalves Luísa , Borys Alexander , Dutcă Ioan , Hynynen Jari , Janeczko Emilia , Lyubenova Mariyana , Martel Simon , Merganic Jan , Merganičová Katarína , Peltoniemi Mikko , Petr Michal , Reboredo Fernando H. , Vacchiano Giorgio , Reyer Christopher P.O.
Published: April 2020

The role of values in climate-related decision-making is a prominent theme of climate communication research. The present study examines whether forest professionals are more driven by values than scientists are, and if this results in value polarization. A questionnaire was designed to elicit and assess the values assigned to expected effects of climate change by forest professionals and scientists working on forests and climate change in Europe. The countries involved covered a north-to-south and west-to-east gradient across Europe, representing a wide range of bio-climatic conditions and a mix of economic–social–political structures. We show that European forest professionals and scientists do not exhibit polarized expectations about the values of specific impacts of climate change on forests in their countries. In fact, few differences between forest professionals and scientists were found. However, there are interesting differences in the expected values of forest professionals with regard to climate change impacts across European countries. In Northern European countries, the aggregated values of the expected effects are more neutral than they are in Southern Europe, where they are more negative. Expectations about impacts on timber production, economic returns, and regulatory ecosystem services are mostly negative, while expectations about biodiversity and energy production are mostly positive.
The Application of Yantian Cultural Resources in Design Education─Taking the Yantian Community in Tainan as an Example
Authors: Chen Wei-Han , Ho Ta-Hsiang
Published: April 2020

“Salt” is an indispensable necessity in people’s livelihood. In Taiwan’s islands surrounded by the sea and the western coastal areas, salt was boil the sea for a long time in the early stages, and seawater was introduced into the depression in the later stages and evaporated in the sun. With the development of the times, different characteristics of the construction and building materials in the field of the salt industry have entered the era of the industrial revolution. With the development of technology, salt processing technology and the use of imported salt in foreign trade have forced salt fields to be abandoned along with historical development. The Yantian cultural relics still preserved today are actively preserved by government departments to continue to apply the Yantian culture. This study selected the Yantian community in Annan District of Tainan City as the focus of planning. It is hoped that through the development of design education, it will emphasize practical ability and practice-oriented research. The study combines design practice and practical theory, based on the original ecological culture of Yantian, through the reconstruction plan of Yantian’s cultural resources, the mobilization of residents in the Yantian community and the tourism planning of the Yantian Cultural Village, to find a transition direction suitable for the Yantian Cultural Village. Market needs with combining core values of the community with a patchwork of practical experience and action research to build participatory research theories will result in effective internal practice and learning. This research adopts the method of service research through service design, including: 1. diagnosing problems; 2. choosing solutions; 3. seeking cooperation; 4. implementation; and 5. assessing the response from a practical perspective, with the importance of action research, where “Yantian” combines with the local “salt-making” characteristic culture, develops cultural innovation experience, and guides students to truly enter the community to learn. The plan explores the possibility of long-term introduction of design education in the local community, discusses how to communicate and collaborate with community residents, and uses design tools to help solve the problem of community image promotion and application. The research results finally put forward the preliminary construction of the role of the Tainan Yantian community volunteers as a design education platform based on practical experience. It is hoped that it can be used as a local practice of design education and as an accumulation of reference experience.
The Cost Benefit Analysis for the Concept of a Smart City: How to Measure the Efficiency of Smart Solutions?
Authors: Turečková Kamila , Nevima Jan
Published: April 2020

This paper is dedicated, both theoretically and conceptually, to a methodical approach towards the efficiency evaluation of proposed smart city solutions. The implementation of smart solutions in proposed projects and activities is supported by a complex assessment of benefits and costs as part of a cost benefit analysis (CBA) with the goal of maximizing the efficiency of such a solution, especially in the case of public activities for which it is typical to lack a market evaluation. A smart solution can be defined as an innovative and functional approach towards solving situations in a responsible way and with positive consequences for society. These smart solutions represent the core of the smart city concept, which together with the smart region concept presents a new economic domain where new markets or market segments offering innovative and intelligent (tangible and intangible) solutions for said cities and regions can be developed. CBA and feasibility analyses represent suitable tools for evaluation of socially and economically acceptable projects and their implementation in real life. The efficiency of these solutions is then proved by benefit and cost comparisons under the condition that these outcomes are acceptable for all stakeholders. Methodically, the paper is structured inductively. The detailed literature review provides the basis for a formulation of general principles of using a CBA for innovative smart city solution efficiency evaluations based on chosen cases, for example, from the Moravia Silesian region. Due to the originality of each submitted project, it is possible to use this proposed methodical approach of CBA applications as a primary analytical frame and it is necessary to add the specific attributes of each solution that is being evaluated.
Do Higher-Rated or Enhancing ESG of Firms Enhance Their Long–Term Sustainability? Evidence from Market Returns in Korea
Authors: Do Yeonwoo , Kim Sunghwan
Published: April 2020

In this study, we investigate the effects of the level and changes in environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) rating, an index developed to represent a firm’s long-term sustainability, on the stock market returns of Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) listed firms over the period 2011–2018. We find that the changes in ESG ratings have statistically significant short-term effects on their abnormal returns. However, their impacts on short-term abnormal returns decrease some days after the disclosure and become negative in the third year. The results imply that investors in the Korean stock market do not view corporate social responsibility activities as a means of supporting their long-term sustainability, judging from the firm value for a long period after their rating. Rather, based on the effects of the changes on coefficient signs over the period—positive in the year and the year after, no effects in the following year, and negative in the third year and later—we can infer that the short-term oriented market sentiments of investors might worsen their long-term stock performances, thus deteriorating their sustainability and growth opportunities.
Flood Depth‒Damage Curves for Spanish Urban Areas
Authors: Martínez-Gomariz Eduardo , Forero-Ortiz Edwar , Guerrero-Hidalga María , Castán Salvador , Gómez Manuel
Published: April 2020

Depth‒damage curves, also known as vulnerability curves, are an essential element of many flood damage models. A relevant characteristic of these curves is their applicability limitations in space and time. The reader will find firstly in this paper a review of different damage models and depth‒damage curve developments in the world, particularly in Spain. In the framework of the EU-funded RESCCUE project, site-specific depth‒damage curves for 14 types of property uses have been developed for Barcelona. An expert flood surveyor’s opinion was essential, as the occasional lack of data was made up for by his expertise. In addition, given the lack of national standardization regarding the applicability of depth‒damage curves for flood damage assessments in Spanish urban areas, regional adjustment indices have been derived for transferring the Barcelona curves to other municipalities. Temporal adjustment indices have been performed in order to modify the depth‒damage curves for the damage estimation of future flood events, too. This study attempts to provide nationwide applicability in flood damage reduction studies.
How Corporate Social Responsibility Influences Business Model Innovation: The Mediating Role of Organizational Legitimacy
Authors: Hu Baoliang , Zhang Tao , Yan Shuai
Published: April 2020

Business model (BM) innovation driven by corporate social responsibility (CSR) has attracted considerable attention from scholars. However, the understanding of whether and how CSR influences BM innovation is limited. Therefore, this paper aimed to fill these gaps by exploring the influence of CSR on BM innovation through the mediating role of organizational legitimacy (OL). This paper proposed research hypotheses on the relationships among CSR, OL, and BM innovation and empirically tested these hypotheses by using the hierarchical regression analysis method with data collected from 186 firms. The results of this study show that both CSR and OL positively influence BM innovation. The results also show that CSR positively influences OL and OL mediates the relationship between CSR and BM innovation. This paper provides new insights into the relationship between CSR and BM innovation by answering questions of whether and how CSR influences BM innovation. This paper may help managers better understand how to link CSR and BM innovation.
Sustainable Environments in Education: Results on the Effects of the New Environments in Learning Processes of University Students
Authors: Galán-Casado Diego , Moraleda Alvaro , Martínez-Martí María Luisa , Pérez-Nieto Miguel Ángel
Published: April 2020

Within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals, it is necessary to move towards quality education that promotes opportunities based on the principles of equity and equality. For this reason, the environment where the teaching–learning process occurs plays a fundamental role. Our research shows the results of the effects of the environment in the learning processes of university students (N = 33). Using a method of sampling experiences, the students assessed how the new environment learning (NEL) compared to the traditional classroom (TC) encouraged their attention, participation in class, creativity, curiosity, critical thinking, motivation to learn and mood (hedonic tone and activation level). In addition, the students assessed to what extent the class seemed visually appealing to them. The design was of repeated measures, so that the experiences of the same subjects in both classrooms were evaluated over a period of 53 days. Over this period of time, after finishing each of the classes selected for the study, the participants received a message on their mobile phones with a link to a short ad hoc questionnaire that evaluated their experience in relation to the learning environment of the classes they had just attended. In total, we recorded 359 responses in relation to the TC and 209 in relation to the NEL. The results show statistically significant differences in the degree of participation and visual appeal, with higher levels in the NEL. These elements are vital in achieving the education for sustainable development, oriented towards critical thinking, responsibility and social transformation.
Assessment of Power Generation Using Biogas from Landfills in an Equatorial Tropical Context
Authors: Barragán-Escandón Antonio , Olmedo Ruiz Jonathan Miguel , Curillo Tigre Jonnathan David , Zalamea-León Esteban F.
Published: April 2020

This work evaluates the biogas production potential of the Ceibales landfill for feeding a power plant in the southern region of Ecuador. Biogas production is estimated through mathematical models that consider energy generation and technologies available to supply electricity plants. Characteristic landfill data are accounted for to analyze and develop these mathematical models. Once the generation capability of each source is identified, a decision can be made on the most suitable electricity generation technology. A local model (Ecuadorian model) is applied to calculate the potential of biogas and is compared with other models commonly used for evaluating this type of project. This type of renewable energy is attractive because it produces electricity from waste; however, it is not an attractive option unless its application is encouraged, as hydro has been encouraged through the investment of taxpayer resources. Technologies require a boost to become profitable, and even more so if they compete with traditional technologies.
MaxEnt Modeling for Predicting the Current and Future Potential Geographical Distribution of Quercus libani Olivier
Authors: Çoban H. Oğuz , Örücü Ömer K. , Arslan E. Seda
Published: April 2020

The purpose of the study was to model the current and potential future distribution of Quercus libani Olivier (Lebanon Oak), a tree species in Turkey, and to predict the changes in its geographical distribution under different climate change scenarios. In this study, 19 bioclimatic variables at a spatial resolution of 30 arc seconds (~1 km2) were used, collected from the WorldClim database. The bioclimatic data with high correlation according to 31 sets of presence data on the species were reduced with principal component analysis (PCA), and the current and potential distribution were identified using MaxEnt 3.4.1 software. In order to predict how the distribution of the species will be affected by climate change, its potential geographical distribution by 2050 and 2070 was modeled under the Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP) RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 scenarios of the species using the Community Climate System Model (CCSM, version 4), which is a climate change model based on the report of the fifth Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Change analysis was performed to determine the spatial differences between its current and future distribution areas. The study results showed that the suitable areas for the current distribution of Quercus libani Olivier cover 72,819 km2. Depending on the CCSM4 climate model, the suitable area will decline to 67,580 km2 by 2070, according to the RCP 4.5 scenario, or 63,390 km2 in the RCP 8.5 scenario. This may lead to a reduction in the future population of this species. The change analysis showed that suitable and highly suitable areas will decrease under global climate change scenarios (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5) for both current and future potential distribution areas. In this context, our study results indicate that for the management of this species, protective environmental measures should be taken, and climate change models need to be considered in land use and forest management planning.
Assessing Overnight Parking Infrastructure Policies for Commercial Vehicles in Cities Using Agent-Based Simulation
Authors: Gopalakrishnan Raja , Alho André Romano , Sakai Takanori , Hara Yusuke , Cheah Lynette , Ben-Akiva Moshe
Published: April 2020

Urban freight transport is primarily fulfilled by commercial road vehicles. Within cities, overnight parking is a critical element influencing commercial vehicle operations, particularly for heavy vehicles with limited parking options. Providing adequate overnight parking spaces for commercial vehicles tends to be a challenge for urban planners. Inadequate parking supply can result in illegal parking and additional vehicle kilometers traveled, contributing to traffic congestion and air pollution. The lack of tools for evaluating the impacts of changing parking supply is an impediment in developing parking-related solutions that aim to minimize the negative externalities. In this study, we develop an overnight parking choice model for heavy commercial vehicles and integrate it with SimMobility, an agent-based urban simulation platform, demonstrating the potential of this tool for policy evaluation. Using simulations applied to a case study in Singapore, we compare two parking supply scenarios in terms of vehicle kilometers traveled due to changes in the first and last trips of vehicle tours, as well as resulting impacts in traffic flows.
Perceived Sustainability and Customer Engagement in the Online Shopping Environment: The Rational and Emotional Perspectives
Authors: Chen Xiao , Sun Xiaojing , Yan Dongwei , Wen Decheng
Published: April 2020

As increasing numbers of customers pay attention to product and service sustainability when shopping online, more and more firms in the online market engage in promoting perceived sustainability to establish close customer relationships. Prior studies implied the effects of perceived sustainability on transactional customer relationships, however, the role of perceived sustainability in influencing nontransactional customer relationships has received little attention. Drawing on existing conceptual models, this study aimed at exploring the effects of perceived sustainability on rational and emotional customer engagement (CE) in the online shopping environment. The data were collected through a questionnaire survey in China. Using the partial least squares (PLS) approach-based structural equation modeling (SEM) method, the authors found that perceived sustainability positively affects the two CE orientations through influencing short- and long-term transactional attitudes (satisfaction and commitment). A strong interrelationship between rational and emotional CE was also found. This is the first study presenting empirical evidence of the effects of perceived sustainability on nontransactional customer relationships from the rational and emotional perspectives. It also provides critical implications for online sellers in designing engagement programs.
Study on Dynamic Total Factor Carbon Emission Efficiency in China’s Urban Agglomerations
Authors: Zhang Fan , Jin Gui , Li Junlong , Wang Chao , Xu Ning
Published: April 2020

The scale effect of urbanization on improving carbon emission efficiency and achieving low-carbon targets is an important topic in urban research. Using dynamic panel data from 64 prefecture-level cities in four typical urban agglomerations in China from 2006 to 2016, this paper constructed a stochastic frontier analysis model to empirically measure the city-level total-factor carbon emission efficiency index (TCEI) at different stages of urbanization and to identify rules governing its spatiotemporal evolution. We quantitatively analyzed the influences and functional characteristics of TCEI in the four urban agglomerations of Pearl River Delta, Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, the Yangtze River Delta, and Chengdu-Chongqing. Results show that the TCEI at different stages of urbanization in these urban agglomerations is increasing year by year. The overall city-level TCEI was ranked as follows: Pearl River Delta > Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei > Yangtze River Delta > Chengdu-Chongqing. Improvements in the level of economic development and urbanization will help achieve low-carbon development in a given urban agglomeration. The optimization of industrial structure and improvement of ecological environment will help curb carbon emissions. This paper provides decision-making references for regional carbon emission reduction from optimizing industrial and energy consumption structures and improving energy efficiency.
Public Policy Timing in a Sustainable Approach to Shaping Public Policy
Authors: Korenik Dorota , Węgrzyn Maria
Published: April 2020

This study addresses the problem of optimal public policy timing and the relation to public health policy. Ways of recognizing this problem are presented, as well as the role of public policy timing, which is perceived or can be performed from various economic theories and concepts, mainly: regulation theory; the concept of adaptive public policy; and the theory of policy timing based on the concepts of option value and the transaction costs of the political process. The approach of methodological pluralism adopted by the authors made it possible to reach for various cognitive inspirations borrowed from numerous theoretical approaches, in order to create a comprehensive and coherent theoretical foundation for the purposes of analyzing the role of timing in applied public policies. Next, an attempt was made to define the role of public policy timing in the applied approach, i.e., the case of Polish policy towards the public hospital care sector. The final conclusion is that the role of timing is marginalized in Polish public health policy. The time dimension of its creation was ignored or treated as an exogenous event in relation to the rest of the policy formulation process. There is no political approach that adaptively links the right combination of resources and regulatory activity to timing for specific stages of development or growth in public hospital care.
Microfinance Institutions Fostering Sustainable Development by Region
Authors: García-Pérez Icíar , Fernández-Izquierdo María Ángeles , Muñoz-Torres María Jesús
Published: April 2020

In the last few years, considerable attention has been paid to microfinance as a relevant participant in the formal financial system, whose target audience is people who are otherwise at risk of financial exclusion. In parallel, sustainability and the promotion of Sustainable Development (SD) are imposed as the theoretical frame when facing any study. This, connected with cultural and organizational dimensions theories, are the analytical framework for the analysis of the relationship between the context of performance in which Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) operate and their activity in promoting sustainability. A holistic approach is necessary to make operational these concepts; for that reason, financial, environmental, social and governance dimensions (FESG), and the balance among them, have to be considered. The main objective of the paper is to explore to what extent MFIs are fostering SD, and how this promotion is performed by region. For the analysis, two different sources of information have been studied: sectoral academic literature that focuses on the different sustainability dimensions, and MIX Market sustainability data obtained from the MFIs. A keyword analysis of the selected papers has been executed to be conscious of the most investigated aspects by region; on the data provided by the institutions, a Kruskal-Wallis H test has been performed to learn what the main Sustainability Indicators (SIs) are that are reported affirmatively. To obtain comprehensive research, a comparative study of the results offers the convergences, divergences and gaps of information in each of the regions. The findings show significant differences depending on the region, and confirm that operationalization should be adjusted at the regional context of the MFIs. The paper, with the inherent limitations due to data quality, also offers recommendations for the better promotion of sustainability in each of the regions.
How Sharks and Shark–Human Interactions are Reported in Major Australian Newspapers
Authors: Hardiman Nigel , Burgin Shelley , Shao Jia
Published: April 2020

Few phrases evoke more negative emotion, or generate more media coverage, than ‘shark attack’ despite the few deaths that have been attributed to shark bite. Typically, tabloids are considered to provide more sensational coverage than broadsheets. We investigated how sharks and shark–human interactions were portrayed in four major Australian newspapers during a period of a record number of shark attacks in Australian waters. There was strong focus on human risk from sharks, and over-reportage of negative aspects. Thirty incidents were recorded: two fatal, 20 injury, and eight ‘near-miss’. Of 309 ‘shark’ articles surveyed, 24% mentioned fatalities (65% occurred prior to the study, some decades earlier). Injury was reported in 40% of articles, and ‘near-miss’ in 33% (89% related to an incident in South Africa involving an Australian surfing celebrity). The tabloid, Telegraph, published substantially more shark-related articles and photographs than other newspapers. There was otherwise no consistent pattern of difference between genre or newspapers.
Assessing the Effectiveness of Using Recharge Wells for Controlling the Saltwater Intrusion in Unconfined Coastal Aquifers with Sloping Beds: Numerical Study
Authors: Armanuos Asaad M. , Al-Ansari Nadhir , Yaseen Zaher Mundher
Published: April 2020

Groundwater systems are considered major freshwater sources for many coastal aquifers worldwide. Seawater intrusion (SWI) inland into freshwater coastal aquifers is a common environmental problem that causes deterioration of the groundwater quality. This research investigates the effectiveness of using an injection through a well to mitigate the SWI in sloping beds of unconfined coastal aquifers. The interface was simulated using SEAWAT code. The repulsion ratios due to the length of the SWI wedge (RL) and the area of the saltwater wedge (RA) were computed. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to recognize the change in the confining layer bed slope (horizontal, positive, and negative) and hydraulic parameters of the value of the SWI repulsion ratio. Injection at the toe itself achieved higher repulsion ratios. RL and RA declined if the injection point was located remotely and higher than the toe of the seawater wedge. Installation at the toe achieved a higher RL in positive sloping followed by horizontal and negative slopes. Moreover, the highest value of RA could be reached by injecting at the toe itself with a horizontal bed aquifer, followed by negative and positive slopes. The recharge well is confirmed as one of the most effective applications for the mitigation of SWI in sloping bed aquifers. The Akrotiri case study shows that the proposed recharging water method has a significant impact on controlling SWI and declines in both SWI wedge length and area.
The Impact of Heavy Vehicle Traffic Trends on the Overdesign of Flexible Asphalt Pavements
Authors: Intini Paolo , Berloco Nicola , Colonna Pasquale , Ranieri Vittorio
Published: April 2020

Given their environmental impact, the careful design of asphalt pavements is crucial. Previous research has highlighted the influence of several parameters on the outputs of different pavement design methods. In this study, the focus is on heavy vehicle trends, considering both the percentage of heavy vehicles in the average traffic flow and its evolution over time, which is usually included as a growth factor in the design inputs. Since these factors are very often assumed to be based on old estimates, the first aim of this study was to update them by exploring a recent series of continuous data collected on the Italian motorway network and showing how to infer estimates from historical traffic data. Subsequently, the variability of these input factors is introduced in standard pavement design methods to assess their influence on the design process and to quantify the risk of overdesign. While the analysis of historical heavy vehicle traffic data may reveal an overall zero-growth traffic tendency, different scenarios should be considered and assessed in cost-benefit analyses given the not negligible influence of growth factors on pavement thicknesses. This influence is shown here in different simulated design conditions, with different initial traffic volumes, share of heavy vehicles, and resilient moduli.
Geopolitical Risk and Energy Transition in Russia: Evidence from ARDL Bounds Testing Method
Authors: Rasoulinezhad Ehsan , Taghizadeh-Hesary Farhad , Sung Jinsok , Panthamit Nisit
Published: April 2020

One of the current debatable global problems is climate change or global warming as crucial geopolitical risks. The progress of energy transition by considering geopolitical risk has not been considered seriously yet. This paper contributes to the literature by modeling and analyzing energy transition patterns in Russia with emphasis on geopolitical risks factor as a giant fossil fuels producer using the ARDL bounds testing method over the period of 1993–2018. The main results proved long-run negative impact of economic growth, population growth and inflation rate on energy transition of Russia, while CO2 emissions, geopolitical risk, exchange rate and financial openness have positive impacts on energy transition movement in the country. Furthermore, we found out that in the short-run, the relationship between energy transition improvement and economic growth, CO2 emissions, population growth and inflation rate is negative, while geopolitical risk, exchange rate and financial openness are the only variables which accelerate energy transition in the country. As major concluding remarks, Russia’s policy makers should draw attention to the long-run energy plans in the country. Furthermore, lowering dependency of Federals’ budget to the oil and gas revenues would be a useful policy to reduce negative impact of economic growth on energy transition movement in the country. Another recommendation is to determine rapid decarbonizing policies in the country.
Defining the Concept of Family through the Lens of Fertile-Aged Women in Bucharest, Romania—between Traditionalism and Inclusion
Authors: Preda Mihaela , Mareci Alina , Tudoricu Anca , Taloș Ana-Maria , Bogan Elena , Lequeux-Dincă Ana Irina , Vijulie Iuliana
Published: April 2020

Family is a notion that societies are consistently trying to define and redefine nowadays, according to various interest groups. It also represents a variable functioning within conditions of population aging, especially in developing countries. An analysis of what family means must consider all the factors that influence it both structurally and in terms of size. The main objectives were to identify the perception of fertile-aged women about the notion of family and to measure its possible influence on the target group’s demographic behavior. The inquiry method was part of the research methodology with 499 face-to-face, semi-structured interviews done of a sample size population (women aged 15 to 49) living in Bucharest, Romania and supplemented by an SPSS analysis of the data gathered. The main results show that regardless of their education or income level, the interviewed target group declared that starting a new family or enlarging the current one is mostly correlated with financial aspects, and also that a pregnancy early in a woman’s career is viewed as an obstacle to her future development, even though when asked about the ideal family the financial aspect was rarely mentioned. The authors concluded that respondents’ mental attitude and reproductive behavior are undergoing a transitory phase. As such in Romania there is a need for sustainable demographic measures to tackle fertility issues. Several aspects support this: birth rates in the country have been consistently decreasing; the country’s economy is declining; and the interviewed target group conditioned starting a family or enlarging their current one on having sufficient financial resources.