Search results for: extended producer responsibility

Authors: I. Tulay Cagatay

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Blue-green microalgae cyanobacteria, which are important photosynthetic organisms of aquatic ecosystems, are the primary sources of many bioactive compounds such as proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, vitamins and enzymes that can be used as antimicrobial and antiviral agents. Some of these organisms are nowadays used directly in the food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industry, or in aquaculture and biotechnological approaches like biofuel or drug therapy. Finding the effective, environmental friendly chemotropic and antimicrobial agents to control fish pathogens are crucial in a country like Turkey which has a production capacity of about 240 thousand tons of cultured fish and has 2377 production farms and which is the second biggest producer in Europe. In our study, we tested the antimicrobial activity of cyanobacterium spp. against some fish pathogens Aeromonas hydrophila and Yersinia ruckeri that are important pathogens for rainbow trout farms. Agar disk diffusion test method was used for studying antimicrobial activity on pathogens. Both tested microorganisms have shown antimicrobial activity positively as the inhibition zones were 0.45 mm and 0.40 mm respectively.

Keywords: fish pathogen, cyanobacteria, antimicrobial activity, trout

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Authors: Gilberto Goracci, Fabio Curti

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This work presents a robust, light, and inexpensive algorithm to perform autonomous orbit determination using onboard magnetometer data in real-time. Magnetometers are low-cost and reliable sensors typically available on a spacecraft for attitude determination purposes, thus representing an interesting choice to perform real-time orbit determination without the need to add additional sensors to the spacecraft itself. Magnetic field measurements can be exploited by Extended/Unscented Kalman Filters (EKF/UKF) for orbit determination purposes to make up for GPS outages, yielding errors of a few kilometers and tens of meters per second in the position and velocity of a spacecraft, respectively. While this level of accuracy shows that Kalman filtering represents a solid baseline for autonomous orbit determination, it is not enough to provide a reliable state estimation in the absence of GPS signals. This work combines the solidity and reliability of the EKF with the versatility of a Recurrent Neural Network (RNN) architecture to further increase the precision of the state estimation. Deep learning models, in fact, can grasp nonlinear relations between the inputs, in this case, the magnetometer data and the EKF state estimations, and the targets, namely the true position, and velocity of the spacecraft. The model has been pre-trained on Sun-Synchronous orbits (SSO) up to 2126 kilometers of altitude with different initial conditions and levels of noise to cover a wide range of possible real-case scenarios. The orbits have been propagated considering J2-level dynamics, and the geomagnetic field has been modeled using the International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF) coefficients up to the 13th order. The training of the module can be completed offline using the expected orbit of the spacecraft to heavily reduce the onboard computational burden. Once the spacecraft is launched, the model can use the GPS signal, if available, to fine-tune the parameters on the actual orbit onboard in real-time and work autonomously during GPS outages. In this way, the provided module shows versatility, as it can be applied to any mission operating in SSO, but at the same time, the training is completed and eventually fine-tuned, on the specific orbit, increasing performances and reliability. The results provided by this study show an increase of one order of magnitude in the precision of state estimate with respect to the use of the EKF alone. Tests on simulated and real data will be shown.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, extended Kalman filter, orbit determination, magnetic field

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Authors: Hamad Albadr

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With the growth that has occurred in the orientation of universities from liability cognitive and maintain the culture of the community to liability functional creating graduates to work according to the needs of the community development; representing the university in today's world, the prime mover of the wheel of development in the community and find appropriate solutions to the problems they are facing and adapt to the demands of the changing environment. This paper deals with the role of Saudi universities as institutions, government agencies, non-governmental organizations and the extent of its responsibility to the environmental awareness of the community members in various segments, where it will use the research methodology descriptive and analytical, to gather information, data and analysis answers the study sample consisting of 1500 people from the staff of the Saudi universities: The members of the faculty, and members of the administrative and technical bodies, and current students, 500 of them are responsible for employment in the labor sector and graduates. Where will review the paper to identify the extent to which the objectives of the academic programs in Saudi universities to the needs of the community, and the extent to which the course content submitted to the characteristics of the local environment for the community and how he benefited them to ensure its conformity with the changing needs of society, and how to address the research presented in academic programs to the needs of society and its problems , and the extent to which graduate students to deal enough of social responsibility and commitment to community service and the preservation of the environment, and the availability of a clear policy to serve the community with the academic programs, and how to encourage faculty, staff and students to participate in community service. And the availability of counseling services for school students for vocational guidance, scientific, environmental, and the contribution of Academic Programs publishes scientific and technical culture and the environmental community members.

Keywords: universities in Saudi Arabia, environmental awareness, academic programs, environmental community

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Authors: Cesar Torres, Robert Briber, Nam Sun Wang

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Eye drops are the most commonly used treatment for short-term and long-term ophthalmic diseases. However, eye drops could deliver only about 5% of the functional ingredients contained in a burst dosage. To address the limitations of eye drops, the use of therapeutic contact lenses has been introduced. Drug-loaded contact lenses provide drugs a longer residence time in the tear film and hence, decrease the potential risk of side effects. Nevertheless, a major limitation of contact lenses as drug delivery devices is that most of the drug absorbed is released within the first few hours. This fact limits their use for extended release. The present study demonstrates the application of long-alkyl chain ionic surfactants on extending drug release kinetics from commercially available silicone hydrogel contact lenses. In vitro release experiments were carried by immersing drug-containing contact lenses in phosphate buffer saline at physiological pH. The drug concentration as a function of time was monitored using ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy. The results of the study demonstrate that release kinetics is dependent on the ionic surfactant weight percent in the contact lenses, and on the length of the hydrophobic alkyl chain of the ionic surfactants. The use of ionic surfactants in contact lenses can extend the delivery of drugs from a few hours to a few weeks, depending on the physicochemical properties of the drugs. Contact lenses embedded with ionic surfactants could be potential biomaterials to be used for extended drug delivery and in the treatment of ophthalmic diseases. However, ocular irritation and toxicity studies would be needed to evaluate the safety of the approach.

Keywords: contact lenses, drug delivery, controlled release, ionic surfactant

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Authors: Fatemeh Jalalvand

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The critical human rights problems such as extreme poverty, hunger, inequalities and gender discrimination need to be addressed by powerful and influential actors in the world. In today’s globalization, corporations have become one of the potent agents in the society. They are capable of generating economic growth, reducing poverty, and increasing the well-being of individuals, thereby contributing to the betterment of a broad spectrum of human rights. However, the discussion on how business can contribute to human rights has primarily focused on not violating them (reactive approach) rather than improving the conditions and solving the problems of human rights (proactive approach). In particular, the role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in bringing proactivity of business in human rights has gained less attention. This paper develops a conceptual framework to examine the role of different categories of CSR, including discretionary, ethical, legal, instrumental and political CSR in encouraging the proactive contribution of corporations to the betterment of human rights. The five propositions, related to the conceptual framework, outline the relationships between five categories of CSR and proactivity of corporations in human rights. The findings indicate that discretionary CSR with voluntary nature might not be able to motivate any contribution of business in human rights. Moreover, ethical CSR and legal CSR might lead to reactive strategies of business toward human rights. Meanwhile, the economic incentives behind the notion of instrumental CSR could result in partial proactive engagement of corporations in human rights. Finally, the internal motives as profit and power besides the external duties might lead to the highest level of proactivity of corporations in human rights under the context of political CSR. The model developed offers a map for business to adopt proactive human rights strategies more systematically maintaining key profit-drivers like power and profit. In sum, instrumental and political categories of CSR might lead corporations to improve the conditions of human rights proactively.

Keywords: CSR, human rights, proactive approach, reactive approach

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Authors: Pranjal Johri, Misbah Ul-Islam

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Power Transformers are one of the most critical and failure prone entities in an electrical power system. It is an established practice that each design of a power transformer has to undergo numerous type tests for design validation and routine tests are performed on each and every power transformer before dispatch from manufacturer’s works. Different countries follow different standards for testing the transformers. Most common and widely followed standard for Power Transformers is IEC 60076 series. Though these standards put up a strict testing requirements for power transformers, however, few aspects of transformer characteristics and guaranteed parameters can be ensured by some additional tests. Based on certain observations during routine test of a transformer and analyzing the data of a large fleet of transformers, three propositions have been discussed and put forward to be included in test schedules and standards. The observations in the routine test raised questions on design flux density of transformer. In order to ensure that flux density in any part of the core & yoke does not exceed 1.9 tesla at 1.1 pu as well, following propositions need to be followed during testing:  From the data studied, it was evident that generally NLC at 1.1 pu is apporx. 3 times of No Load Current at 1 pu voltage.  During testing the power factor at 1.1 pu excitation, it must be comparable to calculated values from the Cold Rolled Grain Oriented steel material curves, including building factor.  A limit of 3 % to be extended for higher than rated voltages on difference in Vavg and Vrms, during no load testing.  Extended over excitation test to be done in case above propositions are observed to be violated during testing.

Keywords: power transfoemrs, no load current, DGA, power factor

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Authors: Vanja Vejzagic, Jackie Brander Brown, Peter Schmidt

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Purpose: For some time now, the global hotel industry trends are strongly oriented towards sustainable development and environmental management accounting (EMA) should have the supporting role for hotel’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) management. The aim of this paper is thus to analyse and present data on the key steps leading toward the effective incorporation of EMA within hotel performance information systems. Design/Methodology/Approach: The research study is a continuation of the process carried out on the sample of 20 eco-hotels in the UK, a year ago. Research evidence was obtained via in-depth case studies on sample of 180 hotels (4 and 5 stars hotels) located in Croatia. Research was conducted through interviews with key personnel and an online survey which specifically focused on 10 business areas considered vital for successful EMA integration. Findings: The research results indicate a pattern by which hotels can determine the existing level of their sustainable (environmental) business. Furthermore, the management understanding of the sustainability concept was still proven to lead to a relatively subjective appreciation and presentation of sustainable hotel operations and their performance. It was determined that majority of analysed hotel organisations reflect typical short-term, financially oriented performance information systems. Steps for EMA introduction have been offered. Research Limitations/Implications: CSR is still a broad-set concept. Exploring the effects of EMA on such-like a defined management system may be subject to considerable influence of the respondent’s subjective perception of the concept. Originality/Value: This article should be of interest to higher education academics and careers staff who have an interest in CSR introduction and the ways of implementing its informational support for performance measurement.

Keywords: environmental management accounting, EMA, corporate social responsibility, CSR, sustainability, hotel

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Authors: Siti Anis Nadia Abu Bakar, Vani Tanggamani

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Over recent years, the quality and environmental management practices are the necessary tasks in hospitality industry in order to provide high quality services, a comfortable and safe environment for occupants as well as innovative nature and shareholders' satisfaction, its environmental and social added value sustainable. Numerous studies have observed and measured quality management program (QMProg) and environmental management practices (EMPrac) independently. This paper analyzed the level of QMProg, and EMPrac in hospitality industry, particularly on hotel performance, specifically in the context of Malaysia as hotel industry in Malaysia has contributed tremendously to the development in the Malaysia tourism industry.The research objectives are; (1) to analyze how the level of QMProg influences on firm performance; (2) to investigate the level of EMPrac and its influence on firm performance. This paper contributes to the literature by providing added-value to the service industry strategic decision-making processes by helping to predict the varying impacts of positive and negative corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities on financial performance in their respective industries. Further, this paper also contributes to develop more applicable CSR strategies. As a matter of fact, the findings of this paper has contributed towards an integrated management system that will assist a firm in implementation of their environmental strategy by creating a higher level of accountability for environmental performance. The best results in environmental systems have instigated managers to explore more options when dealing with problems, especially problems involving the reputation of their hotel. In conclusion, the results of the study infer that the best CSR strategies of the quality and environmental management practices influences hotel performance.

Keywords: corporate social responsibility (CSR), environmental management practices (EMPrac), performance (PERF), quality management program (QMProg)

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Authors: Sven Tackenberg, Sönke Duckwitz, Andreas Petz, Christopher M. Schlick

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This paper introduces an extension to the well-established Resource-Constrained Project Scheduling Problem (RCPSP) to apply it to complex maintenance problems. The problem is to assign technicians to a team which has to process several tasks with multi-level skill requirements during a work shift. Here, several alternative activities for a task allow both, the temporal shift of activities or the reallocation of technicians and tools. As a result, switches from one valid work process variant to another can be considered and may be selected by the developed evolutionary algorithm based on the present skill level of technicians or the available tools. An additional complication of the observed scheduling problem is that the locations of the construction sites are only temporarily accessible during a day. Due to intensive rail traffic, the available time slots for maintenance and repair works are extremely short and are often distributed throughout the day. To identify efficient working periods, a first concept of a Bayesian network is introduced and is integrated into the extended RCPSP with pre-emptive and non-pre-emptive tasks. Thereby, the Bayesian network is used to calculate the probability of a maintenance task to be processed during a specific period of the shift. Focusing on the domain of maintenance of the railway infrastructure in metropolitan areas as the most unproductive implementation process at construction site, the paper illustrates how the extended RCPSP can be applied for maintenance planning support. A multi-criteria evolutionary algorithm with a problem representation is introduced which is capable of revising technician-task allocations, whereas the duration of the task may be stochastic. The approach uses a novel activity list representation to ensure easily describable and modifiable elements which can be converted into detailed shift schedules. Thereby, the main objective is to develop a shift plan which maximizes the utilization of each technician due to a minimization of the waiting times caused by rail traffic. The results of the already implemented core algorithm illustrate a fast convergence towards an optimal team composition for a shift, an efficient sequence of tasks and a high probability of the subsequent implementation due to the stochastic durations of the tasks. In the paper, the algorithm for the extended RCPSP is analyzed in experimental evaluation using real-world example problems with various size, resource complexity, tightness and so forth.

Keywords: maintenance management, scheduling, resource constrained project scheduling problem, genetic algorithms

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Authors: Jubril Olatunbosun Akinde

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Unplanned population growth are mostly attributed to a lack of infrastructural facilities and poor economic condition in the rural dwellings and the incidence of rural-urban migration, which has resulted in severe housing deficiency in the urban centre, with a resultant pressure on housing delivery in the cities. Affordable housing does not only encompass environmental factors that make living acceptable and comfortable, which include good access routes, ventilation, sanitation and access to other basic human needs, which include water and safety. The research assessed the housing affordability and safety measures in the varied residential area of lagos by examining the demographic and socioeconomic attributes of residents; examining the existing residential safety measures; by examining the residential quality in terms of safety; the researcher therefore examined if relationship between housing affordability and safety in the varied residential areas. The research adopted the bartlett, kotrlik and higgins (2001) method of t-test to determine the sample size which specifies different populations at different levels of significance (α). The researcher adopted primary data which was sourced from a field survey where the sample population was simply randomly selected to give a member of the population an equal chance of being selected, therefore, the sample size for the field survey was two hundred (200) respondents, and subjected to necessary testing. The research come to conclusion that housing safety and security is the responsibility of every resident, the landlords/landladies possess a better sense of security in their neighbourhood than renters in the community, therefore they need to be aware of their responsibility of ensuring the safety of lives and property.

Keywords: housing, housing affordability, housing security, residential, residential quality

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Authors: David P. Horton, Gary Lynch-Wood

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Western populations are aging, prone to various lifestyle health problems, and increasing their demand for health and social care services. This demand has created enormous fiscal and regulatory challenges. In response, government institutions have deployed strategies of behavior modification to encourage people to exercise greater personal responsibility over their health and care needs (i.e., welfare responsibilisation). Policy strategies are underpinned by the assumption that people if properly supported, will make better health and lifestyle selections. Not only does this absolve governments of the responsibility for meeting all health and care needs, but it also enables government institutions to assert fiscal control over welfare spending. Looking at the regulation of health and social care in the UK, the authors identify and outline a suite of regulatory tools that are designed to extract and manage the resources of health and social care services users and to encourage them to make (‘better’) use of these resources. This is important for our understanding of how health and social care regulation is responding to ongoing social and economic challenges. It is also important because there has been a failure to systematically examine the relevance of resources for regulation, which is surprising given that resources are crucial to how and whether regulation succeeds or fails. In particular, drawing from the regulatory welfare state concept, the authors analyse the key legal and regulatory changes and mechanisms that have been introduced since the 2008 financial crisis, focusing on critical measures such as the Health and Social Care Act and regulations introduced under the National Health Service Act. The authors show how three types of user resources (i.e., tangible, labor, and data) are being used to assert fiscal control and increase welfare responsibilisation. Amongst other things, the paper concludes that service users have become more than rule followers and targets of behavioral modification; rather, they are producers of resources that regulatory systems have come to rely on.

Keywords: health care, regulation, resources, social care

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Authors: R. Zh. Abdukerim, D. A. Absatarova, A. T. Aitbayeva, M. A. Askarova, S. T. Turuspekova, E. V. Zhunus

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The resilience of agricultural systems at the global level to climate change and their ability to recover determines the prospects for food security on a global scale. Since climate change will lead to changes in temperatures, precipitation, weather conditions and mass outbreaks of harmful organisms. The issue of adaptation to climate change in the agricultural sector is one of the priorities of Kazakhstan's Development Strategy for the period up to 2050. Since Kazakhstan is an agroindustrial country in which agriculture plays an important economic role. Kazakhstan is the largest potato producer in Central Asia, accounting for about 60% of the total vegetable production, which determines the urgency of solving the problem of increasing yields and quality. The control harmful organisms plays an important role in solving this issue. Due to the fact that climate change can lead to an increase in the number of harmful organisms and, accordingly, to a complete loss of harvest.

Keywords: potato pests, Colorado potato beetle, soil pests, global climate change

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Authors: Daniela Gradinaru, Iuliana Georgescu, Loredana Hutanu (Toma), Mihai-Bogdan Afrasinei

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This article aims to analyze the situation of Romanian companies from an environmental point of view. Environmental issues are addressed very often nowadays, and they reach and affect every domain, including the economical one. Implementing an environmental management system will not only help the companies to comply with laws and regulations, but, above all, will offer them an important competitive advantage.

Keywords: environmental management system, environmental reporting, environmental expenses, sustainable development

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Authors: Henok Girma Abebe

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The Vision Zero is a long-term goal of preventing all road traffic fatalities and serious injuries which was first adopted in Sweden in 1997. It is based on the assumption that death and serious injury in the road system is morally unacceptable. In order to approach this end, vision zero has put in place strategies that are radically different from the traditional safety work. The vision zero, for instance, promoted the adoption of the best available technology to promote safety, and placed the ultimate responsibility for traffic safety on system designers. Despite Vision Zero’s moral appeal and its expansion to different safety areas and also parts of the world, important philosophical concerns related to the adoption and implementation of the vision zero remain to be addressed. Moreover, the vision zero goal has been criticized on different grounds. The aim of this paper is to identify and systematically categorize criticisms that have been put forward against vision zero. The findings of the paper are solely based on a critical analysis of secondary sources and snowball method is employed to identify the relevant philosophical and empirical literatures. Two general categories of criticisms on the vision zero goal are identified. The first category consists of criticisms that target the setting of vision zero as a ‘goal’ and some of the basic assumptions upon which the goal is based. Among others, the goal of achieving zero fatalities and serious injuries, together with vision zero’s lexicographical prioritization of safety has been criticized as unrealistic. The second category consists of criticisms that target the strategies put in place to achieve the goal of zero fatalities and serious injuries. For instance, Vision zero’s responsibility ascription for road safety and its rejection of cost-benefit analysis in the formulation and adoption of safety measures has both been criticized as counterproductive. In this category also falls the criticism that Vision Zero safety measures tend to be too paternalistic. Significant improvements have been recorded in road safety work since the adoption of vision zero, however, for the vision zero to even succeed more, it is important that issues and criticisms of philosophical nature associated with it are identified and critically dealt with.

Keywords: criticisms, systems approach, traffic safety, vision zero

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Authors: Maja Sajdak

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The aim of this article is to identify the measures companies undertake in order to adapt to the environment as well as discussing their diversity and effectiveness. The research methods used in the study include an in-depth analysis of the literature and a case study, which helps to illustrate the issue in question. Referring to the concept of agility, which is firmly embedded in the theory of strategic management and has been developed with the aim of adapting to the environment and its changes, the paper first examines different types of adaptation measures for companies. Then the issue under discussion is illustrated with the example of the company Hortimex. This company is an eminent representative of the world’s leading manufacturers of food additives and ingredients. The company was established in 1988 and is a family business, which in practice means that it conducts business in a responsible manner, observing the law and respecting the interests of society and the environment. The company’s mission is to develop a market in Poland for the products and solutions offered by their partners and to share their knowledge of additives in food production and consumption.

Keywords: adaptation measures, agile enterprise, flexibility, unanticipated changes

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Authors: Jamila Mohammed Makarfi, Yontem Sonmez

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Developing countries like Nigeria have recently been affected by conflicts characterized by violence, high levels of risk and insecurity, resulting in loss of lives, livelihoods, displacement of communities, degradation of health, educational and social infrastructure as well as economic underdevelopment. The Nigerian government’s response to most of these conflicts has mainly been reactionary in the form of military deployments, as against precautionary to prevent or address the root causes of the conflicts. Several studies have shown that at various points of a conflict, conflict regions can benefit from the resources and expertise available outside the government, mainly from the private sector through mechanisms such as corporate social responsibility (CSR) by businesses. The main aim of this study is to examine the role of businesses in peacebuilding in Northern Nigeria through CSR in the last decade. The expected contributions from this will answer research questions, such as the key business motivations to engage in peacebuilding, as well as the degree of influence exerted from various stakeholder groups on the business decision to engage. The methodology of the study adopts a multiple case study of over 120 businesses of various sizes, ranging from small, medium and large-scale. A mixed method enabled the collection of quantitative and qualitative primary data to augment the secondary data. The results indicated that the most important business motivations to engage in peacebuilding were the negative effects of the conflict on economic stability, as well as stakeholder-driven motives. On the other hand, out of the 12 identified stakeholders, micro-, small- and medium-scale enterprises (MSMEs) considered the chief executive officer’s interest to be the most important factor, while large companies rated the government and community pressure as the highest. Overall, the foreign stakeholders scored low on the influence chart for all business types.

Keywords: conflict, corporate social responsibility, peacebuilding, stakeholder

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Authors: Saadia Izzeldin Malik

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Lack of ethics is the crisis of the 21-century. Today’s global world is filled with economic, political, environmental, media/communication, and social crises that all generated by the eroding fabric of ethics and moral values that guide human’s decisions in all aspects of live. Our global world is guided by liberal western democratic principles and liberal capitalist economic principles that define and reinforce each other. In economic terms, capitalism has turned world economic systems into one market place of ideas and products controlled by big multinational corporations that not only determine the conditions and terms of commodity production and commodity exchange between countries, but also transform the political economy of media systems around the globe. The citizen (read the consumer) today is the target of persuasion by all types of media at a time when her/his interests should be, ethically and in principle, the basic significant factor in the selection of media content. It is very important in this juncture of clashing media values –professional and commercial- and wide spread ethical lapses of media organizations and media professionals to think of a perspective to theorize these conflicting values within a broader framework of media ethics. Thus, the aim of this paper is to, epistemologically, bring to the center a perspective on media ethics as a basis for reconciliation of clashing values of the media. The paper focuses on conflicting ethical values in current media debate; namely ownership of media vs. press freedom, individual right for privacy vs. public right to know, and global western consumerism values vs. media values. The paper concludes that a framework to reconcile conflicting values of media ethics should focus on the “individual” journalist and his/her moral development as well as focus on maintaining ethical principles of the media as an institution with a primary social responsibility for the “public” it serves.

Keywords: ethics, media, journalism, social responsibility, conflicting values, global

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Authors: M. Verde, G. Falzarano

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The paper examines the connection between corporate social responsibility (CSR), capability approach and poverty reduction; in particular, the local employment development (LED) by way of CSR initiatives. The joint action of LED/CSR results in a win-win situation, not only for the enterprises but also for all the stakeholders involved; in this regard, subsidiarity and coordination between national and regional/local authorities are central to a socially-oriented market economy. In the first section, the CSR is analysed on the basis of its social function in the fight against poverty, as a 'capabilities deprivation'. In the central part, the attention is focused on the relationship between CSR and LED; ergo, on the role of the enterprises in fostering capabilities development (the employment). Besides, all the potential solutions are presented, stressing the possible combinations, in the last part. The benchmark is the enterprise as an economic and a social institution: the business should not be combined with profit merely, paying more attention to its sustainable impact and social contribution. In which way could it be possible? The answer is the CSR. The impact of CSR on poverty reduction is still little explored. The companies help to reduce poverty through economic contribution, human rights and social inclusion; hence, the business becomes an 'agent of development' in order to fight against 'inequality'. The starting point is the pyramid of social responsibility, where ethic and philanthropic responsibilities involve programmes and actions aimed at personal development of the individuals, improving human standard of living in all forms, including poverty, when people do not have a choice between different 'life options', ranging from level of education to employment. At this point, CSR comes into play and works on two dimensions: poverty reduction and poverty prevention, by means of a series of initiatives: first of all, job creation and precarious work reduction. Empowerment of the local actors, financial support and combination of top down and bottom up initiatives are some of CSR areas of activity. Several positive effects occur on individual levels of educations, access to capital, individual health status, empowerment of youth and woman, access to social networks and it was observed that these effects depend on the type of CSR strategy. Indeed, CSR programmes should take into account fundamental criteria, such as the transparency, the information about benefits, a coordination unit among institutions and more clear guidelines. In this way, the advantages to the corporate reputation and to the community translate into a better job matching on the labour market, inter alia. It is important to underline that the success depends on the specific measures of the areas in question, by adapting them to the local needs, in light of general principles and index; therefore, the concrete commitment of the all stakeholders involved is decisive in order to achieve the goals. The enterprise would represent a concrete contribution for the pursuit of sustainable development and for the dissemination of a social and well being awareness.

Keywords: capability approach, local employment development, poverty, social inclusion

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Authors: Jerome Joshi

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The paper presents the modelling of financial markets using the Stochastic Pi Calculus model. The Stochastic Pi Calculus model is mainly used for biological applications; however, the feature of this model promotes its use in financial markets, more prominently in high frequency trading. The trading system can be broadly classified into exchange, market makers or intermediary traders and fundamental traders. The exchange is where the action of the trade is executed, and the two types of traders act as market participants in the exchange. High frequency trading, with its complex networks and numerous market participants (intermediary and fundamental traders) poses a difficulty while modelling. It involves the participants to seek the advantage of complex trading algorithms and high execution speeds to carry out large volumes of trades. To earn profits from each trade, the trader must be at the top of the order book quite frequently by executing or processing multiple trades simultaneously. This would require highly automated systems as well as the right sentiment to outperform other traders. However, always being at the top of the book is also not best for the trader, since it was the reason for the outbreak of the ‘Hot – Potato Effect,’ which in turn demands for a better and more efficient model. The characteristics of the model should be such that it should be flexible and have diverse applications. Therefore, a model which has its application in a similar field characterized by such difficulty should be chosen. It should also be flexible in its simulation so that it can be further extended and adapted for future research as well as be equipped with certain tools so that it can be perfectly used in the field of finance. In this case, the Stochastic Pi Calculus model seems to be an ideal fit for financial applications, owing to its expertise in the field of biology. It is an extension of the original Pi Calculus model and acts as a solution and an alternative to the previously flawed algorithm, provided the application of this model is further extended. This model would focus on solving the problem which led to the ‘Flash Crash’ which is the ‘Hot –Potato Effect.’ The model consists of small sub-systems, which can be integrated to form a large system. It is designed in way such that the behavior of ‘noise traders’ is considered as a random process or noise in the system. While modelling, to get a better understanding of the problem, a broader picture is taken into consideration with the trader, the system, and the market participants. The paper goes on to explain trading in exchanges, types of traders, high frequency trading, ‘Flash Crash,’ ‘Hot-Potato Effect,’ evaluation of orders and time delay in further detail. For the future, there is a need to focus on the calibration of the module so that they would interact perfectly with other modules. This model, with its application extended, would provide a basis for researchers for further research in the field of finance and computing.

Keywords: concurrent computing, high frequency trading, financial markets, stochastic pi calculus

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Authors: Liang Wang, Wei Zhang

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Nowadays, sustainable development has increasingly become an important research topic of engineering education. Existing research on Engineering Education for Sustainable Development (EESD) has highlighted the importance of perceptions for ethical responsibility to address sustainable development in practice. However, whether and how the professional engineering experience affects those perceptions has not been proved, especially in a Chinese context. Our study fills this gap by investigating the perceptions bias of EESD between experienced engineers and engineering students. We specifically examined what EESD means for experienced engineers and engineering students using a triple-dimensional model to understand if there are obvious differences between the two groups. Our goal is to make the benefits of these experiences more accessible in school context. The data (n=438) came from a questionnaire created and adapted from previously published studies containing 288 students from mechanical or civil engineering and 150 civil engineers with rich working experience, and the questionnaire was distributed during Fall 2020. T-test was used to find the difference in different dimensions between the two groups. The statistical results show that there is a significant difference in the perceptions of EESD between experienced engineers and inexperienced engineering students in China. Experienced engineers tend to consider sustainable development from ecological, economic, and social perspectives, while engineering students' answers focus more on ecology and ignore economic and social dimensions to some extend. The findings provide empirical evidence that professional experience is helpful to cultivate the cognition and ability of sustainable development in engineering education. The results of this work indicate that more practical content should be added to engineering education to promote sustainable development. In addition, for the design of engineering courses and professional practice systems for sustainable development, we should not only pay attention to the ecological aspects but also emphasize the coordination of ecological, economic, and socially sustainable development (e.g., engineer's ethical responsibility).

Keywords: engineering education, sustainable development, experienced engineers, engineering students

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Authors: Veena Nair, Srikanth Prakash, Mayuri Wijayasundara

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Globally, the textile industry is a key contributor to the generation of solid waste which gets landfilled. Textile waste generation generally occurs in three stages, namely: producer waste, pre-consumer waste, and post-consumer waste. However, the different processes adopted in textile material extraction, manufacturing, and use have their respective impact in terms of the quantity of waste being diverted to landfills. The study is focused on assessing the value chains of the two most common textile fibres: cotton and polyester, catering to a broad categories of apparel products. This study attempts to identify and evaluate the key processes adopted by the textile industry at each of the stages in their value chain in terms of waste generation. The different processes identified in each of the stages in the textile value chains are mapped to their respective contribution in generating fibre waste which eventually gets diverted to landfill. The results of the study are beneficial for the overall industry in terms of improving the traceability of waste in the value chains and the selection of processes and behaviours facilitating the reduction of environmental impacts associated with landfills.

Keywords: textile waste, textile value chains, landfill waste, waste mapping

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Authors: Lisa Graham, Kathleen Grant

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South Africa is a multicultural country with eleven official languages, yet most of the formal education at institutions of higher education in the country is in English. It is well known that many students, irrespective of their home language, struggle to grasp difficult scientific concepts and the same is true for students enrolled in the Extended Curriculum Programme at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), studying biomedical sciences. Today we are fortunate in that there is a plethora of resources available to students to research and better understand subject matter online. For example, the students often use YouTube videos to supplement the formal education provided in our course. Unfortunately, most of this material is presented in English. The rationale behind this project lies in that it is well documented that students think and grasp concepts easier in their home language and addresses the fact that the lingua franca of instruction in the field of biomedical science is English. A project aimed at addressing the lack of available resources in most of the South African languages is planned, where students studying Bachelor of Health Science in Medical Laboratory Science will collaborate with those studying Film and Video Technology to create educational videos, explaining scientific concepts in their home languages. These videos will then be published on our own YouTube channel, thereby making them accessible to fellow students, future students and anybody with interest in the subject. Research will be conducted to determine the benefit of the project as well as the published videos to the student community. It is suspected that the students engaged in making the videos will benefit in such a way as to gain further understanding of their course content, a broader appreciation of the discipline, an enhanced sense of civic responsibility, as well as greater respect for the different languages and cultures in our classes. Indeed, an increase in student engagement has been shown to play a central role in student success, and it is well noted that deeper learning and more innovative solutions take place in collaborative groups. We aim to make a meaningful contribution towards the production and repository of knowledge in multilingual teaching and learning for the benefit of the diverse student population and staff. This would strengthen language development, multilingualism, and multiculturalism at CPUT and empower and promote African languages as languages of science and education at CPUT, in other institutions of higher learning, and in South Africa as a whole.

Keywords: educational videos, multiculturalism, multilingualism, student engagement

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Authors: Donghyun Lee, Cam Nguyen

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Multi-band systems offer a great deal of benefit in modern communication and radar systems. In particular, multi-band antenna-array radar systems with their extended frequency diversity provide numerous advantages in detection, identification, locating and tracking a wide range of targets, including enhanced detection coverage, accurate target location, reduced survey time and cost, increased resolution, improved reliability and target information. An accurate calibration is a critical issue in antenna array systems. The amplitude and phase errors in multi-band and multi-polarization antenna array transceivers result in inaccurate target detection, deteriorated resolution and reduced reliability. Furthermore, the digital beam former without the RF domain phase-shifting is less immune to unfiltered interference signals, which can lead to receiver saturation in array systems. Therefore, implementing integrated front-end architecture, which can support calibration function with low insertion and filtering function from the farthest end of an array transceiver is of great interest. We report a dual K/Ka-band T/R/Calibration switch module with quasi-elliptic dual-bandpass filtering function implementing a Q-enhanced metamaterial transmission line. A unique dual-band frequency response is incorporated in the reception and calibration path of the proposed switch module utilizing the composite right/left-handed meta material transmission line coupled with a Colpitts-style negative generation circuit. The fabricated fully integrated T/R/Calibration switch module in 0.18-μm BiCMOS technology exhibits insertion loss of 4.9-12.3 dB and isolation of more than 45 dB in the reception, transmission and calibration mode of operation. In the reception and calibration mode, the dual-band frequency response centered at 24.5 and 35 GHz exhibits out-of-band rejection of more than 30 dB compared to the pass bands below 10.5 GHz and above 59.5 GHz. The rejection between the pass bands reaches more than 50 dB. In all modes of operation, the IP1-dB is between 4 and 11 dBm. Acknowledgement: This paper was made possible by NPRP grant # 6-241-2-102 from the Qatar National Research Fund (a member of Qatar Foundation). The statements made herein are solely the responsibility of the authors.

Keywords: microwaves, millimeter waves, T/R switch, wireless communications, wireless communications

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Authors: Parinyaporn Thanaboonpuang, Siridej Sujiva, Shotiga Pasiphul

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The higher education reform that integration of nursing programmes into the higher education system. Learning outcomes represent one of the essential building blocks for transparency within higher education systems and qualifications. The purpose of this study is to develop a toolkit of undergraduate nursing student’desirable characteristics assessment on Thai Qualifications Framework for Higher education and to test psychometric property for this instrument. This toolkit seeks to improve on the Computer Multimedia test. There are three skills to be examined: Cognitive skill, Responsibility and Interpersonal Skill, and Information Technology Skill. The study was conduct in 4 phases. In Phase 1. Based on developed a measurement model and Computer Multimedia test. Phase 2 two round focus group were conducted, to determine the content validity of measurement model and the toolkit. In Phase 3, data were collected using a multistage random sampling of 1,156 senior undergraduate nursing student were recruited to test psychometric property. In Phase 4 data analysis was conducted by descriptive statistics, item analysis, inter-rater reliability, exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. The resulting TNDC consists of 74 items across the following four domains: Cognitive skill, Interpersonal Skill, Responsibility and Information Technology Skill. The value of Cronbach’ s alpha for the four domains were .781, 807, .831, and .865, respectively. The final model in confirmatory factor analysis fit quite well with empirical data. The TNDC was found to be appropriate, both theoretically and statistically. Due to these results, it is recommended that the toolkit could be used in future studies for Nursing Program in Thailand.

Keywords: toolkit, nursing student’ desirable characteristics, Thai qualifications framework

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Authors: Mahmud Adam, Inuwa Abdu Ibrahim

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The issue of ethics and values of public office holders in Nigerian has been and still is a matter of great mystery. Their behaviours in the discharge of their official responsibility remain unsatisfactory. The paper looks at the code of conduct and the societal values with which the Nigerian Administrators function today. Secondary sources of data were used. In conclusion, a change in attitude, reorientation, harsh and enforceable laws is required to reverse the trend.

Keywords: society, administrators, code of conduct, Nigeria

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Authors: Abubakar Mukhtar Yakasai, Muhammad Tahir Jan

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Purpose: This paper is aimed at exploring factors influencing online shopping intention among the young consumers in Nigeria. Design/Methodology/approach: The paper adopted and extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) as the basis for literature review. Additionally, the paper proposed a framework with the inclusion of culture as a moderating factor of consumer online shopping intention among consumers in Nigeria. Findings: Despite high rate of internet penetration in Nigerian, as well as the rapid advancement of online shopping in the world, little attention was paid to this important revolution specifically among Nigeria’s consumers. Based on the review of extant literature, the TAM extended to include perceived risk and enjoyment (PR and PE) was discovered to be a better alternative framework for predicting Nigeria’s young consumers’ online shopping intention. The moderating effect of culture in the proposed model is shown to help immensely in ascertaining differences, if any, between various cultural groups among online shoppers in Nigeria. Originality/ value: The critical analysis of different factors will assist practitioners (like online retailers, e-marketing managers, website developers, etc.) by signifying which combinations of factors can best predict consumer online shopping behaviour in particular instances, thereby resulting in effective value delivery. Online shopping is a newly adopted technology in Nigeria, hence the paper will give a clear focus for effective e-marketing strategy. In addition, the proposed framework in this paper will guide future researchers by providing a tool for systematic evaluation and testing of real empirical situation of online shopping in Nigeria.

Keywords: online shopping, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, perceived enjoyment, technology acceptance model, Nigeria

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Authors: Fazle Rabbi, Mashuda Khanom Tithi, Tasnim Mirza, Sanjida Rowshan Anannya, Ahmed Hossain

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Background: Low Back Pain (LBP) is one of the common health problems among the garment workers that causes workers absenteeism from the work. The purpose of the study is to identify the association between occupational factors and LBP among the female garment workers in Bangladesh. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 487 female garment workers from three compliant garment factories of Bangladesh. Face-to-face interview on four different LBP measures along with questions on socio-demographic, occupational, and physical factors were used to collect the data. Result: The prevalence rates for LBP lasts for at least one day during the last six months, chronic pain, intense pain, and seeking medical care for LBP were found 63.04%, 38.60%, 13.76%, and 18.89%, respectively among the female garments workers. The multivariate logistic regression analysis indicates that duration of employment (>5 years), regular weight bearing and extended weekly working hours (>48 hours) are positively associated with LBP. Besides, age, BMI, family income, marital status and number of children are also found positively associated with the LBP measures. Conclusion: The prevalence of LBP among female garment workers in Bangladesh is found high. The duration of employment (>5 years), regular weight bearing and extended weekly working hours (>48 hours) play a significant role in developing LBP among the female workers. Factories need to consider training programs on the appropriate technique of weight bearing. It is also important to conduct regular screening programs to identify LBP, especially with married, overweight/obese and older age group to reduce the occurrence of LBP.

Keywords: Bangladesh, garment workers, low back pain, occupational health

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Authors: Yuhang Wang

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As energy is vital to industrial productivity and human existence, ensuring energy security becomes a critical government responsibility. The Chinese government has implemented the energy transition to safeguard China’s energy security. Throughout this progression, the Chinese government has faced numerous obstacles. This article seeks to describe the causes of China’s energy transition barriers and the steps taken by the Chinese government to overcome them.

Keywords: energy transition, energy market, fragmentation, path dependency

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Authors: Buchh Aqsa, Inayat Umar

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Background- Clonidine, α 2 agonist, possesses several properties to make it valuable adjuvant for spinal anesthesia. The study was aimed to evaluate the clinical effects of oral clonidine premedication for laparoscopic gynecological procedures under subarachnoid block. Patients and method- Sixtyfour adult female patients of ASA physical status I and II, aged 25 to 45 years and scheduled for laparoscopic gynecological procedures under the subarachnoid block, were randomized into two comparable equal groups of 32 patients each to received either oral clonidine, 100 µg (Group I) or placebo (Group II), 90 minutes before the procedure. Subarachnoid block was established with of 3.5 ml of 0.5% hyperbaric bupivacaine in all patients. Onset and duration of sensory and motor block, maximum cephalad level, and the regression time to reach S1 sensory level were assessed as primary end points. Sedation, hemodynamic variability, and respiratory depression or any other side effects were evaluated as secondary outcomes. Results- The demographic profile was comparable. The intraoperative hemodynamic parameters showed significant differences between groups. Oral clonidine was accelerated the onset time of sensory and motor blockade and extended the duration of sensory block (216.4 ± 23.3 min versus 165 ± 37.2 min, P <0.05). The duration of motor block showed no significant difference. The sedation score was more than 2 in the clonidine group as compared to the control group. Conclusion- Oral clonidine premedication has extended the duration of sensory analgesia with arousable sedation. It also prevented the post spinal shivering of the subarachnoid block.

Keywords: oral clonidine, subarachnoid block, sensory analgesia, laparoscopic gynaecological

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Authors: Milca F. Coelho, K. Bousson, Kawser Ahmed

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To accurately track an aerospace vehicle in a time-critical situation and in a highly nonlinear environment, is one of the strongest interests within the aerospace community. The tracking is achieved by estimating accurately the state of a moving target, which is composed of a set of variables that can provide a complete status of the system at a given time. One of the main ingredients for a good estimation performance is the use of efficient estimation algorithms. A well-known framework is the Kalman filtering methods, designed for prediction and estimation problems. The success of the Kalman Filter (KF) in engineering applications is mostly due to the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF), which is based on local linearization. Besides its popularity, the EKF presents several limitations. To address these limitations and as a possible solution to tracking problems, this paper proposes the use of the Ensemble Kalman Filter (EnKF). Although the EnKF is being extensively used in the context of weather forecasting and it is being recognized for producing accurate and computationally effective estimation on systems with a very high dimension, it is almost unknown by the tracking community. The EnKF was initially proposed as an attempt to improve the error covariance calculation, which on the classic Kalman Filter is difficult to implement. Also, in the EnKF method the prediction and analysis error covariances have ensemble representations. These ensembles have sizes which limit the number of degrees of freedom, in a way that the filter error covariance calculations are a lot more practical for modest ensemble sizes. In this paper, a realistic simulation of a radar tracking was performed, where the EnKF was applied and compared with the Extended Kalman Filter. The results suggested that the EnKF is a promising tool for tracking applications, offering more advantages in terms of performance.

Keywords: Kalman filter, nonlinear state estimation, optimal tracking, stochastic environment

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