Search results for: sustainability portfolio

Authors: Zohreh Soltani, Seyedmohammadhossein Hosseinian

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Reduction of energy consumption in built infrastructure, through the installation of energy-efficient technologies, is a major approach to achieving sustainability. In practice, the viability of energy efficiency projects strongly depends on the cost reimbursement and profitability. These projects are subject to failure if the actual cost savings do not reimburse the project cost in a timely manner. In such cases, refinancing could be a solution to benefit from the long-term returns of the project if implemented wisely. However, very little is still known about the effect of refinancing options on financial performance of energy efficiency projects. To fill this gap, the present study investigates the financial behavior of energy efficiency projects with focus on refinancing options, such as Leveraged Loans. A System Dynamics (SD) model is introduced, and the model application is presented using an actual case-study data. The case study results indicate that while high-interest start-ups make using Leveraged Loan inevitable, refinancing can rescue the project and bring about profitability. This paper also presents some managerial implications of refinancing energy efficiency projects based on the case-study analysis. Results of this study help implementing financially viable energy efficiency projects, so the community could benefit from their environmental advantages widely.

Keywords: energy efficiency projects, leveraged loan, refinancing, sustainability

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Authors: Saad Odeh

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Thermal performance is considered to be a key measure in building sustainability. One of the technologies used in the current building sustainable design is the rooftop solar PV power generators. The application of this type of technology has expanded vastly during the last five years in many countries. This paper studies the effect of roof shading developed by the solar PV panels on dwellings’ thermal performance. The analysis in this work is performed by using two types of packages: “AccuRate Sustainability” for rating the energy efficiency of residential building design, and “PVSYST” for the solar PV power system design. The former package is used to calculate the annual heating and cooling load, and the later package is used to evaluate the power production from the roof top PV system. The analysis correlates the electrical energy generated from the PV panels to the change in the heating and cooling load due to roof shading. Different roof orientation, roof inclination, roof insulation, as well as PV panel area are considered in this study. The analysis shows that the drop in energy efficiency due to the shaded area of the roof by PV panels is negligible compared to the energy generated by these panels.

Keywords: PV panel, thermal performance, roof shading, energy efficiency

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Authors: Jongsoo Jurng

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The drive to expand renewable energies is often in direct conflict with sustainable development goals. Thus, it is important that energy policies account for potential trade-offs. We assess the interlinkages between energy, food, water, and land, for two case studies, Suwon and Seoul. We apply a range of assessment methods and study their usefulness as tools to identify trade-offs and to compare the sustainability performance. We calculate cross-sectoral footprints, self-sufficiency ratios and perform a simplified Energy-Water-Food nexus analysis. We use the latter for assessing scenarios to increase energy and food self-sufficiency in Suwon, while we use ecosystem service (ESS) accounting for Seoul. For Suwon, we find that constraints on the energy, food and water sectors urgently call for integrated approaches to energy policy; for Seoul, the further expansion of renewables comes at the expense of cultural and supporting ESS, which could outweigh gains from increased energy exports. We recommend a general upgrade to indicators and visualization methods that look beyond averages and a fostering of infrastructure for data on sustainable development based on harmonized international protocols. We warn against rankings of countries or regions based on benchmarks that are neither theory-driven nor location-specific.

Keywords: ESS, renewable energy, energy-water-food nexus, assessment

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Authors: Emma Serwaa Obobisa, Winifred Essaah

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Significant worldwide trends including urbanization, industrialization, globalization, and the impending digitization have all contributed to human prosperity. However, the majority of these advancements fail to take sustainability into account, which caused the earth to manifest its retaliation in many forms. Since the world is already well-advanced, mankind needs a mature development that instills sustainability in its acts. As a result, the United Nations established the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which set forth guidelines for human behavior to ensure that the ecosystem and mankind coexist as a unified, autonomous system. The study investigates the role of eco-innovation, renewable energy consumption, human capital, environmental tax, and natural resources in achieving European Union countries' sustainable development goals. The results show that eco-innovation, renewable energy consumption, human capital, and environmental tax have a negative relationship with consumption-based CO₂ emissions but a positive relationship with natural resources. These findings suggest that governments in European Union countries commit to encouraging environmentally friendly technology advances and green investment. It also stresses the need to enforce regulations that regulate the activities of polluting firms in the region with strictness.

Keywords: sustainable development, Eco-innovation, renewable energy, CO₂ emissions

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Authors: Fereshteh Pashaei Kamali, Elham Kazemi, Shokooh Neshani Fam

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The subject of sustainable development is a reformist revision of modernism and tradition, proposing reconciliatory strategies between these two. Sustainability in architecture cannot only be interpreted as the construction’s physical stability, but also as stability, the preserving of the continuous totality of earth and its energy resources as well, whose available resources and materials should be employed more efficiently. In other words, by referring to the building ecology, emphasizing the combinatory capacity of the building with the environmental factors (existence context), the aim of sustainability is to achieve spatial quality and comfort, as well as proper design in the architectural composition. To achieve these traditional Iranian architecture objectives, it is essential to plan on protecting the environment, maintaining aesthetic measures and responding to the needs of each climatic region. This study was conducted based on the descriptive-analytical method, and aimed to express the design patterns compatible with the climate of the Tabriz residential fabric. The present article attempts to express the techniques and patterns used in traditional Iranian architecture, especially the Tabriz Sharbatoglu houses and Ghadaki houses, which are supposed to be in accordance with modern concepts of sustainable architecture.

Keywords: sustainable architecture, climate, Tabriz, Sharbatoglu house, Ghadaki house

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Authors: James Kralj

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Commercial shellfish aquaculture makes significant contributions to the economy and culture of the Pacific Northwest United States. The industry faces intense pressure to minimize environmental impacts as a result of Federal policies like the Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries Conservation and Management Act and the Endangered Species Act. These policies demand the protection of essential fish habitat and declare several salmon species as endangered. Consequently, numerous projects related to the protection and rehabilitation of eelgrass beds, a crucial ecosystem for countless fish species, have been proposed at both state and federal levels. Both eelgrass beds and commercial shellfish farms occupy the same physical space, and therefore understanding the effects of shellfish aquaculture on eelgrass ecosystems has become a top ecological and economic priority of both government and industry. This study evaluates the organismal communities that eelgrass and oyster aquaculture habitats support. Water samples were collected from Willapa Bay, Washington; Tillamook Bay, Oregon; Humboldt Bay, California; and Sammish Bay, Washington to compare species diversity in eelgrass beds, oyster aquaculture plots, and boundary edges between these two habitats. Diversity was assessed using a novel technique: environmental DNA (eDNA). All organisms constantly shed small pieces of DNA into their surrounding environment through the loss of skin, hair, tissues, and waste. In the marine environment, this DNA becomes suspended in the water column allowing it to be easily collected. Once extracted and sequenced, this eDNA can be used to paint a picture of all the organisms that live in a particular habitat making it a powerful technology for environmental monitoring. Industry professionals and government officials should consider these findings to better inform future policies regulating eelgrass beds and oyster aquaculture. Furthermore, the information collected in this study may be used to improve the environmental sustainability of commercial shellfish aquaculture while simultaneously enhancing its growth and profitability in the face of ever-changing political and ecological landscapes.

Keywords: aquaculture, environmental DNA, shellfish, sustainability

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Authors: Eric Neidhardt

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A well-functioning public transport system that is accepted and used by the general population contributes a lot to a sustainable city. Especially young and elderly people rely on public transport to get to work, go shopping, visit a doctor, and take advantage of entertainment options. The sustainability of a public transport system can be considered from different points of view. In urban areas, acceptance is particularly important. As many people as possible should use public transport and not their private vehicle. This reduces traffic jams and increases air quality. In rural areas, the cost efficiency of public transport is especially important. Longer distances and a low population density mean that these modes of transportation can rarely be used cost-effectively. It is crucial to avoid a low utilization, because empty rides are neither sustainable nor cost-effective. With a demand-oriented approach, we try to both improve flexibility and therefore attractiveness for the user and improve cost- efficiency. The vehicles only operate when they are needed and only where they are needed. Empty rides are avoided to improve sustainability. In the subproject "Autonomous public driving" of the project RealLabHH, such a system was implemented and tested in Hamburg-Bergedorf, a suburb of Hamburg. In this paper, some of the steps necessary for this are considered from a technical point of view, and problems that arose in real-life use are addressed.

Keywords: public transport, demand-oriented, autonomous driving, RealLabHH

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Authors: Ronald Orth, Johanna Haunschild, Sara Tsog

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The bioeconomy is an inter- and cross-disciplinary field covering a large number and wide scope of existing and emerging technologies. It has a great potential to contribute to the transformation process of industry landscape and ultimately drive the economy towards sustainability. However, bioeconomy per se is not necessarily sustainable and technology should be seen as an enabler rather than panacea to all our ecological, social and economic issues. Therefore, to draw and maximize benefits from bioeconomy in terms of sustainability, we propose that innovative activities should encompass not only novel technologies and bio-based new materials but also multifocal innovations. For multifocal innovation endeavors, innovation management plays a substantial role, as any innovation emerges in a complex iterative process where communication and knowledge exchange among relevant stake holders has a pivotal role. The knowledge generation and innovation are although at the core of transition towards a more sustainable bio-based economy, to date, there is a significant lack of concepts and models that approach bioeconomy from the innovation management approach. The aim of this paper is therefore two-fold. First, it inspects the role of transformative approach in the adaptation of bioeconomy that contributes to the environmental, ecological, social and economic sustainability. Second, it elaborates the importance of technology and innovation management as a tool for smooth, prompt and effective transition of firms to the bioeconomy. We conduct a qualitative literature study on the sustainability challenges that bioeconomy entails thus far using Science Citation Index and based on grey literature, as major economies e.g. EU, USA, China and Brazil have pledged to adopt bioeconomy and have released extensive publications on the topic. We will draw an example on the forest based business sector that is transforming towards the new green economy more rapidly as expected, although this sector has a long-established conventional business culture with consolidated and fully fledged industry. Based on our analysis we found that a successful transition to sustainable bioeconomy is conditioned on heterogenous and contested factors in terms of stakeholders , activities and modes of innovation. In addition, multifocal innovations occur when actors from interdisciplinary fields engage in intensive and continuous interaction where the focus of innovation is allocated to a field of mutually evolving socio-technical practices that correspond to the aims of the novel paradigm of transformative innovation policy. By adopting an integrated and systems approach as well as tapping into various innovation networks and joining global innovation clusters, firms have better chance of creating an entire new chain of value added products and services. This requires professionals that have certain capabilities and skills such as: foresight for future markets, ability to deal with complex issues, ability to guide responsible R&D, ability of strategic decision making, manage in-depth innovation systems analysis including value chain analysis. Policy makers, on the other hand, need to acknowledge the essential role of firms in the transformative innovation policy paradigm.

Keywords: bioeconomy, innovation and technology management, multifocal innovation, sustainability, transformative innovation policy

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Authors: Davidson E. Egirani, Nanfe R. Poyi, Napoleon Wessey

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This paper would report the environmental challenges faced by stakeholders in the development and management of mineral resources in Mindanao mining region of the Philippines. The paper would proffer solutions via the development and management of integrated mineral resource framework. This is by interfacing the views of government, operating mining companies and the mining host communities. The project methods involved the desktop review of existing local, regional, national environmental and mining legislation. This was followed up with visits to mining sites and discussions were held with stakeholders in the mineral sector. The findings from a 2-year investigation would reveal lack of information, education, and communication campaign by stakeholders on environmental, health, political, and social issues in the mining industry. Small-scale miners lack the professional muscles for a balance shift of emphasis to sustainable and responsible mining to avoid environmental degradation and human health effect. Therefore, there is a need to balance ecological requirements, sustainability of the environment and development of mineral resources. This paper would provide an environmentally friendly mineral resource development framework.

Keywords: ecological requirements, environmental degradation, human health, mining legislation, responsible mining

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Authors: Naziema B. Jappie

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Internationalization is very complex and multifaceted and has implications for the entire university sector, and the larger community which it serves. Higher education strategic plans require sustainability on all levels of academic engagement and internationalization contributes to the sustainability because of the global competition but, at the same time, ensures diversity on campuses. Universities all over the world are increasingly recognizing the challenges of globalization and the pressures towards internationalization. The past 25 years of internationalization has faded away, and new challenges have emerged. Although internationalization remains a central strategic objective for all universities, for many leaders and education practitioners it has remained a confused concept. It has various interpretations, and it intersects with numerous other national agendas in higher education domain; it often builds upon narrow notions limited to one of its facets –attracting international student fees for financial sustainability or for ensuring a diverse campus culture. It is essential to have clear institutional views, but it is imperative that everyone reflects on the values and beliefs that underpin the internationalization of higher education and have a global focus. This paper draws together the international experience locally and globally to explore the emerging patterns of strategy and practice in internationalizing higher education. This will highlight some critical notions of how the concepts of internationalization and globalization in the context of higher education is understood by those who lead universities and what new challenges are being created as universities seek to become more international. Institutions cannot simply have bullet points in the strategic plan about recruitment of international students; there has to be a complete commitment to an international strategy of inclusivity. This paper will further examine the leadership styles that ensure transformation together with the goals set out for internationalization. The interviews with the senior leadership are in-depth semi-structured recorded interviews of approximately one-hour to learn about their institutional experiences, promotion, and enhancement of the value of internationalisation to the tertiary education sector and initiating discussions around adding the international relations dimension to the curriculum. This paper will address the issues relevant to the cross-border delivery of higher education. To ensure anonymity throughout this study, the interviewees are identified only by their institutions.

Keywords: challenges, globalization, higher education, internationalization, strategic focus

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Authors: Hamid Yazdani, Fatemeh Abbasi

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Biomimicry, where flora, fauna or entire ecosystems are emulated as a basis for design, is a growing area of research in the fields of architecture and engineering. This is due to both the fact that it is an inspirational source of possible new innovation and because of the potential it offers as a way to create a more sustainable and even regenerative built environment. The widespread and practical application of biomimicry as a design method remains however largely unrealised. A growing body of international research identifies various obstacles to the employment of biomimicry as an architectural design method. One barrier of particular note is the lack of a clear definition of the various approaches to biomimicry that designers can initially employ. Through a comparative literature review, and an examination of existing biomimetic technologies, this paper elaborates on distinct approaches to biomimetic design that have evolved. A framework for understanding the various forms of biomimicry has been developed, and is used to discuss the distinct advantages and disadvantages inherent in each as a design methodology. It is shown that these varied approaches may lead to different outcomes in terms of overall sustainability or regenerative potential. It is posited that a biomimetic approach to architectural design that incorporates an understanding of ecosystems could become a vehicle for creating a built environment that goes beyond simply sustaining current conditions to a restorative practice where the built environment becomes a vital component in the integration with and regeneration of natural ecosystems.

Keywords: biomimicry, bio-inspired design, ecology, ecomimicry, industrial ecology

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Authors: Marzieh Khaleghi Baygi, Maryam Khaleghy Baygy

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The main aim of this project was designing and making sustainable architectural wearable dress inspired by reconstruction project of Bam’s Bazar in Iran. To achieve the goals of this project, Bam Bazar became the architectural reference. A mixed research method (including applied, qualitative and case studies methods) was used. After research, data gathering and considering related intellectual, mental and cultural background, the garment was modeled by using 3ds Max's modeling tools and Marvelous. After making the pattern, the wearable architecture was built and an architectural and historical building converted to a clothing. The implementation of sustainable architectural clothing, took seventeen months. The result of this project was a cloth in a new form that had been worn on its architect body. The comparison between present project and previous research were focusing on the same subjects (architectural clothing) shows some dramatic differentiations, including, the architect, designer and executive of this project was the same person who was the main researcher. Also, in this research, special attention was paid to the sustainability, volume and forms. Most projects in this subject (especially pervious related Iranian research) relied on painting and not on the volumes and forms. The sustainable immovable architecture had worn on its architect, became a cloth on a human's body that was moving.

Keywords: wearable architecture, clothing, bam bazar, space, sustainability

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Authors: Mohammed Alnuwairan, Mahmoud Abdelrahman

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Based on the sustainability concept, this paper explores the current situation of construction and demolition waste (C&D) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) from the source of production to final destinations. The issues that hindered the investment of recycling C&D in the context will be studied in order to identify the challenges and opportunities to improve this sector and put forward a strategic framework to reduce, reuse, recycle and minimize the disposal of this type of waste. The research, which is exploratory in nature, identified four types of organizations that were appropriate case studies. These organizations were drawn from the municipalities, city council, recyclers and manufacturers. Secondary data collection, direct observation, and elite interviewing methods were used in the case studies to facilitate comparisons with existing literature to explore opportunities to improve sustainability practices in the buildings sector. Implementation of C&D waste management and recycling in KSA is in the early stages. Resistance of virgin building material manufacturers, free usage of landfill, culture, surpluses of natural raw material, availability of land and the cost of recycling this material compared with virgin material hinders the adoption of recycled buildings martial. Although the metal material is collected and recycled but it has the lowest percentage of C&D waste in Saudi. The findings indicate that government and industry need to collaborate more closely in order to successfully implement best practices. Economic and environmental benefits can be achieved, particularly through improvements to infrastructure and legislation. Feasible solution framework and recommendations for managing C&D waste under current situation are provided. The findings can be used to extend this framework and to enable it to be applicable in other context with emerging economies similar to that found in KSA. No study of this type has been previously carried out in KSA. The findings should prove useful in creating a future research agenda for C&D waste in KSA and, possibly, other emerging countries within a similar context.

Keywords: construction and demolition waste, recycling, reuse, sustainability

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Authors: Taha Anjamrooz, Sareh Rajabi, Hasan Mahmmud, Ghassan Abulebdeh

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Water availability, as well as water demand, are not uniformly distributed in time and space. Numerous extra-large water diversion projects are launched in Amazon to alleviate water scarcities. This research utilizes statistical analysis to examine the temporal and spatial features of 40 extra-large water diversion projects in Amazon. Using a network analysis method, the correlation between seven major basins is measured, while the impact analysis method is employed to explore the associated economic, environmental, and social impacts. The study unearths that the development of water diversion in Amazon has witnessed four stages, from a preliminary or initial period to a phase of rapid development. It is observed that the length of water diversion channels and the quantity of water transferred have amplified significantly in the past five decades. As of 2015, in Amazon, more than 75 billion m³ of water was transferred amidst 12,000 km long channels. These projects extend over half of the Amazon Area. The River Basin E is currently the most significant source of transferred water. Through inter-basin water diversions, Amazon gains the opportunity to enhance the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 5%. Nevertheless, the construction costs exceed 70 billion US dollars, which is higher than any other country. The average cost of transferred water per unit has amplified with time and scale but reduced from western to eastern Amazon. Additionally, annual total energy consumption for pumping exceeded 40 billion kilowatt-hours, while the associated greenhouse gas emissions are assessed to be 35 million tons. Noteworthy to comprehend that ecological problems initiated by water diversion influence the River Basin B and River Basin D. Due to water diversion, more than 350 thousand individuals have been relocated, away from their homes. In order to enhance water diversion sustainability, four categories of innovative measures are provided for decision-makers: development of water tradeoff projects strategies, improvement of integrated water resource management, the formation of water-saving inducements, and pricing approach, and application of ex-post assessment.

Keywords: sustainability, water trade-off projects, environment, Amazon

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Authors: Tarik Bazgour, Cedric Heuchenne, Danielle Sougne

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We examine time variation in the market beta of portfolios sorted on quality, liquidity level and liquidity beta characteristics across stock market phases. Using US stock market data for the period 1970-2010, we find, first, the US stock market was driven by four regimes. Second, during the crisis regime, low (high) quality, high (low) liquidity beta and illiquid (liquid) stocks exhibit an increase (a decrease) in their market betas. This finding is consistent with the flight-to-quality and liquidity phenomena. Third, we document the same pattern across stocks when the market volatility is low. We argue that, during low volatility times, investors shift their portfolios towards low quality and illiquid stocks to seek portfolio gains. The pattern observed in the tranquil regime can be, therefore, explained by a flight-to-low-quality and to illiquidity. Finally, our results reveal that liquidity level is more important than liquidity beta during the crisis regime.

Keywords: financial crises, quality, liquidity, liquidity risk, regime-switching models

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Authors: Anabel Fernandez, Leandro Rodriguez-Ortiz, Rosa RodríGuez

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Due to the negative impact of fossil fuels, renewable energies are promising sources to limit global temperature rise and damage to the environment. Also, the development of technology is focused on obtaining energetic products from renewable sources. In this study, a thermodynamic model including Exergy balance and a subsequent Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) were carried out for four subsystems of the integrated gasification-combustion of pinewood. Results of exergy analysis and LCA showed the process feasibility in terms of exergy efficiency and global energy efficiency of the life cycle (GEELC). Moreover, the energy return on investment (EROI) index was calculated. The global exergy efficiency resulted in 67 %. For pretreatment, reaction, cleaning, and electric generation subsystems, the results were 85, 59, 87, and 29 %, respectively. Results of LCA indicated that the emissions from the electric generation caused the most damage to the atmosphere, water, and soil. GEELC resulted in 31.09 % for the global process. This result suggested the environmental feasibility of an integrated gasification-combustion system. EROI resulted in 3.15, which determinates the sustainability of the process.

Keywords: exergy analysis, life cycle assessment (LCA), renewability, sustainability

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Authors: Katarina Lazarević, Mirjana Todosijević, Tijana Vulević, Natalija Momirović, Ranka Erić

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Due to increasing demand, climate change, and world population growth, natural resources are getting exploit fast. One of the most important natural resources is soil, which is susceptible to degradation. Erosion as one of the forms of land degradation is also one of the most global environmental problems. Ecosystem services are often defined as benefits that nature provides to humankind. Soil, as the foundation of basic ecosystem functions, provides benefits to people, erosion control, water infiltration, food, fuel, fibers… This research is using the ecosystem approach as a strategy for natural resources management for promoting sustainability and conservation. The research was done on the Topčiderska River basin (Belgrade, Serbia). The InVEST Sediment Delivery Ratio model was used, to quantify erosion intensity with a spatial distribution output map of overland sediment generation and delivery to the stream. InVEST SDR, a spatially explicit model, is using a method based on the concept of hydrological connectivity and (R) USLE model. This, combined with socio-economic and law and policy analysis, gives a full set of information to decision-makers helping them to successfully manage and deliver sustainable ecosystems.

Keywords: ecosystem services, InVEST model, soil erosion, sustainability

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Authors: Laura Piedra-Munoz, Angeles Godoy-Duran, Emilio Galdeano-Gomez, Juan C. Perez-Mesa

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Spain is very sensitive to water management issues due to its climatic characteristics and the deficit of this resource in many areas of its territory. This study examines the characteristics of the family farms that are more efficient in the use of water, focusing on a semi-arid area located in Almeria, southeast of Spain. In the case of irrigated agriculture, water usage efficiency usually indicates water productivity in terms of yield (kg/m³), or in economic terms (euros/m³). These two water usage indicators were considered to analyse water usage efficiency according to other studies on water efficiency in the horticultural area under analysis. This work also takes into account other water usage characteristics such as water supplied, innovative irrigation practices, water-efficient technology, and water-saving practices. The results show that the most water efficient farms have technical advisors and use irrigation on demand, that measures the water needs of the crops and are considered the most technological irrigation system. These farms are more technological and less labor intensive. They are also aware of water scarcity and the need to conserve the environment. This approach allow managers to identify the principal factors and best practices related to water efficiency in order to promote and implement them in inefficient farms and promote sustainability.

Keywords: cluster analysis, family farms, Spain, sustainability, water-use efficiency

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Authors: Melissa Lubitz

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Water scarcity is one of the crucial challenges of our time. There needs to be a focus on creating a society where people and nature flourish, regardless of climatic conditions. One of the solutions we can look to is decentralized greywater recycling. The vision is simple. Every building has its own water source being greywater from the bath, shower, sink and washing machine. By treating this in the home, you can save 25-45% of potable water use and wastewater production, a reduction in energy consumption and CO2 emissions. This reusable water is clean, and safe to be used for toilet flushing, washing machine, and outdoor irrigation. Companies like Hydraloop have been committed to the greywater recycle-ready building concept for years. This means that drinking water conservation and water reuse are included as standards in the design of all new buildings. Sustainability and renewal go hand in hand. This vision includes not only optimizing water savings and waste reduction but also forging strong partnerships that bring this ambition to life. Together with regulators, municipalities and builders, a sustainable and water-conscious future is pursued. This is an opportunity to be part of a movement that is making a difference. By pushing this initiative forward, we become part of a growing community that resists dehydration, believes in sustainability, and is committed to a living environment at the forefront of change: sustainable living, where saving water is the norm and where we shape the future together.

Keywords: greywater, wastewater treatment, water conservation, circular water society

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Authors: Anna M. Pretorius

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The emerging markets category for portfolio investment was introduced in 1986 in an attempt to promote capital market development in less developed countries. Investors traditionally diversified their portfolios by investing in different developed markets. However, high growth opportunities forced investors to consider emerging markets as well. Examples include the rapid growth of the “Asian Tigers” during the 1980s, growth in Latin America during the 1990s and the increased interest in emerging markets during the global financial crisis. As such, portfolio flows to emerging markets have increased substantially. In 2002 7% of all equity allocations from advanced economies went to emerging markets; this increased to 20% in 2012. The stronger links between advanced and emerging markets led to increased synchronization of asset price movements. This increased level of stock market integration for emerging markets is confirmed by various empirical studies. Against the background of increased interest in emerging market assets and the increasing level of integration of emerging markets, this paper focuses on the determinants of stock market integration of emerging market countries. Various studies have linked the level of financial market integration with specific economic variables. These variables include: economic growth, local inflation, trade openness, local investment, budget surplus/ deficit, market capitalization, domestic bank credit, domestic institutional and legal environment and world interest rates. The aim of this study is to empirically investigate to what extent trade-related determinants have an impact on stock market integration. The panel data sample include data of 16 emerging market countries: Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Hungary, India, Malaysia, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Russian Federation, South Africa, Thailand and Turkey for the period 1998-2011. The integration variable for each emerging stock market is calculated as the explanatory power of a multi-factor model. These factors are extracted from a large panel of global stock market returns. Trade related explanatory variables include: exports as percentage of GDP, imports as percentage of GDP and total trade as percentage of GDP. Other macroeconomic indicators – such as market capitalisation, the size of the budget deficit and the effectiveness of the regulation of the securities exchange – are included in the regressions as control variables. An initial analysis on a sample of developed stock markets could not identify any significant determinants of stock market integration. Thus the macroeconomic variables identified in the literature are much more significant in explaining stock market integration of emerging markets than stock market integration of developed markets. The three trade variables are all statistically significant at a 5% level. The market capitalisation variable is also significant while the regulation variable is only marginally significant. The global financial crisis has highlighted the urgency to better understand the link between the financial and real sectors of the economy. This paper comes to the important finding that, apart from the level of market capitalisation (as financial indicator), trade (representative of the real economy) is a significant determinant of stock market integration of countries not yet classified as developed economies.

Keywords: emerging markets, financial market integration, panel data, trade

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Authors: Iyad A. A. Abusahloub

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This research aimed to measure the level of perception and application of Integrated Talent Management according to IBM standards, by the upper and middle categories in Palestinian government institutions in Gaza, using a descriptive-analytical method. Using a questionnaire based on the standards of the IBM Institute for Business Value, the researcher added a second section to measure the perception of integrated talent management, the sample was 248 managers. The SPSS package was used for statistical analysis. The results showed that government institutions in Gaza apply Integrated Talent Management according to IBM standards at a medium degree did not exceed 59.8%, there is weakness in the perception of integrated talent management at the level of 53.6%, and there is a strong correlation between (Integrated Talent Management) and (the perception of the integrated talent management) amounted to 92.9%, and 88.9% of the change in the perception of the integrated talent management is by (motivate and develop, deploy and manage, connect and enable, and transform and sustain) talents, and 11.1% is by other factors. Conclusion: This study concluded that the integrated talent management model presented by IBM with its six dimensions is an effective model to reach your awareness and understanding of talent management, especially that it must rely on at least four basic dimensions out of the six dimensions: 1- Stimulating and developing talent. 2- Organizing and managing talent. 3- Connecting with talent and empowering it. 4- Succession and sustainability of talent. Therefore, this study recommends the adoption of the integrated talent management model provided by IBM to any organization across the world, regardless of its specialization or size, to reach talent sustainability.

Keywords: HR, talent, talent management, IBM

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Authors: Marta Merkl

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The ongoing project what the paper will present is about how the author introduces chefs to the history of art through a selected piece of art. The author is originally an art historian, but since 2019 she has been working on her PhD research topic related to designing dining experiences in the restaurant context, including the role of sensory experiences and storytelling. Due to a scholarship, she can participate in the re-design of a fine dining restaurant called Onyx in Budapest, which was awarded two Michelin stars before the pandemic caused by COVID-19. The management of the restaurant wants to broaden the chefs' horizons and develop their creativity by introducing them to each chapter of the visual arts. There is a kind of polyphony in the mass of information about what should a chef, a food designer, or anybody who make food in everyday basis use as a source of inspiration for inventing and preparing new dishes: nostalgia, raw material, cookbooks, etc. In today's world of fine dining, nature is the main inspiration for outstanding achievements, as exemplified by the Slovenian restaurant Hiša Franko** and its chef Ana Roš. The starting point for the project and the research was the idea of using art history as an inspiration for gastronomy. The research relies on data collection via interviews, ethnography, and autoethnography. In this case, the reflective introspection of the researcher is also relevant because the researcher is an important part of the process (GOULD, 1995). The paper overviews the findings of the autoethnography literature relevant to our topic. In the literature review, it will be also pointed out that sustainability, eating as an experience, and the world of art can be linked. As ERDMANN and co-authors (1999) argues that the health dimension of sustainability has a component called 'joy of eating,' which implies strong ties to the experiential nature of eating. Therefore, it is worth to compare with PINE and GILMORE's (1998) theory of experience economy and with CSÍKSZENTMIHÁLYI's (1999) concept of flow, which give examples of gastronomy and art. The aim of the research is to map experiences of the pilot project, the discourse between the art world and the gastronomy actors. Another noteworthy aspect is whether the chefs are willing to use art history as an inspiration.

Keywords: art history, autoethnography, chef, education, experience, food preparation, inspiration, sustainability

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Authors: Zahra Hamedani

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Many wonderful technological developments in recent years has opened up the possibility of using intelligent buildings for a number of important applications, ranging from minimizing resource usage as well as increasing building efficiency to maximizing comfort, adaption to inhabitants and responsiveness to environmental changes. The concept of an intelligent building refers to the highly embedded, interactive environment within which by exploiting the use of artificial intelligence provides the ability to know its configuration, anticipate the optimum dynamic response to prevailing environmental stimuli, and actuate the appropriate physical reaction to provide comfort and efficiency. This paper contains a general identification of the intelligence paradigm and its impacts on the architecture arena, that with examining the performance of artificial intelligence, a mechanism to analyze and finally for decision-making to control the environment will be described. This mechanism would be a hierarchy of the rational agents which includes decision-making, information, communication and physical layers. This multi-agent system relies upon machine learning techniques for automated discovery, prediction and decision-making. Then, the application of this mechanism regarding adaptation and responsiveness of intelligent building will be provided in two scales of environmental and user. Finally, we review the identifications of sustainability and evaluate the potentials of intelligent building systems in the creation of sustainable architecture and environment.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, intelligent building, responsiveness, adaption, sustainability

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Authors: L. P. K. Liyanage, N. R. P. Withana, A. L. Sandika

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The purpose of this study was to determine tourist and community perception-based sustainable tourism indicators as well as Human Pressure Index (HPI) and Tourist Activity Index (TAI). Study was carried out in Sinharaja forest which is considered as one of the major eco-tourism destination in Sri Lanka. Data were gathered using a pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire as well as records from Forest department. Convenient sampling technique was applied. For the majority of issues, the responses were obtained on multi-point Likert-type scales. Visual portrayal was used for display analyzed data. The study revealed that the host community of the Kudawa gets many benefits from tourism. Also, tourism has caused negative impacts upon the environment and community. The study further revealed the need of proper waste management and involvement of local cultural events for the tourism business in the Kudawa conservation center. The TAI, which accounted to be 1.27 and monthly evolution of HPI revealed that congestion can be occurred in the Sinharaja rainforest during peak season. The results provide useful information to any party involved with tourism planning anywhere, since such attempts would be more effective once the people’s perceptions on these aspects are taken into account.

Keywords: Kudawa Conservation Center, Sinharaja World Heritage Rainforest, sustainability indicators, community perception

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Authors: Elena Bulmer

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The research for this study has found that the formation of alliances for the successful revitalization of the global partnership for sustainable development, as defined by UN Sustainable Development Goal 17, entails considerable difficulty. This study uses for its empirical work marine environmental conservation projects and analyses the potential involvement of nonhuman actors as primordial stakeholders in these types of projects. The idea is to extend the scope of SDG 17 for it to also consider nonhuman subjects in order for it to better achieve its goal. The results of this study may be extrapolated to the business and management fields, which depend on natural resources for the development of their products. In the same way, in these areas, natural resources as nonhuman actors are not present in the stakeholder maps of these projects. Environmental Conservation projects are thus especially interesting to study with regards to their stakeholder context and have been used as the experimental setting for the empirical work of this study. The primordial stakeholders of these projects are not social objects and therefore go beyond the present limits of present stakeholder theory. The study that has been used to analyse this concept is a marine conservation project based in Spain, and to shed light in potential extending the role of the 17th Sustainable Development Goal to include nonhuman beings to be able to better achieve the rest of the SDGs, in this case, SDG 14 whose aim is to promote the conservation and sustainability of the world´s oceans.

Keywords: SDG 17, sustainability, stakeholder management, environmental conservation projects

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Authors: Muhammad Bilal Mustafa, Javed Hussain, Simeon Babatunde

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The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed the vulnerabilities of countless organisations beyond their size, type, and location. However, some groups and sectors are disproportionally get impacted by the pandemic. In the context of the UK, ethnic Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) turn out to be the most precarious group among all private sectors. Many ethnic SMEs shut down their business operations during a pandemic. A large portion of Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) owners have huge concerns regarding their business’ survival and resilience. The current UK-centric studies have focused on the large business population, and there is a gap in ethnic SMEs and how they get affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Moreover, there is a need to further knowledge and academic research to investigate the fundamental factors that could strengthen the resilience of ethnic SMEs as well as contribute to long-term sustainability. Therefore, this study aims to capture the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on ethnic SMEs in the UK and assess the survival measures taken by ethnic SMEs during Covid-19. Besides, this study adopts a dynamic capabilities perspective that how firms' specific capabilities enable ethnic SMEs to exploit entrepreneurial opportunities during the Covid-19 pandemic. Finally, this research will help ethnic SMEs to develop vigorous resilience to address future external shocks and market uncertainties.

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic, ethnic minority SMEs, entrepreneurial resilience, dynamic capabilities, sustainability

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Authors: Jinesh Kumar Jain, Faishal Pathan

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The concept of sustainable development and effective environmental regulation has led to the emergence of a new field of study and practise that is the Green Supply Chain Management. GSCM has become a subject of great importance for both the developed and developing countries to achieve the desired and much-awaited goals of the firm within the environmental and sustainable framework. Its merits are comprised of good financial pay off and competitiveness to the firms in a long lasting and sustainable manner. The purpose of the paper is to briefly review the recent literature of the GSCM and also determines the new direction area of this emerging field. A detailed study has helped to enlighten the minute details and develop the research direction of the study. The GSCM has gained popularity with both academic and practitioners. The items for the study were developed based on the extent literature. Here we found that the state of adoption of GSCM practices by Indian Firms was still in its infancy, the awareness of environmental sustainability was quite low among consumers and the regulatory frameworks were also lacking in terms promoting environmental sustainability. The present paper is an attempt to emphasize much attention on the above-mentioned issues and present a conclusive summary to make its use widespread and for reaching.

Keywords: environmental management, environmental performance, financial performance, green supply chain management

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Authors: Siddhant Sahu, P. James Daniel Paul

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Technical analysis comprised by various technical indicators is a holistic way of representing price movement of stocks in the market. Various forms of indicators have evolved from the primitive ones in the past decades. There have been many attempts to introduce volume as a major determinant to determine strong patterns in market forecasting. The law of demand defines the relationship between the volume and price. Most of the traders are familiar with the volume game. Including the time dimension to the law of demand provides a different visualization to the theory. While attempting the same, it was found that there are different thresholds in the market for different companies. These thresholds have a significant influence on the price. This article is an attempt in determining the thresholds for companies using the three dimensional graphs for optimizing the portfolios. It also emphasizes on the magnitude of importance of volumes as a key factor for determining of predicting strong price movements, bullish and bearish markets. It uses a comprehensive data set of major companies which form a major chunk of the Indian automotive sector and are thus used as an illustration.

Keywords: technical analysis, expert system, law of demand, stocks, portfolio analysis, Indian automotive sector

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Authors: Mateusz Wielopolski, Asia Guerreschi

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Circular Economy, as the counterargument to the ‘make-take-dispose’ linear model, is an approach that includes a variety of schools of thought looking at environmental, economic, and social sustainability. This, in turn, leads to a variety of strategies and often confusion when it comes to choosing the right one to make a circular transition as effective as possible. Due to the close interplay of circular product design, business model and social responsibility, companies often struggle to develop strategies that comply with all three triple-bottom-line criteria. Hence, to transition to circularity effectively, product design approaches must become more inclusive. In a case study conducted with the University of Bayreuth and the ISPO, we correlated aspects of material choice in product design, labeling and technological innovation with customer preferences and education about specific material and technology features. The study revealed those attributes of the consumers’ environmental awareness that directly translate into an increase of purchase power - primarily connected with individual preferences regarding sports activity and technical knowledge. Based on this outcome, we constituted a product development approach that incorporates the consumers’ individual preferences towards sustainable product features as well as their awareness about materials and technology. It allows deploying targeted customer education campaigns to raise the willingness to pay for sustainability. Next, we implemented the customer preference and education analysis into a circularity assessment tool that takes into account inherent company assets as well as subjective parameters like customer awareness. The outcome is a detailed but not cumbersome scoring system, which provides guidance for material and technology choices for circular product design while considering business model and communication strategy to the attentive customers. By including customer knowledge and complying with corresponding labels, companies develop more effective circular design strategies, while simultaneously increasing customers’ trust and loyalty.

Keywords: circularity, sustainability, product design, material choice, education, awareness, willingness to pay

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Authors: Kimuli Ismail, Michael Lubwama, John Baptist Kirabira, Adam Sebbit

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This study develops 4 energy scenarios for Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area (GKMA). GKMA is Uganda’s capital with a population of 4.1million and a GDP growth rate of 5.8 with a nonsustainable energy management system. The study uses TIMES-VEDA to examine the energy impacts of business as usual (BAU), Kabejja, Carbon-Tax, and Lutta scenarios in commercial, industrial, transportation, residential, agricultural, and electricity generation activities. BAU is the baseline scenario with limited CO2 emissions restrictions against which Kabejja with 20% CO2 emissions restriction, a carbon tax of $100/ton imposed in 2050 for Carbon-Tax scenario, and Lutta with 95% CO2 emissions restriction is made. The analysis suggests that if the current policy trends continue as BAU, consumption would increase from 139.6PJ to 497.42PJ and CO2 emissions will increase from 4.6mtns to 7mtns. However, consumption would decrease by 2.3% in Kabejja, 3.4% in Carbon-Tax, and 3.3 % in Lutta compared to BAU. The CO2 emissions would decrease by 8.57% in Kabejja, 55.14% in Carbon-Tax, and 60% in Lutta compared to BAU. Sustainability is achievable when low-carbon electricity is increased by 53.68% in the EMS, and setting up an electrified Kampala metro. The study recommends Lutta as the sustainable pathway to a lowcarbon 2050.

Keywords: Sustainability, Scenario Plannnig, Times-Veda Modelling, Energy Policy Development

Procedia PDF Downloads 51