Search results for: national park and sustainability.
1593 Relation between Environmental Accounting and Pillars of Sustainability
Authors: P. Harazin, Gy. Horváth
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There are four challenges of sustainable development and in corporate level sustainability management-s role is to answer for ecological sustainability challenge, social sustainability challenge, economic sustainability challenges to environment and social management and integration challenge of corporate sustainable challenges by the help of different concepts, methods, instruments, which are in the toolbox of sustainability management. These instruments, concepts have different relevance in these challenges, and according to different literatures environmental management is outside of social and integration challenge. Main aim of this paper is to represent the answer for the question that: is it true that social and integration point of view is outside of the concept environmental accounting? Using literature review and primer research at the end of the paper the answer will be confirmed.Keywords: Corporate social responsibility, Environmentalaccounting, Integration, Sustainability management
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 24671592 Sustainability and Promotion of Inland Waterway Transportation Projects in Colombia: Case of the Magdalena River
Authors: David Julian Bernal Melgarejo
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Inland Waterway Transportation (IWT) is playing an important role in national transport systems, water transportation is considered to be safe, energy efficient and environmentally friendly mode of transport, all benefits of IWT cause national awareness increase, for instance the Colombian government is planning to restore the navigability of the most important river of the country, the Magdalena’s River navigability, embrace waterway transportation in Colombia could strength competitiveness while reduce most of the transport externalities. However, the current situation of the Magdalena is deplorable, the most important river of Colombia has been abandoned for decades and the solution is beyond of a single administrative entity. This paper analyzes the outcomes of the Navigation And Inland Waterway Action and Development in Europe program (NAIADES) as a prospective to develop a similar program in Colombia with similar objectives and guidelines, considering sustainability, guarantying the long-term future results and adaptability of the program. Identifying stakeholders and policy experts, a set of individual interviews were carried out; findings support the idea of lack of integration within governmental institutions and lack of importance in marketing promotion as possible drawbacks on the implementation of IWT projects.
Keywords: Inland waterway transportation, Logistics, Sustainability, Multimodal transport systems, Water transportation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 28131591 Sustainability Management for Wine Production: A Case of Thailand
Authors: Muthatakul Metasit, Setthasakko Watchaneeporn
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At present, increased concerns about global environmental problems have magnified the importance of sustainability management. To move towards sustainability, companies need to look at everything from a holistic perspective in order to understand the interconnections between economic growth and environmental and social sustainability. This paper aims to gain an understanding of key determinants that drive sustainability management and barriers that hinder its development. It employs semi-structured interviews with key informants, site observation and documentation. The informants are production, marketing and environmental managers of the leading wine producer, which aims to become an Asia-s leader in wine & wine based products. It is found that corporate image and top management leadership are the primary factors influencing the adoption of sustainability management. Lack of environmental knowledge and inefficient communication are identified as barriers.Keywords: Environmental, knowledge; Sustainability management; Top management leadership; Wine industry
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 20461590 The Use of Scuba Diving Tourism for Marine Protected Area Management
Authors: L. Mota, O. Frausto
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Marine Protected Areas can benefit from nature based tourism, monitoring environmental impacts and also become target for human presence. From more than 3 million tourists visiting Cozumel Island every year, an average of 2,8 million arrive by cruise ship, and 41% are estimated to have motivation for water activities. The destination is relying so much on the tourism activity, that scuba diving and snorkeling in the National Park Reef of Cozumel sustain the major economic activity. In order to achieve the sustainable development indicator designed for regional environmental development, the PNAC offers a training course to tourism providers to access the protected area. This way, the update of the last 5 years of such training is directed to diving staff, boat crew and professionals, making them able to assist in managing the natural resource. Moreover, the case study is an example to be used for raising awareness among tourists visiting protected areas.
Keywords: Education, Marine Protected Area, scuba diving, sustainability, tourism.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 25131589 Understanding and Enhancing Ecotourism Opportunities through Education
Authors: V. Iakovoglou, G. N. Zaimes, M. P. Arraiza Bermúdez-Cañete, J. L. García, M. C. Giménez, C. Calderón- Guerrero, F. Ioras, I. Abrudan
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A new fast growing trend in tourism is ecotourism, in which tourists visit natural ecosystems under low impact, nonconsumptive and locally oriented activities. Through these activities species and habitats are maintained and typically, underdeveloped regions are emphasized. Ecotourism provides a great alternative, especially for rural and undeveloped area. At the same time, despite its many benefits, it also poses many risks for the naturally protected areas. If ecotourism is practiced improperly degradation and irreversible damages could be the unwanted result. In addition, the lack of MSc programs in the field of Ecotourism in Europe makes it a necessity to be developed. Such an MSc program is being implemented with the lead partner the Technical University of Madrid. The entire partnership has six Universities, seven SMEs and one National Park from seven different countries all over Europe. The MSc will have 10 educational modules that will be available online and will prepare professionals that will be able to implement ecotourism in a sustainable way. Only through awareness and education a sustainable ecotourism will be achieved in the protected areas of Europe.Keywords: Sustainability, MSc program, protected areas, Erasmus.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 18621588 Research on Building Urban Sustainability along the Coastal Area in China
Authors: Sun Jiaojiao, Fu Jiayan
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At present, in China, the research about the urban sustainability construction is still in the exploratory stage. The ecological problems of the coastal area are more sensitive and complicated. In the background of global warming with serious ecological damage, this paper deeply researches on the main characteristics of urban sustainability and measures how to build urban sustainability. Through combining regional environmental with economic ability along the coastal area, then authors put forward the system planning framework, construction strategy and the evaluation index system, in order to seek the way of building urban sustainability along coastal area in China.Keywords: Urban sustainability, coastal areas, construction strategy, evaluation index system.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 19221587 Theme Park Investments: How to Beat the Average - A Case Study from the Netherlands
Authors: Pieter C. M. Cornelis
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(European) theme parks invest approximately 10 percent of their yearly turnover into new rides and park improvements. Without these investments these parks assume not to be a very competitive and appealing daytrip for their target audiences. However, the impact of investments in attracting new visitors is not well-known and seems to differ dramatically between parks. This paper presents a case study from the Netherlands in which a small amusement park applied a suggested, not yet proven, investment method. The results of the investment are discussed in (a) the form of return on investment and (b) the success of the predictions with regard to this investment. Suggestions for future research are presented.
Keywords: Entertainment industry, innovation, investments, theme parks.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 48331586 Governance Commitment and Time Differences in Aspects of Sustainability Reporting in Nigerian Banks
Authors: Nwobu Obiamaka, Owolabi Akintola
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This study examined the extent of statistical significant difference between the economic, environmental, governance and social aspects of sustainability reporting as a result of board committee on sustainability and time (year) of reporting for business organizations in the Nigerian banking sector. The years of reporting under consideration were 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013. Content analysis methodology was employed through a reporting index used to score the amount of economic, environmental, governance and social indicators of sustainability reporting. The results of this study indicated that business organizations with board committee on sustainability had more indicators of sustainability reporting than those without board committees on sustainability issues. Also, sustainability reporting in 2013 was higher than that of prior years (2012, 2011 and 2010) for the economic, environmental and social indicators. The governance indicators of 2012 was highest compared to the other years (2013, 2011 and 2010) under consideration in this study. The implication of this finding is that business organizations that have board committees on sustainability are monitored by such boards to report more to their stakeholders. On the other hand, business organizations are appreciating the need to engage in sustainability reporting with each passing year. This could be due to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Sustainability Reporting framework that business organizations in the banking sector have to adhere to. When sustainability issues are monitored from the board of directors, business organizations are likely to increase and improve on their sustainability reporting.Keywords: Governance, organizations, reporting, sustainability.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 20821585 Physical Habitat Simulation and Comparison within a Lerma River Reach, with Respect to the Same but Modified Reach, to Create a Linear Park
Authors: Ezequiel Garcia-Rodriguez, Luis A. Ochoa-Franco, Adrian I. Cervantes-Servin
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In this work, the Ictalurus punctatus species estimated available physical habitat is compared with the estimated physical habitat for the same but modified river reach, with the aim of creating a linear park, along a length of 5 500 m. To determine the effect of ecological park construction, on physical habitat of the Lerma river stretch of study, first, the available habitat for the Ictalurus punctatus species was estimated through the simulation of the physical habitat, by using surveying, hydraulics, and habitat information gotten at the river reach in its actual situation. Second, it was estimated the available habitat for the above species, upon the simulation of the physical habitat through the proposed modification for the ecological park creation. Third, it is presented a comparison between both scenarios in terms of available habitat estimated for Ictalurus punctatus species, concluding that in cases of adult and spawning life stages, changes in the channel to create an ecological park would produce a considerable loss of potentially usable habitat (PUH), while in the case of the juvenile life stage PUH remains virtually unchanged, and in the case of life stage fry the PUH would increase due to the presence of velocities and depths of lesser magnitude, due to the presence of minor flow rates and lower volume of the wet channel. It is expected that habitat modification for linear park construction may produce the lack of Ictalurus punktatus species conservation at the river reach of the study.Keywords: Habitat modification, Ictalurus punctatus, Lerma, river, linear park.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15971584 Sustainable Perspectives and Local Development Potential through Tourism
Authors: Pedro H. S. Messetti, Mary L. G. S. Senna, Afonso R. Aquino
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Sustainability is a very important and heavily discussed subject, expanding through tourism as well. The study proposition was to collect data and present it to the competent bodies so they can mold their public policies to improve the conditions of the site. It was hypothesized that the lack of data is currently affecting the quality of life and the sustainable development of the site and the tourism. The research was held in Mateiros, a city in the state of Tocantins (TO)/Brasil near Palmas, its capital city. Because of the concentration of tourists during the high season and several tourist attractions being around, the research took place in Mateiros. The methodological procedure had a script of theoretical construction and investigation of the deductive scientific method parameters through a case study in the Jalapão/TO/Brazil region, using it as a tool for a questionnaire given to the competent bodies in an interview system with the UN sustainability indexes as a base. In the three sustainable development scope: environmental, social and economic, the results indicated that the data presented by the interviewed were scarce or nonexistent. It shows that more research is necessary, providing the tools for the ones responsible to propose action plans to improve the site, strengthening the tourism and making it even more sustainable.Keywords: Jalapão/Brazil State Park, sustainable tourism, UN sustainability indexes.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 14351583 An Integrated Biotechnology Database of the National Agricultural Information Center in Korea
Authors: Chang Kug Kim, Dong Suk Park, Young Joo Seol, Jang Ho Hahn
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The National Agricultural Biotechnology Information Center (NABIC) plays a leading role in the biotechnology information database for agricultural plants in Korea. Since 2002, we have concentrated on functional genomics of major crops, building an integrated biotechnology database for agro-biotech information that focuses on bioinformatics of major agricultural resources such as rice, Chinese cabbage, and microorganisms. In the NABIC, integration-based biotechnology database provides useful information through a user-friendly web interface that allows analysis of genome infrastructure, multiple plants, microbial resources, and living modified organisms.Keywords: biotechnology, database, genome information
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 25441582 How to Integrate Sustainability in Technological Degrees: Robotics at UPC
Authors: Antoni Grau, Yolanda Bolea, Alberto Sanfeliu
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Embedding Sustainability in technological curricula has become a crucial factor for educating engineers with competences in sustainability. The Technical University of Catalonia UPC, in 2008, designed the Sustainable Technology Excellence Program STEP 2015 in order to assure a successful Sustainability Embedding. This Program takes advantage of the opportunity that the redesign of all Bachelor and Master Degrees in Spain by 2010 under the European Higher Education Area framework offered. The STEP program goals are: to design compulsory courses in each degree; to develop the conceptual base and identify reference models in sustainability for all specialties at UPC; to create an internal interdisciplinary network of faculty from all the schools; to initiate new transdisciplinary research activities in technology-sustainability-education; to spread the know/how attained; to achieve international scientific excellence in technology-sustainability-education and to graduate the first engineers/architects of the new EHEA bachelors with sustainability as a generic competence. Specifically, in this paper authors explain their experience in leading the STEP program, and two examples are presented: Industrial Robotics subject and the curriculum for the School of Architecture.
Keywords: Sustainability, curricula improvement, robotics.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 18461581 Strategic Redesign of Public Spaces with a Sustainable Approach: Case Study of Parque Huancavilca, Guayaquil
Authors: Juan Carlos Briones Macias
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Currently, the Huancavilca City Park in Guayaquil is an abandoned public space that is discovering a growing problem of insecurity, where various problems have been perceived, such as the lack of green areas, deteriorating furniture, insufficient lighting, the use of inadequate cladding materials and very sunny areas due to the lack of planning in the design of green areas. The objective of this scientific article is to redesign Huancavilca Park through public space design strategies for more attractive and comfortable areas, becoming a point of interaction in a safe and accessible way. A mixed methodology (qualitative and quantitative) was applied, obtaining information based on surveys, interviews, field observations, and systematizing the data in the traditional weighting of the structuring aspects of the park. The results were obtained from the methodological design scheme of iterative analysis of public spaces by Jan Güell. It is concluded that the use of urban strategies in the structuring elements of the park, such as vegetation, furniture, generating new activities, and security interventions, will specifically solve all the problems of the Huancavilca Park tested in a Pareto 80/20 Diagram.
Keywords: Public space, green areas, vegetation, street furniture, urban analysis.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2951580 Evaluating the Sustainability of Agricultural by Indicator that Appropriate to the Area of Ban Phaeo District, Samut Sakorn Province, Thailand
Authors: N. Talisa, K. Rungsarid, P. Chakrit
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The objectives of the research are to study the existing agricultural patterns, and to evaluate the sustainability of agricultural on economic, social and environmental aspects. The samplings were the representatives of the agriculturist group from Ban Paew district, Samut Sakorn province by purposive sampling method of 30 households. The tools being used were interview forms together with the Rapid Rural Appraisal (RRA) and the Participation Rural Appraisal (PRA). The information collected was analyzed with the principle of Content Analysis andusing Descriptive Statistics. After that all the information gotten was analyze the sustainability on the household level and village level. The research result can be concluded as follows: The agricultural Patterns: For most of the cultivation main crop was fruit trees planted and the supplement crop was around the patch or added other plants in the trenches. There were trenches for the cultivating water. The product distribution was by selling (97.5%) and the selling to middle man was the highest number (62.5%). Evaluating the sustainability of the agricultural by the indicators which were appropriate to the area: For the agricultural sustainability on the household level it was found that only one household had sustainable, others household had conditioned sustainable. For on the village level it was found that the sustainability on the issue of agricultural knowledge training had the lowest level (Sustainability index = 31.67%). Secondary was the acknowledging about soil information (Sustainability index = 35.0), and the household labors on agriculture, net return over cash cost (Sustainability index = 55.0%) respectively. Performance percentage is 48.81 %. It was brought to the conclusion that this area did not have the agricultural sustainability.
Keywords: Sustainability of agricultural, sustainability indicators, sustainability index.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 16421579 Spatial Analysis of Trees Composition, Diversity and Richnesss in the Built up Areas of University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Authors: O. S. Eludoyin, A. A. Aiyeloja, O. C. Ndife
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The study investigated the spatial analysis of trees composition, diversity and richness in the built up area of University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Four quadrats of 25m x 25m size were laid randomly in each of the three parks and inventories of trees ≥10cm girth at breast height were taken and used to calculate the species composition, diversity and richness. Results showed that species composition and diversity in Abuja Park was the highest with 134 species and 0.866 respectively while the species richness was highest in Choba Park with a value of 2.496. The correlation between the size of park (spatial coverage) and species composition was 0.99 while the correlation between the size of the park and species diversity was 0.78. There was direct relationship between species composition and diversity while the relationship between species composition and species richness was inversely proportional. Rational use of these resources is encouraged.
Keywords: Built up area, composition, diversity, richness, spatial analysis, urban tree.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 23361578 Local Perspectives on Climate Change Mitigation and Sustainability of Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) Project: A Case Study in Thailand
Authors: S. Kittipongvises, T. Mino, C. Polprasert
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Global climate change has become the preeminent threat to human security in the 21st century. From mitigation perspective, this study aims to evaluate the performance of biogas renewable project under clean development mechanism activities (namely Korat-Waste-to-Energy) in Thailand and to assess local perceptions towards the significance of climate change mitigation and sustainability of such project in their community. Questionnaire was developed based on the national sustainable development criteria and was distributed among systematically selected households within project boundaries (n=260). Majority of the respondents strongly agreed with the reduction of odor problems (81%) and air pollution (76%). However, they were unsure about greenhouse gas reduction from such project and ignorant about the key issues of climate change. A lesson learned suggested that there is a need to further investigate the possible socio-psychological barriers may significantly shape public perception and understandings of climate change in the local context.Keywords: Climate Change Mitigation, Local Perspective, Sustainability, Thailand
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 16151577 A Study of Visitors, on Destination Image, Environmental Perception, Travel Experiences and Revisiting Willingness in Xinshe Leisure Agriculture Park
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The main purpose of this study is to analyze the relationship of leisure agriculture park visitors on tourist destination image, environmental perception, travel experiences and revisiting willingness. This study used questionnaires to Xinshe leisure agriculture park visitors- targeted convenience sampling manner total of 636 valid questionnaires. Valid questionnaires by descriptive statistics, correlation analysis and multiple regression analysis, the study found that: 1. The agricultural park visitors- correlations exist between the destination image, perception of the environment, tourism experience and revisiting willingness. 2."Excellent facilities and services", "space atmosphere comfortable" and "the spacious paternity outdoor space" imagery, of visitors- "revisiting willingness predict. 3. Visitors- in leisure agriculture park "environmental perception" and "travel experience, future revisiting willingness predict. According to the analysis of the results, the study not only operate on the recommendations of the leisure farm owners also provide follow-up study direction for future researchers.Keywords: Leisure farms, image, travel experience, revisiting willingness, environmental perception.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 25101576 Effects of Capacitor Bank Defects on Harmonic Distortion and Park's Pattern Analysis in Induction Motors
Authors: G. Das, S. Das, P. Purkait, A. Dasgupta, M. Kumar
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Properly sized capacitor banks are connected across induction motors for several reasons including power factor correction, reducing distortions, increasing capacity, etc. Total harmonic distortion (THD) and power factor (PF) are used in such cases to quantify the improvements obtained through connection of the external capacitor banks. On the other hand, one of the methods for assessing the motor internal condition is by the use of Park-s pattern analysis. In spite of taking adequate precautionary measures, the capacitor banks may sometimes malfunction. Such a minor fault in the capacitor bank is often not apparently discernible. This may however, give rise to substantial degradation of power factor correction performance and may also damage the supply profile. The case is more severe with the fact that the Park-s pattern gets distorted due to such external capacitor faults, and can give anomalous results about motor internal fault analyses. The aim of this paper is to present simulation and hardware laboratory test results to have an understanding of the anomalies in harmonic distortion and Park-s pattern analyses in induction motors due to capacitor bank defects.
Keywords: Capacitor bank, harmonic distortion, induction motor, Park's pattern, PSCAD simulation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 39211575 An Environmental Impact Tool to Assess National Energy Scenarios
Authors: R. Taviv, A.C. Brent, H. Fortuin
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The Long-range Energy and Alternatives Planning (LEAP) energy planning system has been developed for South Africa, for the 2005 base year and a limited number of plausible future scenarios that may have significant implications (negative or positive) in terms of environmental impacts. The system quantifies the national energy demand for the domestic, commercial, transport, industry and agriculture sectors, the supply of electricity and liquid fuels, and the resulting emissions. The South African National Energy Research Institute (SANERI) identified the need to develop an environmental assessment tool, based on the LEAP energy planning system, to provide decision-makers and stakeholders with the necessary understanding of the environmental impacts associated with different energy scenarios. A comprehensive analysis of indicators that are used internationally and in South Africa was done and the available data was accessed to select a reasonable number of indicators that could be utilized in energy planning. A consultative process was followed to determine the needs of different stakeholders on the required indicators and also the most suitable form of reporting. This paper demonstrates the application of Energy Environmental Sustainability Indicators (EESIs) as part of the developed tool, which assists with the identification of the environmental consequences of energy generation and use scenarios and thereby promotes sustainability, since environmental considerations can then be integrated into the preparation and adoption of policies, plans, programs and projects. Recommendations are made to refine the tool further for South Africa.
Keywords: Energy modeling, LEAP, environmental impact, environmental indicators, energy sector emissions, sustainable development, South Africa
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 16121574 A Stochastic Analytic Hierarchy Process Based Weighting Model for Sustainability Measurement in an Organization
Authors: Faramarz Khosravi, Gokhan Izbirak
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A weighted statistical stochastic based Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) model for modeling the potential barriers and enablers of sustainability for measuring and assessing the sustainability level is proposed. For context-dependent potential barriers and enablers, the proposed model takes the basis of the properties of the variables describing the sustainability functions and was developed into a realistic analytical model for the sustainable behavior of an organization. This thus serves as a means for measuring the sustainability of the organization. The main focus of this paper was the application of the AHP tool in a statistically-based model for measuring sustainability. Hence a strong weighted stochastic AHP based procedure was achieved. A case study scenario of a widely reported major Canadian electric utility was adopted to demonstrate the applicability of the developed model and comparatively examined its results with those of an equal-weighted model method. Variations in the sustainability of a company, as fluctuations, were figured out during the time. In the results obtained, sustainability index for successive years changed form 73.12%, 79.02%, 74.31%, 76.65%, 80.49%, 79.81%, 79.83% to more exact values 73.32%, 77.72%, 76.76%, 79.41%, 81.93%, 79.72%, and 80,45% according to priorities of factors that have found by expert views, respectively. By obtaining relatively necessary informative measurement indicators, the model can practically and effectively evaluate the sustainability extent of any organization and also to determine fluctuations in the organization over time.
Keywords: AHP, sustainability fluctuation, environmental indicators, performance measurement, environmental sustainability.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 9011573 Sustainability Policies and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR): Ergonomics Contribution Regarding Work in Companies
Authors: I. Bolis, S. N. Morioka, L. I. Sznelwar
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The growing importance of sustainability in corporate policies represents a great opportunity for workers to gain more consideration, with great benefits to their well being. Sustainable work is believed to be one which improves the organization-s performance and fosters professional development as well as workers- health. In a multiple case study based on document research, information was sought about work activities and their sustainability or corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies, as disseminated by corporations. All the companies devoted attention to work activities and delivered a good amount of information about them. Nevertheless, the information presented was generic; all the actions developed were top-down and there was no information about the impact of changes aimed at sustainability on the workers- activities. It was found that the companies seemed to be at an early stage. In the future, they need to show more commitment through concrete goals: they must be aware that workers contribute directly to the corporations- sustainability. This would allow room for Ergonomics and Work Psychodynamics to be incorporated and to be useful for both companies and society, so as to promote and ensure work sustainability.Keywords: Sustainability, ergonomics, work psychodynamics, multinational companies.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 19541572 Spanner Barb at Thepchana Waterfall, Khao Nan National Park, Thailand
Authors: S. Sutin, M. Pollar, M. Jaroensutasinee, K. Jaroensutasinee
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This study investigated morphology of the Spanner Barb (Puntius lateristriga Valenciennes, 1842) and water quality at Thepchana waterfall. This study was conducted at Thepchana Waterfall, Khao Nan National Park from March to May 2007. There were 40 Spanner Barb collected with 20 males and 20 females. Males had an average of 5.57 cm in standard length, 6.62 cm in total length and 5.18 g in total body weight. Females had an average of 7.25 cm in standard length, 8.24 cm in total length and 10.96 g in total body weight. The length (L) – weight (W) relationships for combining sexes, males and females were LogW = -2.137 + 3.355logL, log W = -0.068 + 3.297logL, and log W = -2.068 + 3.297logL, respectively. The Spanner Barb were smaller size fish with a compressed form; terminal mouth; villiform teeth; ctenoid scale; concave tail; general body color yellowish olive, with slight reddish tint to fins; vertical band beginning below dorsal and horizontal stripe from base of tail almost to vertical band. They also had a vertical band midway between the eye and first vertical band. There was a black spot above anal fin. The bladder looked like J-shape. Inside of the bladder was found small insects and insect lava. The body length and the bowels length was 1:1 ratio. The water temperature ranged from 25.00 – 27.00 °C which was appropriate for their habitat characteristics. Acid - alkalinity ranged from 6.65 – 6.90 mg/l. Dissolved oxygen ranged from 4.55 – 4.70 mg/l. Water hardness ranged from 31.00 – 48.00 mg/l. The amount of ammonia was about 0.25 mg/l.
Keywords: Spanner barb, morphology, water quality.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 16351571 Infrastructure Planning in Scania a Discourse Analytical Approach to the Concepts of Regional Development and Sustainability in the Planning Process
Authors: Fredrik Pettersson
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The paper applies a discourse analytical approach to investigate important concepts influencing the infrastructure planning process in the region of Scania in southern Sweden. Two discourses, one concerning regional development and one concerning sustainability are identified, discussed and contrasted. It is argued that the perceptions of problems and their suggested solutions related to transportation are based on specific ideas, in turn dependent on the importance given to certain concepts, such as regional enlargement, Scania as a transit region, the national environmental quality goals and regional attractiveness. These concepts, their underlying meaning structures and their relevance for the infrastructure planning process are analyzed. The handling of conflicting interests in the planning process, and the possible implications this may have is also discussed. The results indicate that the regional development discourse is dominant and although the solutions to the problems caused by transport are framed in similar ways in the two discourses a harmonization between conflicting goals is proving difficult to achieve.
Keywords: Discourse analysis, Infrastructure planning, Regional development, Sustainability.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 14821570 Sustainability Strategy and Firm Performance in Residential Trade and Industry: A Conceptual Analysis
Authors: Martin Macion
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The request for a sustainable development challenges both managers and consumers to rethink habitual practices and activities. While consumers are challenged to develop sustainable consumption patterns, companies are asked to establish managerial systems and structures considering economical, ecological, and social issues. As this is in particular true for housing associations, this paper aims first, at providing an understanding of sustainability strategy in residential trade and industry (RTI) by identifying relevant facets of this construct and second, at conceptually analyzing the impact of sustainability strategy in RTI on operational efficiency and performance of municipal housing companies. The author develops a model of sustainability strategy in RTI and its effects and further, sheds light in priorities for future research.Keywords: firm performance, sustainability strategy, residentialtrade and industry
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15121569 A Matrix Evaluation Model for Sustainability Assessment of Manufacturing Technologies
Authors: Q. Z. Yang, B. H. Chua, B. Song
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Technology assessment is a vital part of decision process in manufacturing, particularly for decisions on selection of new sustainable manufacturing processes. To assess these processes, a matrix approach is introduced and sustainability assessment models are developed. Case studies show that the matrix-based approach provides a flexible and practical way for sustainability evaluation of new manufacturing technologies such as those used in surface coating. The technology assessment of coating processes reveals that compared with powder coating, the sol-gel coating can deliver better technical, economical and environmental sustainability with respect to the selected sustainability evaluation criteria for a decorative coating application of car wheels.
Keywords: Evaluation matrix, sustainable manufacturing, surface coating, technology assessment
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 26191568 Implementation of Environmental Sustainability into Event Management
Authors: Özlem Küçükakça
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The world population is rapidly growing. In the last few decades, environmental protection and climate change have been remarked as a global concern. All events have their own ecological footprint. Therefore, all participants who take part in the events, from event organizer to audience should be responsible for reducing carbon emissions. Currently, there is a literature gap which investigates the relationship between events and environment. Hence, this study is conducted to investigate how to implement environmental sustainability in the event management. Therefore, a wide literature and also the UK festivals database have been investigated. Finally, environmental effects and the solution of reducing impacts at events were discussed.Keywords: Ecological footprint, environmental sustainability, events, sustainability.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12071567 Profile Analysis and Experiences on the Tourism of Jalapão State Park, Tocantins, Brazil
Authors: Veruska C. Dutra, Mary L. G. S. Senna, Felipe S. Spindler
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The State Park Jalapão - PEJ proved to be one of the protected areas that has attracted tourists from all over the world with its unique scenic landscapes. Although the region already has a considerable tourist flow, to our knowledge there is a lack of continuity of studies in the region capable of drawing a plan of activities, such as the profile of the tourist and analysis of their experiences in the region, carried out from 2006-2007. Therefore, this study was proposed to know the profile and experiences of tourists visiting the park today, making a connection with the earlier study, in order to generate subsidies to trace improvement actions. We conducted interviews with tourists in the main tourism season 2015. The results show that after eight years of carrying out the first study, there were no changes, highlighting the lack of a tourism plan for the park.
Keywords: Jalapão, profile tourist, level of satisfaction.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 10351566 Development of a Roadmap for Assessment the Sustainability of Buildings in Saudi Arabia Using Building Information Modeling
Authors: Ibrahim A. Al-Sulaihi, Khalid S. Al-Gahtani, Abdullah M. Al-Sugair, Aref A. Abadel
Abstract:
Achieving environmental sustainability is one of the important issues considered in many countries’ vision. Green/Sustainable building is widely used terminology for describing a friendly environmental construction. Applying sustainable practices has a significant importance in various fields, including construction field that consumes an enormous amount of resource and causes a considerable amount of waste. The need for sustainability is increased in the regions that suffering from the limitation of natural resource and extreme weather conditions such as Saudi Arabia. Since buildings designs are getting sophisticated, the need for tools, which support decision-making for sustainability issues, is increasing, especially in the design and preconstruction stages. In this context, Building Information Modeling (BIM) can aid in performing complex building performance analyses to ensure an optimized sustainable building design. Accordingly, this paper introduces a roadmap towards developing a systematic approach for presenting the sustainability of buildings using BIM. The approach includes set of main processes including; identifying the sustainability parameters that can be used for sustainability assessment in Saudi Arabia, developing sustainability assessment method that fits the special circumstances in the Kingdom, identifying the sustainability requirements and BIM functions that can be used for satisfying these requirements, and integrating these requirements with identified functions. As a result, the sustainability-BIM approach can be developed which helps designers in assessing the sustainability and exploring different design alternatives at the early stage of the construction project.
Keywords: Green buildings, sustainability, BIM, rating systems, environment, Saudi Arabia.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 8621565 Impact of Normative Institutional Factors on Sustainability Reporting
Authors: L. Dagilienė
Abstract:
The article explores the impact of normative institutional factors on the development of sustainability reporting. The vast majority of research in the scientific literature focuses on mandatory institutional factors, i.e. how public institutions and market regulators affect sustainability reporting. Meanwhile, there is lack of empirical data for the impact of normative institutional factors. The effect of normative factors in this paper is based on the role of non-governmental organizations (NGO) and institutional theory. The case of Global Compact Local Network in the developing country was examined. The research results revealed that in the absence of regulated factors, companies were not active with regard to social disclosures; they presented non-systemized social information of a descriptive nature. Only 10% of sustainability reports were prepared using the GRI methodology. None of the reports were assured by third parties.
Keywords: Institutional theory, normative, sustainability reporting.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 32321564 Analysis of Electrical Installation of a Photovoltaic Power Park in Greece
Authors: D. E. Gourgoulis, C. G. Yakinthos, M. G. Vassiliadou
Abstract:
The scope of this paper is to describe a real electrical installation of renewable energy using photovoltaic cells. The displayed power grid connected network was established in 2007 at area of Northern Greece. The photovoltaic park is composed of 6120 photovoltaic cells able to deliver a total power of 1.101.600 Wp. For the transformation of DC voltage to AC voltage have been used 25 stand alone three phases inverters and for the connection at the medium voltage network of Greek Power Authority have been installed two oil immersed transformer of 630 kVA each one. Due to the wide space area of installation a specific external lightning protection system has been designed. Additionally, due to the sensitive electronics of the control and protection systems of park, surge protection, equipotent bonding and shielding were also of major importance.Keywords: Inverter, Photovoltaic cells, Transformer.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1551