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This paper explores the effectiveness of cross-border cooperation programmes between Spain and Portugal, focusing on their impact and outcomes in Portuguese regions. Drawing on a comprehensive analysis of the programmes, the study examines the socio-economic dynamics in border regions, including job creation, population trends, and investment patterns. The research employs a mixed-methods approach, combining qualitative and quantitative data analysis. We argue that the cross-border territorial cooperation between Spain and Portugal has played a significant role in fostering regional development and addressing common challenges. While the concerted efforts have shown positive results in terms of economic growth and employment, they have not been sufficient to reverse the regressive demographic trends. Thus, it is essential to strengthen cooperation mechanisms, invest in human capital, and foster innovation so that the two countries can work together to create sustainable and inclusive development across their shared border regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Linking pensions to longevity developments at retirement age has been one of the most common policy responses of pension schemes to aging populations. The introduction of automatic stabilizers is primarily motivated by cost containment objectives, but there are other dimensions of welfare restructuring in the politics of pension reforms, including recalibration, rationalization, and blame avoidance for unpopular policies that involve retrenchments. This paper examines the policy designs and implications of linking entry pensions to life expectancy developments through sustainability factors or life expectancy coefficients in Finland, Portugal, and Spain. To address conceptual and specification uncertainty in policymaking, we propose and apply a Bayesian model averaging approach to stochastic mortality modeling and life expectancy computation. The results show that: (i) sustainability factors will generate substantial pension entitlement reductions in the three countries analyzed; (ii) the magnitude of the pension losses depends on the factor design; (iii) to offset pension cuts and safeguard pension adequacy, individuals will have to prolong their working lives significantly; (iv) factor designs considering cohort longevity markers would have generated higher pension cuts in countries with increasing life expectancy gap. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beekeeping is an ancient activity that is gaining interest among practitioners and society in general. It is as an activity with positive impacts in the environmental, social and economic spheres, with the potential to reconnect these dimensions and contribute to sustainable development. Thus, it is important to determine the profiles of beekeepers across the world, and to understand the main social, economic or ecological drivers that shape their activities. Hofstede cross-cultural dimensions were used to better explain differences between countries. A survey was undertaken of beekeepers in different countries (Croatia, Estonia, Finland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, and Spain) in the native language of each nation. A total of 313 questionnaires, using an online platform or in paper form, was delivered face-to-face during training or dissemination events in 2019. Norway and Finland were the countries with the highest percentage of respondents with a university degree (>80%), while Spain (42%) and Croatia (48%) presented the lowest percentages. Most participants were experienced beekeepers (59% had more than five years of experience) with more than 50 colonies. With the exception of Italy, beekeeping appears to be a hobby or an additional professional activity. The main beekeeping products for these beekeepers were honey, wax, colonies and propolis, with an average honey production per season of 24.5 kg/hive. Crossing socio-demographic characteristics and Hofstede cross-cultural dimensions showed a relation among countries with higher Power Distance Index (PDI; this value expresses how society accepts and expects a certain inequality of power) and lower annual income and educational level (Croatia, Portugal, and Spain). A strong correlation appeared between Masculinity Femininity Index (MFI; this value refers to gender effects in society, with feminine societies meaning that the dominant values are caring for others and quality of life, as opposed to masculine societies, which are driven by competition, achievement and success) and age, income and education, with Norway presenting the most feminine society, with more educated and older beekeepers. The Uncertainty Aversion Index (UAI; this value explains how members of a society feel when dealing with unknown situations) was strongly associated with education. The results showed that increasing beekeepers' income will contribute to balancing the distribution of power among members of society, and that this might be achieved by training, especially in Croatia, Portugal, Spain, and Italy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study provides an in-depth assessment of the environmental performance of five public schools in the transition towards a low-carbon economy and a more sustainable model of society. Life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology is used to conduct the study. The school system includes several activities and processes clustered in three subsystems: management of the school building, training and learning activities (T&L) and mobility and transport (M&T). A detailed primary data inventory of energy and resources consumption was collected in five schools located in Spain and Portugal. Findings on climate change (CC), water depletion (WD), particular matter (PM), acidification (Ac), and human health (HH), as well as associated external cost (EC), are reported per student in one school year as reference unit, allowing the schools' individual performance comparison and identify the potential improvements. Considering the sample of schools, findings reveal that peculiarities of the schools, such as location, specialization, and level of education, are crucial for the environmental performance. Buildings are a relevant contributor to CC as well as heating and electricity needs, although their relevance is dependent on multiple factors. The M&T subsystem also has relevant weight on the metrics evaluated. Educational activities have a lower impact in absolute terms but, in some schools, it becomes the main contributor to HH due to paper and electricity consumption and manufacturing of equipment. External costs results are in the range of 11 to 38 EUR/student·year mainly caused by heating, electricity and wastes from the building subsystem, and the M&T subsystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]