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To supplement the quantitative portrait of Ukrainian Economics discipline with the results of gender and author ordering analysis at the level of individual authors, special methods of working with bibliographic data with a predominant share of non-English authors are used. The properties of gender mixing, the likelihood of male and female authors occupying the first position in the authorship list, as well as the arrangements of names are studied. A data set containing bibliographic records related to Ukrainian journal publications in the field of Economics is constructed using Crossref metadata. Partial semi-automatic disambiguation of authors' names is performed. First names, along with gender-specific ethnic surnames, are used for gender disambiguation required for further comparative gender analysis. Random reshuffling of data is used to determine the impact of gender correlations. To assess the level of alphabetization for our data set, both Latin and Cyrillic versions of names are taken into account. The lack of well-structured metadata and the poor use of digital identifiers lead to numerous problems with automatization of bibliographic data pre-processing, especially in the case of publications by non-Western authors. The described stages for working with such specific data help to work at the level of authors and analyse, in particular, gender issues. Despite the larger number of female authors, gender equality is more likely to be reported at the individual level for the discipline of Ukrainian Economics. The tendencies towards collaborative or solo-publications and gender mixing patterns are found to be dependent on the journal: the differences for publications indexed in Scopus and/or Web of Science databases are found. It has also been found that Ukrainian Economics research is characterized by rather a non-alphabetical order of authors. Only partial authors' name disambiguation is performed in a semi-automatic way. Gender labels can be derived only for authors declared by full First names or gender-specific Last names. The typical features of Ukrainian Economic discipline can be used to perform a comparison with other countries and disciplines, to develop an informed-based assessment procedure at the national level. The proposed way of processing publication data can be borrowed to enrich metadata about other research disciplines, especially for non-English speaking countries. To our knowledge, this is the first large-scale quantitative study of Ukrainian Economic discipline. The results obtained are valuable not only at the national level, but also contribute to general knowledge about Economic research, gender issues, and authors' names ordering. An example of the use of Crossref data is provided, while this data source is still less used due to a number of drawbacks. Here, for the first time, attention is drawn to the explicit use of the features of the Slavic authors' names. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To supplement the quantitative portrait of Ukrainian Economics discipline with the results of gender and author ordering analysis at the level of individual authors, special methods of working with bibliographic data with a predominant share of non-English authors are used. The properties of gender mixing, the likelihood of male and female authors occupying the first position in the authorship list, as well as the arrangements of names are studied. A data set containing bibliographic records related to Ukrainian journal publications in the field of Economics is constructed using Crossref metadata. Partial semi-automatic disambiguation of authors' names is performed. First names, along with gender-specific ethnic surnames, are used for gender disambiguation required for further comparative gender analysis. Random reshuffling of data is used to determine the impact of gender correlations. To assess the level of alphabetization for our data set, both Latin and Cyrillic versions of names are taken into account. The lack of well-structured metadata and the poor use of digital identifiers lead to numerous problems with automatization of bibliographic data pre-processing, especially in the case of publications by non-Western authors. The described stages for working with such specific data help to work at the level of authors and analyse, in particular, gender issues. Despite the larger number of female authors, gender equality is more likely to be reported at the individual level for the discipline of Ukrainian Economics. The tendencies towards collaborative or solo-publications and gender mixing patterns are found to be dependent on the journal: the differences for publications indexed in Scopus and/or Web of Science databases are found. It has also been found that Ukrainian Economics research is characterized by rather a non-alphabetical order of authors. Only partial authors' name disambiguation is performed in a semi-automatic way. Gender labels can be derived only for authors declared by full First names or gender-specific Last names. The typical features of Ukrainian Economic discipline can be used to perform a comparison with other countries and disciplines, to develop an informed-based assessment procedure at the national level. The proposed way of processing publication data can be borrowed to enrich metadata about other research disciplines, especially for non-English speaking countries. To our knowledge, this is the first large-scale quantitative study of Ukrainian Economic discipline. The results obtained are valuable not only at the national level, but also contribute to general knowledge about Economic research, gender issues, and authors' names ordering. An example of the use of Crossref data is provided, while this data source is still less used due to a number of drawbacks. Here, for the first time, attention is drawn to the explicit use of the features of the Slavic authors' names. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The digitalization era of public relations is increasingly affecting the means of presenting information about the economic activities of an enterprise, in particular financial, in the context of a global pandemic, which was caused by the global COVID-19. Increasingly, in our environment, there is a transition from paper to electronic information carriers. The financial information generated by business entities both in Ukraine and in the world as a whole is no exception. The purpose of the study is to systematize the existing digital formats for presenting financial information as a basis for analyzing and auditing the business activities of enterprises in Ukraine. The basis of the study is the methodological recommendations on the use of Taxonomy UA XBRL IFRS, instructions for the revision of the Ukrainian IFRS taxonomy, specialized software products, legislative framework of Ukraine. The following methods were used: graphical (to visualize the results of the study), and grouping (to systematize the advantages and disadvantages of software that uses tax services to conduct e-audits). Digital formats for the presentation of financial information were analyzed. They are the basis for the analysis and audit of the enterprise's activities. The structure and characteristics of the legal framework for the disclosure of financial information in electronic XBRL format in Ukraine were given. Comparative analysis of financial information in digital format XBRL and SAF-T UA were carried out. It has been determined that XBRL can be used as a basis for analyzing financial information in electronic format using special software, for example, to assess the financial condition, calculate indicators of financial stability, liquidity, solvency, business activity, enterprise profitability, etc. It has been proved that the electronic format of financial information SAF-T UA is used when conducting an electronic audit (e-audit) of taxpayers, and can also be used to calculate the tax burden (tax return, tax efficiency ratio) used by the State Tax Service of Ukraine for the purpose of control completeness of calculation and payment of relevant taxes and fees to the state budget. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fight against corruption is presented as a leading principle in policy papers and at donor conferences discussing Ukraine's reconstruction. It therefore mirrors the usual narrative surrounding post‐war reconstruction and democracy promotion attempts. However, reconstruction aid has historically been used for illicit means by elites and ended up strengthening an uneven system rather than building a resilient and successful country, despite the window of opportunity for the latter. Rather than just proposing principles, this paper therefore poses the question of how actors involved in the reconstruction process can be bound to stick to their previously propagated and formally existing principles. The analysis combines academic and policy‐oriented studies and highlights the combined importance of the external and internal dimension for a successful outcome. It proposes a 'double conditionality' mechanism, where an independent, technocratic institution holds frozen, Russian assets and partially reimburses Western donors only after successful audits on the reconstruction aid are conducted. This conditionality puts domestic pressure on aid givers to follow through with the anti‐corruption conditions formulated beforehand and to call out any reform bluff on Kyiv's side. Paired with a credible EU accession perspective, this can bring about the much‐needed stimulus for a build back better scenario. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The work examines the results and conclusions of the roundtable held on May 24, 2023, within the framework of the research project. The participants of the event discussed the main challenges that the Ukrainian government will face after the war when restoring the economy. The war and Ukraine's expected victory should significantly change the geopolitical and economic situation in the world, change the understanding of energy as a weapon, and thus, create a guarantee of energy independence for the entire European continent. Scholars, policy makers, scientists, and practitioners joined together in discussion about addressing the needs of Ukraine after the victory, during the reconstruction phase. The participants noted the inevitability of institutional changes in the Ukrainian state, which is required by the future accession to the EU and NATO. However, in addition to economic challenges, Ukraine will face a complex of significant post-war problems: ensuring social stability, restoring infrastructure, ensuring the integration of the military into peaceful life, restoring the ecology of the territories where military operations were conducted, and significantly reforming the judicial system. Results and Conclusions: The policy paper concerning Ukraine's reconstruction efforts was announced as a result of the roundtable. It was highlighted that, to establish a future regional infrastructure and foster a win-win business perspective, it is crucial to engage in practical discussions with the Romanian government and private companies. Creating a shared business platform would facilitate the transition from expressing interests to direct participation in the recovery process. To achieve broader reconstruction goals, it is essential to involve other Western industry actors from countries like Germany, France, Italy, the U.S., the UK, Poland, Norway, etc., with their financial, technological, and implementation capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper will document the translation of Ukrainian writing into English as it was produced in Australia, within or in connection with the Ukrainian-Australian literary field. To do this it is necessary to account for three groups of texts: anthologies of Ukrainian-Australian writing; individual books by a sole Ukrainian-Australian author; and Ukrainian literature from outside of Australia, namely that of the diaspora and Soviet Ukraine. The time frame begins with the arrival of postwar Ukrainian refugees in 1949 and covers the period up to 1991, the year Ukraine achieved independence. The paper describes the products and processes of translation of Ukrainian writing into English in Australia, together with the institutional and infrastructural realities which faced Ukrainian writers as part of a minority non-English literary culture in Australia. Themes and subjects of the translated works reflected the experiences of Ukrainians as they endured dictatorship, Russification, war and eventual resettlement as refugees. This may be seen to reflect poignantly on the current situation in Ukraine. Hence there is reference to the war now being waged by Russia, as Ukrainians are again fighting for their lives and for the survival of their nation and culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The problems of digitalization in the higher education system are considered in the paper; modern digital tools as the mechanisms for enhancing the financial autonomy of universities in Ukraine are revealed. The authors assume that the main direction of digitalization and development of digital technologies is the creation of digital infrastructures (e-infrastructures), which provide primary processing, storage and data exchange, distributed computing, and automated analytics of a higher education institution activity. However, it is noticed that in the digital world data maturity – the compliance of data with the requirements of the mentioned digital infrastructures – is essential. Digital tools for the financial sector of the economy are commonly called FinTech. This term is used to describe the technological innovations in financial services, which can lead to the emergence of new business models, applications, processes, and products; they also may have a corresponding material impact on financial markets, institutions, and ways of providing financial services. The authors are based on the main provisions of institutionalism and neo-institutionalism, financial capitalism as the theoretical foundations of modern economic relations of universities. The author's definition of the institutional autonomy of a university as an institutional unit of the modern economy, as well as the main mechanisms and instruments for regulating the limits of their institutional autonomy, are proposed. In this context, the authors describe the main FinTech technologies, which have significant prospects as components of the mechanisms of Ukrainian universities' financial autonomy, i.e.: cloud technologies, artificial intelligence technologies, the internet of things, peer-to-peer transaction technologies, digital banking, and blockchain. Analyzing the features of digital financial technologies, much attention is paid to the blockchain, in particular, smart contracts as the most accessible for Ukrainian universities in the near future. The perspective directions of introducing blockchain technology in the digital systems of Ukrainian universities are outlined. It is noted that digitalization in the university sphere stipulates establishing mandatory rules (standards), the creation and functioning of digital technologies, which act as institutional constraints to almost all the proposed mechanisms and instruments of university institutional autonomy, including the university funding mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper it is displayed the resilience of the Ukrainian educators and students during the ongoing conflict with Russia, with a particular focus on the role of online learning platforms. Despite the challenges posed by air raids, evacuations, and infrastructure damage, educators have swiftly transitioned to virtual classrooms using platforms like Zoom, Google Meet, AllUkrainian Online School and others. These platforms not only provide continuity in education but also serve as spaces for emotional support, fostering discussions about the conflict and offering solidarity to students amidst uncertainty. While significant challenges persist, including reaching students in heavily affected regions, the adaptability and dedication of Ukrainian educators underscore the resilience of the human spirit in adversity. Online learning continues to serve as a beacon of hope, ensuring that the pursuit of knowledge endures even in the darkest of times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the implementation of environmental aspects of social responsibility by trade enterprises in Ukraine. An analysis of environmental aspects, financial and non-financial reporting, and websites of large trade enterprises was carried out in relation to the display and provision of openness and availability of information about environmental aspects and enterprise costs. The composition of costs and their influence on the financial and economic indicators of the enterprise were studied. The implementation of one's own environmental policy and environmental initiatives, the implementation of projects, technologies, programs, and management methods used by trade enterprises of Ukraine were considered. The socially responsible enterprises' compliance with the requirements of current legislation, national and international standards, requirements for environmental standards of product quality and safety, preservation and protection of the environment, and the use of correct approaches to ensure the positive impact of their business activities on the environment were analyzed. The introduction of environmentally safe, resource- and energy-saving technologies, ecological containers and packaging, development of renewable energy sources, reduction of own greenhouse gas emissions, modern methods of utilization and recycling of PET bottles, plastic, waste paper, and waste, holding eco-actions on greening territories and charitable actions, motivate suppliers and carry out other measures that reduce the negative impact on the environment, contribute to the preservation of people's health, restoration of the environment and take care of the future of the planet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The object of the research is the Core Inflation Forecasting. The paper investigates the performance of the novel model routine in the exercise of the Core Inflation Forecasting. It aggregates 300+ components into 6 by the similarity of their dynamics using an updated DTW algorithm fine-tuned for monthly time series and the K-Means algorithm for grouping. Then the SARIMA model extracts linear and seasonal components, which is followed by an LSTM model that captures non-linearities and interdependencies. It solves the problem of high-quality inflation forecasting using a disaggregated dataset. While standard and traditional econometric techniques are focused on the limited sets of data that consists just a couple of variables, proposed methodology is able to capture richer part of the volatility comprising more information. The model is compared with a huge pool of other models, simple ones like Random Walk and SARIMA, to ML models like XGBoost, Random Forest and simple LSTM. While all Data Science model shows decent performance, the DTW+K-Means+SARIMA+LSTM routine gives the best RMSE over 1-month ahead and 2-month ahead forecasts, which proves the high quality of the proposed forecasting model and solves the key problem of the paper. It is explained by the model’s capability to capture both linear/seasonal patterns from the data using SARIMA part as long as it non-linear and interdependent using LSTM approach. Models are fitted for the case of Ukraine as long as they’ve been estimated on the corresponding data and may be actively used for further inflation forecasting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Ukraine, Scopus data are used to evaluate academics. Existing shortcomings in the Ukrainian evaluation system allow them to publish in titles that have been delisted from Scopus, and continue to use those papers as credible research output for evaluation. The purpose of this study was to analyse the publishing activity of Ukrainian institutions in Scopus‐delisted titles (as of September 2021) in different fields between 2011 and 2020 and to attempt to appreciate how common this practice is among Ukrainian authors. Scopus was sourced to collect bibliographic and citations‐related data, while SciVal was used to analyse these data. The findings suggest that for 17 Ukrainian institutions, papers from titles that have been delisted from Scopus still play an important part of the publication achievement of their employees. In particular, in the field of economics, econometrics and finance, 46.92% of Ukrainian papers were published in a title that was excluded from Scopus. Moreover, the analysis indicated that in two Ukrainian institutions, the level of citation of such papers significantly exceeds the average number of citations to Scopus‐indexed papers in the same year and in the same field. Given that bibliometric indicators are also used for research assessment in other Eastern European countries, the results of this paper are applicable to a wider geographic context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper conducts a nuanced examination of organizational commitment, drawing from an array of European business practices to navigate the complexities introduced by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukrainian conflict. Employing a meticulous literature review methodology, the research spans academic articles, official reports, and organizational publications from 2010 to 2023. The selection criteria focused on relevance to organizational commitment, crisis management, and the impact of significant crises, employing a combination of keywords across various databases and websites. The analysis revealed an evolving understanding of organizational commitment, highlighting the necessity for Moldovan organizations to adopt contextually adapted engagement strategies. This adaptation is crucial in addressing the unique challenges posed by Moldova's socio-economic conditions and the external pressures from regional instabilities. The study underscores the importance of flexible work arrangements, digital infrastructure improvements, and culturally informed management practices in fostering organizational commitment amidst uncertainty, offering insights for organizations aiming to maintain a committed workforce in challenging times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the concurrent occurrences of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine have led to global disruptions in supply chains and a surge in commodity prices. Major advanced economies have experienced an increase in inflation rates and a decline in economic activity. Against this economic backdrop, this paper aims to address the strained condition of supply chains by employing the Global Supply Chain Pressure Index (GSCPI) alongside commodity price indices. Furthermore, it seeks to examine how fluctuations in these variables affect Japan's macroeconomic landscape through local projection and structural Vector Autoregression (VAR). In the local projection analysis, it has been observed that the strain on supply chains induces sustained increases in consumer and producer prices, further contributing to long-term declines in production. Within the structural VAR model framework, the identification of structural shocks is conducted through sign restrictions, affirming the significance of supply chain shocks and energy and food price shocks as crucial factors contributing to recent price increases. This confirmation is supported by variance decomposition and historical decomposition analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to evaluate the quality of research management of students in agricultural universities of Ukraine using benchmarking. The external evaluation of agricultural higher education institutions (HEIs) of Ukraine was conducted on the basis of the data of the State Scientific Institution "Institute of education content modernization" and the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine regarding the results of the All-Ukrainian competition of student scientific papers in the fields of knowledge and specialties in 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 academic years. The leaders according to the results of participation in the II round of the competition in the analyzed period were 9 HEIs: Mykolaiv National Agrarian University (NAU), National University of Life and Environmental Sciences of Ukraine, Kharkiv Petro Vasylenko National Technical University of Agriculture, Lviv NAU, Sumy NAU, Vinnytsia NAU, Poltava State Agrarian Academy, Kharkiv NAU named after V. V. Dokuchayev, Polissia National University. They annually had more than 10 winners of the competition of various degrees. Other agricultural HEIs of Ukraine should focus on their indicators in order to improve the quality of research management of students. The obtained results enable agricultural universities not only to determine the leaders based on the number of works awarded with I, II or III degree diplomas in the All-Ukrainian competition, but also to evaluate, compared to them, their strengths and weaknesses; to get new ideas for research management of students; to plan further scientific activities taking into account the indicators of HEIs-leaders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today, more than ever, our world is facing supply chain constraints that threaten the basics of current market dynamic on all levels and in every economic field. From economic sanctions limiting commercial trade, the COVID-19 crisis, post-pandemic economic stagnation, the ongoing conflict in the Ukraine, the global chip shortage, as well as the effects of the current Israeli- Palestinian war and its impact on freight transportation in the Red Sea have all exposed the vulnerability of today's global supply chains. The purpose of this paper is to review how supply chain must be designed to ensure their flow and deliverables in complex, uncertain, and everchanging environment. The paper will study how supply chains must be resilient by addressing current challenges through agility to meet both socio-economic and political volatilities, and sustainable through their transition to socio-ecological compliant economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the Canadian government’s foreign and security policy responses to Russian disinformation in the context of the Russo-Ukrainian war. It asks whether, how, and why the government has securitised the “crisis of Russian disinformation.” The paper first briefly reviews literature on the Copenhagen’s School’s “securitisation” theory and how it has been used to explain responses to other crises. It then adopts the framework to contextualise the Canadian federal government’s official rhetoric, and then to categorise government policies and actions. The sources consulted include government actors’ reports and stated intentions and policies from 2022 to 2024. Adopting a securitisation framework reveals that Russian disinformation has been rhetorically securitised by government actors as an existential threat to national security and democratic integrity which requires urgent action. Within a context of cascading risks, the government has taken a range of distinct yet reinforcing policies and actions, some more comprehensive than others. The paper argues that together this “pervasive rhetorical securitisation” and “ad hoc practical securitisation” comprise the Canadian government’s ongoing process of partial securitisation. This process is legitimising different methods of governance: security and warfare communications (to address threats to national defence and security), democratic resilience (to address threats to democracy), and, most controversially, blocking and sanctioning (to signal discontent to the Russian regime). The analysis further reveals that each approach has different benefits and limits. The paper concludes that the securitisation process is incomplete compared to the government's rhetoric, with no over-arching organisation or strategy. It outlines implications for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

France’s reaction to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was initially conciliatory. However, the current French President’ statements, Macron, gradually changed, suggesting a potential shift in France's stance. The French president recently suggested troops could be sent to Ukraine to fight the Russians, a move that could significantly impact the course of the war. Our paper aims to address this possibility. How feasible would this be from a military perspective? Second, are there any other relevant political actors that will support it? Third, why has Paris changed its position to such a radical stance? We start from the theoretical design of realist constructivism. Postcolonial theories and the concept of locked-in path dependence supported this research. The methods follow the path of historical synthesis, discourse analysis of key political actors, and text analysis of defense white papers. Quantitative military variables are used to understand France’s and the EU’s military-industrial complex capabilities and assess its potential. The collapse of France’s neocolonial empire in Africa and Russia’s growing influence in the region partially explains Macron’s discourse change. This is correlated with the need to follow a more independent European security policy and the worsening military situation in Ukraine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines Russia's propaganda discourse on Twitter during the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The study employs network analysis, natural language processing (NLP) techniques, and qualitative analysis to identify key communities and narratives associated with the prevalent and damaging narrative of "fascism/Nazism" in discussions related to the invasion. The paper implements a methodological pipeline to identify the main topics, and influential actors, as well as to examine the most impactful messages in spreading this disinformation narrative. Overall, this research contributes to the understanding of propaganda dissemination on social media platforms and provides insights into the narratives and communities involved in spreading disinformation during the invasion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last couple years, the world has experienced the highest levels of inflation in more than four decades. This paper provides a framework for analyzing the causes and the appropriate responses. We show that it is not caused by an excess of aggregate demand, and in particular, not caused by any excess consumption arising from excessive pandemic spending, but by supply-side shocks, largely induced by the pandemic (e.g., chips), and also by the war in Ukraine, combined with sectoral demand shifts. We analyze the role played by market power and the lack of resilience. Increases in interest rates, beyond normalizing levels, will do little to address the underlying problems and may exacerbate them, impeding effective responses to supply shortages. The paper describes alternative fiscal and other measures that, while addressing current inflation, have further long-term welfare benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Studies in Law & Economics / Studia Prawno-Ekonomiczne is the property of Lodz Scientific Society / Lodzkie Towarzystwo Naukowe and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper aims to address the possible role of the Eastern European Orthodox Church as an alternative channel to ensure fruitful negotiations to end the Russo-Ukrainian war that has still ongoing since 2022. As the majority religion in Russia, Ukraine, and Eastern Europe as a whole, the Orthodox branch of Christianity has a transnational influence on its followers, including prominent political figures in the aforementioned territories. Utilizing qualitative research methods, this paper is written to provide arguments about whether the Orthodox Church, with its immense presence in the belligerents' spiritual beliefs, will be able to be employed as a channel to end the Russo-Ukrainian war. In this paper, analysis is conducted through the usage of J. W. McDonald's "The Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy" (2012) journal article about multi-track diplomacy and D. Johnston's Faith-Based Diplomacy: Trumping Realpolitik (2003) book about faith-based diplomacy to gauge the Orthodox Church's potential as a channel of diplomacy between Russia and Ukraine. This paper finds that overall, the Orthodox Church fails to fulfil the criteria that Johnston (2003) posits; one of the most fatal is the organization's inability to reconcile the belligerents' deep historical wounds. Due to the Orthodox Church's traditional role that has always been closely tied to the Russian government, its capability to build an acceptable negotiation channel is severely impeded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to examine the lessons learned till mid-2023 from the war in Ukraine to find out how attacking or seizing nuclear power plants (NPPs) can be utilised to advance military and political objectives during an armed conflict. The qualitative research approach has been applied to the study, focusing on an analysis of academic research and relevant acts of international law. In order to examine Russia’s approach to the attacks against the Chernobyl and Zaporizhzhia NPPs, numerous reports, official statements by the authorities, press releases, and Internet sources have been analysed. For evaluation of nuclear security and safety standards in Ukraine, the “seven pillars” model proposed by the International Atomic Energy Agency has been adopted. The study indicates that strategically located NPPs can be used as “nuclear shields” for the occupying forces deployed at the plant or nearby. They may also become useful tools of “lawfare” waged with the use of flawed interpretations of international humanitarian law. Finally, nuclear security-related narrations analysed in the paper clearly prove that seized NPPs can be effectively used in information warfare. The research leads to the conclusion that civil NPPs in war zones can be weaponised and exploited by the hostile forces not only for impeding energy supplies (and thus shattering the public morale of the adversary) but also for blackmailing and coercing the decisionmakers of the attacked state and their international allies with a vision of man-made nuclear disaster. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The celebrated idea of Prussian war strategist Carl von Clausewitz regarding conventional warfare played a dominant role up to the First World War in the West. In his seminal work "On War", Clausewitz posits: "If you want to overcome your enemy, you must match your efforts against the power of resistance!" In a way, his idea was akin to annihilating the enemy's army in major battles. However, this idea was challenged by British military strategist Basil Henry Liddell Hart in his book, titled "The Strategy", by proposing a different military theory called "Indirect Approach". The objective of this paper is based on making a comparative analysis between Clausewitz and Liddell Hart regarding the utility of their military theories in modern warfare. While taking a methodology based on a comparative analysis of the utility of the two doctrines, this paper explores the effectiveness of those military strategies against the current asymmetries in modern warfare. To buttress the reliability of this research, the examples from the Ukrainian war and the Sri Lankan civil war between 1990 and 2009 will be examined. The main objectivity of this paper lies in creating a novel discussion on the merits and demerits of Clausewitz and Basil Liddell Hart's theories of war in contemporary warfare. The results emerging from this research will demonstrate the relevance of re-reading both Clausewitz and Liddell Hart in an era where the orthodox idea of warfare is at stake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most universities strive to create a favourable educational environment according to modern trends and requirements. The paper analyzes and systematizes the essence of the concepts «educational environment» and «foreign-language environment» based on the research of Ukrainian and foreign scholars. Drawing on the typology of educational environments, the authors of the paper refine the understanding of the concept of a «foreign-language educational environment» based on the literature reviews. Considering the challenges of the present, caused by COVID-19, the post-COVID era, and the war in Ukraine, the factors influencing the transformation of the modern educational environment are presented and discussed. The paper organizes existing research on the explored problem and presents the authors' vision of the contemporary educational environment of a university under modern conditions. It includes the description of technologies used to address various educational needs and to meet the technological requirements. Therefore, the typical features of such an educational environment are personalization, flexibility, engagement, interactivity, availability, and multisensory and multimode experience. The creation of the aforementioned environment is possible due to specific training of the current academic staff and encouragement and professional training of future pedagogues. The experience revealed in the paper is based on the authors' work at the Faculty of Pedagogical Education of Borys Grinchenko Kyiv Metropolitan University, specifically with the students of specialties 012 Preschool Education and 013 Primary Education foreign language training [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article emphasizes the crucial role of language proficiency as well as language sensitivity, especially within multilingual classroom environments, underlining the significance of adhering to the Common European Reference of Languages (CEFR) as a means of fostering global cohesion. It underscores the importance of aligning Ukraine' s educational strategies with international standards, particularly emphasizing the value of foreign language education. Furthermore, the paper stresses the necessity for foreign language teachers to acquire adequate didactical and methodological competencies, an awareness for language sensitivity, and intercultural understanding. It describes Austria' s successful implementation of the CEFR in language assessment, illustrating its pivotal role in standardized examinations and its broad international recognition. Specifically, the article outlines the structure of Austria' s Matura exam for foreign languages, which evaluates reading, listening, language in use, and writing, with a mandatory requirement to achieve a B2 level of CEFR proficiency. It suggests that standardized assessment formats, based on CEFR levels, mitigate stigmatization and ensure fairness in evaluation. Consequently, the paper recommends integrating the CEFR into Ukraine' s educational system to foster language proficiency and enhance language sensitivity in multilingual classrooms. It advocates training programs for language teachers on CEFR implementation and assessment, with the aim of fostering European unity through language education. The article suggests incorporating CEFR principles into Ukraine' s educational reform «New Ukrainian School», and underscores the importance of collaboration between Austrian and Ukrainian educators and researchers in achieving this goal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes memes posted by @Ukraine to X, formerly known as Twitter, from the account's inception in 2016 through September 2023 to examine the function and utility of memes as tools of propaganda in global conflict. A multimodal discourse analysis of more than 100 memes was conducted by a small research group to separate the memes into thematic categories in an exploratory fashion. Then, a small subset of the research group conducted a recursive analysis on the images and text in a handful of memes selected purposively to determine what types of ideological appeals were present. Our findings align with observations made in previous studies that internet memes might be used to bolster national unity and might be employed to bolster pleas for sympathy from wealthy, more powerful allies, in this case in the West. The essential propaganda ideals were those of democracy, friendship, and independence on the side of Ukraine while Russia is framed as a dictatorship. A small number of the memes referenced in our paper garnered global media attention. Though we do not make any claims about broad media effects relating to the memes studied here, garnering the attention of major U.S. publication seems clearly to have been a goal of some of these memes. For those who wish to find a key to the playbook for a nation's propaganda strategy, its social media memes are a great place to begin. It is apparent in this study that governments might use memes to cover all their propaganda bases, so to speak. Ukraine's memes appear to serve mainly to reinforce messages of national unity and messages of connection with the West. Though others have studied @Ukraine's tweets, this is believed to be the first to focus exclusively on memes posted to the feed. This study makes a significant contribution to our understanding of how wildly varied memes can communicate core concepts of a propaganda strategy, perhaps with the hope that a few will "hit" with desired media outlets, if only to bolster propaganda efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global energy sector is in a period of transition, during which time it is expected that renewable and low-carbon energy sources, such as wind and solar, will replace traditional fossil fuels, including oil, gas, and coal. The energy transition is happening not only to limit the environmental impact of fossil fuel production and consumption but also to ensure energy security, reliability, access, affordability, and sustainability. The importance of the energy transition has been amplified by recent events, notably the Russian-Ukraine conflict. Economic, financial, and trade sanctions against Russia, and in particular its oil and gas industry, have forced countries to find new suppliers in the short term, but also to investigate new and more sustainable sources to guarantee long-term energy security. Given the importance of energy, it is perhaps not unexpected that there is a considerable body of recent academic literature, particularly over the last 4–5 years, studying what industries, consumers, governments, and markets can do to help bring about a faster energy transition. In this paper, we provide a review of the literature that pertains to the economic aspects of the energy transition. While our initial search of the literature is targeted at uncovering all relevant articles on the subject, we focus most of our discussion on the most influential articles in prominent journals and articles published in this journal—Energies. This review is intended to help identify active topics and potential research gaps and provide future direction, so we hope it will prove useful to the readers and authors interested in this topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the main features of digital repression in Russia, especially in the context of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The repression of digital activism is not a new phenomenon in Russia; however, it gained fresh momentum during the Russian-Ukrainian war. Security has been used as a pretext to expand the state's authority at the cost of individuals' rights and freedoms. To control political narratives, suppress online dissent and surveil regime critics, the government has significantly tightened the national legislation through its media regulator, Roskomnadzor. The aftermath of the war, harsh sanctions and increased anti-regime movements have also deepened Russia's aspirations toward 'digital sovereignty'. Meanwhile, regardless of a number of important initiatives in this direction, domestic digital space still remains an ambitious goal to be fulfilled. This paper concludes that, along with other devastating consequences, the war in Ukraine will provoke further digital repression in Russia aimed at achieving the Kremlin's goal of "digital sovereignty". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As China's position in the global economy has gradually improved, the importance of debates on the role of the renminbi in the international monetary system has significantly increased. This paper uses bibliometric methods—Bibliometrix R-package and its web-based graphical interface Biblioshiny—applied to data imported from Web of Science and Scopus to investigate and synthesize the renminbi literature published in English between 1995 and 2021. Science mapping offers a visual representation of different networks and clusters of authors' keywords. The performance analysis, a quantitative evaluation of the most published sources, authors and papers on renminbi internationalization in the last 25 years, shows that the interest on the topic has grown, particularly after 2009 and 2016, respectively. There is also a high degree of concentration in the field, considering that out of the 802 analyzed papers, published in 393 sources, five authors and four journals had the highest impact. The content analysis identifies the main directions in the renminbi internationalization literature and future research questions to further explore this subject. The COVID-19 pandemic and post-Ukraine war era could generate a deeper reform of the international monetary system, in which the Chinese currency will strengthen its global position alongside the US dollar and the euro. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper argues that the War in Ukraine is promoting and accelerating the Westernization of the region's higher education. The paper employs Mignolo's (2011) geopolitics of knowledge as the theoretical framework to illustrate how internationalization promotes the adoption of Western/English liberal education and how the War in Ukraine is speeding up the process. Using focus groups, I capture conversations with local graduate students in Kazakhstan to demonstrate that Western education is acquired to 1) accelerate the de-Russification of Kazakhstan by moving away from the former imperial power, 2) use English to undermine the Russian language and cement Kazakhstan's independence from Russia, 3) acquire internationally recognized English credentials for global/Western competitiveness and modernity. The participants in this study framed their decision to pursue university graduate studies as freedom from the Soviet system, de-Russification, and modern development, underscoring the high value that some graduate students have for an English credential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Increasing global concern about climate change and the circular economy have successfully established itselves in international and national policies over the last decade, with the aim of reshaping the production and consumer behavior. The circular economy is one of the core pillars of European Union policy and its success depends on the energy efficiency, reducing production costs, and maintaining employment levels by ensuring continuous strong economic independency of the region. While crises are unavoidable and continue to appear, this paper aims to project the impact of any crisis on sustainability transitions using data analysis of the Global Financial crisis from 2008 to 2009 and discuss how the success of the circular economy implementation and environmental policies could be affected. The paper notes that the global financial crisis of 2008–2009 had a short-term positive impact on environmental degradation and that economic interests overshadowed environmental goals. Due to the recent events of the ongoing Russia and Ukraine war, COVID-19 societal and industrial behavior has shifted from sustainable to linear and has taken a step backward in reducing environmental pollution and achieving Sustainable Development Goals. Analysis of already present data and the context of the 2008–2009 global financial crisis, reviewing of COVID-19 impact on the global economy, health sector, and environmental policies allows us to predict the consequences, as it relates to the future of circular economy policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: This paper provides an initial exploration of Ukrainian–Russian bilingualism in the context of the war-affected migration from Ukraine to Austria and Germany. While extensive research exists on various aspects of Ukrainian– Russian bilingualism in relation to Ukraine itself, thus far no studies have been conducted on this bilingualism in the diasporic context, i.e., as a language of the first and subsequential generations with a migrant background in Austria and Germany. Methods: To address this research gap, our paper examines the language attitudes of two respondent groups with a Ukrainian background in the two countries: migrants and refugees who left Ukraine after 2014 and those who left after Russia’s invasion in February 2022. In the framework of a sociolinguistic survey, we describe their current attitudes regarding the use of Ukrainian and Russian, among others, in relation to the actual and intended use of the language(s) in the multilingual context of migration. The survey eliciting information on demographic information, language proficiency, language attitudes and language use was conducted on 406 Ukrainians in two host countries (Austria: n = 103; Germany: n = 306). First, we compared self-rated proficiency in Ukrainian and Russian as well as attitudes and use of these languages. Second, we applied a network modelling analysis to determine the nature of relationships between these variables. Results and discussion: The results indicated that proficiency in Ukrainian and in Russian were the strongest nodes in the model affecting language use and language attitudes toward the respective languages. Our data analysis focused on the pragmatic and symbolic value of Russian and Ukrainian playing a crucial role in the language vitality in multilingual settings. The paper discusses the imbalanced correlation of the symbolic and pragmatic value of Ukrainian and Russian in the diasporic Ukrainian communities. While Ukrainian has gained a higher symbolic status, Russian maintains a better pragmatic one, despite its negative symbolic status. However, we anticipate that the increasing symbolic value of Ukrainian and the diminishing value of Russian will lead to an increase in the use of Ukrainian also in Russian-dominant bilingual groups of Ukrainian migrants and refugees, even as an insider-code in hermetic minority groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of the study is to present the results and description of the direct study relating to changes that have occurred in the purchasing area as well as make out new solutions and good practices that were undertaken in the context of events with a destructive impact on the supply chain (Covid-19 pandemic, armed conflict in Ukraine, etc.) that occurred in the last years. Particular attention was paid to answering the question whether the events had an impact on the digital transformation in the purchasing area and what related changes were implemented. Design/methodology/approach: The answers to the research questions were obtained on the basis of the results of surveys conducted using the CAWI method based on the original questionnaire. A statistical method was used to verify the research hypothesis (Anova KruskalWallis test). The study covered the group of experts with a minimum of 8 years of professional experience in the field of purchasing and current position: Senior Purchasing Specialist or Purchasing Manager or Purchasing Director. Findings: The considerations and results of the research presented in the paper can be the basis for the characteristics of the changes taking place over the last years in purchasing and may constitute an indication and a model of good practices for organisations that have not yet implemented the improvements in the purchasing area which are proposed in the article. Research limitations/implications: The study provided confirmation that the respondents have a set of features directly related to the topic of the study, as well as the required work experience in the current company. Purposive sampling was used in the study. Future in-depth research may focus on identifying statistically significant relationships in the explored topic. Practical implications: The identified changes in purchasing area caused by events with a destructive impact on the supply chain and the list of good practices implemented in enterprises constitute valuable recommendations for management practice in the digitization process. Originality/value: The study proves that in the area of purchasing, numerous changes in the functioning of this process have been noticed over recent years, due to the events with a destructive impact on the functioning of the supply chain. The changes had an impact on the digital transformation which is related to the levels of purchasing maturity of enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Due to the rising incidence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogens, especially in Low-Middle-Income Countries (LMIC), post-partum infections represent a significant treatment challenge. Methods: We performed a systematic review of the literature from January 2005 to February 2023 to quantify the frequency of maternal post-partum infections due to MDR pathogens in LMICs, focusing on methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and/or extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Enterobacterales. Secondary objectives: description of antimicrobials' prescriptions. Findings: We included 22 studies with 14,804 total bacterial isolates from 12 countries, mostly from WHO African-Region. Twelve papers described wound- and 10 puerperal-infections. Seven were high-quality articles. Seventeen studies reported data on MRSA, and 18 on ESBL-producing Enterobacterales. Among high-quality studies, MRSA ranged from 9.8% in Ghana to 91.2% in Uganda; ESBL-producing Enterobacterales ranged from 22.8% in Ukraine to 95.2% in Uganda. Nine articles, mostly on C-sections, described different protocols for antibiotic prophylaxis and/or post-partum treatment. Interpretation: We described a high burden of post-partum infections caused by MRSA and/or ESBL-producing Enterobacterales in LMICs, but only a few studies met quality standards. There is an urgent need for high-quality studies to better describe the real burden of antimicrobial resistance in low-resource settings and inform policies to contain the spread of multidrug-resistant organisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study builds on the recent literature by investigating how various types of African stock markets responded to the Russia-Ukraine crisis (commonly referred to as the black-swan event). The empirical analysis used in this paper centred on event study analysis, a statistical technique used to measure the impact of a specific event. The findings show that the black-swan event had a significant negative impact on African stock markets (14/20), with stocks having a negative abnormal return on the event day, and out of this, nine stocks' abnormal returns are statistically significant. These include Safaricom Kenya, Commercial International Bank, Attijariwafa Bank, Morocco Casablanca Index, Egyptian Exchange 30, Nairobi All Share Index, AVI Equity, MCB Group Ltd, FTSE/JSE All Share, Delta Corp. Ltd, Stock Exchange of Mauritius, Tunisia Stock Exchange, Tanzania All Share Index, and Banque de Tunisie. Furthermore, the study discovers that African stock markets reacted heterogeneously to the impact of the crises, while some stocks were severely affected, some were minimally affected. The study concludes that African stock markets should build a resilient market capable of withstanding external shock and reducing the risk of contagion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the paper was to assess the impact of climate changes on agricultural development and food security in Ukraine and Slovakia using statistical data from Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic, State Statistics Service of Ukraine, Eurostat, Food and Agriculture Organization and other sources. The comparison method was used to evaluate changes in agricultural development indicators, as well as climate changes in 1998-2021 in Ukraine and Slovakia. The main indicators of agricultural development used in the research were agricultural raw materials exports(%), agricultural raw materials imports (%), agriculture value added (% of GDP), agriculture value added (annual % growth), agriculture value added (current US$), cereal production (metric tons), cereal yield (kg per hectare), crop production index, food production index. Correlation and regression equations were used to establish the relationship between climatic factors and agricultural development indicators. The multiple correlations between air temperature and indicators of agricultural development was r=0.75 for Ukraine, r=0.69 for Slovakia. Using neuromodeling tools, the indicators of cereal production volumes and cereals yields in Ukraine and Slovakia in 2024-2033 were predicted. Tables were used to summarize the results. In conclusion, it should be noted that climatic conditions should be analyzed in each sector of crop production, and measures should be taken to adapt technologies for the gradual expansion of obligations for the production and export of agricultural products to world markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Russias invasion of Ukraine in 2022 triggered a conflict that has transformed international relations through drastic impacts on policymaking, energy politics, and alliances. Such impacts have produced severe multi-dimensional consequences for African countries that have yet to be sufficiently interrogated in the literature. In response to this gap, this paper examined the security implications of the conflict for African countries to offer a comprehensive analysis that considers the intersection of the conflict with contemporary economic, human, social, and political issues confronting Africa. In discourse using a qualitative approach and rooted in a theoretical perspective drawn from the Copenhagen School, the paper underlined the security implications as evident in the areas of food security and governance, buttressing that the proxy conflicts and power struggles associated with this war have exacerbated existing challenges related to food availability and interfered with the consolidation of democracy in Africa. The paper concluded that the war's multi-dimensional impact potentially compounds political instability vectors. It generates dynamics capable of eroding social cohesion and fomenting social unrest in Africa, meriting its designation as an issue of great concern to African policymakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic resilience, considered in this paper as the ability to withstand and recover from economic shocks and disruptions, has become a linchpin of ensuring national security and stability. As demonstrated by conflicts such as the one in Ukraine, where economic sanctions were deployed to diminish an adversary's capacity to sustain its war efforts, it has become evident that military power alone is insufficient in today's complex security landscape. A comprehensive approach to defence must incorporate economic considerations, as the economic well-being of a nation is intrinsically linked to its overall security. The main research objectives of this paper are to investigate the concept of economic resilience, from the perspective of the concept of comprehensive defence and the ways it is interconnected with other resilience domains, through the development of an economic resilience index outlining the relative economic resilience of the 29 European countries that are NATO members and to propose a methodology for identifying the main factors that influence the economic resilience from a comprehensive defence point of view. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the assortment and primary methods of waste collection within the Reichskommissariat Ukraine during the occupation by Nazi forces. The Ukrainian occupational press serves as the primary source for this article. It demonstrates that the extraction of various resources and the plundering of material valuables were directed towards supporting the economic and military power of the Third Reich, with waste collection policies being one of its facets. To facilitate this activity in this realm, the Nazis utilized existing infrastructure within the territory of Ukraine, including warehouses, factories, and offices of Soyuzutyl, established on the eve of the Second World War, as well as the infrastructure of the consumer cooperative system. It is shown that the specificity of Ukraine lies in assigning waste collection duties to consumer cooperatives, which transformed into the primary suppliers of various raw materials for the needs of the Third Reich. Local administrations and individual cooperatives actively participated in this endeavor, and special associations were also established. Additionally, the occupying authorities sought to involve schoolchildren and the broader population, developing various incentive systems for this purpose, although the participation of these actors was minimal. The article examines the peculiarities of waste collection propaganda within the territory of the Reichskommissariat Ukraine, which was based on ideological motives such as gratitude for liberation from Soviet rule, as well as economic motives related to the need for waste to produce consumer goods for the local population by enterprises of the Nazi regime. It is argued that primary attention was given to collecting scrap black and colored metals, as well as bones, paper, and rags. The author suggests that the scale of economic plundering of Ukraine was much larger than commonly believed, yet acknowledges that this requires further in-depth research involving a wide range of archival sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The fundamental objective of the study is to characterise the features that accompany ESG risk management processes in Polish companies financing green investments with a bank credit. Design approach: The study focuses on the observation of changes occurring in the concept and processes of ESG risk management following the so-called Paris Agreement of 2015. The EU regulations standardising the ESG risk management process in companies and banks have been analysed, indicating the differences resulting from them. The inclusion of ESG risks both in creditors and credit recipients is achieved through various channels, determining the extent, and expected outcomes of green investments. Without a doubt, the issue has been receiving considerable research attention in many papers since the energy crisis caused by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. However, in light of EU regulatory changes and the increased interest of business entities in green financing, uncertainties, and research problems are on the rise in this area. An evident limitation of the conducted research is the lack of empirical data completing the knowledge on the effects of ESG strategies both domestically and in EU member states. Therefore, the paper draws on questionnaire surveys conducted by the authors, as well as on the findings of various reports published on the subject. Findings: The research shows that EU regulations increase the security of financing green investments in both companies and banks. The concept of sustainable development and ESG risk management associated with it have been severely curtailed through their introduction. Nevertheless, there is a fairly substantial area of uncertainty associated with the process of financing green investments. The study analyses its determinants indicating that internal ESG risk management procedures of companies and banks do not eliminate the external risks of financing corporate green investments. Originality/value: The conducted research undoubtedly broadens the knowledge about the role and significance of ESG risk in the green investment financing process. The analysis of studies relating to ESG risk, taking into consideration EU documents, contributed to exposing unexplained, debatable, and unsolvable issues. The questionnaire survey as well as the secondary data obtained made it possible to verify the number of common opinions and statements, along with the main hypothesis of the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The objective of this paper is to analyze the role of civil society in the process of Ukraine’s post-war recovery with regard to the principles of sustainability, resilience, and equitability. The framework for the National Recovery Plan is established and the priorities of post-war reconstruction aim to foster just and sustainable transition. The question of civil society contribution and community-led approach to act for societal change is addressed in the paper. Design/methodology/approach: To achieve the objective of this paper, the analysis of available secondary data, which consists of reports and studies of international institutions, research agencies, Ukrainian national program documents and statistics, research conducted by international and domestic NGOs. Secondary research material was enriched with the use of virtual ethnography methodology - i.e. online material obtained as part of participation in the Telegram group “Program for Sustainable Recovery of Ukraine”, bringing together leaders of Ukrainian civil society. Findings: Due to the ongoing war, Ukraine is facing devastating humanitarian losses as well as catastrophic damage to its infrastructure and natural environment – it’s economy deteriorated by a 30% decline in 2022. The cost of Ukraine’s reconstruction is estimated from USD 349 billion to 750 billion. The issue of civil society role in the sustainability oriented post-war recovery was discussed. According to experts successful reconstruction require involvement of national actors, including variety of stakeholders e.g. local officials, entrepreneurs, civil society organizations etc. The unprecedented power of social commitment unleashed with the beginning of the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022 and the role civil society mechanisms and institutions play in the current situation in Ukraine should be understood as a trigger of democratization and modernization of the country. Research limitations/implications: The presented study is of conceptual character and is based on available secondary data. Collecting original data during ongoing war is imitated mostly to the virtual ethnography approach. Trying to measure civic engagement and civil society’s contribution to the post-war recovery require the use of more complex methodologies. Practical implications: Presented paper outlines a framework for rethinking civil society mechanisms and institutions during post-war recovery. The issue of sustainable transition and resilience is vital for policy makers, local communities’ leaders, educators, social workers, etc. Social implications: Considering the civic engagement during the war, it seems clear that civil society institutions and mechanisms will become essential for Ukraine's post-war reconstruction. Apart from a vision consistent with the principles of sustainability, recovery requires reconciling the needs of different stakeholders – civil society is a key player enabling facilitation of the dialogue. Originality/value: Contemporary Ukrainian civil society is not only a support for the authorities in the ongoing conflict, but also a pillar of democratization and modernization. It is worth monitoring whether the civic response to war will turn into lasting social initiatives and will contribute to achieving greater cohesion and sustainability by Ukraine. Certainly, a deeper look at the role of civil society institutions and mechanisms in the process of post-war reconstruction is necessary, addressing the issue with tailor-made methodologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent years have brought a serious economic crisis, first caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and later worsened by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The global economy was greatly affected by these events, so it can be expected to see them affect the post-merger financial performance of companies. The aim of the paper is to examine if the pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine had any effect on the financial performance of combined companies during these events in comparison to merged companies for which the 3-year post-merger period ended in 2019. The research methods used involve a critical literature analysis and statistical tests. This study analyses the financial ratios of Polish public companies which participated in legal mergers which were finalised between 2016 and 2018. For each company necessary ROA ratios were calculated (pre-merger ROA ratio, ROA ratio for the 3rd year after the merger). The data was grouped according to the year of the merger and then compared to test the hypotheses. There was no statistically significant difference in the distribution of profitability ratios for the analysed companies before and during the crisis. However, there is evidence that there was a statistically significant increase in profitability ratios pre- and post-merger for legal mergers finalised in 2017. The paper provides an initial insight into how the latest economic crisis affected the financial performance of Polish public companies after a legal merger. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Important nodes can determine the internal structure of complex networks and reveal the internal relationships of real-world systems, and identifying key nodes in complex networks is one of the important research areas of complex network science. As the king of commodities, changes in the price of gold significantly impact the economic development of various countries. Especially in the early stages of the outbreak of war between Russia and Ukraine, the price of gold futures has been greatly impacted, and the systemic risks are gradually spreading. In this paper, a gold future price series is mapped into a visibility graph (VG), the characteristics of the gold price time series and key points-in-time, have been explored from the perspective of complex network. First, according to the data structure characteristics of gold futures, this paper converts the closing prices of gold futures of the New York Mercantile Exchange into a complex network through the VG model. Then, by using the complex network model to further delve into the price of gold futures, it is found that the degree distribution of the gold futures network follows a power-law distribution, and has obvious scale-free characteristics. Finally, this paper uses the visual network node shrinking algorithm and the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) analysis method to identify the key nodes of the gold futures visual map to find the key time nodes in the timeline of gold futures market. Analysis of the key time nodes of this market by four methods reveals that the repetition rate of the key time nodes in the methods' top 10 ranking is as high as 82.5%, indicating that the results obtained in this paper are robust. This study introduces a new model to describe the characteristics of gold futures price series, one which can find key time nodes in gold futures prices and provide potential help for predicting gold futures prices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The lingering COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine have wreaked havoc on the global oil supply chain. The current disruption of the oil supply chain and the rapidly growing energy demand created unprecedented oil shortages and raised the oil price beyond the affordable level. As worldwide oil price hikes continue, there is an urgent need for developing alternative energy sources, such as smart rural energy. Despite its enormous potential as a viable alternative to traditional fossil fuel-based energy sources, smart rural energy has never been fully utilized in society. The limited use of smart rural energy may be related to its lack of commercialization, which could have created more eco-friendly and cost-efficient alternative energy sources. This paper assesses the eco-friendliness and cost-efficiency of smart rural energy sources such as solar, wind, biomass, and hydropower for the first time. This paper is also one of the first studies that intends to develop viable strategic plans for commercializing smart rural energy using strategy maps, which subsequently helps increase public awareness of renewable energy by creating visual communication tools that convey the benefits of smart rural energy commercialization to multiple stakeholders, including government entities, business communities, and energy consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]