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Economic growth in Europe is causing environmental problems thus highlighting the need to minimize waste. Sustainable Development Goal 12 "Sustainable Production and Consumption" focuses on three aspects: waste management, energy saving and resource usage minimization. The aim of this study is to analyse the current needs for professional food waste management knowledge in European food production companies and develop waste minimization skills for food sector's vocational education students. The study is based on a mixed methodology combining desk study, comparative analysis and logical design research methods as well as focus group interviews with the representatives of different food sub-sectors. The results of the study reveal that, although waste management processes in European countries are well regulated, food sector workers currently lack waste management skills and thus need professional trainings to efficiently participate in waste reduction, reuse and recycling to comply with the principles of the circular economy. The results of the research were used to develop a vocational training curriculum that can be used by vocational education trainers as well as food sector companies to reduce waste and promote a zero-waste management culture in Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The most significant challenges of organic farming are the fragmentation of the sector, unstable product supply and sales opportunities, as well as the lack of knowledge of how to manage agricultural production agronomically and economically effective. The predominant form of agricultural enterprises in Latvia is small and medium-sized farms. Thus, cooperation is an effective solution so that farmers can maintain the form of a family business and achieve an appropriate economic market, which would contribute to the possibility of sales and the value of the products produced. However, there are no fully organic and eligible grain cooperatives in Latvia in 2021. The research aim: to analyse factors affecting the needs of organic grain production through various alternatives to cooperation models. To achieve the aim, the following research methods were employed: logical construction, the graphical method, the monographic method, expert interviewing and factor ranking analysis. The research concluded that the factors influencing organic grain producer needs were most effectively implemented through the fully organic grain cooperative form - the normal distribution was 40.32. The weakest form of cooperation that provided opportunities for the development of organic grain production was mixed-type cooperatives, which combined both organic and conventional agricultural production. The normal distribution for mixed-type cooperatives was 25.00. The development of organic farming could be promoted by cooperation between organic producers. An organic single-product cooperative directly addresses the needs of organic producers - merging small and medium farms and providing appropriate infrastructure -, thus contributing to production consolidation and competitiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The topicality of the current study lies in the fact that international standards and documents that have been accepted by the European Union education sector emphasize the need to ensure equal pay for equal work and the importance of non-discriminatory treatment, while Latvian planning documents identify tasks to eliminate inequalities, with an emphasis on education system reform - introduction of teacher motivation system, teacher salary system improvement or development of a new salary system. The current teachers' salaries financing model “Money follows the student” contradicts both the framework of international documents and the framework of Latvian planning documents. The main determining factor of teachers’ wage is the number of students in an educational institution. While taking into the context of demographic and socioeconomic factor of Lative like countries with a small number of students, teachers' wages have remained low. The aim of the study was to analyze the application of the international and Latvian planning documents regarding wages for the teachers in general educational institutions and show that in the regions of Latvia there is a great differentiation in teachers' reward rate, thus teachers are not provided with a fair and motivating wage reward system. The study used a monographic or descriptive method, a statistical data processing method, and a synthesis and analysis method. In the study, the authors have clarified the legal framework of international documents and Latvian planning documents in the education sector (including salaries of teachers of general education institutions), which will be used in future authors' studies dedicated to regional development research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of entrepreneurial ecosystems (EEs) has emerged in recent years as a framework to understand the nature of places in which entrepreneurial activity flourishes. Spigel (2017) defines entrepreneurial ecosystems as follows: ‘combinations of social, political, economic, and cultural elements within a region that support the development and growth of innovative start-ups and encourage nascent entrepreneurs and other actors to take the risks of starting, funding, and otherwise assisting high-risk ventures. In this regard, the areas that this paper wishes to address are; the degree to which existing entrepreneurial ecosystem in Latvia is prosocial; the role of existing dominant actors in the existing entrepreneurial eco-system in Latvia towards enabling pro-social entrepreneurship ventures; and the challenges that the existing NGOs and social enterprises are facing in their interaction with the larger eco-system. In this conceptual paper, theory and qualitative methods of data analysis, i-e interviews have been conducted to elaborate the findings. Scholars, entrepreneurs and public policy makers whom examine regional or national entrepreneurial ecosystems will have an insight towards the institution of a pro-social eco-system culture towards increased entrepreneurial activity with subsequent poverty alleviation, job creation and a larger regional development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digitalization is rapidly evolving worldwide and today information exchange and electronic products have become an important part of life. Transformations caused by digitalization are seen as an economic, technological and social development phenomenon. Since higher education plays a key role in preparing future generations, it is essential to enhance the opportunities of higher education institutions offered by digitalization both in internal communication and marketing, thus improving their dayto-day work and ability to offer such study environment that meets young generation's needs. The object of the current research is development of the digitization process in the context of higher education, but the subject of the research - use of digitalization possibilities in internal and communication and marketing of higher education institutions. In authors' opinion, digitalization causes new challenges for higher education institutions that need to be identified and managed in a timely manner. The study used monographic method, secondary data analysis, secondary information source analysis, document research and in-depth expert interviews to identify opportunities and risks caused by digitalization processes in higher education institutions' internal communication and marketing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digitalisation is rapidly evolving worldwide, thus information exchange and electronic products have become an important part of life as well as e-services, which need to be provided not only by companies but also by public authorities. Expansion of digital technologies is seen as an economic, technological and social development phenomenon. Higher education plays a key role in preparing future generations and exploiting the opportunities of the digital economy, thus it is essential that they actively use the opportunities offered by digitalisation, both in their internal communication and marketing to improve their day-to-day work and thus are able to offer a study process that complies with today’s students’ preferences. The aim of the current research was to assess the use of digitalization possibilities in the study process based on the example of Latvia public universities, focusing on in-depth study of the digital environment of Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies (LLU). The research tasks were: 1) to analyse the digital performance of the European Union Member States; 2) to evaluate external digital performance indicators of Latvia public universities; 3) to assess LLU students’ level of satisfaction with LLU digital environment. The research was performed based on the secondary data analysis, i.e. theoretical literature studies, and author’s practical survey that was conducted at Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies. The research revealed that currently digitalization at universities is driven by students who demand that the whole study process and communication is available in the digital environment, and universities need to improve meaningfully the curriculum and study programmes by placing the emphasis on the labour market demands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, Latvians have shown increasing activity in creation of eco innovation in social sphere, which has caused a need to systematize and regulate it. Although a special legislation framework has been introduced to regulate social entrepreneurship in Latvia, social innovation is not legally regulated and organized yet. For the development of Latvia regions, it is necessary to enhance commercial activities of the population, which could result in welfare improvement and job creation. However, without public support it is difficult to implement. The state and local authorities are reluctant to engage in social innovation projects because there are no clear criteria for the implementation of social innovation and rates of return. The research is focused on exploring the EU countries’ experience in social innovation and proposals for improvement of the current legal regulation are presented. The study uses methods of analysis and synthesis, method of scientific induction and scientific deduction. In scope of the research, the authors have clarified social innovation legal framework, which will be used in the further authors’ research devoted to regional development studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digitalization in business environment and management processes at the same time entails the need for additional skills to prepare clients and members of society by explaining to them the nature and use of products. Therefore, senior and middle managers have to be not only knowledgeable in their profession and develop the relevant hard skills but also, due to the labour market demand, have to be aware of importance of soft skills’ training and understanding. In the process of developing study courses in life sciences field and bioeconomics, such challenges are integrated in the higher business education preceded by appropriate investigation. The aim of the current research was to explore the role of soft skills and their variability in a life sciences education in digitalized working environment. Research methods - monographic, graphic, induction and deduction methods, extrapolation method - selecting the five most characteristic soft skills required by labour market and focus group interviews. The research on the most demanded soft skills in the labour market for middle and senior executives in a digitalized work environment led the authors to the conclusion that communication skills, team working skills and cultural and diversity awareness lately have become more important. Skills such as presentation skills and decision-making skills have not changed their significance level, which can be explained by the fact that senior and middle-level managers perform management functions similarly and independently of changes in the digital working environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The introduction of 5G technologies is urgent for any EU Member State, including Latvia that has begun making preparations for introducing such technologies. In Latvia, mobile communication operators have begun installing 5G base stations, and several hundreds of them have been put into service. The clients of LMT and Tele2 could start using the fifth generation network or 5 G as early as next year. A survey of mobile communication users revealed that 99% of the respondents believed that transition from 4 G to 5 G would increase the flow of clients at an enterprise, and the clients would be offered customised services. Besides, more business clients will be available, and there will be more powerful devices running only on 5 G (smart homes, telemedicine, autonomous robots etc.). Marketing activities for new products are also insufficient, and more aggressive marketing campaigns targeting 5G services in particular, which are new in the market because the 5G services progress very slowly, should be carried out. By employing the AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process), the paper assessed scenarios for mobile operators introducing 5 G technologies. The research results showed that out of three alternatives (Enterprise initiative, professional activity and financial investment; Government support programme; Joint EU and national support programme), the best one was Enterprise initiative, professional activity and financial investment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, the role of healthy and sustainable consumption is increasing in Latvia. This trend focuses on animal welfare issues, promotion of organic products and enhancing of local businesses' green competiveness. Owing to the growing demand for organic products, the number of organic farms in Latvia is increasing. However, not all local producers are aware of their marketing strategy's compliance with the real situation in the market. Today, customers' needs are more sophisticated and they are knowledgeable about organic product supply, thus market players have to operate in the conditions of growing competition and more precisely adapt their product positioning and marketing strategies to the value system of today's consumers. On the one hand, organic food market policies and labelling system complies with European Union approaches, but on the other hand, Latvian farmers pay insufficient attention to target-oriented marketing activities, often relying only to word-of-mouth marketing and personal selling, which in the age of digital economy are becoming less efficient. The paper presents an overview of the development of organic farming in Latvia and analysis of contemporary marketing tools for promotion of organic niche products on the example of organic beef products. Based on scientific literature findings related to various aspects of consumption and study conducted in Latvia on consumer behavior in internet, the authors suggest organic beef producers to take advantages of micromarketing strategy for promotion of their products in Latvia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today, sustainable development is related not only to sustainable production issues but also to a sustainable consumption. In the planning document "Sustainable Development Strategy of Latvia until 2030", special attention is focused on enhancement of ecologically certified and healthy products, thus shaping the image of Latvia as a "green" country by promotion of sustainable eating habits and cultural heritage. To position Latvia as one of the "greenest" countries of the EU, the consumers, food producers and catering service providers need to be aware of and have understanding of sustainability essentials. To promote sustainable eating habits in society, it is necessary to develop such local branding strategies that would position Latvia's regions as green and would increase local product brand awareness for tourists and local population. The aim of the research was to evaluate the most well-known "green" food products' brands in Latvia, their quality requirements and positioning strategy as well as consumers' opinion of "green" food products to develop further recommendations for development of such local sustainable food branding strategies in Latvia and its regions that eliminate cannibalism among national, regional and local food brands. The research employed monographic, comparative, descriptive and sociological research methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rural space in the Baltic Sea East Coast States - Latvia, Lithuania and Poland - comprises a significant part of the territories of these states. It occupies more than half of each state's territory and employs more than a third of labour market participants. For these reasons, the future prospects of the rural space in each of the states is an important issue in designing their smart growth strategies. Smart growth is determined not only by objective circumstances but also by local authorities, the activity of various public organisations and the readiness of residents to act under the guidance of the mentioned formations. The present research focuses on these formations, which may be assumed to be performance agents, and on their influence on smart growth and the viability of rural areas. The research employed the survey method - a survey of experts was conducted (n=171 in Latvia; n=163 in Lithuania; n=111 in Poland, carried out during 2016) to assess each performance agent's contribution to smart growth. Summarising the expert opinions allows performing a comprehensive comparison in terms of similarities and differences in evaluating each agent's performance in each country surveyed and defining primary objectives to be achieved in order to improve the smart growth process for each performance agent under the particular conditions of their country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, access to medicine is a crucial precondition for many disease prevention programmes and the treatment component of virtually all diseases. The availability of qualitative pharmaceutical care services is an integral part of the national welfare system, thus their quality maintenance and improvement under conditions of budget austerity is one of the main challenges for policy makers and pharmaceutical companies. The current research is a continuation of several related research projects implemented in scope of service quality evaluation and reengineering of pharmaceutical service quality in Latvia. The research aim was to describe the regulatory framework of pharmaceutical care industry in Latvia and analyse customer expectations and real performance of pharmaceutical care service quality at the largest pharmacy network in Latvia. The analysis of pharmaceutical service quality clearly shows that the role of pharmacist's professionalism is the most important quality dimension; therefore, extensive quality evaluations should be organized on regular basis. However, retrospective evaluation of service quality can only partly reveal quality level; thus, the author recommends service providers to use a combined quality evaluation system which includes both identifying of customer expectations and their real experience of using the service afterwards comparing those evaluations to detect gaps in service performance. The research results give evidence that the current model of service quality maintenance in the analysed pharmacies' network has several quality gaps. The overwhelming new product promotions in pharmacies undermine consumer confidence in pharmacists as well as lower the prestige of pharmacist's profession. Consequently, pharmaceutical care service providers have to balance more constructively their business goals with ethical principles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alongside with searching solutions to various social and economic problems, the concept of social innovation attracts more attention and interest. In order to enhance economic development and raise of the society's welfare level, the state should promote the creation of social innovation. One of the opportunities how to promote social innovation is its implementation through higher education, because education is an essential prerequisite for economic development and achieving higher standard of living. Therefore, the authors have set the research aim to analyse opportunities of social innovation promotion in higher education of Latvia. The authors' study showed that nowadays higher education has a crucial role in solving social problems and creating of social innovation. However, due to poor social awareness among Latvian population, society still underestimates the role of social innovation. Moreover, collaboration among education, business and state sectors currently is insufficient. The authors have developed a functional model of social innovation that provides more efficient use of higher education potential in promotion of social innovation in Latvia. In scope of the research, the authors used monographic method, analysis and synthesis, as well as scientific induction and deductions methods to summarize theoretical findings and basic guidelines of strategic documents, thus developing an extensive theoretical discussion on the role of contemporary education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]