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Pulp and paper companies are characterized by high‐energy consumption and high‐emission in production, placing a heavy burden on the environment. Exploring ways to improve their environmental performance is urgently needed. External coercive pressure from environmental law and internal proactive environmental strategy both enable companies to perform better, but little is known about the difference between them. To close this knowledge gap, our analysis is conducted on a case company in pulp and paper industry to compare the differential impacts of the New Environmental Protection Law of China and the proactive environmental strategy on its environmental performance. In addition, accurately evaluating the environmental performance of pulp and paper companies is essential while research on this topic is scant. Therefore, a novel environmental performance evaluation system for pulp and paper companies (EPESPP) is constructed, including not only internal but also external evaluation indexes based on news reports of various media measured by SNOWNLP sentiment analysis. According to the system, the environmental performance of the case company from 2010 to 2018 is evaluated by the entropy‐weight‐based catastrophe progression method (EWCPM). The results of our case study show that the implementation of a proactive environmental strategy is more conducive to comprehensively improving corporate environmental performance. In other words, the driving effect of the New Environmental Protection Law is not as strong as that of the proactive environmental strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to an increasing demand, companies have started producing recycled products. However, little is known about the specific purchase behavior. Hence, this study analyses the factors influencing purchase intention for recycled products including differences related to different types of products and between Germany and South Africa. A quantitative study in Germany (n = 603) and South Africa (n = 692). shows that purchase intention is significantly higher in South Africa. The influencing factors (individual, product, and context related constructs) are the same in both countries, but they differ regarding their strength. Thus, the factor "attitude/environmental concern" has the strongest influence in South Africa, while it is "value/accessibility" in Germany. Furthermore, purchase intention for mobile phones is generally smaller than for t‐shirts and toilet paper. Purchase intention for recycled t‐shirts is significantly higher in South Africa than in Germany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 19th International Convention of the East Asian Economic Association will be held on November 1-2, 2024 at Thammasat University in Bangkok, Thailand. The theme of the convention is "Globalization and Resilience in Asia: Path to Innovation, Inclusiveness and Sustainable Development." The Program Committee is inviting papers related to the convention theme as well as a wide range of economic issues. Authors interested in presenting a paper should submit an abstract of their proposed paper by May 15, 2024. The deadline for full paper submission is September 30, 2024. Participants are required to register and attend both days of the conference. [Extracted from the article]

In this work, fabrication of frequency selective surface filters by coating paper with silver ink and subsequent laser etching the frequency filter pattern has been investigated. Three filter structures consisting of a combination of square and ring patches operating at 102, 113, and 126 GHz and with corresponding signal attenuation of −15.2, −15.4, and −14.5 dB were fabricated and simulated; −5 dB bandwidths were following, 93.3–112.2 GHz, 101.9–121.1 GHz, and 112.7–132.3, respectively. Also, the proposed screen printing with assistive laser etching could be used to reduce the number of used screens. Furthermore, paper based fabrication using a biodegradable ink could be an alternative fabrication process in future electronic manufacturing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information about the recipients of the 2017 Graedel Prize and the "Journal of Industrial Ecology" Best Paper Prize Awards. Information about the prizes, which are awarded to the best two papers published in the journal every year wherein winners receive $750 and a free membership in the International Society for Industrial Ecology, is presented.

In this article, eco-efficiency – ‘sustainable development at the company level’ or ‘value added per environmental impact’ – is operationalized at the production unit level. An eco-efficiency index is developed and tested with 31 Finnish and 37 Swedish pulp, paper and board mills in 1993–1996. In essence, gross value added without a change in inventories is divided by environmental impact aggregated with seven valuation methods. The definition of eco-efficiency as sustainable development at the company level appears to be problematic. [Eco]2-efficiency does not include the third, ethical dimension sustainable development, but only ecology and economy. Value added is a limited indicator of economic performance and very sensitive to changes in market prices, while environmental impact changes with valuation assumptions. The Swedish mills were generally more eco-efficient, while the Finnish mills were more eco-efficient in integrated woodfree paper, solid bleached sulphate board and liquid packaging board. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainability indicators for production systems are useful tools when realizing a sustainable development. In this paper a method to measure sustainability is elaborated and tested. The method is based on the idea that ecological sustainability can be measured by comparing the environmental use of a production system with the allocated environmental utility space. The sustainability of a paper mill is measured and the results are presented. Social and scientific problems in measuring sustainability are identified and possible solutions are suggested. The case study indicates that measuring sustainability necessitates some assumptions, and formulates an explicit vision on nature and society. (C) 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. and ERP Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Emerging evidence indicates that industrially produced endocrine‐disrupting chemicals (EDCs) may be as obesogenic as poor dietary patterns and should be considered in obesity prevention policies. The authors conducted two reviews: (a) a systematic search of four electronic databases for papers published since January 2010 to identify the policy recommendations contained in scientific reviews of EDC exposure and obesity risk and (b) a narrative review of obesity policy documents published since January 2012 to identify the recommendations of national and international agencies. A search of four electronic databases found 63 scientific reviews with policy recommendations, of which 26 suggested individual responsibility to avoid exposure, 11 suggested medical interventions to counter the effects of exposure, and 42 suggested regulatory control of hazardous chemicals. Of sixty policy documents examined, six mentioned pollutants as a possible risk factor for obesity, and only one made explicit reference to strategies for reducing exposure to EDCs. The UN Sustainable Development Goals include targets to prevent ill health from hazardous chemicals (Targets 3.9 and 12.4) and to remove unsafe industrial chemicals from the environment (Targets 6.3, 11.6, 12.4, and 14.1). The authors suggest these should be explicitly linked to World Health Assembly targets to halt the rise in obesity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainable development has become society's focal point. In this context, China's paper industry needs to be more concerned about a low‐carbon strategy. Therefore, a carbon performance evaluation system must be built to guide the low‐carbon enterprise transformation. Based on the carbon value flow analysis, this study takes JX Paper (a paper‐making enterprise) as an example to construct a carbon performance evaluation system consisting of carbon input, transfer, and output indicators. The quantitative and qualitative index weights were determined through a principal component analysis and an analytical hierarchy process. The overall carbon performance increased from 2012 to 2021, but room remains for improvement. These results show that the performance evaluation system provides a helpful reference for enterprises to identify the key factors affecting carbon emissions and evaluate their carbon performance. Moreover, objective criteria should be developed to improve sustainable enterprise carbon performance and low‐carbon competitiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is an introduction to this Special Issue on Rethinking in Regional Integration in Africa which is based on a collaborative research project, implemented by African Economic Research Consortium (AERC), the leading economic capacity building institution in Africa, and funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB). This project is very timely given the establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) which came into force on 01 January 2021. In this introduction, we first provide a brief background on regional integration in Africa. We next describe the AERC project and the process of selection of the papers and then provide a quick summary of the ten published papers and their contributions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green information technologies (GITs) constitute a field of research, whose objective is to reduce the environmental pollution caused by masses of people using and producing technology. This paper describes the search for literature related to GIT and technology sustainability in Scopus database. No restriction was imposed on the time period when carrying out the search. The data gathered revealed that the journal with the highest number of publications is Computer, and the most prolific author is Tomoya Enokido, with 45 publications. A total of 53.12% of the documents found in Scopus were Conference Paper. Although no statistically significant differences were detected, countries in the group with less CO2 kton emissions per inhabitant and less income per capita have a higher percentage of publications. The reduction of power consumption in the cloud data centers is a hot topic for future work, because the word cloud appeared in 9 out of the 10 most frequently cited papers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Concern around the employment impacts of climate mitigation policies can be a contentious and politized issue, with potentially limiting implications for climate action. It persists despite a significant ex ante literature that suggests that aggregate effects will most likely be limited and net positive. This review analyses 60 papers assessing the employment impacts of climate policies ex post, in 20 countries and 2 country groups. Eight broad mitigation policies are covered: (1) emissions trading, (2) carbon taxes, (3) feed‐in tariffs, renewable energy (4) procurement and (5) deployment, (6) green economy/jobs, (7) environmental regulation, and (8) other policies and regulations. The analysis confirms that employment impacts tend to be modest and net positive or neutral, but reveals that distributional outcomes can be uneven, disadvantaging certain groups and at times reinforcing existing inequalities. Additionally, lower quality jobs or weak labor market regulations may decrease the attractiveness of jobs created or increase job transition costs. These findings provide some justification for increased focus on how climate policies can ensure a "just transition of the workforce and the creation of decent work and quality jobs" stipulated in the Paris Agreement, but also suggest that climate action should not be delayed for fear of widespread negative employment impacts. Ex post assessments offer an important lens into the determinants of climate policy employment outcomes and should be advanced and harnessed in support of accelerated and just action. This article is categorized under:Economics of Mitigation > Climate EconomicsSocial Justice and the Politics of Development > Climate and Development [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A growing political interest in the development of biorefineries is being shaped by climate change and a need to develop economically viable substitutes (i.e., fuels, products and chemicals) to those produced in traditional oil refineries. The pulp and paper industry in Sweden has been stagnating and it is therefore potentially promising to integrate biorefining into its activities as one way of diversifying its business. Sweden has good prerequisites for a transition to a bioeconomy due to its natural geographic conditions, industry, and infrastructure. It has developed a bioeconomy strategy and piloted several biorefinery projects. At the same time, the deployment of biorefineries has been slow, and they have not reached commercial scale. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the current and future development of biorefineries in the context of the emerging bioeconomy in Sweden. It is based on a literature review, policy analysis, and ten interviews with bioeconomy experts. It maps key political and legal aspects, economic and raw material aspects, social and cognitive aspects, and technology and infrastructure aspects that facilitate and hinder the development and deployment of biorefineries in Sweden. This paper identifies four action points important to the development of biorefineries and the bioeconomy: (i) commitments - establish targets and policies that drive the transition; (ii) contradictions - improve alignment on visions, goals, and activities; (iii) capacity - build up infrastructure and competences to harness the potential; and (iv) collaboration - develop cooperation across sectors and between actors. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circular economy (CE) has garnered increasing attention in political circles and practitioner literature thanks to its potential to overcome the harmful consequences of linear patterns of growth. Nonetheless, the adoption of sustainable practices entails a holistic approach requiring businesses to make significant changes to their production, technologies and stakeholder management. These challenges resulted in limited progress in terms of the practical implementation of CE. This paper addresses the need for more literature focused on the pragmatic aspects of applying this paradigm to incumbent firms. The author presents the journey that Lucart S.p.A., a major European tissue paper manufacturer, has undertaken between 2014 and 2020 to apply CE principles to its practices. Insights from the transformation process, reconstructed through interviews with the firm's management and environmental impact data, suggest that to succeed it takes innovating (plants, products and marketing strategies) and setting up supply chains that reconcile environmental and economic sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores a theoretical and empirical discussion of the ability of business form a particular sector to transition towards sustainability. The paper contextualises the discussion within the theoretical framework of a 'Risk Society' as outlined by Ulrich Beck. In particular, the paper highlights the relationship between sustainable development, and what Beck describes as the emergence of an emancipatory catastrophism. This theoretical framework is then applied to a novel approach for exploring sustainability through the process of branding ultimately highlighting an industry's receptiveness to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Uniquely, this paper challenges and expands on the narrative of branding as a discursive process that moves beyond a narrow marketing framework. Using a mixed methods approach of in‐depth observation, interviews and surveys, the paper focuses on a case study of the largest lifestyle retailer in the surf skate and snow sector. The empirical research is applied both within the case study company itself and over 300 brands in the surf skate and snow sector. Results point to a receptiveness to embedding the sustainable development goals in business models whilst highlighting the challenges that exist from both a business operation and resourcing perspective through to external factors. Furthermore, results highlight the disparity between internal business processes and the process branding. A typology is presented that highlights the relationship between business, the sustainable development goals and theoretical debates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a modeling framework that enhances our ability to analyze the implications of policy for future sustainability of industrial systems. The framework quantifies the relationship between physical input and waste flows, capital vintage, and investment behavior in the U.S. pulp and paper industry. A regional vintage model is developed that simultaneously incorporates investment decisions, vintage structure of the capital stock, and physical material and energy flows, in addition to paper demand. Each capital vintage is specified by size, output structure, and age-specific retirement rates, as well as fiber use and energy intensities. Both embodied and disembodied technological change are incorporated, as well as greenhouse gas emissions from fuel use, and decomposition and incineration of waste. Estimated equations are used to simulate industrial futures until 2020, from a system of nonlinear differential equations. Our results demonstrate the economic and physical interdependence between material and energy flows and the central role energy prices have in decision-making. For instance, an increase in average energy prices, ceteris paribus, will on average discourage paper recycling, which has implications for greenhouse gas emissions as well as for changes in energy intensity. The analysis of the data reveals diminishing rates of energy self-generation, and the immense longevity of capital, which hampers rapid change in input and carbon intensity. This stresses the importance of investment-led strategies in facilitating faster capital turnover to enhance future sustainability of the system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By considering environmental factors in the earliest stage of decision‐making, strategic environmental assessment (SEA) is seen as an important preventive measure to realize sustainable development. Despite a great expansion of SEA effectiveness research in the past 10 years, no study statistically reviews how frequently the evaluation criteria are adopted. The present meta‐analysis considers 68 academic papers published from 2009 to 2019, with 41 articles relating to the international context and 27 relating to China. After ascertaining the number of times each criterion is mentioned, the adoption frequency is calculated and a comparison is made between the Chinese and international contexts. The result reveals that the criteria adopted in studies evaluating China's SEA largely accord with those used to evaluate international SEA. Both focus on procedural and contextual effectiveness. The distribution of substantive and normative effectiveness evaluation criteria is very similar. However, the significant differences lie in the criteria of assessment methods and communication, which are all of the drawbacks influencing SEA implementation in China. In addition, the problems of China's SEA pointed out by past scholars are statistically analyzed. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2022;18:997–1006. © 2021 SETAC Key Points: The criteria adopted in China's SEA studies are largely accordant with international cases.Procedural and contextual effectiveness attract the most attention both in China and international contexts.The distribution of substantive and normative effectiveness evaluation criteria is very similar.The significant differences lie in the criteria of assessment methods and communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to uncover how environmental and social sustainability practices are diffused across the supply chain tiers through supplier development initiatives. In particular, the work seeks to uncover the initiatives developed directly or indirectly by manufacturing firms and the factors that enhance them. A systematic literature review is used to examine the breadth of the sustainable supply chain literature. The papers obtained are screened and analysed using established procedures to produce bibliometric and thematic analyses. The findings show the evolution of this young field around key research groups with few papers looking beyond focal firms to immediate suppliers and even fewer examining multiple tiers. Whilst numerous organisational factors are identified, few works consider most of them together and none capture their interrelationships at such breadth. Within this field lacking in theory, the originality of the work is the assembly of environmental and social practices into an integrated framework for their diffusion across supply chain tiers in the design and implementation of supplier development initiatives. There is recognition of where in the supply chain these practices are applied. The implications of this research are a framework around which supply chain diffusion theory can be tested and subsequent potential for its deployment in business to guide sustainable practice adoption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The UK Government published a new White Paper on International Development in November 1997. The White Paper sets out the UK Government's vision and new policies for the elimination of international poverty; it explains the new objectives and strategy for the Department for International Development and details the new objective of ensuring that all UK Government policies take account of their impact on sustainable development. This article summarizes the content of the White Paper and discusses in detail some of the issues involved in operationalizing the policies. It looks particularly at the new proposals for partnership between UK Government and developing countries and explores some of the implications of policies to support pro-poor economic growth. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the systematic review and bibliometric analysis of current literature, this paper attempts to investigate whether the wealth generated through cryptocurrency trading can assist in attaining the United Nations' (UN) sustainable development goal (SDG) 7, affordable and clean energy and UN SDG 13 related to climate action. The critical analysis of literature indicates a growing interest in cryptocurrency, the UN's SDGs and the negative effect that crypto mining has on the use of enormous energy. However, there is a clear gap in the literature that focuses on the possibility of using the wealth generated through cryptocurrency trading in financing environmentally friendly projects and attaining the UN's SDG 7 and SDG 13. The findings and the future research direction of this study aim to firstly expand the academic literature related to SDG 7 and SDG 13 and secondly to examine the relationship between cryptocurrency and sustainability even during an uncertain period. This study provides evidence pertaining to the theoretical models that can be applied within discussion of the complex relationship between cryptocurrency, clean energy and climate action. Our findings will provide policymakers with information regarding actions that need to be taken in order to convert cryptocurrency generated wealth and consequently attaining sustainable socio‐economic goals in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the impact of the United Nations sustainable development goals (SDGs) on community investment (CI), otherwise known as corporate philanthropic expenditures, among Canada's leading private sector companies. The study investigates whether there have been discernible shifts in CI relative to net profit after tax (NPAT) before and after the introduction of the SDGs in 2015, and whether corporations' commitment to the SDGs and/or membership in the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) have resulted in material increases to CI expenditures. The analysis is based on descriptive statistics, comparing the mean and standard deviation of CI as a percentage of NPAT across 58 firms included in our study. The findings reveal a minor decrease in CI as a percentage of NPAT following the introduction of the SDGs and lower average CI amounts among corporations committed to the SDGs and firms with UNGC membership. This paper offers an interpretive analysis of the results, highlighting the implications of potential greenwashing and the importance of corporate transparency. Further, we emphasize the need for policies to ensure genuine corporate financial commitment to socioeconomic and environmental causes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates how and whether circular economy (CE) business models affect the implementation of sustainable development goals (SDGs) in the waste management sector. A case study is used to determine the relationship between CE business models and SDGs. It shows that CE business models, potentially, can contribute directly to achieving a significant number of SDGs. The strongest relationships are between the CE business model and the targets of SDG4 (Quality education); SDG 5 (Gender equality); SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), SDG 8 (Decent working and economic growth); SDG 9 (Industry, innovation and infrastructure), SDG 11 (Sustainable cities and communities) SDG 12 (Responsible consumption and production). After a narrative literature review on the intersection between CE and SDGs, the paper performed a case study on Contarina SpA, a firm that developed a business model to recycle wastes into recyclable materials under a CE approach. The case findings could stimulate further research into how this and similar types of business models will help societies to change from the 'use‐it‐once‐and‐throw‐it away' mentality of linear business models to the integrated, holistic, CE model that seeks to emulate nature's cyclical systems, and achieve the implementation of sustainable development goals (SDGs). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our Common Agenda—the flagship report by the UN Secretary General released in September 2021—promises a transformative change in the face of a post‐pandemic crisis in the progress towards global human development. As such, the report is not only closely aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals but also from the outset outlines its ambition to 'accelerate' progress towards the SDGs. This paper unpacks the complex interplay between the two frameworks through the theoretical lens of an epistemic infrastructure of quantification. The paper shows how Our Common Agenda could be seen as a move towards an expansion of the existing infrastructure of measurement to include a new temporal dimension. Overall, the paper argues that the transformative potential of the epistemic infrastructure is in fact impeded by the statistical path dependency of the existing metrics and the distinct politics of infrastructure which promotes blurred accountability lines and lacks specific solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, business models for environmental sustainability have gained increasing attention in the management field and among practitioners and stakeholders. This study aims to analyse the state of the art on the topic by reviewing the growing but mainly phenomenon‐driven research. In particular, by identifying main research trends and relevant gaps in the literature and by providing future research avenues, this paper advances the debate on the need for alternative concepts of doing business that go beyond the creation of economic value for a company in a way that generates value for the society. Our article undertakes two stages of screening the available literature and selects 151 peer‐reviewed articles published between 2007 and early 2019 for the review. The paper provides the first comprehensive systematic review of business models in the field of environmental sustainability with a detailed descriptive and critical analysis and with a discussion of future research opportunities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This special section on global development has been developed from a conference roundtable event run by the Development Geographies Research Group of the Royal Geographical Society. In this special section, we (some of the committee) introduce the four papers and their critical contributions to emerging debates. These extend early work on how the "global" is being made, focusing on the projects of multilateral development agencies and state institutions to examine how (and whether) the rebranding of "international development" as "global development" constitutes a shift in thinking and practice. Together, the papers draw our attention to the considerable opportunities and implications that this reframing offers, while highlighting that critical attention is required as to how that framing is deployed and by whom. They reveal disparity between global development as a much‐needed reframing of power, agency, and progress and global development as produced by mainstream development actors and interventions, necessitating more critical research into how this normative agenda is adopted and enacted in dominant policy and practice. In this introduction to the special section on global development, we introduce the four papers and their critical contributions to emerging debates. These papers analyse how the "global" is being made, focusing on the projects of multilateral development agencies and state institutions. They examine how (and whether) the rebranding of "international development" as "global development" constitutes a shift in thinking and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The aim of this discursive paper was to describe and expound on how paediatric nurses will be able to address the needs of children and adolescents through the lens of selected Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Rwanda. Design: A discursive analysis of SDGs relating to the roles of paediatric nurses in the context of Rwanda. Methods: A discursive method using SDGs as a guiding framework is used in this paper. We drew on our own experiences and supported them with the available literature. Results: A collection of contextually relevant examples of how paediatric nurses will be able to address the needs of children and adolescents through the lens of selected SDGs in Rwanda was discussed. The selected SDGs expounded on were: no poverty, good health and well‐being, quality of education, decent work and economic growth, reduced inequalities, and partnerships for the goals. Conclusions: There is no doubt that the paediatric nurses in Rwanda play undeniable key roles in attaining SDGs and their targets. Thus, there is a need to train more paediatric nurses with the support of the interdisciplinary partners. Collaboratively, this is possible in the bid to ensure equitable and accessible care to the current and future generations. Public contribution: This discursive paper is intended to inform the different stakeholders in nursing practice, research, education and policy to support and invest in the advanced education of paediatric nurses for attainment of the SDGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates whether Hellenic financial institutions' commitment on environmental social and governance (ESG) issues has any relation with financial institutions' corporate sustainability. As a contribution to previous literature, the moderating role of managers' perception in the conceptual model is explored. A survey has been conducted to obtain data about the association of ESG commitment with sustainability literacy, sustainability reporting credibility, SDGs awareness, sustainability, and financial performance. Top managers from Greek financial institutions were reviewed via an online questionnaire, during the third wave of the pandemic. The results of inductive analysis provide evidence that the sample displays good reliability and internal consistency. Particularly, dichotomous variables demonstrate internal contingency, whereas liker‐scaled variables exhibit significant correlation. It seems that sustainable development and SDGs awareness are positively correlated with ESG commitment according, while business commitment to environmental issues is inversely proportional to the negative economic impact of the pandemic to corporate sustainability performance. Eventually, it turns out that ESG commitment does affect corporate sustainability on the areas of sustainability reporting credibility, SDGs awareness, sustainability, and financial performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents abstracts from papers to be presented at the 2nd International Institute of Consumer Sciences at the Liverpool John Moores University in Liverpool, England. The article "Waisting Away," by E. Mooney, H. Farley and C. Strugnell aims to determine the extent of dieting amongst Irish adolescent females, the methods employed and whether dieting influences food choice. The article "Food Consumption and Sustainable Development," by K. Brunner and M. Jelenko emphasizes that to understand food consumption cultural and social issues should enter consumer theory to give a lifestyle-social-practice paradigm. Plurality of lifestyles and milieus in post-traditional societies must be taken into consideration to identify socially differentiated patterns of environmentally related food consumption, their determinants and consequences. The article "Global Versus Local: A Socio-Ecological Study of the Westernisation of Maltese Children's Diets," by S. Piscopo, shows that differences are evident between food consumed in public and private, between children attending non-fee paying and fee-paying schools, and between children from rural and urban backgrounds.

This paper traces the origins and development of the concept of ‘market transformation’, from its beginnings as a part of energy policy in the USA, to its subsequent development in the UK. It discusses whether it could become a strategic option for British business in pursuit of sustainable growth. Drawing together themes from the academic literature on marketing, consumer behaviour, business, and energy policy, together with data from national programmes, and British government sources, the paper argues that such an approach would be based on a twin false premise – that selling energy efficiency to consumers is in accordance with modern marketing thinking, and that it has much to do with achieving sustainable development. It concludes that while achieving sustainable development will certainly encompass the transformation of markets for many products, ‘market transformation’ itself cannot be seen as a key driver for change. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental strategy is currently in transition from a reductionist view of individual technologies in isolation to a holistic and interdisciplinary view of the relationship between society, technology, and environmental impact. As a contribution to this larger effort, this paper uses a systems analytic approach to develop a ‘sector-stream matrix’ of functions and objectives that have an impact on the environment. In particular, the overall ‘built-and-natural-environment system’ is divided into two subsystems, labeled the ‘people’ and ‘product’ streams; analysis of the two streams can be used both qualitatively and quantitatively in order to gain insight into the causes of environmental impact. As an example of the latter, an application of the sector-stream matrix to the breakdown of energy use in the UK is presented. Advantages of the matrix approach over the traditional division into sectors (industrial/transport/other) and other applications and side issues are discussed. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. and ERP Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

My study is framed against the backdrop of increasingly stringent environmental demands on the pulp and paper industry to reduce water and air pollution, and the changing global market conditions. I first present an observation-based analysis conducted by visiting selected paper mills in Finland, the US, Germany and Sweden. Interesting differences and similarities emerge. Some of the observed differences lie in their focus on achieving incremental efficiency gains from better management of production processes, inventories, supply-chain, product distribution and timing of modernization investments such as information technology. In the second part of the paper I present evidence on firms' productivity paths and the heterogeneity in productivity among relatively similar firms, and selected evidence of firms' investments in specific areas and how these affected productivity. My findings have implications for organizational behavior and business strategies employed by firms to improve their performance and productivity under changing environmental standards and market conditions. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Habitats Directive is a key document for the protection of critical natural capital in the European Union. In a manner consistent with the understanding of sustainability in the European Commission, even critical natural capital is subject to trade-offs in favour of economic and social development. This is reflected in Articles 6(3) and 6(4) of the directive. This paper analyses the planning process leading to the approval of the expansion of the port of Rotterdam project – which will significantly affect Natura 2000 – against sustainability criteria. Although it shows that the directive is powerful to promote sustainable planning, the success of the case study was due mainly to elements specific to the particular planning process, namely the use of deliberative public participation mechanisms as well as specific assessment tools. Lessons are drawn and recommendations made to strengthen the Habitats Directive and the national planning processes in relation to projects potentially affecting Natura 2000 sites. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water is central to sustainable development as established in the official report of the High Level Panel on Water of the United Nations and World Bank. Such strategic importance of water justifies global demand for investment from all sources in the water sector to not only provide much needed infrastructure but also enhance the capacity of management and governance necessary to cope with complex water problems and risks, particularly under changing conditions characterized by climate change, urbanization, and environmental degradation. Yet, how to finance the investment need to build a strong water sector for sustainability is a practical question that has been gaining wide attention globally. This paper synthesizes current knowledge and understanding of water investment finance. It examines and characterizes water finance and challenges, encompassing economics and practice of financing water investment needs, the commonly considered finance model, and barriers for water finance in relation to the unique features of water investment needs and the water sector. It introduces some promising practices adopted or advocated to address the financing challenges, and highlights key governance and institutional strategies to help bridge the funding gap in the water sector. Based on the synthesis, the paper offers some discussion on the water finance issue in the end. This paper hopes to connect academia and development practice to stimulate communication while informing policy and management reform to better promote financing water investment for sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores whether environmental management activities and corporate commitment to tackle climate change concerns play a role in hedging a company's market valuation after a political or economic shock. Based on the literature on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and insurance‐like effects, this study advances knowledge on the impact of companies' engagement to tackle climate change on share price variation after the 2016 Brexit Referendum. The study also contributes to the limited number of studies using a difference‐in‐differences (DID) methodology in the CSR and climate change research area. Specifically, it uses DID, a natural experimental research design, and a multi‐variate regression analysis. The paper concludes that companies' concrete commitment to climate change has a buffer role in mitigating uncertainty related to Brexit. As the study found that financial markets reward companies that pay attention through the adoption of concrete actions and best practices on environmental issues during uncertain periods with respect to those that do not, the findings are in line with previous literature suggesting that corporate environmental commitment plays a buffering role during troubling periods. Results on the buffer role played by screenings, assessments, or disclosure activities to address environmental issues are unclear. We thus argue that during uncertain times, markets sustain companies taking proactive actions to tackle climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an important breakthrough in coordinating economic, social, and ecological benefits, green innovation has received wide attention from governments, firms, and the public. However, existing studies mainly explored the economic factors influencing firms' green innovation while neglecting social factors. This study took common institutional ownership as the research perspective to explore whether firms' green innovation decisions are affected by their peers. Using a sample of Chinese A‐share listed firms from 2003 to 2019, this paper found that firms imitate their peers' green innovation in common institutional ownership networks and exhibit green innovation peer effects. Mechanism testing revealed that "voting with hands" through common institutional ownership helps firms obtain green innovation information (information‐based imitation), while "voting with feet" through common institutional ownership helps firms maintain a competitive awareness of green innovation (rivalry‐based imitation), thereby contributing to green innovation peer effects in common institutional ownership networks. Heterogeneity analysis showed that firms with greater financing constraints and lower levels of risk‐taking are more likely to imitate their peers' green innovation. Moreover, firms only regard peers with similar industry status and identical property rights as imitation targets in common institutional ownership networks, thereby following "the imitation law of closer preference." An analysis of economic consequences revealed that green innovation peer effects in common institutional ownership networks are not strategic behaviors of "quantity over quality," with imitation contributing to improving firm value. This paper enriches existing research on the influencing factors of green innovation and provides a new reference for promoting sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent debates on 'graphic' geographies and the reinterpretation of the notion of 'democratic experimentalism' in local development suggest the rise of a new 'representational experimentalism' that explores graphic methods for place‐based approaches. Graphic methods of research can assist geographers in conducting and presenting the results of place‐based research to wider audiences. Graphic products of research function as tools for storytelling and spatial planning. They can also provide intersubjective dialogue between researchers, local communities, and local governments to create more inclusive place‐based narratives. In this paper, we present a verbo‐visual manifesto and an illustrated fieldwork journal as two empirical examples of possible ways to engage with graphic methods and realise the potential graphic outputs of research. These graphic products are the result of a collaboration between geographers, students in Local Development and Sustainable Territorial Development (at the University of Padua), two professional illustrators, and a group of local stakeholders; they used scribing and observational drawing as place‐based graphic methods during a residential seminar at the Po Delta, in north‐eastern Italy. This paper contributes to both recent debates on creative methods in local development and the study of the use graphic and visual methods in geography. It proposes graphic methods as a way for embracing place‐based approaches to local development in peripheral, fragile, and contested areas, making hidden voices visible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the ways that local people in different parts of the globe are working at the local level toward sustainable development, whether knowingly or unknowingly. Community forest management at the local level in Nepal is a successful model of sustainability. It exemplifies the ideals of strong sustainability, which enhances natural, economic and social capitals concurrently. The objective of such groups is to try to avoid ‘the tragedy of the commons’, and to conserve forests and obtain forest products by sustainably managing local forests. In addition, people realize indirect benefits of forest protection such as further control of landslides, and improvement of local watershed and microclimate. Further, users' groups are not only taking the forest products, but also increasing the forest stock, which is an act of natural capital enhancement. In addition, local communities are not only satisfying their demand for natural resources, but are also determined to increase their socio-ecological resource potential for the future. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Digital technology is regarded as providing a promising means of moving production and consumption towards the circular economy. However, it is still unclear which functions of digital technologies are most useful to improving circularity, and how these functions could be used to enhance different circular economy strategies. This paper aims to address this knowledge gap by conducting a systematic literature review. After examining 174 papers, creating 782 original codes and 259 second‐round codes, the study identifies 13 critical functions of digital technologies which are most relevant to circular economy strategies. The paper then proposes a framework which reveals seven mechanisms of how these digital functions can enhance different circular economy strategies. The framework also reveals which combinations of the digital functions and circular economy strategies have already been studied extensively as well as where there may be gaps. This indicates which digital functions are more mature in terms of possible implementation for circular economy as well as what missing links there are in the empirical and theoretical research. The study advances the synergies between digital technologies and the circular economy paradigm through the lens of digital functions. The proposed framework and mechanisms build a theoretical foundation for future research, and we highlight five research areas for further studies. This study also provides a structured way for managers to explore the appropriate digital functions for their CE strategies, so as to identify required digital technologies and new value creation through digital functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although policies for green financial systems are proliferating across the globe, the dynamics shaping such policies remain inadequately understood. With China and the EU at the global forefront of green financial policies, this paper demonstrates how they each influence global policy norms through their distinct policy models. This contributes to the literature, first, by improving our understanding of the global green financial policy processes and, second, by challenging current expectations from the literature. Analysing three central policy areas (information disclosure, taxonomies, and central banking) from an institutional approach, the paper, first, finds that green financial policies are both proliferating and converging globally. Second, the paper finds that China pioneered policy types around 2015, creating an Overton Window. Subsequently, since 2018, the EU has been standardising policy contents within the policy types that China pioneered. The findings suggest that China acts as a policy pioneer through its top–down policy approach, whereas the EU acts as a standard setter through its bottom–up approach. Although this confirms the literature's expectation that the EU creates global standards, it challenges the expectation that China is both primarily a recipient of policy practice and too unique for other countries to learn from directly. In the broader context, the findings imply that the current global situation of competing political models may be an advantage as countries complement each other through both competition and collaboration. Efforts to align financial systems with sustainable development have moved from industry‐led initiatives to state‐led green financial policies, which are now proliferating and converging across the globe. China and the EU are the most influential actors in shaping how countries across the world use green financial policy because China acts as a policy pioneer based on its top–down policymaking model and the EU acts as a standard setter based on its bottom–up model. Although China and the EU have competing governance and policymaking models, their differences may have been an advantage to scaling up green financial policies as they complement each other through different roles. Awareness of their roles and different approaches should inform future China‐EU policy coordination because harmonisation of practice remains a barrier to mainstreaming green finance. Other countries can benefit from awareness of policy developments in the EU and China to support their own policy development in terms of future scope and contents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to examine cyber security issues related to smart grids (SGs), such as prior cyber‐attacks, possible vulnerability issues, and enhanced cyber‐security procedures for SGs on a technical and management basis. When designing public policies for SGs, it is important to consider both the motivations and obstacles to cyber protection and socio‐economic conditions. Furthermore, the importance of suggested policies is viewed from various perspectives. The present paper provides an assessment of a group of policies specified by various stakeholders as having the potential for developing SG cyber security. The methodology for the formation of such a group of policies includes a perfect examination of global experience and meetings with experts from various fields. Subsequently, such policies are evaluated using a Delphi questionnaire aimed at assessing their advantages in pursuing investment goals for cyber security. The first result is that every policy is considered a positive effect of all goals, different in the priority assigned to each of them. The policies that received the most attention were: "regulatory changes policy to foster innovation in cyber security of SGs," "regulation of new business models to improve cyber security and detect malicious attacks" and "establish a cyber‐security governance strategy." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With growing concerns over environmental degradation and climate change, the shipping industry is under increasing pressure to reduce its environmental impact. This has led to the development of green port initiatives in the field of maritime transport and logistics, which aim to promote sustainable practices and reduce the environmental footprint of ports and their operations. One of the key strategies for achieving this goal is the use of renewable energy technologies (RETs). This paper summarizes the potentials, challenges, and economic analysis of RETs applications in green ports, emphasizing those that require aquatic environments for operation, including floating photovoltaic systems, offshore wind turbines, and ocean energy. The paper investigates the concept of green ports and explores the feasibility of integrating RETs into these facilities. Also, the potential of the various RETs is presented in terms of technical and economic aspects and installed capacity. Additionally, due to high flexibility in electrical systems and compatibility with maritime transportation, the use of fuel cells in green ports has been discussed as a feasible solution for supplying power to ports (either as the primary or backup source). The findings of this study show that RETs can significantly contribute to achieving sustainable goals in the maritime industry and pave the way for the creation of more efficient and environmentally friendly ports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reflects on the usage of causal loop diagram in interpretation of variables in determination of problems in sustainable maritime development. He discusses the need to use natural resources in a sustainable manner so as to minimize degradation of ecological systems. An overview of negative impact of maritime degradation on loss of biodiversity that will have deteriorating effect on humans is also discussed.

Artificial intelligence technology is constantly developing and changing. Due to the continuous development of technology and production of carbon emissions, various problems have occurred, forcing various regions to start promoting low‐carbon work. What kind of method can effectively and quickly improve the performance of carbon emissions has become one of the current research topics that has attracted much attention. In response to this problem, it is of great significance to study in the field of carbon emission performance improvement methods. With the in‐depth research on carbon emissions, the research on the intervention of water conservancy policies in carbon emissions has gradually been carried out, and its functional effects are of great significance to solve the problem of improving carbon emissions performance. This paper has aimed to study the impact and mechanism of water conservancy policy on carbon emission performance in the context of artificial intelligence. Through the analysis and research of the water conservancy policy under artificial intelligence, the double difference model (DID) is used to evaluate it, so that it can show the impact and mechanism on carbon emission performance, so as to solve the problem of improving carbon emission performance. This paper has analysed water policy, carbon emission performance and DID model under artificial intelligence. Its influence and mechanism have been experimentally analysed, and related theoretical formulas have been used to explain. The results have shown that the water conservancy policy has a significant and continuous driving effect on the reduction of carbon emission intensity, and its interaction coefficient under the control variable is −0.934, which is significantly negative. Further analysis of variables has shown that the energy intensity coefficient is 0.714, and the secondary industry coefficient is 0.924, which are both positive and significant. Water conservancy policies mainly reduce carbon intensity through the improvement of energy efficiency and industrial structure upgrading. It can be seen that water conservancy policies under artificial intelligence can meet the needs of improving carbon emission performance, and the level of economic growth and green development has been greatly improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the contribution of the B Corp movement in Europe to achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) compared with non‐B Corps. B Corp certification aims to identify organisations that utilise business as 'a force for good', but there is limited empirical evidence on how effectively certified organisations translate their prosocial claims into measurable SDG contributions. We address this through cluster analysis, comparing 313 B Corp‐certified and 1506 non‐certified European companies by way of the SDG Action Manager tool. Our findings reveal three clusters of B Corp‐certified organisations with varying contribution levels across all SDGs, indicating that the certification does not consistently identify organisations with significant SDG impacts. Non‐certified companies, meanwhile, do not exhibit distinct patterns. These results raise doubts about whether the B Corp category identifies a distinctive prototype member that can define clear prosocial norms and practices. The paper contributes to understanding B Corp organisations' narratives by providing insights into their empirical performance compared with non‐certified organisations. It also offers potential explanations for these discrepancies and proposes strategies to strengthen B Corp certification bodies in alignment with the SDGs, while acknowledging the presence of intra‐category variations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deeply exploring the formation path of tourists' environmentally responsible behavior is of great significance to standardize tourists' behavior and protect the environment of grassland tourist attractions. In this paper, an integrated model that mainly discussed two parts was explored by the stimulus–organism–response (S‐O‐R) theory adopting structural equation model (SEM) and multi‐group analysis (MGA). The first part is the direct role of the service quality, subjective norms, and environmental knowledge in motivating tourists' behavioral attitude and place attachment, as well as the indirect role of those three variables in shaping environmentally responsible behavior. As the second part, the potential moderating influence of visitor gender on the model is also discussed extensively in the paper. According to a survey of grassland tourists (n = 484) from Gansu and Qinghai provinces in China, it could be found that both environmental knowledge through behavioral attitude and service quality through local attachment have indirectly influence on environmentally responsible behavior. Direct and indirect effects of subjective norms on environmentally responsible behavior exist, and the indirect effects are based on behavioral attitude and local attachments. There is a significant moderating effect of gender on the effects of environmental knowledge on behavioral attitude, service quality, and subjective norms on place attachment. Finally, the future research directions were proposed based on existing limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low‐carbon sustainable development is considered an essential strategy for achieving economic growth and environmental protection, requiring a fundamental transformation of the industrial structure, including developing clean technologies, promoting energy efficiency, and adopting sustainable production and consumption patterns. Simultaneously, the evolving digital economy is acknowledged as an essential driver in optimizing the industrial structure. Therefore, can digital economy development reshape the industrial structure and lead to low‐carbon sustainable development? The main purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating role of industrial structure upgrading in the relationship between the digital economy and low‐carbon development. Its ultimate purpose is to explore more possible paths to achieve low‐carbon development. This paper builds a regression model based on the data of cities. We found that digital economic development can directly promote low‐carbon sustainable development, a conclusion that still holds after endogeneity discussion and robustness testing. Additionally, digital economy development can promote industrial structure upgrading and thus promote low‐carbon sustainable development, meaning that industrial structure upgrading is an effective mechanism for digital economy development to promote low‐carbon sustainable development. This paper provides empirical evidence for the positive environmental externalities of digital economic development and establishes a basic research framework of "digital economic development → industrial structure upgrading → low‐carbon sustainable development." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]