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The article presents the discussion on biodistricts as formal agreements for sustainable resource management based on organic and agroecological practices, aiming to enhance local community development. Topics include case studies from the Valposchiavo region in Switzerland and the Cilento Biodistrict in Italy, the role of biodistricts in supporting EU organic initiatives; and comparisons of biodistrict development strategies in Italy and France.

In this paper, the authors reflect on public participation (PP) in environmental impact assessment (EIA) processes in Malawi, where EIA is implemented as Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA). Who is invited and who is actively contributing to PP meetings is explored. In this context, 12 ESIAs are examined, six from rural and six from urban areas. While PP principles ask for a balanced approach towards the inclusion of both interested and affected individuals and bodies, in the 12 projects, participants were mostly development and planning experts in urban projects and traditional leaders (chiefs) in rural projects. People without societal positions that were directly affected by developments only represented 15% of those being present in PP meetings. Based on these findings, the authors suggest that PP policy needs to be improved and enforced in order to allow ordinary people potentially directly affected by development to be better represented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

B Steve Kroll-Smith b is an Emeritus Professor of Sociology and former Faculty Member in the Program for Sustainability at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro. B Paola Bolados b is a Professor and Graduate Director of the Centro de Estudios Avanzados in the Universidad Autónoma de Chile. Katherine plans to work with climate change refugees from the MENA region and hopes to eventually support climate change refugees in gaining refugee rights on the international stage. [Extracted from the article]

This article examines how organizational experience influences social enterprise responses to impact assessment practices. Limited attention has been paid to why organizations resist or challenge impact assessment practices or how prior experience with impact assessment may shape organizational responses. The study draws on interviews with practitioners involved in social enterprise–impact investor dyads in Australia and the United Kingdom. The findings reveal that social enterprises enact either combative or collaborative responses in their relationships with impact investors based on past experiences with impact assessment. The study shows how more experienced social enterprises reach a state of impact lock-in —where they become committed to particular approaches to understanding, measuring, and reporting impact. The article contributes to the literature on impact assessment and impact investment by showing how organizational experience shapes divergent reactions to the demands imposed by impact investors, creating complementary forces of institutionalization and contestation of impact assessment practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of International Forestry Review is the property of Commonwealth Forestry Association 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.)

Western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) are Critically Endangered and Guinea is a key stronghold for this subspecies. However, Guinea is also rich in minerals with some of the highest‐grade iron‐ore deposits in the world. Specifically, the Nimba Mountains, home to western chimpanzees, is one of the sites under consideration for mining activities. To assess the impact of mining activities in the area, we used non‐invasive genetic sampling to estimate chimpanzee population size, sex ratio, community composition, and range boundaries on the western flank of the massif. The level of genetic diversity and affinity between communities was estimated and recommendations for future genetic censusing provided. Between 2003 and 2018, we collected 999 fecal samples of which 663 were analyzed using a panel of 26 microsatellites. We identified a minimum of 136 chimpanzees in four communities, with evidence of migratory events, a high level of shared ancestry and genetic diversity. We assessed sampling intensities and capture rates for each community. Saturation was reached in two communities with sampling between 3.2 and 4.3 times the estimated number of chimpanzees. Our findings highlight the utility of genetic censusing for temporal monitoring of ape abundance, as well as capturing migratory events and gauging genetic diversity and population viability over time. We recommend genetic sampling, combined with camera trapping, for use in future Environmental and Social Impact Assessments, as these methods can yield robust baselines for implementing the mitigation hierarchy, future biomonitoring and conservation management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shifts from fossil fuels toward renewable energy (RE) introduce profound changes to landscapes, including visual impacts that are often investigated during environmental and social impact assessment. Moreover, RE transitions are among many visual changes happening in rural areas that are increasingly serving amenity functions and becoming destinations for wide ranges of users. This diversity introduces complexities during infrastructure siting discussions. Emerging grape and wine production landscapes in Canada serve amenity and production purposes, and this study was designed to understand the impacts of RE development using case studies of solar panels and wind turbines in two vineyard landscapes in Ontario (ON) and British Columbia (BC). We applied novel mixed methods, including content analysis and saliency-based visual impact analysis, to textual and image-based representations posted on Instagram of those vineyards. In this case, the addition of low-density RE infrastructures did not seem to disturb the vineyard experience. The technique presented can be applied in a wide range of infrastructure siting contexts, both before and after construction, but requires additional research and calibration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On one of the hottest days of the "Amazonian winter" in late January, over 200 people from 12 communities along the Tocantins River in Brazil's state of Pará gathered in a shed at the center of the Quilombo community São José do Icatu for a three-day workshop. (CLAUDIA HORN) The Defense of the River At more than 1,500 miles long, the Tocantins is one of the largest rivers in Brazil. [Extracted from the article]

This article looks at the socio-environmental consequences of highway development on host communities in one of Nairobi's peri-urban corridors. It is inspired by the fact that whereas governmental decision makers have supported highway development by arguing that such construction promotes economic growth and development, decreases traffic congestion, increases travel safety, assists in the more efficient use of existing roads, reduces poverty and improves the environment, this argument is usually pitched at the national or sub-national level thereby ignoring local community interests. Therefore, the study focused on the local socio-economic transformations that are taking place along the corridor as a result of the highway development. Such fundamental transformations occasioned by the road are often not captured in the pre-project impact evaluation documents. In this context, the study found that the construction of the road positively increased accessibility; however, improved accessibility led to land value increases and gentrification. Other effects of road development are land use change and loss of livelihoods, production of inequalities and densification. The study recommends incorporation of ex-post monitoring programs in project development to help mitigate the negative impacts on vulnerable members of the host communities who may suffer in the pursuit of the national development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines motivations, definitions, methods and challenges of evaluating the social impacts of smart city technologies and services. It outlines concepts of social impact assessment and discusses how social impact has been included in smart city evaluation frameworks. Thematic analysis is used to investigate how social impact is addressed in eight smart city projects that prioritise human-centred design across a variety of contexts and development phases, from design research and prototyping to completed and speculative projects. These projects are notable for their emphasis on human, organisational and natural stakeholders; inclusion, participation and empowerment; new methods of citizen engagement; and relationships between sustainability and social impact. At the same time, there are gaps in the evaluation of social impact in both the smart city indexes and the eight projects. Based on our analysis, we contend that more coherent, consistent and analytical approaches are needed to build narratives of change and to comprehend impacts before, during and after smart city projects. We propose criteria for social impact evaluation in smart cities and identify new directions for research. This is of interest for smart city developers, researchers, funders and policymakers establishing protocols and frameworks for evaluation, particularly as smart city concepts and complex technologies evolve in the context of equitable and sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protected areas are important for biodiversity conservation. However, they also create many social impacts on local communities, both negative and positive. The effectiveness of protected area management influences the environmental and social impacts that are created and the attitudes of local people towards conservation initiatives. Given the considerable awareness of the social impacts of protected areas around the world, in China there has now been growing interest in this topic, partly because China is a megadiverse country with over 11,800 protected areas. Based on a document analysis of official documents and a literature review of academic papers, we examine how Chinese policies and the Chinese academic literature consider social impacts and local communities in relation to protected areas. We found that the social impacts most discussed related to the income and livelihoods of local communities, while intangible social impacts, such as culture and the rights of local communities, were neglected or ignored. Negative social impacts were reported more frequently than benefits. The persistent lack of consideration of the potential role of local communities in the management of protected areas has resulted in communities generally being disengaged. We suggest that the role of local communities in protected areas should be further considered, and that community engagement and benefit-sharing arrangements should be improved. [Display omitted] • The resettlement of people out of Protected Areas (PAs) triggers major social impacts. • Human-wildlife conflicts and tourism also trigger social impacts and livelihood impacts. • Local communities are often excluded from decision-making for PA management. • For effective conservation, community engagement and benefit sharing are essential. • Local communities are now being mentioned in Chinese official documents about Pas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lithium-based batteries are essential because of their increasing importance across several industries, particularly when it comes to electric vehicles and renewable energy storage. Sustainable batteries throughout their entire life cycle represent a key enabling technology for the zero pollution objectives of the European Green Deal. The EU's (European Union) new regulatory framework for batteries is setting sustainability requirements along the whole battery, including value chains. For a comprehensive assessment of battery technologies, it is necessary to include a life cycle thinking approach into consideration from the beginning. This review offers a comprehensive study of Environmental Life Cycle Assessment (E-LCA), Life Cycle Costing (LCC), Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA), and Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA) methodologies in the context of lithium-based batteries. Notably, the study distinguishes itself by integrating not only environmental considerations but also social and economic dimensions, encapsulating the holistic concept of sustainability. Challenges unique to each assessment method are outlined, including data availability (with 35 % of the reviewed studies having openly accessible inventory data), methodological inconsistencies, uncertainty around future costs and social impacts. Difficulties such as data uncertainty, challenges in cost comparison, and the lack of standardized measures are underscored. The research identifies critical future directions for LCA, including the need for better data quality, adaptation to new technologies, and alignment with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Future research directions are suggested -including the standardization of methodologies, and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration. Overcoming these challenges holds the potential to advance sustainable practices in the battery industry and contribute to a cleaner energy future. [Display omitted] • Lithium-based battery: Comprehensive life cycle and sustainability assessment. • Critical analysis: Battery impacts on environment, economy and society. • Interdisciplinary collaboration and policy integration: Key for sustainable practice. • Addressing challenges: transparency, decision integration, full life cycle account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Singh's book "Land Acquisition and Resource Development in India" sits at the intersection of state theory, human geography, and political economy of land dispossession in India. The land database website "Land conflict watch" estimates that there are 781 ongoing land conflicts in India impacting 7.5 million people. Land acquisitions and dispossession have increasingly garnered more attention and provoked debates in India as well as globally, especially in the last two decades (D'Costa & Chakraborty, [1]; Edelman et al., [2]; Levien, [4]). [Extracted from the article]

The attempts of national socialist Germany to influence the Iranian public are an important dimension of the relations between the two countries during the last years of Reza Shah's rule. Yet previous studies on this aspect have barely considered Iranian sources to assess the actual impact of these propaganda efforts on Iranian society. One of these sources is the 1938-published Khaterat-e Hitler by Mohsen Jahansuz. By analysing the book in depth and situating it within the context of Jahansuz's biography, this study provides new findings concerning the reception of national socialist ideology in 1930s Iran and challenges previous claims concerning the publication, which has hitherto been considered the first translation of Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf. It argues that Jahansuz, by inserting his own ideas and interpretations into the text without explicitly indicating his authorship, did not create a translation but an adaptation of the German original that transcended the limits of Hitler's exclusivist Germanocentrism in order to establish a theory of the 'racial superiority' of the rural population at Iran's mountainous periphery. The paper shows how a representative of the Iranian literati appropriated national socialist ideology and distributed it in an altered way to further his own cause. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rice is the most widely used cereal for human consumption, attributing its production as one of the most important activities for the global population. Therefore, given its economic and nutritional value, assessing the sustainability of this production process could be worth noting. In this regard, this research aims to investigate the most recent literature related to Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of rice primary production, to clarify the extent to which Life Cycle Thinking (LCT) and thus the three pillars of sustainability have been applied in the rice sector, as well as to highlight possible research gaps. Thus, 40 articles (2012–2022) were analyzed. The main research gaps that were found were, firstly, that there was a lesser tendency to consider multiple functional units, highlighting how little multifunctionality is considered. As to be expected, there was also a great difference in methodological choices, which often leads to a great variability of results, making evaluations and comparisons of impacts uncertain. These were also highly dependent on soil and climate conditions in the various countries, which could in turn affect input utilization, and results. The study of the impacts of primary rice production was then addressed by a few countries, among which some of the largest producers were absent, while the least considered aspects were related to the depletion of abiotic resources and the promotion of organic farming. Finally, sustainability assessments in rice production had little focus on the socio-economic dimension, showing how little LCT is considered. Therefore, based on this consideration, a Social Life Cycle Assessment was integrated into the study, the results of which show that the countries with medium to high social impacts could be India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Bangladesh. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study is to compare the environmental and social performance of two small-scale avocado biorefineries implanted in a rural zone in the North of Colombia. Two small-scale biorefineries were proposed. Small-B1 addressed to produce avocado oil and animal feed, and Small-B2 focused on the guacamole production. The environmental analysis was done by applying the life cycle assessment methodology. Then, agronomic information and process simulation were required to complete the analysis. Moreover, the water footprint of the avocado crops was estimated. Both biorefineries were compared with the direct avocados production and commercialization. The social assessment was achieved by the estimation of quantitative indicators related to wages, jobs, and working hours. The agricultural carbon and water footprints of the creole avocado crop were 0.59 kg CO2-eq/kg and 2.13 m3/kg. In the same way, Small-B1 and Small-B2 obtained a carbon and water footprints of 8.99 kg CO2-eq/kg and 6.63 m3/kg and 0.72 kg CO2-eq/kg and 1.38 m3/kg, respectively. The hotspots of the creole avocado crop are related to the use of fertilizers and fungicides. Then, new strategies should be implemented to reduce the farmer's dependency. The social analysis exhibit a high resilience of the Small-B1 biorefinery since a salary increase to worker about 50% can be proposed. In addition, the installation of this biorefinery can create more than ten jobs. A disjunction was found between the economic, environmental, and social analyses. Thus, the need to establish a multidimensional strategy to design sustainable biorefineries is presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cumulative effects assessments in Canada are increasingly expected to include social impacts from resource development and land-use actions on people, their communities, and livelihoods. As processes and methods for assessing cumulative social effects develop, it is important to understand the capacity needs for implementing such an assessment. This paper explores the regulatory and professional capacity required to assess cumulative social effects of resource development projects. Semi-structured interviews were completed with professionals involved in environmental assessments for hydroelectric development in British Columbia and Manitoba, Canada. A number of key capacity needs are identified in terms of the availability regulation and guidance, the professional expertise needed, and understanding responsibilities and management for cumulative social effects. The paper concludes with a discussion of capacity needs and recommendations for improvements to support the implementation of a social cumulative effects assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on a report from UNDP and an article by the BBC which portions of the coast and some villages that are being submerged, while dry-river floods are happening inland. Topics include considered the concomitance of drought, floods and water-level rising around Lake Turkana is baffling.

Human beings are now facing the increasingly urgent problem of global ecological environment pollution. To verify the scientific nature of environmental governance by governments of various countries, researchers need to provide a scientific basis and practical support for governments to adjust and formulate new policies and regulatory measures at any time through data analysis. This paper applies visual literature, aggregate analysis, engineering data programming, advanced mathematical science algorithms, and innovation entropy theory, and through this study obtains sustainable impact data from eight Chinese provinces in the 21st century, including environmental, economic, and social impacts. The results show that China's sustainable data should grow from 2021 to about 2044. After 2045, it will be stable, and there will be negative growth in a short period. The overall life cycle assessment (LCA) and social impact assessment (SIA) continue to remain in the positive range. There will be no negative growth in aggregate data and zero or negative emissions before 2108. The final research data are accurately presented in the form of annual emissions, which provide a scientific and theoretical basis for the government to formulate medium- and long-term ecological regulations and plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Open Science (OC) constitutes a new model of science based on collaborative work between academics, on the openness and transparency of all phases of research grouping a set of elements among open access, open data, new metrics and evaluation models. Goal: know the facilitating factors and the barriers that condition the implementation of OS in universities, especially open access, research data and the evaluation of science. Methodology: the responses of the research vice-chancellors of the 76 Spanish universities integrated into the CRUE were analysed, in a survey carried out between September and November 2021. The questionnaire, online, was made up of 53 items integrated into 13 questions. CRUE sent out the questionnaire. Results: with a response rate of 36.8 %; for the most part, the competences of the OS required the Vice-Rectorate for Research. The low frequency (18 %) with which universities specify criteria for the evaluation of their commitment to CA, the availability to almost all of them of a repository, stands out. Facilitating factors have been considered the coordination between the Vice-Rectorates and the library services and the importance given to research in the political agenda, the institutional conviction with change, among other factors. In relation to the evaluation, the vice-chancellors reject the use of the journal's impact factor, in favour of carrying out a qualitative assessment of the article, the use of citations and the consideration of the 'social impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainability, 12, 9674. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12229674 28 Nijnik, M., Perlik, M., Melnykovych, M., & Kopiy, S. (2021). The governance of nature is facing remarkable dynamics resulting from massive societal challenges in socio-ecological systems. 21 Miller, D., McKeen, M., Price, M., Slee, B., & Nijnik, M. (2020). [Extracted from the article]

This study addresses the social relevance of low-prevalence childhood diseases and reports the process of generation and validation of a tool to assess the social impact on the direct family environment and the social context of reference. The aim of the process of construction and validation of this instrument is to provide the field with a tool with the capacity to shed light on the social consequences of suffering from a low-prevalence disease, specifically those comorbid with treatment-resistant epileptic seizures of childhood origin. The instrument here presented and called CRESIA (acronym derived from Childhood Rare Epilepsy Social Impact Assessment) provides valuable information on six specific areas framing health, economic, psychological, social, and child-related stressors, as well as family. CRESIA represents a valid and reliable instrument for family members or primary caregivers of children and adolescents with childhood rare epilepsy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of cultural attachment is in the vernacular in the Appalachian region of the United States and served to stimulate policy attention to the concept when a 765 kV electric transmission line was proposed through Peters Mountain on the border between Virginia and West Virginia. The environmental impact statement of the U.S. Forest Service examined the extent of cultural attachment in the project area using our social science consulting company, which resulted in a rejection of the line in 1995 and an acceptance in 2002 when the proponent changed routes to avoid communities with high cultural attachment. The concept has been noted and used in several other settings and has evolved into a policy tool that accommodates the three pillars of cultural attachment—attachment to land, to place, and to kinship and social networks. We contend that use of the concept as evolving is an appropriate way to consider "endangered cultures." The use of the concept of cultural attachment in decision making means there is now a track record and precedence that give legal weight to the concept, value to local residents in manifesting their voice, and improved prospects that we can continue to shape life in sustainable and human‐affirming ways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper reviews extant research related to the impact assessment of social innovation and identifies several barriers to this assessment. Following this is a proposal of interventions to overcome these barriers. Originality/value: Social innovation has played an essential role in enhancing positive changes for society. Nonetheless, measuring its impact is a very significant challenge due to the many barriers faced in selecting metrics that fit its definition and goal. Recognizing these challenges, the main contribution of this paper was to identify the most common barriers and to suggest how these barriers can be overcome. Design/methodology/approach: Two approaches were considered in this research. On the one hand, a bottom-up approach was applied to review relevant literature related to impact metrics for social innovation and good practices toward social innovation impact assessment. On the other hand, we used a top-down approach through collecting and analyzing research projects related to identifying metrics of social innovation impact, broadly disseminated and well-consolidated in the current literature. Findings: This research offers valuable insights to academic researchers, policy decision-makers, and practitioners working in the field of social innovation by identifying and classifying the main barriers faced to measuring the impact of social innovation, namely lack of stakeholder awareness in the field of social innovation, difficulties in selecting the metrics to assess social innovation, problems in selecting criteria to identify best-fitted indicators to social innovation, lack of beneficiaries engagement, lack of financial and public support, and lack of consensus in the social innovation definition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on the Secretariat for the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) which are promoting good practice and building local capacity in impact assessment. It discusses that it is notable that the Pacific Island approach is to promote strategic environmental assessment (SEA) focused on sustainable outcomes, setting the strategic context for project impact assessments.

The article suggests that Social Impact Assessment (SIA) provides essential information to decision makers, affected people and communities when planning for infrastructure well before an action is taken. It discusses that the research pointed to the need for new guidelines that provide a practical approach to SIA; and the guidelines on the basic steps in preparing an SIA from the initial steps of scoping an SIA through to preparation of social impact management plans.

The article examines the role of the Ministry of Works and Development as the central agency for infrastructure development in Aotearoa NZ from the 1950s through the 1980s. It highlights that the Town and Country Planning Directorate was a key part of the agency and over time they developed a strategic approach to regional and sectoral developments; and found that social concerns lay at the heart of efficient project planning, developing the social licence to operate for projects.

An introduction is presented which discusses article on several topics including impact assessment and infrastructure focusing on Aotearoa New Zealand and the Pacific Islands, New Zealand's experiment with urban (un)planning and economic development projects.

The article offers information on the "Let's Get Wellington Moving" (LGWM) initiative which involves multiple agencies and funding sources with potential impacts over a large geographic area and several territorial authorities. It discusses that the programme is planned and later implemented as an opportunity for the Strategic Environmental Assessment work; and mentions that planning framework might include standards such as noise controls or residential intensification.

Once this wide-scope assessment has been made, companies can apply the mitigation hierarchy to reduce their forest impact: prevent negative impacts by avoiding or minimizing the disruption of forests and biodiversity, and restore and offset those that could not be prevented. Developed economies are increasingly recognizing the responsibility of private companies in addressing the negative impact their activities generate, and their role in tackling the challenges our societies are facing. Deforestation occurs directly from the mining project, but also from indirect impacts generated by associated infrastructure (e.g., highways, roads, rail lines) that allow access to previously unreachable areas within forests. [Extracted from the article]

We aimed to develop an ecological momentary assessment (EMA) measure and sampling protocol to assess the near-term impact of experiences with social media use (SMU) that are associated with risk and protective factors for adolescent suicide. To develop the EMA measure, we consulted literature reviews and conducted focus groups with the target population, adolescents at risk for suicide. Subsequently, we refined the measure through interviews with experts and cognitive interviews with adolescents, through which we explored adolescents' thought processes as they considered questions and response options. Data were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using thematic analysis. The initial measure had 37 items assessing a range of harmful and beneficial aspects of SMU. Through expert and cognitive interviews, we refined the measure to 4 pathways assessing positive and negative experiences with SMU as well as positive and negative in-person interactions. Each pathway included a maximum of 11 items, as well as 2 items pertaining to SMU at nighttime to be assessed once daily. Acceptable targets the EMA measure's sampling protocol included a 10-day data collection window with text message-based prompts to complete the measure triggered 2–4 times daily. By assessing a range of risk and protective factors for youth suicide, while using methods to reduce participant burden, we established content validity for the EMA measure and acceptability for the sampling protocol among youth at high risk of suicide. Development of an ecological momentary assessment measure and sampling protocol Exploring brief momentary assessment of social media's impact on adolescent suicidal risk Multi-phase approach to establishing content validity and an acceptable sampling protocol [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of GV-executivo is the property of Fundacao Getulio Vargas 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.)

Copyright of Journal of the Gulf & Arabian Peninsula Studies is the property of Kuwait University, Academic Publication Council 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.)