Search

The improvements in connectivity, artificial intelligence, and automation and their increasing penetration into all aspects of society and economy require informed decisions based on rigorous research on the determinants and outcomes of the digital economy. This context has promoted policy incentives dedicated to the digital transformation of business models and societal settings with a potential to disrupt existing markets and form a backbone of future development. The interest in digital economy and the research domains strongly connected to it has generated a wide array of terms that created confusion over its theoretical foundations. Several bibliometric analyses in recent years have attempted to map scientific findings and provide guidelines for future research in this area. However, such analyses draw their conclusions from algorithms that focus on attributes common to all studies without looking at their content. Our study combines bibliometric and in-depth content analyses to shed light on the definition, theoretical underpinnings, and state of the art of research on the digital economy. Our findings show that research in this domain is still in its infancy and the stated focus of studies on digital economy is often not reflected in their content. The study design allows us to make an original contribution by more precisely identifying gaps in the existing knowledge, outlining a detailed research agenda, and providing guidelines for future studies as well as informed policy decisions based on rigorous research on the determinants and outcomes of the digital economy.

Cocoa is a natural resource that plays a very important role globally, being one of the most produced and traded commodities. As a labour-intensive product and considering that its cultivation involves about 50 million people globally, it seems significant to explore its social sustainability. In light of this, this research aimed to map social risks within the cocoa supply chain from a life cycle perspective. Therefore, the Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA) was used, following the PSILCA database, considering the two most influential countries in its production, i.e., Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana. The results showed that there could be a very high risk that more than half of the cocoa globally is produced through child labour and with wages too low to guarantee workers a decent living, returning incomes of $30–38/month. Forced labour is much less frequent than child labour, while cocoa from Ghana may induce a high risk of improper work, considering the 30.2 h per week worked by farmers. This is mainly due to the low association power of 10–16%, which reveals a high risk that workers may not organise themselves into trade unions. Finally, at 23–25%, there is also a very high risk of discrimination due to the high presence of migrant labour. Therefore, the S-LCA results showed that the cocoa industry is still characterised by socially unsustainable sourcing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Craft beer represents a dynamic and creative segment within the food and beverage industry, emphasizing quality, aroma, health, sustainability, locality, and tailored brewing techniques. This paper explores the multifaceted roles of craft beer's production and consumption growth dynamics. Both a bibliometric analysis and a systematic literature review were conducted on a sample of 239 scientific papers to provide an in-depth evaluation of the main characteristics and influences that craft beer has in the field of food science. Based on the identified roles of craft beer/breweries in the selected sample of literature, a conceptual framework was constructed to serve as a guideline for policymakers and different stakeholders. In this way, our findings enrich the existing literature and contribute to a better understanding of craft beer production and surroundings, which can be beneficial for promoting sustainable policies and innovative strategies for the growth of small/micro-producers and entrepreneurs in this niche market. Furthermore, this evidence can stimulate clear and ethical information to enhance consumers' knowledge and agendas to strengthen the identity of local communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The production of beer, a beverage of global cultural and industrial importance, has a significant impact on the environment due to the use of natural resources and the emissions generated during the various stages of the production process. Therefore, this article examines the sustainability of beer production through a review of literature articles that have used Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to assess its environmental impacts. A systematic literature review was conducted by selecting peer-reviewed articles published between 2001 and July 2024 using databases such as Scopus and Google Scholar. The search included studies analyzing different stages of the beer life cycle, from raw material production to packaging and distribution, using specific keywords related to LCA and brewing. The results showed that energy use and packaging are the two critical aspects identified in the review, which represent a significant part of the environmental footprint. However, it is important to note that the available studies on the subject are few and heterogeneous and they use different methodologies, impact categories, and functional units, which complicates the comparison and synthesis of results, limiting the ability to draw definitive conclusions. Recommendations were made to improve sustainability, including the adoption of more efficient technologies, the use of recycled materials for packaging, and the implementation of sustainable agricultural practices. These strategies could aim to significantly reduce the overall environmental impact of beer production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although innovating in the physical stores has become a challenge for retailers, previous studies provided insights based primarily on consumers’ and employees’ acceptance of technology, with limited attention towards specific practices for successful adopting innovations. Starting from a qualitative analysis of pioneering strategies adopted by a sample of 50 retailers in the Dutch market, this research is devoted to a broad investigation of the innovation management strategies with emphasis on the choice to be the first to innovate. Our findings provide a correlation between the pioneer practices and the sales outcomes, by describing the more favourable conditions for adopting this strategy in terms of time, place and innovation characteristics (i.e., typology). These results would support retailers in the choice of innovating and managing the innovation process.

The aviation sector makes up 11% of all transportation emissions and is considered a "hard to abate" sector since, due to the long distances to be traveled, opportunities for electrification are rather limited. Therefore, since there are no alternatives to fuels, Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAFs), or fuels produced from biomass, have recently been developed to reduce climate-changing emissions in the aviation sector. Using Life Cycle Assessment, this research evaluated the environmental compatibility of different SAF production routes from seven biomasses: four food feedstocks (Soybean, Palm, Rapeseed, and Camelina), one non-food feedstock (Jatropha curcas L.), and two wastes (Waste Cooking Oil, or WCO, and Tallow). The evaluation was carried out using SimaPro 9.5 software. The results showed that the two potentially most favorable options could be Camelina and Palma, as they show minimal environmental impacts in 4 and 7 out of 18 impact categories, respectively. Soybean, on the other hand, appears to be the least sustainable precursor. Considering GWP, SAF production could reduce the values compared to fossil fuel by 2.8–3.6 times (WCO), 1.27–1.66 times (Tallow), 4.6–5.8 times (Palm), 3.4–4.3 times (Jatropha), 1.05–1.32 times (Rapeseed), and 4.36–5.5 times (Camelina), demonstrating the good environmental impact of these pathways. Finally, the sensitivity analysis showed that SAF production from waste could be an environmentally friendly option, with rather low environmental impacts, in the range of 5.13 g CO2 eq/MJ for Tallow and 3.12 g CO2 eq/MJ for WCO. However, some of the energy would have to come from sustainable energy carriers such as biomethane and renewable sources such as photovoltaic energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The improvements in connectivity, artificial intelligence, and automation and their increasing penetration into all aspects of society and economy require informed decisions based on rigorous research on the determinants and outcomes of the digital economy. This context has promoted policy incentives dedicated to the digital transformation of business models and societal settings with a potential to disrupt existing markets and form a backbone of future development. The interest in digital economy and the research domains strongly connected to it has generated a wide array of terms that created confusion over its theoretical foundations. Several bibliometric analyses in recent years have attempted to map scientific findings and provide guidelines for future research in this area. However, such analyses draw their conclusions from algorithms that focus on attributes common to all studies without looking at their content. Our study combines bibliometric and in-depth content analyses to shed light on the definition, theoretical underpinnings, and state of the art of research on the digital economy. Our findings show that research in this domain is still in its infancy and the stated focus of studies on digital economy is often not reflected in their content. The study design allows us to make an original contribution by more precisely identifying gaps in the existing knowledge, outlining a detailed research agenda, and providing guidelines for future studies as well as informed policy decisions based on rigorous research on the determinants and outcomes of the digital economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As of 2035, the European Union has ratified the obligation to register only zero-emission cars, including ultra-low-emission vehicles (ULEVs). In this context, electric mobility fits in, which, however, presents the critical issue of the over-exploitation of critical raw materials (CRMs). An interesting solution to reduce this burden could be the so-called second life, in which batteries that are no longer able to guarantee high performance in vehicles are used for other applications that do not require high performance, such as so-called stationary systems, effectively avoiding new over-exploitation of resources. In this study, therefore, the environmental impacts of second-life lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries are verified using a life cycle perspective, taking a second life project as a case study. The results show how, through the second life, GWP could be reduced by −5.06 × 101 kg CO2 eq/kWh, TEC by −3.79 × 100 kg 1.4 DCB eq/kWh, HNCT by −3.46 × 100 kg 1.4 DCB eq/kWh, −3.88 × 100 m2a crop eq/kWh, and −1.12 × 101 kg oil eq/kWh. It is further shown how second life is potentially preferable to other forms of recycling, such as hydrometallurgical and pyrometallurgical recycling, as it shows lower environmental impacts in all impact categories, with environmental benefits of, for example, −1.19 × 101 kg CO2 eq/kWh (compared to hydrometallurgical recycling) and −1.50 × 101 kg CO2 eq/kWh (pyrometallurgical recycling), −3.33 × 102 kg 1.4 DCB eq/kWh (hydrometallurgical), and −3.26 × 102 kg 1.4 DCB eq/kWh (pyrometallurgical), or −3.71 × 100 kg oil eq/kWh (hydrometallurgical) and −4.56 × 100 kg oil eq/kWh (pyrometallurgical). By extending the service life of spent batteries, it may therefore be possible to extract additional value while minimizing emissions and the over-exploitation of resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bad air conditions, limitless traffic, overloaded parking spaces are just some of the modern mobility problems that strike cities on a daily basis. The European Commission strives to address these issues by providing measures to improve the urban mobility situation in the small and medium-sized cities. The SUITS project (Supporting Urban Integrated Transport Systems: Transferable Tools for Authorities), which is financed under the umbrella of the HORIZON 2020 programme, aims at increasing the capacity of local authorities in Small and Medium (S-M) cities through the development and implementation of sustainable, integrated and accessible transport strategies and technologies.

Digital platforms have the ability to connect people, organizations and resources with the aim of facilitating the core interactions between businesses and consumers as well as assuring a greater efficiency for the business management. New business concepts, such as innovative start-ups, are therefore created based on innovation, scalability and the relationships within the community around them. The purpose of this work is to deeply understand the evolution of business models brought by innovative and dynamic companies operating through online platforms. In order to achieve the objectives set, an exploratory multiple-case study was designed based on in-depth structured interviews. The aim was to conduct a mixed analysis, in order to rely both on qualitative and quantitative data. The structured interview protocol was therefore designed to collect and then analyse data concerning the company profile and managers’ perspectives on the phenomenon of interest. The interview protocol was submitted in advance and then face-to-face interviews were carried out with the following professional figures: Chief Executive Officer (CEO), General Manager, Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Marketing Manager and Developers. Collected data were analysed and processed through the Canvas Business Model in order to clearly outline similarities and differences among the sample. Results can be considered under two viewpoints. On the one hand, this work provides a detailed overview of the companies interviewed, according to the dimensions of: reference market dynamics, type and number of customers, scalability. On the other one, they allow to identify some success patterns regarding key activities, key resources, channel mix strategy, costs management, value proposition, customer segmentation, key partners and the way to obtain revenues. Results from the multiple-case study with 15 Italian start-ups provide interesting insights by comparing the innovative business models developed and highlighting key differences and similarities. Overall, the start-ups analyzed, operating in several sectors, showed great growth prospects and the possibility to create value for their customers through innovative products and services offered through digital platforms.

Framing of the research. The agrifood industry needs to embrace digitalization by strategically innovating toward ecological transition and sustainable growth. A conceptual framework, empirically informed, is proposed, and a mixed-methods approach in the Italian wineries' context is adopted. Purpose of the paper. This paper aims to analyze how the sustainability of agribusinesses, especially wine producers, could be improved by implementing precision agricultural systems in place of conventional ones with the support of a digital service provider. Methodology. A sequential mixed methods approach based on both secondary and primary data was conducted. The quantitative analysis focused on a cost-benefit comparison between conventional versus 4.0 wineries. The qualitative analysis was performed through a multiple case study, focusing on the interplay between the service provider and the wineries. Ten interviews were conducted with both actors. Results. The results contribute to the literature by enriching the conceptual framework proposed and updated with empirical evidence. It describes dimensions and relationships that enable the actors involved in reaching higher sustainability outcomes at the firm and network levels. Research limitations. The limited investigated sample, based on a low number of interviews, does not allow a consistent generalization of the results. Managerial implications. Evidence from the case studies can inform both practitioners and policymakers about best practices and process innovation activities, which can increase shared value creation in the agrifood ecosystem. Originality of the paper. This is one of the first studies to take into consideration a relevant topic, still poorly investigated, by deepening how a digital service provider supports the wineries' innovation toward sustainable outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A vast literature supports the notion that green human resource management leads to superior environmental performance. This study argues that green innovation, environmental strategy and pro‐environmental behaviour facilitate the relationship between green human resource management and environmental performance in the manufacturing industry of developing countries. To test the mediating effect of green innovation and pro‐environmental behaviour alongside the moderating role of environmental strategy in the proposed model, we collected and analysed data from 410 manufacturing firm managers operating in Pakistan using partial least square structural equation modelling. The mediating and moderating results highlighted the significance of green innovation, environmental strategy and pro‐environmental behaviour to excel in environmental performance through operational efficiency, appropriate environmental strategy and human willingness to indulge in environmental activities. The findings also suggest implications for theory and practice in similar developing countries. The study offers generalisability in developing countries sharing the same economic and social structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]