Search

PurposeThis study aims to assess and decompose the sustainable development using the 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) in Iran in 2018, for proposing agenda-setting of public policy.Design/methodology/approachIt ranks the SDGs not only in Iran but also in the region and the world to reveal the synergetic effects.FindingsBased on the results, subaltern-populace generally suffers from the hegemonic domination of ruling elite-bourgeois, lack of strong institutions, heterogeneous policy networks and lack of advocacy role of non-governmental organizations, due to no transparency, issues in law or no rule of law, no stringent regulation, rent, suppression and Mafia, all leading to corruption and injustice.Practical implicationsTo stop the loop of corruption-injustice, Iran should homogenize the structure of the policy network. Furthermore, the failed SDGs of the three-geographic analysis are the same in a character; all of them propose SDG 3, good health and well-being as a serious failed goal.Social implicationsIn this regard, strong evidence is the pandemic Coronavirus, COVID 19 since 2019, due to its highly-disastrous consequences in early 2020 where the public policymakers could not adopt policies promptly in the glob, particularly in Iran.Originality/valueIn Iran, in addition to this, the malfunction of health is rooted in “subjective well-being” and “traffic deaths,” respectively. Concerning the transportations system in Iran, it is underscored that it is damaging the sustainable development from all the three pillars of sustainable development including, economic, social and environmental.

Purpose This study aims to develop a price policy for fossil fuel consumption, as it is an effective instrument to manage the demand-side of energy economics. Design/methodology/approach This research estimates the demand elasticities of diesel, gasoline, fuel oil and kerosene by using static, dynamic and error-correction models in log-linear form. Findings The findings show that fossil fuel demand responds to price changes less than income changes, as fuel price is inelastic, but income is elastic. In that respect, the impact of price change decreases constantly with increasing energy price, followed by subsidy reform. Subsidy removal and price policy reformation is the UN recommendation for subsidizing countries, including Iran, to reduce fossil fuel consumption, whose intensity depends on the price elasticities. Practical implications As a result of this price policy, diesel, gasoline and liquefied petroleum gas prices should increase at least 1.8%–7.3%, 4.4%–6.4% and 7%–8.6%, respectively, and gradually within 2018–2030. The price policy improves all the pillars of sustainable development, including economy, environment and social (health). Overall, such a target can potentially save 3%–29% of diesel, 34%–56% of gasoline and 15%–20% of liquefied petroleum gas, as well as reduce 15%–40% of CO2 emissions annually, and can save potentially more than 510,000 lives annually. Thus, the energy price policy can fundamentally improve sustainability. Originality/value The estimated elasticities outline the required prices to decrease the fossil fuels, according to the UN mitigation targets, as price policy recommendation. Graphical abstract

The three sustainability pillars of social, environment and economy were initially introduced by the United Nations in 2002, addressing major global sustainability issues including economic problems, income inequality, environmental pollution and social shortcomings. Comparing East Asia & Pacific with North America, there is a growing concern over economic, political and even social competition as a result of recent development and industrialization that is taking place in Asian countries. This might lead to an unhealthy conflict that favors regional independency as opposed to the current globalization and trade facilitation trend. As a result, this study aims to assess the effects of development in three main pillars of sustainability (social, environment and economy) in the East Asia and Pacific on that of North America and vice versa. To estimate this interactive or spillover effects of sustainable development (or sustainability elasticities), our research employs Econometric methodologies including Simultaneous Equations System, Vector AutoRegressive (VAR) and Granger Causality approaches during 1971-2016. The results show that most of the sustainability elasticities are positive between and inside the two regions, supporting the synergetic character of the sustainability spillover effects and confirming constructive role of globalization and openness in the sustainability progress. Based on the results, this research suggests policy-makers to follow cooperative and flow-based governance rather than the placed-based or regional independent thinking that supports integrated sustainable development benefiting not only the two parties but also the overall global sustainability.

The vast increase in CO2 and waste generation in recent decades has been a major obstacle to sustainable development and sustainability. In construction industry, the production of ordinary Portland cement is a major greenhouse gas emitter with almost 8% of total CO2 production in the world. To address this, Alkali-activated materials and geopolymer have more recently been introduced as a green and sustainable alternative of ordinary Portland cement with significantly lowered environmental footprints. Their use to replace Portland cement products generally leads to vast energy and virgin materials savings resulting in a sustainable concrete production. In doing so, it reuses the solid waste generated in industrial and manufacturing sectors, which is aligned with circular economy. In turn, it reduces the need for ordinary Portland cement consumption and its subsequent CO2 generation. To provide further insight and address the challenges facing the substitution of ordinary Portland cement, this article reviews different types, mechanisms, and result of mechanical and durability properties of alkali-activated materials and geopolymer reported in literature. Finally, it discusses future projections of waste materials that have cementitious properties and can replace ordinary Portland cement and be used in alkali-activated materials and geopolymer.

As a result of socio-economic growth, major increase in solid waste generation is taking place which can lead to resource depletion and environmental concerns. To address this inefficient cycle of make, use and dispose, the concept of circular economy has recently been proposed that de-linearizes the current relationship between economic growth, environmental degradation and resource consumption thorough its 6Rs (Reuse, Recycle, Redesign, Remanufacture, Reduce, Recover). In the construction sector, currently the production of binding agents and transportation of virgin aggregates is associated with considerable environmental pollution. As a result, major attempts are taking place to substitute such ingredients with more sustainable and potentially cheaper materials. With waste glass having a production of roughly 100 million tons annually, and its low recycling rate of 26%, there is a growing number of studies unlocking its potential as an eco-friendly substitute for Portland cement (with particle size of below $$100\ \upmu \hbox {m}$$ ) or fine aggregate (with size of below 4.75 mm) in concrete. As a result, this article intends to review the connection of construction sector and circular economy with recycled glass in its center. Accordingly, by partially replacing cement or aggregate with recycled glass, on average, up to 19% greenhouse gas, and 17% energy consumption reduction as well as major cost savings can be made. Additionally, in technical concrete terms, better fresh properties and fire resistance, as well as lower permeability, and in fine grades, favorable cementitious properties are reported as major benefits of using waste glass as a sustainable construction material.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of maritime and air transportation on the environment and economy of Iran. The authors specify two dynamic models of the environmental pollution and the economic growth. Then, the authors estimate the environmental and economic elasticities of maritime and air transportation in short run and long run in Iran during 1978–2012. Design/methodology/approach The authors estimate the environmental and economic elasticities of maritime elasticities in short and long run, using simultaneous equations system. Findings The findings indicate that the short- and long-run environmental pollution elasticities of maritime transportation are higher than those of the air ones. In addition, the economic growth elasticities are greater in the air transportation compared to maritime one. As a result, the maritime transportation is more pollutant and less productive in Iran in comparison with the air transportation. Originality/value The policymakers are advised to improve the infrastructure of maritime transportation from both the environmental and economic point of views. Consequently, the air transportation is considered as a cleaner and more beneficial transportation mode in Iran, where geographical position limits the maritime transport as a widespread transportation mode.

The recent decades have witnessed an alarmingly phenomenal rise in population and economic growth, increasing the global resource demand and environmental degradation. The main objective of this study is to investigate the relationships between population, industrialization, affluence, technology, and sustainability. Approaching sustainability, a couple of viewpoints including weak and strong sustainability establish two different priorities, albeit with possibly the same factors as in the IPAT and STIRPAT models. This paper employs STIRPAT equation to estimate the relationships between population, industrialization, affluence, technology, and sustainability in MENA and OECD countries during 1975–2015. The results suggest that weak and strong sustainability, albeit slightly, is affected negatively by population and industrialization, and positively by technology and international agreements on environment, in MENA and OECD countries during 1975–2015. Therefore, the policy-makers in sustainability are advised to develop preventive and qualitative strategies for population and industrial activities, but inflationary ones for technology; besides the governments are suggested to confirm, join, and sign the international treaties on environmental conservation.

Iran experiences a high level of energy consumption which is threatening not only economically but also politically and environmentally. This study aims to estimate the relationship between the economic growth with the various kinds of energies, non-hydroelectric, renewable, non-renewable, and total energies in Iran during 1967–2012, using an autoregressive distributed lags (ARDL) model. The results show the ineffective relationship between the economic growth and energy consumption in Iran, considering non-hydroelectric energy, renewable energy, non-renewable energy, and total energy, one by one as the energy proxy. It implies the ineffectiveness of both the quantitative and qualitative deflationary policies over the energy sector. In another word, neither decreasing energy consumption nor changing energy portfolio affects the economic growth. Therefore, the policy makers are advised to formulate those policies which reduce the quantity of energy consumption or increase the segment of renewable energies in the portfolio of energy consumption because they do not lead to the considerable negative consequence on the economic growth, while they increase both the environmental quality and energy security.

Price and income elasticities of gasoline demand show whether the price policy, pursued by the Iranian government, can decrease the high gasoline consumption sufficiently or not. Since the two oil price shocks in 1970 and 1973, interest in the study of oil products demand has increased considerably, especially on gasoline. High gasoline consumption is a serious crisis in Iran, posing economically, politically, and environmentally threats. In this study, the elasticities are estimated over three intervals, short run, intermediate run, and long run in Iran during 1976-2010, by putting the estimates of Error Correction Model (ECM), static model, and dynamic model in an increasing order, respectively. The short run, intermediate run, and long run price elasticities are -0.1538, -0.1618, and -0.3612 and the corresponding income elasticities are 0.2273 - 0.3581, 0.4636, and 0.7284, respectively. Not only do these elasticities imply that the gasoline demand is price and income inelastic but also the adjustment velocity, estimated by ECM, is a low point at -0.1942. Based on the estimations, the gasoline demand responds to the changes of price and income slightly and slowly. Therefore, policy makers should develop more strategies to reduce gasoline consumption, for example, substitute goods, public transportation systems, and environmental standards settings.

Members of the World Customs Organization (WCO) do not take up expectedly the customs conventions introduced by the Customs Cooperation Council (CCC). To attract more members, the main question of the study is within which scope, the future customs conventions or amendments thereon should fall. To answer the question, this study investigates the alignment of customs conventions with the goals and pillars of the WCO and the United Nations to discover those goals, ignored by the customs conventions. It investigates the gap between the scope of customs conventions on one hand, and the modern customs and sustainable development, on the other hand. Our findings show that the ignored scopes are: environment, health, and organizational development; and ‘Temporary Admission (Istanbul)’ is the most inclusive and highly-influential WCO convention. Therefore, the CCC is advised to adopt the global customs conventions on these fields, based on the patterning of the ‘Temporary Admission (Istanbul)’. It attracts more members to join the conventions and increases the contribution of the CCC to both the modern customs establishment and sustainable development in the world. Trade law, Environment, EU law, Trade dispute, Arbitration, Dispute settlement, WTO, Export restrictions, Article XX, preferential trade agreement, timber