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Actions and Sustainable Futures
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Actions and Sustainable Futures

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Sustainability and Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2020) | Viewed by 29522

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Richard Moles

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Limerick, V94 T9PX Limerick, Ireland
Interests: sustainability science; urban sustainability; community scale sustainability actions; organisational sustainability
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The aim is to assemble a set of science-based papers that report on significant actions taken to enhance aspects of sustainability, which may include energy, transport, water management, food supply, liquid and solid waste management, and biodiversity conservation. Priority will be given to papers that include a quantified evaluation of progress made as a result of the implementation of these actions. Actions may be related to technology based and/or management initiatives. Actors may be government departments and agencies, industry, local authorities, voluntary communities, and individuals, and we hope to have a representative mix of these within the Issue. Papers should describe fully how these actions became feasible, and methods used in implementing actions and evaluating outcomes, and priority will be given to papers that address novel approaches. Papers are invited from all countries.

Prof. Dr. Richard Moles
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Sustainability science
  • Innovation for sustainability
  • Sustainability actions evaluation
  • Impact measurement

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

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21 pages, 1618 KiB  
Article
Exploration of Influential Determinants for the Adoption of Business Intelligence System in the Textile and Apparel Industry
by Sumera Ahmad, Suraya Miskon, Rana Alabdan and Iskander Tlili
Sustainability 2020, 12(18), 7674; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12187674 - 17 Sep 2020
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 4731
Abstract
The textile and apparel industry is prone to digitization with business intelligence systems (BIS) and big data concepts to contribute the global sustainability. BIS, an impactful and leading technology, is being implemented in many industrial sectors but almost 80% of BIS fail to [...] Read more.
The textile and apparel industry is prone to digitization with business intelligence systems (BIS) and big data concepts to contribute the global sustainability. BIS, an impactful and leading technology, is being implemented in many industrial sectors but almost 80% of BIS fail to give expected results due to unknown reasons. Although many scholars put effort into finding the influential determinants for the BIS implementation, they neglect the BIS adoption context, especially in the textile and apparel industry. A purposive and proportionate choice of potential determinants in the context of adoption would contribute significantly to the success of BIS. Multi-stage research is employed to identify and prioritize the significant determinants. In the first stage, twenty-two semi-structured in-depth interviews are conducted with seventeen textile and apparel companies. Ten significant determinants emerged after thematic analysis of interview data. The determinants are sustainability, competitive pressure, market trends, compatibility, technology maturity, leadership commitment and support, satisfaction with existing systems, sustainable data quality and integrity, users’ traits, and interpersonal communications that influence the adoption of BIS. In the second stage, the Best Worst Method (BWM) is used to calculate the weights for prioritizing the determinants based on experts’ opinion. These weights are then used to evaluate and rank the determinants. The findings of this research show that the leadership commitment and support, sustainability, users’ traits, and technology maturity, are the top-ranked determinants that influence the practitioners’ choice to adopt the BIS in the textile and apparel industry. The results of this study enable the BIS stakeholders to holistically comprehend the significant determinants that would drive or impede the success of BIS projects in the sustainable textile and apparel industry. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Actions and Sustainable Futures)
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20 pages, 2138 KiB  
Article
Dynamic Model of a Sustainable Water Resources Utilization System with Coupled Water Quality and Quantity in Tianjin City
by Yutong Tian, Chunhui Li, Yujun Yi, Xuan Wang and Anping Shu
Sustainability 2020, 12(10), 4254; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12104254 - 22 May 2020
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3768
Abstract
With the development of industrial and agricultural production and the social economy, the demand for water resources has gradually increased. In this paper, based on the principles of system dynamics, a sustainable water resources utilization model with coupled water quality and quantity is [...] Read more.
With the development of industrial and agricultural production and the social economy, the demand for water resources has gradually increased. In this paper, based on the principles of system dynamics, a sustainable water resources utilization model with coupled water quality and quantity is established using STELLA software to assess the sustainable use of water resources. The model includes two modules: a water supply module and a water quality module. The water supply module includes four sub-systems: economy, population, water supply, and water demand. The water quality module consists of an environmental sub-system. The model is suitable for Tianjin, where water resources are scarce. Calibration is performed using data from 2013–2016, and verification is performed using data from 2017. The simulation results are good. In order to compare the sustainable use of water resources in different development scenarios in Tianjin for 2025, a sensitivity analysis is performed for each variable, and four decision variables are selected to establish four water resources use scenarios (Scenarios 1–4). The results show that, compared with scenario 1, water shortages in scenarios 2 and 3 are delayed. Scenario 4, with stable economic growth and environmental consideration, can effectively resolve the contradiction between water supply and demand in the future, and is more conducive to the improvement of water quality. Finally, based on the above research, measures to solve water resources problems are proposed, in order to provide a reference for the sustainable use of water resources and optimization of water resources allocation in Tianjin. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Actions and Sustainable Futures)
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24 pages, 1255 KiB  
Article
A Framework of Building Sustainability Assessment System for the Commercial Buildings in Kazakhstan
by Gulzhanat Akhanova, Abid Nadeem, Jong R. Kim and Salman Azhar
Sustainability 2019, 11(17), 4754; https://doi.org/10.3390/su11174754 - 30 Aug 2019
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 4829
Abstract
Many building assessment tools exist for guiding building facilities toward sustainability. Some tools are internationally recognized while others are for specific countries based on local needs. This study endeavored to develop a building sustainability assessment framework for Kazakhstan. The framework was developed based [...] Read more.
Many building assessment tools exist for guiding building facilities toward sustainability. Some tools are internationally recognized while others are for specific countries based on local needs. This study endeavored to develop a building sustainability assessment framework for Kazakhstan. The framework was developed based on the review of building performance assessment methods such as leadership in energy and environmental design (LEED), building research establishment environmental assessment methodology (BREEAM), comprehensive assessment system for building environmental efficiency (CASBEE), and international initiative for sustainable built environment (SBTool), and considering the local conditions in Kazakhstan. A two-round Delphi survey was employed to develop the assessment categories and indicators by local experts from the architecture, engineering, and construction industry. Mean and standard deviation values were used to analyze the survey data and to make the decision on the level of agreement amongst the Delphi panelists. The proposed framework consists of nine assessment categories, 46 assessment indicators, and 142 parameters covering the four climatic regions in Kazakhstan and considering the environmental, social, and economic perspectives of the country’s sustainable development goals. The introduction of the framework is expected to serve as a reference for establishing the regional building sustainability assessment tool that will aid to increase the awareness of the public and help policymakers to solve sustainability-related issues in Kazakhstan. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Actions and Sustainable Futures)
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12 pages, 1125 KiB  
Article
Ireland’s Transition towards a Low Carbon Society: The Leadership Role of Higher Education Institutions in Solar Photovoltaic Niche Development
by William Horan, Rachel Shawe and Bernadette O’Regan
Sustainability 2019, 11(3), 558; https://doi.org/10.3390/su11030558 - 22 Jan 2019
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 6253
Abstract
Ireland is currently considered a laggard within Europe in relation to decarbonisation of its society, with future projections estimating increases in greenhouse gas emissions up to and beyond 2030. To accelerate Ireland’s transition towards a low-carbon society, there is a need for leadership [...] Read more.
Ireland is currently considered a laggard within Europe in relation to decarbonisation of its society, with future projections estimating increases in greenhouse gas emissions up to and beyond 2030. To accelerate Ireland’s transition towards a low-carbon society, there is a need for leadership in deployment and experimentation of low carbon technologies. As Higher Education Institutions (HEI) currently play a major role in generation of human capital and the associated impact on societal development, HEIs are ideal locations to focus resources in terms of deployment and experimentation of decarbonisation technologies to demonstrate best practice for further replication within wider society. To guide Irish HEIs in this regard, a novel integrated approach titled ‘Higher Education Accelerating Development for Sustainability’ (HEADS) has been developed and applied to the sector. The HEADS approach utilises the perspectives of quantitative systems analysis, sociotechnical analysis, and living lab learning to inform HEIs of their potential roles within national sustainability transitions. Applied to solar photovoltaic transitions in Ireland, the HEADS approach has identified HEIs as vital locations to deploy low-carbon technologies due to their amplification effect in signalling to wider society the attractiveness of these technologies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Actions and Sustainable Futures)
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Other

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4 pages, 191 KiB  
Reply
Reply to Flessa, K.W. et al., Comment on Manjarrez-Bringas, N. et al., Lessons for Sustainable Development: Marine mammal Conservation Policies and Its Social and Economic Effects. Sustainability 2018, 10, 2185—Holistic Socio-Ecological Approach to Promote Integral Public Policies to Preserve an Endangered Species: The Vaquita Marina
by Nahieli Manjarrez-Bringas, Eugenio Alberto Aragón-Noriega, Luis Felipe Beltrán-Morales, Michael Victor Cordoba-Matson and Alfredo Ortega-Rubio
Sustainability 2019, 11(7), 2163; https://doi.org/10.3390/su11072163 - 11 Apr 2019
Viewed by 3223
Abstract
We really appreciate the valuable comments made by our scientific colleagues Flessa et al [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Actions and Sustainable Futures)
6 pages, 226 KiB  
Comment
Vaquita Face Extinction from Bycatch. Comment on Manjarrez-Bringas, N. et al., Lessons for Sustainable Development: Marine Mammal Conservation Policies and Its Social and Economic Effects. Sustainability 2018, 10, 2185
by Karl W. Flessa, Luis Calderon-Aguilera, Carlos E. Cintra-Buenrostro, David L. Dettman, Gregory P. Dietl, David H. Goodwin, David K. Jacobs, Michal Kowalewski, Steven M. Nelson, Kirsten Rowell, Bernd R. Schöne, Jansen A. Smith and Francisco Zamora-Arroyo
Sustainability 2019, 11(7), 2161; https://doi.org/10.3390/su11072161 - 11 Apr 2019
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 5850
Abstract
We are among the scientists who have documented the environmental and ecological changes to the Upper Gulf of California following the reduction in the Colorado River’s flow. We object to any suggestion that our research supports Manjarrez-Bringas et al.’s conclusion that the decline [...] Read more.
We are among the scientists who have documented the environmental and ecological changes to the Upper Gulf of California following the reduction in the Colorado River’s flow. We object to any suggestion that our research supports Manjarrez-Bringas et al.’s conclusion that the decline in the Colorado River’s flow is the reason for the decline in the population of the endangered vaquita porpoise (Phocoena sinus). Manjarrez-Bringas et al.’s conclusions are incongruent with their own data, their logic is untenable, their analyses fail to consider current illegal fishing practices, and their recommendations are unjustified and misdirected. Vaquita face extinction because of bycatch, not because of the lack of river flow. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Actions and Sustainable Futures)
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