Search Results (1,478)

Global studies indicate that urban public transport systems are facing critical challenges concerning capacity, speed, punctuality, comfort, and network integration, particularly on main transit axes and in central urban areas. At the same time, previous international research in transport planning has demonstrated that urban development scenarios and transport solutions can be evaluated using multiple-criteria analysis. This research argues that such analysis should be supplemented with a system of emotional criteria that would allow for a holistic evaluation of public emotional responses to different public transport scenarios using a public transport multimodal analysis (PAMA) system. The proposed approach assumes that traditional technical, economic, environmental, social, governance, cultural, accessibility, and quality indicators do not sufficiently reflect the needs and requirements of public transport stakeholders. Public transport emotional analysis can add new shades to the above indicators by providing practical insights into stakeholders’ experiences and opinions, leading to more holistic, effective, and passenger-centered improvements. The developed PAMA system performs a multiple-criteria analysis of public transport options, calculates customer-perceived value, and provides numerical recommendations for project enhancement. Full article

Background: Integrating additive manufacturing (AM) into manufacturing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) requires addressing technological, economic, organizational, environmental, and institutional conditions whose interrelationships remain insufficiently understood. Methods: This study proposes a conceptual framework for the sustainable integration of AM by combining Systematic Literature Mapping (SLM) with Fuzzy DEMATEL. The SLM covered publications indexed in Scopus, Web of Science Core Collection, and EI Compendex from January 2015 to May 2026. Among 1123 identified records, 72 studies met the inclusion criteria, leading to eight critical factors across political, economic, social, and environmental dimensions. These factors were subsequently evaluated by a panel of 15 experts to determine their interdependencies and cause–effect structure. Results: Government incentives (F1; D − R = 0.928) and digital infrastructure (F2; D − R = 0.469) emerged as the main causal drivers, while implementation costs (F4; D + R = 22.690) showed the highest prominence. The resulting framework comprises four levels: strategic activation, implementation enablement, operational integration and feasibility, and sustainable outcomes. Conclusions: Sustainable AM integration follows a hierarchical causal structure in which institutional and digital conditions initiate adoption, financial and regulatory mechanisms support implementation, and organizational and environmental benefits emerge as subsequent outcomes, providing SMEs with a structured basis for implementation decisions. Full article

Construction supply chains are pivotal to circular economy transitions but remain structurally fragmented, limiting the scalability of resource-efficient solutions. At the same time, digital technologies and life cycle assessment are often deployed in isolation, constraining their ability to enable system-level circularity. Using a theory-building literature synthesis of 141 publications across circular economy, sustainable supply chain management, digitalization, and life cycle sustainability assessment, this study develops an integrated conceptual framework that explains how circular performance may be shaped by AI-enabled decision capabilities, lifecycle sustainability constraints operationalized through PESI-LCA, and system-level alignment conceptualized through DCAM. AI is conceptualized as a dynamic capability for prediction and optimization, while PESI-LCA is positioned as an operationalized LCSA-based constraint system that embeds environmental, social, and economic criteria into decision architectures. DCAM defines the alignment conditions required across digital infrastructure, circular strategies, business models, and institutional enablers. The framework advances a non-additive logic: circular outcomes depend on how sustainability constraints shape AI-driven decision-making and how alignment enables coordinated implementation across supply chains. A key theoretical contribution is the identification of structural distortion as a failure mode in which digital optimization reinforces linear resource flows. The study advances sustainable supply chain theory and offers testable propositions and governance implications for scaling circular construction systems. Full article

Commercialisation of research outcomes depends not only on technological quality but also on the competences through which research organisations identify market opportunities, coordinate stakeholders and translate knowledge into sustainable value. This study identifies and classifies commercialisation competences in research network organisations and develops a time-structured framework for operationalising their contribution to sustainability-oriented innovation (SOI). A structured review of Scopus and Web of Science publications, using predefined relevance criteria, yielded 129 competence formulations. Competence extraction was conducted by one author, while two authors independently synthesised the formulations into 25 conceptually distinct competences: five cognitive, eight functional, four personal and eight meta-competences. The 25 competences were then mapped against the triple bottom line, dynamic capabilities and ESG perspectives through a consensus-based expert assessment. Ten competences were classified as core sustainability-oriented, twelve as enabling and three as neutral. Because this classification is interpretative rather than empirically validated, it is intended as a transparent analytical proposition for subsequent testing. Each competence was linked to an Activity–Process Performance–Outcome (A–S–W) structure based on leading, diagnostic and lagging indicators, producing 75 illustrative indicators. The proposed numerical thresholds are heuristic calibration examples rather than universal benchmarks. The framework connects competence activation with process quality and commercialisation outcomes while incorporating economic, environmental and social dimensions and provides a basis for competence development, performance monitoring and future empirical validation. Full article

Background/Objectives: Lebanon is undergoing a rapid demographic transition, with older adults projected to exceed one-fifth of the population by 2050. Supporting healthy and independent aging requires a robust evidence base that extends beyond clinical care to encompass community, environmental, psychosocial, and policy dimensions of aging in place. This bibliometric review maps the landscape of gerontology and geriatrics research in Lebanon to identify research trends, gaps, and future priorities for advancing holistic approaches to aging. Methods: A bibliometric review was conducted of gerontology and geriatrics research published between 2015 and 2026. Publications were retrieved from the Scopus database and screened according to predefined eligibility criteria. Results: A total of 403 publications met the inclusion criteria. Research productivity increased steadily over the study period, reaching its highest level in 2025, although publications remained concentrated among a relatively small number of authors and institutions. The literature was predominantly oriented toward clinical, epidemiological, and public health aspects of aging, with comparatively limited attention to community-based aging, psychosocial well-being, age-friendly environments, policy, social participation, and other determinants that support older adults’ ability to age safely and independently within their communities. Research evaluating interventions outside tertiary healthcare settings was particularly scarce. Conclusions: This review provides the first bibliometric mapping of gerontology and geriatrics research in Lebanon and indicates that, despite substantial growth in scientific output, the identified literature is largely centered on diseases and institutional healthcare. Future research should adopt more holistic and multidisciplinary perspectives to promote psychosocial well-being and aging well in one’s community. These priorities may guide researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in developing strategies for aging well in Lebanon. Full article

Designing new buildings in historical environments remains a critical challenge in balancing architectural innovation with the preservation of cultural heritage values. Four fundamental design approaches have been identified in the literature: imitation, emulation, respectful integration, and contrast. Despite extensive research on new architectural interventions in historical contexts, a conceptual gap remains regarding the relationship between architectural differentiation and contextual integration. This study addresses this gap by conceptualizing contrast not as the antithesis of contextual integration, but as a design strategy whose contribution can be evaluated across different dimensions of context. It investigates the conditions under which contrast can function as a context-responsive design strategy. A narrative literature review was conducted to thematically classify design approaches based on recurring concepts. The methodological contribution of the study lies in transforming a single case into a transferable analytical tool for theoretical testing. Qualitative evaluation techniques, including spatial, perceptual, and theoretical readings, were employed to assess the case against established criteria using architectural evidence such as plans, sections, elevations, and photographs. The analysis also considered the historical-cultural, social, and environmental dimensions of context. In this respect, the proposed model contributes to ongoing debates in architectural heritage conservation by offering an alternative evaluative tool for contemporary interventions in historic settings. Full article

Proper municipal solid waste (MSW) management is vital for mitigating environmental degradation and protecting public health. Landfill site selection remains a complex spatial decision-making challenge, balancing ecological, social, and economic parameters. This study presents a comprehensive systematic review of 175 peer-reviewed articles published between 2016 and 2026, evaluating the evolution of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) frameworks. The findings indicate that road accessibility (93.7%), surface and groundwater protection (91.4%), slope gradients (84.6%), and settlement buffer zones (78.9%) represent the most critical and universally applied siting criteria. Digital Elevation Models (81.9%) and geological maps (57.3%) serve as foundational geospatial datasets. While the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) remains the dominant weighting technique (63.41%), recent trends show an increasing adoption of hybrid multi-criteria models and optimisation algorithms. Geographically, research output is led by India, Iran, and Turkey, peaking significantly in 2025. Crucially, this review exposes prominent methodological shortcomings, notably a heavy reliance on subjective expert validation (73.8%), whereas quantitative validation, sensitivity analysis, and uncertainty assessment remain critically underutilised. In contrast to earlier reviews, this review offers a thorough and critical synthesis of GIS- and MCDA-based approaches to landfill site selection by carefully evaluating methodological advancements, examining the advantages, disadvantages, and limitations of current approaches, and incorporating statistical trends with a structured methodological framework. This approach highlights important research gaps and offers evidence-based suggestions for creating more transparent, reliable, and sustainable techniques for landfill site selection by selecting, screening, and including relevant articles. To foster sustainable urban planning, future research must prioritise standardised evaluation frameworks, rigorous uncertainty quantification, and the integration of artificial intelligence and machine learning with spatial modelling. Full article

Global seaports play a pivotal role in international supply chains; however, prevailing port performance evaluation frameworks remain predominantly intraport-oriented, limiting their capacity to support sustainability transitions and the integration of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) criteria. Although ports are increasingly conceptualised as multiscale systems embedded within maritime and inland networks, existing approaches remain fragmented across intraport, foreland (seaside connectivity) and hinterland dimensions. Using a systematic literature review following PRISMA 2020, combined with bibliometric mapping through VOSviewer and covering 2019–2024, this study adopts a two-stage analytical design. First, a broad corpus of 238 peer-reviewed articles is used to develop a six-category port performance framework. Second, this corpus is refined to 95 articles focused on container ports, examined by integrating six methodological approaches with three spatial scales. This layered design ensures that the broad corpus defines the categories, while the refined corpus supports the multiscale application of the matrix. The findings reveal a persistent dominance of intraport-focused and efficiency-oriented approaches, alongside limited integration across spatial scales. Sustainability and governance perspectives are increasingly present but remain weakly connected to logistics network performance and rarely operationalise ESG criteria. The study develops a Multiscale Diagnostic Matrix that synthesises the literature and diagnoses fragmentation in port performance evaluation. Full article

China has experienced rapid growth in municipal solid waste generation, highlighting the need to improve the effectiveness of waste sorting governance in urban areas. As the implementation of MSW sorting policies relies heavily on public acceptance and sustained participation, evaluating policy implementation from the public perspective is particularly important, yet comprehensive evaluation frameworks remain limited. This study develops a bottom-up evaluation framework integrating large-scale social media discourse, questionnaire validation, and multi-criteria decision-making. It links LDA topic modeling with policy optimization, constructs 12 multi-actor policy pathways, incorporates DEMATEL-ANP network weighting, applies modified VIKOR for pathway ranking and improvement identification, and verifies robustness using DANP and CRITIC. Results reveal that the Public–Private Partnership model combined with compulsory policies and commissioned property management achieves the highest performance (Pathway P3: management outsourcing PPP + mandatory policy + commissioned property management). Public attitude and participation behavior emerged as central upstream criteria in the influence structure, while P3 remained the top-ranked pathway across DANP- and CRITIC-based VIKOR tests and v = 0.3–0.7. The findings indicate that effective waste sorting requires mandatory rules, professional commissioned property management, convenient facilities, and sustained community support, with pathway-specific improvement directed to the most salient economic, social, and environmental weaknesses. Full article

Amid the global push for sustainability, Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) criteria have become core benchmarks for corporate value. Simultaneously, government WeChat accounts have reshaped China’s regional information ecosystems. This paper systematically examines the impact of the launch of government WeChat accounts (LGWA) on agricultural enterprises’ ESG performance. Drawing on information asymmetry theory, we treat municipal-level LGWA as a quasi-natural experiment, employing an optimized double machine learning (DML) model. The study utilizes unbalanced panel data from 326 listed agricultural enterprises (2009–2024) and over five million WeChat messages. Results indicate LGWA significantly enhances ESG performance by alleviating government-enterprise, enterprise-public, and bank-enterprise information asymmetry. Executive political connections negatively moderate this effect. This enhancement is more pronounced for highly active accounts posting during work hours, particularly benefiting less-digitalized enterprises. This study provides a novel perspective on the micro-level governance effects of digital government, guiding sustainable policy formulation and encouraging corporate digital adoption. Full article

Background: Caring for dependent children with chronic illnesses or disabilities constitutes a major public health challenge, subjecting family caregivers to prolonged physical and emotional stressors. Objectives: To quantitatively synthesize the relationship between depressive symptomatology and quality of life (QoL) in this population. Methods: A systematic review methodology with meta-analysis was conducted following PRISMA guidelines and Cochrane handbook recommendations. Databases such as PubMed, CINAHL, PsycInfo and Scopus were consulted up to February 2026. Results: Thirty-three original studies evaluating family caregivers of children under 18 years of age and reporting statistical data of association were included. The meta-analysis revealed a statistically significant moderate-to-strong negative association between depressive symptoms and overall QoL (r = −0.532; I² = 9.51%), maintaining similar values across all analyzed domains (physical, mental, social and environmental) as well as the summary components of the SF-36 questionnaire. According to the GRADE criteria, the overall certainty of evidence was rated as low to very low across all QoL domains and SF-36 components. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that heightened depressive symptomatology is substantially associated with compromised well-being among family caregivers. Full article

Soil contamination represents a pervasive and multifaceted threat to environmental integrity, public health, and sustainable land use. In response to this challenge, this systematic review synthesizes recent advancements in sustainable soil remediation techniques, with an emphasis on bioremediation, nature-based solutions (NBSs), innovative physicochemical methods, and multidimensional assessment frameworks. Utilizing the adapted PRISMA methodology, 3222 peer-reviewed articles published between 2015 and 2025 were initially identified, with 53 studies selected for in-depth evaluation based on methodological rigor, innovation, and relevance to sustainability. The findings reveal a pronounced research trajectory toward biologically mediated remediation strategies, including microbial bioremediation, phytoremediation, and vermiremediation, as well as hybrid systems that incorporate biochar and nano-enabled materials to enhance efficacy. Concurrently, emerging physicochemical techniques, such as stepped steam heating and composite stabilization using fly ash demonstrate potential for high-efficiency contaminant immobilization with reduced environmental trade-offs. The integration of computational tools, particularly machine learning for remediation optimization, and the application of life cycle assessment (LCA) and Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA), are redefining how sustainability is quantified and operationalized. In addition to technical innovation, the review underscores critical policy and socio-economic dimensions, including regulatory fragmentation, funding asymmetries, and stakeholder engagement. Comparative analyses of EU and US regulatory frameworks highlight the impact of governance structures on implementation scalability and public acceptance. The review concludes by advocating for a paradigm shift toward holistic, transdisciplinary remediation approaches that are ecologically resilient, economically viable, and socially just aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 15.3) and the Paris Agreement. This review provides a comprehensive and integrative perspective on the current state and future directions of sustainable soil remediation, offering a strategic foundation for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners engaged in the restoration of contaminated lands. Full article

Water management in Arid and Semi-Arid Regions (ASARs), specifically in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, has historically relied on large-scale, centralized systems that have successfully expanded potable water access. However, their high energy intensity, escalating operating costs, and limited flexibility amid increasing climate variability have raised concerns about their long-term sustainability. In this context, decentralized water systems (DWSs), including rainwater harvesting (RWH), greywater reuse (GWR), and hybrid rainwater–greywater systems (HRGSs), offer promising solutions to reduce pressure on centralized infrastructure, enhance dry-season water availability, and mitigate urban flooding risks. Despite their strategic relevance, a comprehensive sustainability assessment framework tailored to GCC conditions remains insufficiently developed. To address this gap, a systematic review of literature indexed in Scopus, Engineering Village, and Google Scholar was conducted. Thirty studies met the inclusion criteria and were critically analyzed to identify prevailing assessment approaches and recurring sustainability dimensions. Building on these findings, this study proposes a regionally tailored, multi-criteria sustainability framework designed specifically for GCC contexts. The proposed framework integrates five core dimensions, including technical, environmental, economic, social, and political–institutional, comprising 14 indicators and four sub-indicators. To refine and validate the framework, a two-round Delphi technique was conducted. A total of 102 experts from GCC member states were invited, of whom 43 participated in the first round, and 25 completed the second round. The results demonstrated strong consensus regarding the relevance and applicability of the selected indicators, with particular emphasis on technical and environmental dimensions. Notably, the lack of agreement on equal weighting in the first round justified the adoption of a ranking-based weighting approach in the second round, enabling a more realistic representation of expert consensus. The final DWS index, developed using a hierarchical multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) approach, integrates criterion weights, indicator weights, and performance scores into a single composite metric. The results indicate that HRGSs achieved the highest overall performance (55.00), followed closely by GWR (54.76) and RWH (54.20). Overall, the proposed framework provides a robust and context-specific tool to support sustainability assessment and inform policy development for DWSs in the GCC region. Full article

The Vietnamese textile and garment industry faces a critical sustainability paradox under the impending Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). Firms are pressured to maintain high-volume export growth while aggressively minimizing carbon and resource intensity. To empirically resolve this tension, this study develops a novel three-phase benchmarking framework that integrates the Best–Worst Method (BWM), VIKOR, and Super-Efficiency Slacks-Based Measure (Super-SBM) under Variable Returns to Scale. Applied to 12 listed enterprises using 2024 fiscal data, the methodology first identifies Energy Intensity as the paramount strategic priority via the BWM. Next, VIKOR mathematically compresses six heterogeneous environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria into a single composite index, thereby eliminating standard Data Envelopment Analysis dimensionality constraints. The Phase 3 Super-SBM results reveal profound sector heterogeneity. The macro-scale giant VGT defines the absolute efficiency frontier with an unprecedented score of 18.6729 and zero operational slack. However, the λ reference matrix identifies mid-cap operators such as Tien Son Thanh Hoa and Binh Duong Garment as highly replicable, agile benchmarks for the broader industry. Crucially, the non-radial projection analysis uncovers hidden structural vulnerabilities. The data show that while certain firms possess massive operational buffers, others operate on the absolute edge of the efficiency frontier, leaving them dangerously exposed to impending carbon-taxation shocks. Furthermore, the model identifies critical instances of ESG decoupling in which green investments fail to yield proportional increases in export revenues. These findings suggest that addressing the sustainability paradox requires targeted structural interventions informed by diagnostic benchmarking. Policymakers and corporate executives must integrate open innovation frameworks and systematic problem-solving methodologies to structurally decouple economic output from fossil-fuel energy dependence and outdated labor-arbitrage models. Full article

Composite sustainability indices are widely used in the evaluation of environmental, social, and economic sustainability of states. However, different approaches to the selection of indicators, their weighting, and some other criteria can impact the validity and reliability of the currently utilized techniques of calculation of sustainability indices. In this research, the ISI is created and assessed for the 27 Member States of the European Union (EU-27) over the period 2010–2024 with the help of the combination of the components of composite indices, econometric analysis, multicriteria decision-making, sensitivity analysis, and benchmarking. Fourteen standardized indicators of sustainability are aggregated to create environmental, social, and economic sub-indices, which are further aggregated to produce the overall ISI. Pearson correlation, OLS regression, and two-way fixed-effects panel model with the fixed effects for countries and years were employed to estimate correlations between each sustainability indicator and the SDG Index, while the COPRAS method was used to evaluate the sustainability performance of the countries. The highest mean value of ISI was found for the Netherlands (0.750), while the lowest ISI values were estimated for Greece and Romania (0.327). The sustainability performance improved in 2010–2024 in 26 of the 27 EU Member States. The sensitivity analysis using the CRITIC method revealed the extremely high stability of the ranking (ρS = 0.989, p < 0.001). Validation of the ISI benchmarking the SDG Index revealed significant moderate positive correlations (rP = 0.563; ρS = 0.579; p < 0.001). Full article