Search Results (4,333)

Island ecosystems, are characterized by isolation, limited land, and tourism-driven economies, face persistent waste management challenges. Spatial constraints and inadequate infrastructure often limit the development of waste recovery and recycling systems, leading to practices such as open dumping or burning that pose serious environmental and health risks. This paper examines how circular economy (CE) principles, reduce, reuse, recycle, can transform waste into a resource and enhance local resilience. A refined definition of “small islands” is introduced, combining UN criteria with a tourism-intensity filter to capture the strong link between visitor flows and solid waste generation. Barriers to CE adoption are classified into institutional, technical, geographical, financial, and social dimensions, and connected to enabling practices in four thematic areas: multi-stakeholder partnerships, recycling and composting innovations, policy and regulatory tools, and community engagement. Comparative case studies from Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Pacific reveal that integrated approaches are more durable than isolated efforts. Successful initiatives blend technology with governance, education, financial mechanisms, and community participation. The analysis highlights that no single model fits all islands; strategies must be locally adapted to be effective and transferable. Overall, the study shows that circular transitions are both feasible and necessary, offering environmental gains, economic value, and alignment with the EU Green Deal and global sustainability goals. Full article

This study develops and applies the Financial Risk Meter (FRM) for Kuwait, a novel measure of systemic risk tailored for a commodity-dependent emerging economy. Using Lasso quantile regression, the FRM captures tail-event co-movements among key financial institutions, providing a robust indicator of systemic stress. This paper makes three primary contributions. First, it provides the first application of the FRM framework to an oil-exporting economy, identifying the distinct channels through which global financial shocks and commodity price volatility create systemic risk. Second, it quantitatively demonstrates the FRM’s superior performance in tracking financial stress compared to the benchmark Conditional Value-at-Risk (CoVaR) model. Third, it identifies the specific drivers of systemic risk in Kuwait, offering actionable insights for policymakers. Our findings show that the FRM effectively pinpoints periods of high financial distress, aligns with global risk indicators, and can enhance recession forecasting. By providing a clear and timely measure of systemic risk, this study offers a valuable tool for regulators to bolster financial stability and advance sustainable economic development in Kuwait and other resource-dependent nations. Full article

Accurate and automated credit assessment systems are fundamental to the integrity of financial ecosystems, underpinning responsible lending, risk mitigation, and sustainable economic growth. In light of persistent economic uncertainties and an increasing frequency of credit defaults, financial entities face urgent demands for robust and scalable risk evaluation tools. While a diverse array of statistical and machine learning techniques have been proposed for credit scoring, prevailing methods remain labor-intensive and operationally cumbersome. This paper introduces VeriCred, a novel credit evaluation framework that synergistically combines automated machine learning with blockchain-based oversight to overcome these limitations. The proposed approach incorporates a data augmentation strategy to enrich limited and heterogeneous credit datasets, thereby improving model generalization. A distinctive blockchain layer is embedded to immutably trace data provenance and model decisions, ensuring full auditability. By orchestrating the end-to-end workflow—including feature extraction, hyperparameter optimization, and model selection—within a unified AutoML pipeline, the system drastically reduces manual dependency. Architecturally, the framework introduces C-NAS, a neural architecture search mechanism customized for credit risk prediction, alongside A-Triplet loss, an objective function tailored to refine feature discrimination. To address opacity concerns, an interpretability component elucidates feature contributions and model reasoning. Empirical evaluations demonstrate that VeriCred achieves superior predictive accuracy with significantly reduced computational overhead, offering financial institutions a transparent, efficient, and trustworthy credit scoring solution. Full article

This paper investigates the determinants of economic growth in EU member states that joined the Union in 2004 and later, focusing on institutional quality, competitiveness, and the green transition. Three composite indices are constructed using principal component analysis (PCA) and incorporated into a panel ARDL-PMG model, complemented by robustness checks with fixed-effects and system-GMM estimators. The results highlight competitiveness as the most robust driver of growth across specifications, while institutional quality emerges as an enabling factor, particularly under dynamic specifications that account for endogeneity. The green transition shows significant long-run benefits, although its short-run effects are weaker, reflecting the gradual payoff of environmental investments. Policy implications emphasize the importance of strengthening institutional frameworks, fostering innovation and productivity, and sustaining commitments to the green transition as pillars of sustainable convergence. The findings enrich the literature on EU integration and provide evidence-based insights for aligning cohesion policy and the European Green Deal with growth objectives. Full article

Chinese adolescents face significant mental health risks from addictive design features embedded in AI-driven digital platforms. Existing regulations inadequately address design-level addiction triggers in these environments, focusing primarily on content moderation and usage restrictions. This study identifies this gap and offers a novel framework that integrates systems theory and legal governance to regulate feedback loops between adolescents and digital platforms. Using the Adaptive Interaction Design Framework and a three-tiered typology of addictive design features, the research highlights how conceptual ambiguity and institutional fragmentation weaken regulatory efforts, resulting in reactive responses instead of proactive protection. To enhance regulatory effectiveness, this study recommends establishing a risk-tiered precautionary oversight system, providing enforceable definitions of addictive design features, mandating anti-addiction design practices and labeling, implementing economic measures like Pigouvian taxes, and fostering multi-stakeholder governance. It also emphasizes the need for cross-border coordination to address regulatory arbitrage. These policy directions aim to enhance regulatory efficacy and protect youth well-being in digital environments, contributing to ongoing international discussions on adolescent digital safety. Full article

The existing literature has extensively examined the influences of governments, media, the public, financial institutions, and executives on corporate environmental violations, yet the role of investors remains underexplored. This study introduces the perspective of green institutional investors to investigate how they affect corporate environmental violations. The results show that such investors significantly curb environmental violations by strengthening environmental oversight and alleviating financing constraints. Furthermore, cross-sectional evidence reveals that this inhibitory effect is more pronounced in settings with weaker government, media, and public environmental attention, underdeveloped green credit systems, and limited executive green experience. Additional analysis of economic consequences indicates that such investors help mitigate both operational and financial risks by reducing environmental violations. Finally, evidence of spillover effects confirms that this inhibitory effect extends to both industry and regional levels. Overall, this study highlights the vital role of investors in deterring corporate environmental misconduct. Full article

This study develops and validates the concept of Regulatory Cultural Stewardship (RCS) as a dynamic capability that enables small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to achieve sustainable AI-enabled digital transformation (AIEDT) in a volatile emerging economy. RCS empowers SMEs to harmonize regulatory compliance with cultural legitimacy, a critical nexus for fostering sustainable business practices and long-term resilience (economic viability and social legitimacy), in line with the global sustainable objectives. Using survey data from 391 Pakistani SMEs and Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM), we find that four key AIEDT drivers explain 65.1% of the variance in AI innovation, with Technological Infrastructure and Policy and Ecosystem Support as dominant enablers. AI innovation fully mediates the relationship between AIEDT drivers and sustainable business performance. RCS not only enhances SME performance directly but also strengthens the AI innovation–business performance linkage as a significant moderator. Sectoral analysis reveals that services benefit most from Socio-Cultural Readiness, while manufacturing and primary sectors depend more on policy infrastructure and RCS. Significantly, RCS is validated as a distinct construct, integrating compliance and cultural alignment, rather than a subset of existing factors like policy support or cultural readiness. The study emphasizes the importance of scalable AI infrastructure, workforce upskilling, and internal cultural adaptation, while urging policymakers to stabilize AI governance frameworks to ensure a sustainable and equitable digital transition. The findings advance theory by conceptualizing RCS as a meta-capability bridging institutional voids and socio-cultural dynamics and offer practical insights for policymakers and managers seeking to implement ethically aligned and sustainable AIEDT strategies in emerging markets. At a conceptual level, RCS is ethically grounded in global AI principles, including fairness, accountability, and transparency, ensuring that cultural alignment never overrides human-centered values. Full article

Mediterranean coastal cultural heritage sites are increasingly threatened by the impacts of climate change, including sea-level rise, coastal erosion, and extreme weather events, which endanger both their physical integrity and their cultural and economic value. Safeguarding these vulnerable cultural assets requires approaches that integrate technological innovation with effective governance and management strategies. This study presents a systematic review of research published between 2000 and 2024, conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines to ensure methodological rigor and transparency. Searches were conducted in Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar, limited to English-language studies explicitly addressing coastal cultural heritage in the Mediterranean. A total of 77 studies were analyzed using bibliometric and spatial techniques to examine thematic trends, methodological orientations, and regional patterns. Results reveal a sharp rise in scholarly output after 2014, with Italy, Greece, and Cyprus emerging as dominant contributors. The literature demonstrates a strong emphasis on tangible cultural heritage, particularly archaeological sites and monuments, while cultural landscapes and nature–culture systems receive comparatively limited attention. Methodologically, the field is dominated by digital and technology-driven tools such as GIS, remote sensing, 3D documentation, and climate modelling, with socially grounded and participatory approaches appearing in less than 5% of studies. More than 70% of the reviewed works adopt case study designs, which constrain comparative and generalizable insights. In contrast, a predominance of future-oriented assessments highlights a persistent lack of present-day monitoring and baseline data. Collectively, these findings clarify the paper’s exclusive focus on coastal cultural heritage, underscore the need to broaden geographical coverage, integrate socio-institutional dimensions with environmental diagnostics, and prioritize empirical, present-focused approaches. In this direction, future research will advance an integrated framework for assessing coastal vulnerability at both site-specific and regional scales, supporting proactive and evidence-based conservation planning. Full article

Background: This study aims to identify the socioeconomic factors influencing the likelihood of women being victims of violence in the canton of Riobamba, located in the Ecuadorian highlands, as well as the gravity and prevalence of different types of violence. Methods: For each type of violence, a questionnaire was applied on social, economic and family structure characteristics, personal and family experiences of violence, and events of abuse in work, educational, community, public institution, intimate partner and family environments. From the gravity and prevalence estimates, multiple linear regression modelling (gravity) and discrete choice modelling (probability of being a victim and prevalence) were used. Results: Findings indicate that the likelihood of being abused increases among divorced women and with experiences of violence in the family. The prevalence and severity of all types of violence rise with higher income levels due to men’s loss of control. Conclusions: Strategies for access to education could influence the different types of violence, as it reduces the level of gravity in all cases. Full article

Introduction: Building a life in an asylum country poses specific challenges for women, who often face compounded barriers in healthcare, language acquisition, economic independence, childcare, education, cultural adaptation, and legal processes. This study examines the experiences of asylum-seeking women in Portugal, focusing on discrimination perpetrated by professionals within reception and integration institutions. Methods: Drawing on 24 semi-structured interviews with women from the Middle East (n = 14) and Africa (n = 10), this research adopts a criminological and gender lens and employs a narrative paradigm informed by constructivist Grounded Theory and an abductive approach. Results: The analysis reveals that institutional discrimination, manifested through neglect, hostility, and cultural insensitivity, reinforces feelings of abandonment and fear, obstructs integration, and perpetuates cycles of marginalization and vulnerability. These dynamics are intensified by gender-based and structural violence embedded in asylum procedures and professional practices. The findings highlight the emotional and relational dimensions of institutional encounters, showing how empathy, trust, and intercultural awareness among professionals are crucial for effective inclusion. Conclusions: This study concludes that addressing institutional discrimination requires systemic change, professional training in gender-sensitive and intercultural competencies, and the promotion of equitable, inclusive, and human rights-based reception practices in Portugal. Full article

Carbon emissions trading from past studies has been recommended as effective in minimizing future levels of carbon emissions. The aim of this paper is to develop a theoretical framework for a construction industry carbon trading system by identifying the categorizations in the system and their influences. The theoretical framework in this study was developed using the PROMISE Framework. PROMISE is an acronym representing Personal, Relational, Organizational, Market, Institutional, Social, and Environmental. The Scopus database was used in the selection of articles. Using the System Dynamics (SD) Causal Loop Diagram (CLD) approach, the positive and negative influences among the variables in the seven categories were evaluated and illustrated. This study is significant and provides a foundation for future researchers to develop conceptual frameworks and models for carbon mitigation strategies. For policy makers, the proposed carbon trading framework assists in evaluating the key legal, economic, environmental, and political policies that can improve carbon trading projects in the built environment. When policy makers place significant emphasis on the influences identified in this study, it will contribute to them supporting regulations and policies that effectively mitigate these emissions. Full article

The rapid advancement of emerging technologies is reshaping industries, widening skills gaps, and increasing the demand for technology talent. Limited university–industry collaboration further constrains the alignment between educational outcomes and labor market needs. This study proposes an Integrated Competency-Based Framework for Employability and the Sustainability of Higher Education, focusing on institutional and knowledge sustainability. The Framework integrates a Competency Map that establishes a university–industry shared language and a Digital Platform that facilitates actor interactions, strengthening the characterization, visibility, and connection of student talent and industry opportunities through digital portfolios. The research followed a two-phase approach: design and pilot implementation. During the pilot, the core components of the Framework were developed, and its initial feasibility and potential relevance were assessed through a survey, a workshop, and semi-structured interviews with students, professors, and industry stakeholders. The findings suggest that the Framework may enhance student employability, access to industry opportunities and talent identification, and strengthen institutional processes that support teaching, curriculum development, academic quality enhancement, and accreditation, thus highlighting the potential contribution of the Framework to institutional, knowledge, and socio-economic sustainability. The study makes theoretical, empirical, and practical contributions by advancing competency-based education for employability and the sustainability of higher education. Full article

In the contemporary era of accelerated artificial intelligence (AI) development, governments are progressively embedding AI technologies within administrative structures and public service delivery systems, thereby influencing green growth through a variety of direct and indirect mechanisms. This study examines the impact of governmental artificial intelligence, captured by readiness of governments for the adoption of artificial intelligence, alongside key macroeconomic, social, and institutional governance factors, on green growth across European Union countries between 2019 and 2023. Employing a combination of static and dynamic panel econometric techniques (OLS, FGLS, PCSE, LIML-IV, and system GMM), the analysis reveals that governmental deployment of AI exerts a positive effect on green growth within the sample. The empirical results demonstrate that governments’ readiness to systematically deploy AI exerts a positive influence on green growth, thereby supporting the hypothesis that governmental AI capabilities foster sustainable development. The positive coefficient on the lagged green growth, together with the stable significance levels across all model specifications, provides quantitative evidence that governmental AI readiness has a positive and statistically significant effect on green growth. The synergistic interaction among macroeconomic, social, and institutional governance factors provides strong empirical support for the design of robust policies that promote the implementation of AI at the governmental level, coupled with mechanisms to stimulate economic expansion, public investment, and foreign capital inflows. Full article

This article investigates how Web3 decentralization unfolds in practice and asks two guiding questions: (i) How democratic are decentralized governance systems in practice? (ii) Under what institutional conditions can technological decentralization translate into social inclusion? Based on multi-year ethnographic fieldwork (2022–2025) across Silicon Valley, Washington, D.C., Europe, and the Global South, this study draws on participant observation, semi-structured interviews, and comparative analysis of seven ecosystems—Ethereum, MakerDAO, Uniswap, Mastodon, Celo, Grassroots Economics, and GoodDollar. The findings show that participation asymmetries are structural: token-based governance is dominated by a small group of technically skilled or capital-rich actors, while voter turnout often remains below ten percent. Intermediaries such as foundations, developers, NGOs, and cooperatives are indispensable for coordination, contradicting the idea of hierarchy-free decentralization. In contrast, projects that institutionalize clear membership, monitoring, and accountability—particularly in cooperative and federated settings—display stronger democratic resilience. Comparative evidence also reveals oligarchic consolidation in Global North ecosystems and infrastructural exclusion in the Global South. These results substantiate what Richard R. Nelson termed “the Moon and the Ghetto” paradox: extraordinary technical innovation without corresponding social progress. Interpreted through innovation systems theory, the study concludes that advancing decentralized technologies requires parallel investment in mission-oriented institutions that ensure participation, equity, and accountability in digital infrastructures. Full article

Professional football players face considerable occupational hazards, with injuries posing serious challenges to player safety, club performance, and regulatory oversight. This descriptive study examines the multifaceted implications of Portugal’s Laws No. 48/2023, which formally recognises professional football as a high-risk occupation and strengthens the mandatory insurance regime through a major regulatory update. Adopting a qualitative approach, the analysis focuses on Portugal, where the professional football business model heavily relies on player commercialisation, and compares regulatory frameworks in Spain, Germany, England, Italy, France, and Brazil. Findings indicate that Portugal’s legal framework enhances player safety by ensuring comprehensive coverage and improved disability protections, yet also introduces financial pressures on clubs, particularly those with lower economic capacity. These pressures are exacerbated by limited market competition and high insurance concentration, increasing premium costs. Cross-country comparisons reveal persistent disparities in legal standards, insurance scope, and institutional coordination, which complicate risk allocation in an increasingly globalised football market. Notably, Portugal’s high-risk insurance model most closely aligns with France’s hybrid approach, in contrast to fully public schemes seen in countries like Germany and Italy. While complete harmonisation remains challenging, the study identifies key principles to guide policy reform and international cooperation. Overall, the findings advance understanding of occupational risk regulation in sport and offer practical insights for designing effective, equitable, and safety-oriented protection systems for professional athletes. Full article