Sustainability最新文献

{"title":"Exploring Sustainable Leisure Farm with Intelligent of Things (IoT) Technology Solution for Aging","authors":"Chun-Min Kuo, Ching-Hsin Wang, Chin-Yao Tseng, Ying-Chen Lo","doi":"10.3390/su16156311","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/su16156311","url":null,"abstract":"Amid the increasingly severe challenges faced by traditional agricultural development, it has become necessary for farms to undergo operational transformations. In considering the direction of this transformation, the growing proportion of older adults in the population and the maturation of modern smart technologies applied to industries must be taken into account. By integrating intelligent Internet of Things (IoT) solutions to aid business operations, leisure farms are expected to provide significant benefits to both operators and visitors. Taiwan, which has long been a leader in precision agriculture, serves as a benchmark in Asia for the successful transformation of traditional farms into leisure farms, becoming a model for neighboring countries. This study investigates the transformative potential of intelligent IoT technology solutions on leisure farms, highlighting their capacity to attract senior citizens and create sustainable business models in competitive, homogeneous markets. The primary objective of this research is to uncover the advantageous factors associated with the adoption of intelligent IoT technology solutions in leisure farms. Employing a grounded theory approach, this research conducted face-to-face semi-structured interviews with 40 leisure farm operators to gain insights into the innovative and sustainable value propositions of leisure farms. This study identifies six key advantageous factors and six constraint factors. This research provides forward-looking insights into the application of intelligent IoT technology solutions in leisure farms, emphasizing strategic directions for operators. The integration of these solutions presents a unique opportunity for leisure farms to meet the demands of elderly individuals seeking safe, natural environments without compromising their interests. By offering tailored leisure activities and entertainment, these solutions enhance the quality of life of seniors and promote rural lifestyles, positioning leisure farms as innovative and competitive players in the market. The insights provided in this study can also inform government policymakers and serve as a foundation for future researchers to extend related studies from a customer perspective.","PeriodicalId":509360,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability","volume":"53 12","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141809862","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Correction: Shimamoto, M. Normative Corporate Income Tax with Rent for SDGs’ Funding: Case of the U.S. Sustainability 2023, 15, 3176","authors":"Mihoko Shimamoto","doi":"10.3390/su16156274","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/su16156274","url":null,"abstract":"The author would like to make the following corrections to the published paper [...]","PeriodicalId":509360,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability","volume":"99 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141812448","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Low Temperature Pyrolysis and Exfoliation of Waste Printed Circuit Boards: Recovery of High Purity Copper Foils","authors":"Elanjikkal Indran Anjana, K. Jayasankar, Rita Khanna, Jayapalan Venkatesan, Yury V. Konyukhov, Partha Sarathy Mukherjee","doi":"10.3390/su16156269","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/su16156269","url":null,"abstract":"Although several techniques have been developed to extract copper from waste printed circuit boards (PCBs), there remain several challenges regarding energy consumption, local area contamination and environmental damage. A novel technique has been developed for extracting copper foils from waste PCBs based on low temperature pyrolysis followed by exfoliation to overcome these issues. The standard pretreatment steps of removing electronic components from PCBs and mechanical processing/size-reduction/powdering, etc., were minimized in this study. Several unsorted ‘as received’ PCBs were heat treated in the temperature range 750–850 °C for 5–20 min. in an argon atmosphere. Brittle dark chars and other residues on the heat-treated specimens were scrapped off to separate copper foils and other residuals. Most of the electronic components mounted on PCBs had dropped off during the heat treatment. Good-quality copper foils were recovered in all cases; the purity of copper was in excess of 85 wt.%. Key impurities present were Pb, Sn and Zn with typical concentrations less than 4 wt.%. Key features of the technique include minimizing energy intensive pre-treatment processes and waste handling, low pyrolysis temperatures and short heating times. This energy-efficient approach has the potential to enhance resource recovery while reducing the loss of materials, local area contamination and pollution near e-waste processing facilities.","PeriodicalId":509360,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability","volume":"68 10","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141813004","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Workers’ Exposure to Chemical Risk in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises: Assessment Methodology and Field Study","authors":"Daniel Onuț Badea, D. Darabont, Iulian Ivan, Vicențiu Ciocîrlea, Raluca Aurora Stepa, O. Chivu","doi":"10.3390/su16156308","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/su16156308","url":null,"abstract":"This study aimed to develop a state-of-the-art method for assessing chemical risks in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The method combined desk research findings and the authors’ practical knowledge to identify major shortcomings in performing risk assessments at the workplace. Data were collected from nine SMEs across three sectors: agriculture, laboratory research, and conservation and restoration laboratories. On-site observations, focus group discussions, and textual content analysis of occupational safety and health documentation were used to gather information on chemical risks and workers’ perceptions. The developed method uses numerical factors to account for the level of conformity with regulations and the duration of exposure to support an estimation of the probability of an incident. The method was designed to enhance risk assessment practices and tackle common issues encountered by SMEs, including the lack of data for estimating probability. Feedback from SMEs involved in the study indicated that the method’s performance was satisfactory, with its well-organized information flow and supportive components being particularly valued. The study highlights the importance of effective risk assessment in creating a safer and healthier work environment for workers.","PeriodicalId":509360,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability","volume":"141 48","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141811094","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Vehicle Stock Numbers and Survival Functions for On-Road Exhaust Emissions Analysis in India: 1993–2018","authors":"S. Guttikunda","doi":"10.3390/su16156298","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/su16156298","url":null,"abstract":"Road transport plays a crucial role in sustaining all the personal and freight movement needs of residential, commercial, and industrial activities, and in Indian cities, big and small, vehicle exhaust emissions and dust from vehicle movement on the roads contribute to as much as 50% of particulate matter pollution in a year. Therefore, effective management of vehicle exhaust emissions is vital not only for improving current air quality but also for ensuring the long-term benefits from efforts to reduce air pollution. In the approved clean air action plans for 131 cities under the national clean air program (NCAP), more than 50% of the implementable actions are transport-centric. Having a reliable and replicable vehicle exhaust emissions inventory is essential for effective planning, which can help establish a baseline, support scenario analysis, and allow for tracking progress in the sector. This process begins with accessing accurate vehicle stock numbers, typically obtained from vehicle registration databases, traffic surveys, and other governmental records. Often, in low- and middle-income countries like India, these numbers require extensive data cleaning before they can be used for emissions and pollution analysis. This paper presents a cleaned, open-access vehicle stock database for India and outlines a methodology to build and maintain an in-use vehicle age-mix database for future years. The database covers the years 1993 to 2018 for the entire country and individual states, along with estimates of the age distribution of vehicles using survival functions. By offering a comprehensive and reliable data source, this paper aims to support sustainable national and urban air quality management efforts, helping policymakers and stakeholders make informed decisions to improve air quality and public health.","PeriodicalId":509360,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability","volume":"113 22","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141811925","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Waste Tyre Textile Fibre Composite Material: Acoustic Performance and Life Cycle Assessment","authors":"Robert Ružickij, F. Romagnoli, R. Grubliauskas","doi":"10.3390/su16156281","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/su16156281","url":null,"abstract":"The development of new sound absorbing materials and the transition to net zero emissions production have become inseparable. This paper investigates a new type of composite sound absorbing material made of waste tyre textile fibre (WTTF) and different binders: polyurethane resin (PU), polyvinyl acetate (PVA), and starch (POS). Non-acoustic and acoustic parameters were studied, and life cycle assessment was performed for the considered composite sound absorbing materials. The airflow resistivity was determined according to the ISO 9053-1 standard, while the sound absorption coefficient was determined according to the ISO 10534-2 standard, and the LCA was performed based on the ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 standards. Composite sound absorbing materials subjected to sound absorption coefficient tests showed results in the range of 0.04 to 0.99 and peaking in the frequency range of 800 to 2000 Hz, while airflow resistivity varied between 17.4 and 83.6 kPa⋅s/m2. The combination that gave the highest sound absorption coefficient was experimentally found to be PU composite material. Life cycle assessment results revealed that the lowest potential impact on the environment is obtained when composite materials are produced using starch as a binder and its total potential impact on the environment varied between 0.27 and 0.55 Pt, while the highest potential impact was observed by PU composites (0.33 ÷ 0.64 Pt). The results obtained experimentally and by LCA modelling revealed great attractiveness and promising development of composites using WTTF and different binders’ potential for sound absorbing applications.","PeriodicalId":509360,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability","volume":"98 20","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141812458","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Satellite Long-Term Monitoring of Wetland Ecosystem Functioning in Ramsar Sites for Their Sustainable Management","authors":"Quentin Demarquet, S. Rapinel, D. Arvor, S. Corgne, L. Hubert‐Moy","doi":"10.3390/su16156301","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/su16156301","url":null,"abstract":"The long-term monitoring of wetland ecosystem functioning is critical because wetlands, which provide multiple services, can be affected by human activities and climate change. The aim of this study was to monitor wetland ecosystem functioning in the long term using the Landsat archive. Four contrasting, Ramsar wetlands were selected in boreal, temperate, arid, and tropical areas. First, the annual sum of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI-I) was calculated as an indicator of annual net primary productivity for the period 1984–2021 using the continuous change detection and classification (CCDC) algorithm. Next, the influence of the number of Landsat images and class of land use and land cover (LULC) on the accuracy of the CCDC was investigated. Finally, correlations between annual NDVI-I and climate were analyzed. The results revealed that NDVI-I accuracy was influenced mainly by the LULC class and to a lesser extent by the number of cloud-free Landsat observations. Infra- and inter-site variations in NDVI-I were high and showed an overall increasing trend. NDVI-I was positively correlated with the mean temperature. This study shows that this approach applied in contrasting sites is robust for the long-term monitoring of wetland ecosystem functioning and can be used to improve the implementation of international biodiversity conservation policies.","PeriodicalId":509360,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability","volume":"115 15","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141811968","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Circular Economy for Sustainability: A Bibliometric Analysis for the Tourism/Hospitality Field","authors":"Esra Şahin, Vedat Yiğitoğlu, Zuhal Gök Demir, Çiğdem Karakaya, Fulya Erendağ Sümer, Beysun Güneri","doi":"10.3390/su16156290","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/su16156290","url":null,"abstract":"The tourism and hospitality sector is known for its excessive consumption of natural resources, waste generation, and negative environmental impacts. The concept of circular economy (CE) has gained increasing attention in recent years as a strategy to promote sustainability and resource efficiency in various industries, including tourism and hospitality. This bibliometric analysis aims to provide a comprehensive overview of current research trends regarding the adoption of CE principles in the tourism and hospitality sector. Unlike conventional methods, a comprehensive bibliometric analysis combined studies from Web of Science and Scopus databases between 2013 and 2024 using the keywords circular economy, tourism, and hospitality. In this research, which includes 314 articles selected in accordance with the PRISMA protocol, it is seen that CE applications are becoming increasingly important. The research results show that there has been a significant increase in the number of publications since 2015; the most productive countries are Italy, Spain, and China, and topics such as waste management and recycling stand out as motor themes. It is thought that the number of studies on practical applications and niche themes should increase and future research suggestions are presented.","PeriodicalId":509360,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability","volume":"43 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141813107","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Do Green Finance Policies Inhibit the Financialization of Manufacturing Enterprises? Empirical Evidence Based on a Quasi-Natural Experiment with the “Green Credit Guidelines”","authors":"Yunsong Xu, Siyan Guo","doi":"10.3390/su16156305","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/su16156305","url":null,"abstract":"Against the background of the increasing financialization of manufacturing enterprises, whether green financial policies can inhibit the financialization of manufacturing enterprises is a major practical issue worth exploring. It can help government departments to guide the sustainable development of the real economy of enterprises, effectively curbing the trend of over-financialization of enterprises, thus preventing potential systemic risks and safeguarding the sustainable development of the economy. Because the green credit guidelines function as a more mature development of green financial policies, this paper takes Chinese A-share listed companies from 2005 to 2022 as the research sample, adopts the propensity score matching and double difference method, and constructs a quasi-natural experiment with the “Green Credit Guidelines” as the policy shock to analyze the multiple impact effects of green financial policies on the financialization of manufacturing enterprises. The results of the study show that (1) green finance policy has a significant inhibiting effect on the financialization of manufacturing enterprises; (2) due to the different motives of manufacturing enterprises in holding financial assets, green finance policy has a more significant inhibiting effect on the long-term financialization of “substitution”; (3) state-owned enterprises (SOEs) bear more social responsibilities and have credit advantages. Green finance policy has a more obvious inhibiting effect on the financialization of non-state-owned manufacturing enterprises; (4) major shareholders can play a better supervisory role in enterprises with high equity concentrations, so green finance policy has a more significant inhibiting effect on the financialization of manufacturing enterprises with low equity concentrations; (5) financing constraints have a masking effect in green finance policy and enterprise financialization. Based on this, this paper puts forward the following targeted recommendations. For the governmental level: first, to establish a sound manufacturing credit system; second, to focus on enterprise-financing constraints. For the enterprise level: first, to optimize the asset structure to promote transformation; second, to deepen the mixed ownership reform of state-owned enterprises.","PeriodicalId":509360,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability","volume":"51 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141813342","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The Role of Collective Action and Identity in the Preservation of Irrigation Access in Dacope, Bangladesh","authors":"Md Ashik Ur Rahman, Christine M. Beitl","doi":"10.3390/su16156279","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3390/su16156279","url":null,"abstract":"Agriculture is one of the most culturally and economically important livelihood activities of the Ganges River Delta. In recent years, coastal communities have experienced longer dry seasons and salinity intrusion, which is exacerbated by registration errors in land tenure that have led to increasing encroachment by external interests in the Dacope sub-district of Bangladesh. These challenges threaten to undermine the sustainability of smallholder access to canals that are collectively managed as common-pool resources (CPR). This paper explores how identity and collective action may empower farmers to secure irrigation access in the face of external pressures. Drawing primarily on qualitative data collected through focus group discussions with farmers in Dacope, our findings reveal that identity serves as a powerful force driving collective action and the sustainability of the agricultural community. A shared occupational identity fosters a sense of belonging and collective responsibility among farmers to maintain water flow through construction, annual dredging, and temporary dry-season protections. However, despite a strong commitment to maintaining their irrigation system, challenges remain in farmers’ ability to combat the powerful interests of wealthier members of the community that threaten to undermine the viability of the irrigation commons. Thus, formal support through policy and legislative avenues is also necessary to safeguard common property rights against the threat of privatization and illegal occupation of canals. These findings further underscore the need for more research on how collective identity may strengthen collective action, livelihoods, and sustainability in the absence of strong institutional arrangements that uphold community rights and access to common-pool resources.","PeriodicalId":509360,"journal":{"name":"Sustainability","volume":"27 7","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141813545","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}