The black soil region of Northeast China has suffered from severe soil erosion by water. Hillslope and gully erosion are the main erosion types. The objective of this research was to integrate the assessment of hillslope and gully erosion and explore spatial coupling relations between them in the Mushi River sub-catchment using geographical conditions monitoring (GCM) including remote sensing (RS) and geographic information system (GIS) techniques. The revised universal soil loss equation (RUSLE) model and visual satellite image interpretation were used to evaluate hillslope and gully erosion, respectively. The results showed that (1) the study area as a whole had slight erosion due to rill and sheet erosion, but suffered more serious gully erosion, which mainly occurs in cultivated land; (2) GCM contributed to the overall improvement of soil erosion assessment, but the RUSLE model likely overestimates the erosion rate in dry land; (3) the hillslope and gully erosion were stronger on sunny slopes than on shady slopes, and mainly occurred at middle elevations. When the slope was greater than 15 degrees, the slope was not the main factor restricting the erosion, while at steeper slopes, the dominant forest land significantly reduced the soil loss; (4) trends of gully erosion intensity and density were not consistent with the change in soil erosion intensity. To our knowledge, this study was one of the first that attempted to integrate gully erosion and hillslope erosion on a watershed scale. The findings of this study promote a better understanding of the spatial coupling relationships between hillslope and gully erosion and similarly indicate that GCM, RS, and GIS can be used efficiently in the hilly black soil region of Northeast China to assess hillslope and gully erosion. Full article

The paper focuses on the Solidarity Purchasing Group (SPG), defined as a group of households that establishes an organization primarily to provide food to its members. The study aims at illustrating and testing two hypotheses. The first is that within the group, specific organizational processes take place according to which food communication practices determine the resource use objectives. The second hypothesis is the SPG tends to assign larger values to health and environmental protection than other resource use objectives. These hypotheses concern the ranking of the resource use objectives managed by the group. The idea is that an SPG defines the resource uses according to the specific group’s objectives and by means of organizational tools, especially the food communication practices. For testing purposes, we conducted an empirical analysis by submitting an online questionnaire to 900 Italian SPGs. The results firstly indicate that the organizational dimensions of SPGs, including the relationships between SPGs and farmers, influence the group objectives, providing empirical evidence that supports the first hypothesis. Moreover, the test of the second hypothesis indicates that group objectives concerning health and environmental protection are particularly valued by the SPGs. We then conclude that the groups are aimed at co-producing health and environmental protection with public authorities. We then underlined limits of the study and potential future research paths. Full article

The expansion of the international PV trade encourages governments to focus on their trade roles in this market, which has increasing impact on their future development of sustainable energy. Thus, an exploration of top traders and their influence on global PV trade pattern is essential as governments seek to develop strategies to improve their global PV market’s discourse power. This study introduces the complex network theory to examine top traders whose default would lead to the collapse of trade pattern and their impactful ways. Moreover, the potential structural reason for top traders’ influence on trade is explored via link prediction. We find that a group of European countries account for 80% of global importation and are the most influential traders and bridges; a group of Asian countries are among the top exporters with half of the global share; and European countries’ high influence is due to their large number of trade partners instead of their trade volume. Above all, a high number of trade partners is more important than trade volume for countries seeking to be top traders. Finally, we discuss these results given the recent promising development of international PV trade. Full article

During the production of concrete, cement, water, aggregate, and chemical and mineral admixtures will be used, and a large amount of carbon dioxide will be emitted. Conversely, during the decades of service life of reinforced concrete structures, carbon dioxide in the environment can ingress into concrete and chemically react with carbonatable constitutes of hardened concrete, such as calcium hydroxide and calcium silicate hydrate. This chemical reaction process is known as carbonation. Carbon dioxide will be absorbed into concrete due to carbonation. This article presents a numerical procedure to quantitatively evaluate carbon dioxide emissions and the absorption of ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) blended concrete structures. Based on building scales and drawings, the total volume and surface area of concrete are calculated. The carbon dioxide emission is calculated using the total volume of concrete and unit carbon dioxide emission of materials. Next, using a slag blended cement hydration model and a carbonation model, the carbonation depth is determined. The absorbed carbon dioxide is evaluated using the carbonation depth of concrete, the surface area of concrete structures, and the amount of carbonatable materials. The calculation results show that for the studied structure with slag blended concrete, for each unit of CO₂ produced, 4.61% of carbon dioxide will be absorbed during its 50 years of service life. Full article

Soil health is an essential requirement of a sustainable, functioning agroecosystem. Tracking soil health to determine sustainability at the local level largely falls to farmers, even though they often lack access to critical information. We examine farmers’ participation in gathering soil information at the farm and paddock scale over the last two decades in Australia and the United States, by reviewing national-level reporting of farmer use of soil testing and farm planning as well as qualitative research on farmer perspectives. The level of participation in soil testing and farm planning has remained stable in the last two decades, with only 25% and 30% of landholders, respectively, participating nationally, in either country. The review revealed national-level reporting has a number of limitations in understanding farmers’ use of soil information and, in particular, fails to indicate the frequency and intensity of soil testing as well as farmer motivation to test soil or what they did with the soil information. The main use of soil testing is often stated as “determining fertilizer requirements”, yet data show soil testing is used less commonly than is customary practice. In Australia and in the United States, customary practice is three and half times more likely for decisions on fertilizer application levels. The rhetoric is heavy on the use of soil testing as a decision tool, and that it guides best practices. However, given that only a quarter of farmers are soil testing, and doing so infrequently and in low densities, the level of information on soil health is poor. While farmers report consistent monitoring of soil conditions, few have consistent records of such. In contrast to the information on the poor state of soil health, there is strong farmer interest in procuring soil health benefits through changes in farm practices such as conservation tillage or cover crops, even if they are unable to demonstrate these soil health benefits through soil testing. Many farmers report the use of observation in lieu of laboratory testing. Finally, we point to the need for soil information to include observational indicators to best allow a blend of traditional extension strategies with digital technology to create communities of interest in soil management. This would transcend the boundaries between those with expertise and those with experience in soil health management. Full article

The paper discusses a supply and demand scenario using renewable energy sources for the city El Gouna in Egypt as an example for a self-supplying community. All calculations are based on measured meteorological data and real power demand during the year 2013. The modeled energy system consists of a concentrating solar tower plant with thermal storage and low-temperature seawater desalination unit as well as an integrated photovoltaic plant and a wind turbine. The low-temperature desalination unit has been newly developed in order to enable the utilization of waste heat from power conversion processes by improved thermal efficiency. In the study, special attention is given to the surplus power handling generated by the photovoltaic and wind power plant. Surplus power is converted into heat and stored in the thermal storage system of the solar power plant in order to increase the capacity factor. A brief estimation of investment costs have been conducted as well in order to outline the economic performance of the modeled energy and water supply system. Full article

Effective building environment sustainability frameworks and practices need to take users’ opinions into account. For this purpose, a survey questionnaire was developed and the “Panhellenic survey of school spaces, materials and environmental-comfort conditions in secondary schools and perceptions, stances and attitudes of pupils, teachers, principals and parents towards sustainable construction and the selection and use of materials in schools that are friendly to the environment and human health” was conducted nationwide with a random stratified sample of 170 Hellenic public secondary schools. Selected findings are presented and discussed here. These show that existing school facilities are primarily rated as good and that selection and use of materials friendly to the environment and human health are extremely important. User groups believe that they should participate in planning/selecting sustainable solutions for schools. An Index of 10 School Environment Desired Outcomes associated with environmentally friendly and health-friendly materials selection and use was devised. Relevant factors were extracted and interpreted. The research establishes users’ subjective opinions that may be considered and integrated into procedures for improving school buildings, assessing and selecting environmentally friendly materials and implementing strategies for sustainable school design, building and operation. Full article

Haze has caused the deterioration of air quality and has ultimately affected the ecological environment. The contingent valuation method (CVM) is an important assessment method that is widely used in ecological economics. The public’s willingness to pay (WTP) for haze management and prevention can be analyzed using dichotomous choices. Here, the method is applied to study the valuation of haze management and prevention. Taking Jiangsu Province as an example, the non-market value is calculated by constructing the binary logistic model from questionnaire data, combined with a data-processing method: the sure independence screening (SIS) algorithm. The conclusions are as follows: (1) The public’s WTP for haze management and prevention is closely related to the monthly income of families and transport modality; (2) According to the CVM, the non-market value for haze management and prevention in Jiangsu is 7.645 billion yuan; (3) By the average estimate method (AEM), this value is 12.529 billion yuan, about 1.64 times the estimate from the CVM. This is because the AEM ignores the correlation among the influence factors and, therefore, overestimates the valuation of the services; (4) The CVM, combined with the SIS algorithm, does a better job in estimating the valuation of the services. Full article

Bio-based businesses are often considered to be sustainable. However, they are also linked to sustainability challenges such as deforestation and soil erosion. Encouraged to exploit innovative solutions and enhance sustainability, organizations engaged in bio-based activities extensively explore collaboration possibilities with external partners. The objective of this paper is to integrate the available knowledge on sustainability of inter-organisational collaborations in bio-based businesses, while considering the three aspects of sustainability: environmental, economic, and social. We collected data from three academic sources—Web of Science, Scopus, and EconLit—and conducted a systematic literature review. The results show the importance of geographical proximity and complementarity in creating sustainability benefits such as reduced emissions, reduced waste, economic synergies, and socio-economic activities. Based on the findings, we have developed a framework that illustrates sustainability benefits and challenges. Interestingly, the studies emphasize sustainability benefits more in emerging than in industrialised economies, especially relating to the social aspects of sustainability. In conclusion, although the scholars have not discussed mitigation of several sustainability challenges in bio-based businesses, such as land use conflicts, they have found evidence of vital sustainability benefits, such as energy availability, lower emissions, improved socio-economic life, and poverty reduction, which are essential in emerging economies. Full article

Sustainable development as a concept, is extremely important both at national and international levels. To achieve the goals of sustainable development, international cooperation among countries is of vital importance because no one nation can accomplish these goals independently. In order to implement the sustainable development strategy, first discussed in 1992 at the UN Conference of Environment and Development, the indicators of sustainable development first had to be defined. Considering that the first set of indicators was defined by the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD), they were entitled CSD indicators. The smaller set of CSD indicators in the European Union countries (EU-28) is observed in this study. These indicators cover three aspects of sustainable development: economic, social and environmental. The goal of this study is to rank EU countries according to the level that they were able to achieve the objectives of their respective sustainable development strategies individually, according to the 2013 database. The appropriate statistical I-distance method was used for this purpose. In the first step, the significant indicators are distinguished and ranked according to the quantity and importance of the information they provide for specific research. Subsequently, this method then converts the indicators into a single measure that reflects the level at which each country has achieved the goal. Full article

There is no longer any doubt that the European Union needs to manage a transition towards a sustainable economy and society. The complexity of such an enterprise is creating major challenges that require a future oriented systemic approach, looking at the EU economy and society as a whole, and going beyond current agendas and policies. The purpose of the JRC foresight study “2035: Paths towards a sustainable EU economy” was to explore how this could be possible. Resource efficiency was at the core of the reflection. This created a context where the fiscal framework was perceived by the experts involved as essential in driving (or hindering) the evolution towards a more sustainable future. Societal values (individualistic or collaborative) were selected as the other axis around which to construct four scenarios. A large number of other drivers of change were taken into account to construct scenarios of a sufficient depth and detail to generate a systemic understanding. The scenarios were used in an original way to help experts identify which policy mixes would be best adapted to push each scenario towards a more sustainable future, while respecting its own logic and constraints. For each scenario, 6 policy domains considered the most relevant were selected among more than 50. Research and innovation, new business models and education were considered important for all four scenarios. The other domains were natural resources management, regulation, ethics, employment, transparency, governance, social protection, and systems integration. The study illustrates how powerful a policy framework which is fiscally supportive of environmental sustainability can be in supporting resource efficiency and that this can be achieved in very different ways depending on the prevailing social values. It also shows how a combination of actions in other policy areas can be used to drive sustainability further. In sum, this work illustrates how the creative use of foresight can help design policy mixes that can open the way to very different paths towards a sustainable future. Full article

Spatio-temporal patterns of rain-use efficiency (RUE) can explicitly present the steady-state of ecosystem water use and thus ecosystem functioning. The west of Songliao Plain, located along the east fringe of the agro-pasture transitional zone in northern China, is highly sensitive to global change. In this study, satellite-based RUE was calculated using time series SPOT VEGETATION (SPOT-VGT) Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) images and precipitation data for the study area from 1999 to 2011. Based on regression model by fitting simple linear regression through the pixel-based time series of RUE in the growing season and calculating the slopes, the change trend of RUE was determined. The grey relational analysis (GRA) method was extended to the spatial scale, and used to select sensitive climate and socio-economic factors that affected RUE variations. The result demonstrated that vegetation RUE increased slightly with an undulating trend, implying the ecosystem function tended to improve between 1999 and 2011. In total, 4.23% of the total area had experienced a significant increase in RUE, whereas 1.29% of the total area presented a significant decrease. Areas showing increased RUE trends mostly coincided with areas of land cover conversions from grassland to forest, shrub to forest and cropland to forest, which suggested a positive linkage with ecological protection policy and projects at national and local levels. Based on the obtained spatial Grey Relation Grade (GRG) values, the pattern of the impact factors clearly showed a spatial heterogeneity. Spatially, sunshine duration, temperature and population density were most closely related to RUE in the west of Songliao Plain between 1999 and 2011. Full article

Food chain sustainability assessment is challenging on several grounds. Handling knowledge and information on sustainability performance and coping with the diversity of visions around “what counts as sustainable food” are two key issues addressed by this study. By developing a comparative case study on local, regional and global wheat-to-bread chains, and confronting the multidimensionality of sustainability, this work focuses on the differing visions and perspectives of stakeholders. We integrate qualitative and quantitative data, stakeholder consultation and multi-criteria analysis to align the visions and the multiple meanings of sustainability. Because of the complexity and the dynamicity of the food system, the multidimensionality of the sustainability concept and its pliability to stakeholders priorities, sustainability is an object of competition for firms in the agro-food sector and has major implications in the governance of food chains. Results identify key propositions in relation to: (i) the value of combining science-led evidence with socio-cultural values; (ii) multidimensional sustainability assessment as a self diagnosis tool; and (iii) the need to identify shared assessment criteria by communities of reference. Full article

This paper establishes a nonlinear carbon cycle model based on the analysis of the carbon flux relationship among the atmosphere cycle, soil cycle and land cycle. By using nonlinear dynamics method, we examine the regional carbon cycle evolution along with the temporal evolution of the regional carbon flux. A neural network has been employed to identify the parameters of the proposed model, accordingly. In the numerical study, we propose the atmosphere-soil-land cycle model for Nanjing city of China. Then, the carbon cycle evolution of Nanjing has been simulated with the given model and actual data. Full article

Underutilised crops represent an important component of Southern Africa’s agro–biodiversity that has potential to contribute to the region’s post–2015 development discourse. We reviewed the potential of underutilised crops with respect to how they can contribute to topical challenges, such as food and nutrition security, human health and well–being, climate change adaptation, the environment, and employment creation in poor rural communities. The fact that underutilised crops are the product of generations of landrace agriculture supports the idea that they are resilient and adapted to the needs of farmers in marginal agricultural environments. In addition, underutilised crops are also seen as offering economic advantages due to their uniqueness, suitability to environments in which they are grown and low input requirements. In certain cases, underutilised crops are associated with specific gender roles with women being seen as particularly significant in their production. Evidence also suggests that the inclusion of underutilised crops in cropping systems contributes to dietary diversity and improved nutrition. In the context of the post–2015 agenda, the potential of underutilised crops to generate income, address food security and their status as a “subset of biodiversity” links with a number of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) addressing social, economic and environmental issues. Full article