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Ecological Resilience, Next Generation EU and Sustainable Social Systems

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (24 July 2023) | Viewed by 15264

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Raffaele Silvestri

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Guest Editor

Department of Economics, University of Foggia, 71121 Foggia, Italy
Interests: marketing innovation; inter-organizational networks; blockchain technology; agri-food supply chain sustainability
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Mariantonietta Fiore

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Guest Editor

Department of Economics, University of Foggia, Via da Zara, 11, 71122 Foggia, Italy
Interests: food waste and loss; rural development and landscape; food innovation and health; food systems management and safety
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Francesco Contò

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Guest Editor

Department of Economics, Università degli Studi di Foggia, Foggia, Italy
Interests: innovation and competitiveness in the agri-food system; health systems and food; food innovation; CAP; innovation and management in the agri-food system; models of technology transfer; ICT in Agriculture; food and environment; rural development and multifunctionality; didactic and social farms; agri-food districts and chains; internationalization of SMEs in the agri-food

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue will include impactful papers focused on the critical role played by the resources able to build resilient socioeconomic systems.

This is a moment of great and traumatic change for societies in a traumatic way due to COVID-19, but it can unleash unparalleled opportunities to improve business production processes in eco-compatible terms, decision-making processes for public authorities and regulators, the safety for consumers, and ultimately the quality of life for citizens.

The concept of ecological resilience is at the heart of this change process and inspires new research questions on how to develop synergistic paths oriented towards resilience to build sustainable economic systems.

This Special Issue aims to investigate how the agro-food system’s actors can develop resilient value creation processes to generate value for the consumers at the same time by improving environmental and climatic performance.

We welcome contributions tackling this broad area of research and include, among others, the following topics:

Agro-food Supply chain management;
Agriculture 4.0;
Resilient production process;
Resilient Business Management;
Resilient decision-making processes;
Case studies from Green Deal Tools;
ICT and new opportunities for a sustainable economy;
Block-chain;
NGEU and digitalization;
Sustainability.

This Special Issue welcomes both theoretical and empirical papers, leveraging various methodological approaches, strongly supported by management literature.

Nowadays, complex reality and systems are not able to consider distinctly economic, social, environmental and health crises. The COVID-19 crisis has strongly emphasised the failure and unsustainability of the leading economic model linear culture of
“waste”-based and consequently the necessity of a change (Contò and Fiore, 2020). Struggling with the culture of waste and observing the future in terms of sustainability, ethics/equity, and environment to defend the "common home" (the economy) and forthcoming generations are the contemporary challenges. The concept summarising the aptitude of an organisation coordinated in the use of resources and economically focused on reacting to negative economic pressures is resilience (Fiore, 2022; Contò and Fiore, 2020). The term “resilience” means to successfully adapt and recover from detrimental effects (Masten, 2007; Skodol, 2010) by effectively handling negative emotions and finding and discovering behavioral responses (Tugade, 2011).

According to FAO (2019, 2016), resilience is the aptitude of persons, communities, or systems that are challenged by disasters or crises to resist damage and recuperate rapidly.

Climate change and environmental degradation pose a huge threat to the entire planet. To overcome these challenges, the European Green Deal aims to transform the EU into a modern, resource-efficient, and competitive economy through a reduction in greenhouse gases, sustainable eco-friendly economic growth, and social inclusion. One-third of the EUR 1.8 trillion investments in the NextGenerationEU recovery plan and the EU's seven-year budget will finance the European Green Deal. The reduction in the agro-food supply chain pressure on natural resources and the strengthening of ecosystem services guaranteed by primary activity for the benefit of the community represent the main agro-food system purpose to fully grasp the objectives of the Green Deal and other related strategies. The Green Deal aims at improving the climate and environmental performance of production systems: the point is the ways to develop these synergistic paths oriented towards resilience to build sustainable economic systems.

Dr. Raffaele Silvestri
Prof. Dr. Mariantonietta Fiore
Prof. Dr. Francesco Contò
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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

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

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

Published Papers (9 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 433 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Sustainable Social Systems: Innovative Service Implications in the Restaurant Business in the Post-COVID Era with Digital Transformation Strategies

by Elizaveta Fainshtein, Valentina Chkoniya, Elena Serova and Pavel Vorobyev

Sustainability 2023, 15(19), 14539; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151914539 - 06 Oct 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1432

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic led to changes in and modifications of the role of information and communication technologies in the digitalization of service provision. This paper aims to identify and summarize these changes in business operations, in the context of strategic management in the restaurant industry, triggered by COVID-19. Based on in-depth interviews with 16 key experts in the restaurant industry (CEOs of chain restaurants), this paper clarifies and concretizes the rapidly transforming problem of identifying the main changes in the restaurant market during the pandemic. These depend on a restaurant’s adaptation level to the challenges that arose, using three dimensions (consumer demand, corporate strategy optimization, and the use of the company’s innovative potential). The analysis shows that chain restaurants, which have sufficient resources to solve the problem of staff turnover, develop technological solutions, and build a brand and customer loyalty, were more resistant to problems arising from the spread of the coronavirus infection than other companies in the catering industry. The presence of serious problems associated with consumer demand and the optimization of the format of the offered dishes and service had a significant impact on the relationship between the impact of the spread of the coronavirus infection and the inability to adapt to the new reality of doing business. The findings reveal that companies need to expand their digital capabilities and adapt their management strategy to the post-pandemic conditions to adapt to the post-COVID-19 period. This paper serves as a framework for understanding the role of digital transformation in sustainable business development. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ecological Resilience, Next Generation EU and Sustainable Social Systems)

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14 pages, 699 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Conditions for a Convergence between Digital Platforms and Sustainability in Agriculture

by Houda Chkarat, Tarek Abid and Loïc Sauvée

Sustainability 2023, 15(19), 14195; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151914195 - 26 Sep 2023

Viewed by 1279

Abstract

Recent research has embraced the idea that digitalization is becoming a significant factor in addressing sustainability challenges. Digital platforms are becoming integral to this dynamic, opening a vast spectrum of possibilities that remain insufficiently explored. Alongside the growing expansion of digital platform initiatives, agriculture faces major sustainability concerns that constantly reshape the organizational patterns of farmers, consumers, and institutions. Despite recent research interest in the field of digital platforms, few studies highlight their potential for fostering sustainability. This article aimed to explore the conditions digital platforms need to fulfill to enhance sustainability in the agricultural realm. First, through a literature review on digital platforms and first-hand observations, a categorization of digital platforms in agriculture is sketched and their potential outcomes are explored within the theoretical framework of digital sustainability. Then, based on data gathered from semi-structured interviews with an expert panel, we provide insightful contributions on the convergence between digital platforms and sustainability. Our findings suggest that a comprehensive and holistic approach is necessary to unlock the potential of digital platforms in promoting sustainability in agriculture. By meeting the key conditions identified in this article, digital platforms can serve as powerful tools for driving sustainability in this critical sector. The theoretical implications of our research can contribute to advancing academic inquiry in the field of digital platforms and sustainability, while the practical implications can serve as valuable guidance for the development of digital platform initiatives that support sustainability pillars in agriculture. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ecological Resilience, Next Generation EU and Sustainable Social Systems)

13 pages, 867 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Short Food Supply Chain and Resilience: An Analysis during COVID-19 Pandemic in Inner Areas of Campania Region

by Anna Uliano, Marcello Stanco and Concetta Nazzaro

Sustainability 2023, 15(17), 12721; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151712721 - 22 Aug 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 775

Abstract

COVID-19 pandemic highlighted food systems’ fragility, especially concerning global trade. On the other hand, the pandemic underlined the resilient character of Short Food Supply Chains (SFSCs), as citizen-consumers continued to buy through such sales channels, in order to limit virus spread, and farms developed innovations and rapid strategic responses. In a fragile context, such as that of inner areas, SFSC may represent, for farms, a significant competitive tool to increase their resilience. This study aims to investigate the degree of resilience of farms in inner areas of Campania Region (South Italy) and the role of SFSC during the pandemic. A questionnaire was administered to a sample of wineries in inner areas of Campania in order to detect their resilience score, which was measured, according to literature, through three variables: effectiveness, flexibility, and responsiveness. A linear regression was run to identify variables affecting farms’ resilience. Results show that both farmers’ and farms’ characteristics turned out to affect farms’ resilience score, such as the turnover, the use of SFSC, and farmers’ age and education. This study’s findings could be helpful for decision-making in the development of inner areas, and for providing targeted policies to manage unexpected events in different scenarios. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ecological Resilience, Next Generation EU and Sustainable Social Systems)

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14 pages, 1830 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Household Food Waste Awareness in Relation to Motivations

by Claudia Giordano, Gianluca Di Fiore, Fabrizio Alboni, Elisa Carloni, Sergio Rivaroli and Luca Falasconi

Sustainability 2023, 15(15), 11582; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151511582 - 27 Jul 2023

Viewed by 1202

Abstract

The current study investigates which motivations to reduce food waste influence respondents’ likelihood to accurately self-assess food waste quantities. Some studies suggest that motivations to prevent household food waste influence respondents’ behaviors, but others highlight that routine and daily life often represent an obstacle to acting consistently. To this end, this study observed if a certain set of motivations actually influences the perceived quantity of food waste produced; in other words, if the motivation to reduce food waste is a driver of coherent behavior and awareness. The results were drawn from weekly food diaries and then compared with online questionnaires run on a sample of 388 households. A random forest has been performed to identify the relevant variables, able to predict the food waste self-assessment. The results show that no specific motivation is related to a better awareness of food waste quantities, nor to the actual waste average. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ecological Resilience, Next Generation EU and Sustainable Social Systems)

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18 pages, 303 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Social Cooperative Model Choices in the Socially Unsustainable Environment: Evidence from Lithuania

by Remigijus Civinskas, Rimantas Stašys, Asta Pancerovienė and Aušra Anužienė

Sustainability 2023, 15(15), 11566; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151511566 - 26 Jul 2023

Viewed by 833

Abstract

This research analyses the establishment and development of social cooperatives exposed to adverse factors in socially unsustainable contexts. The study focuses on a Lithuanian case study, with participants having limited experience creating a socially resilient enterprise ecosystem. The study employed a qualitative approach using case study and comparative analysis methods. The study found that Lithuania’s opportunities to leverage the benefits of social cooperatives are held back by a weak cooperative movement, a socially unsustainable environment, and limited understanding among professionals. The involvement of public policy actors in debates on legalising social business models is also limited. The study participants had mixed opinions about the social cooperative model for business development. Some favoured its cooperative principles and profit-sharing advantages, while others preferred non-profit organisations or smaller communities. The study also found a contradiction in the concepts of social business. The researchers suggest that the conditions for establishing social cooperatives could be more favourable in Lithuania, but social business founders require help understanding cooperative companies’ organisation and finances, for which the current public and private resources available are insufficient. Lithuania’s current policy of support and regulation for social business prioritises several social business models, which complicates the decision-making process for prospective social cooperative founders. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ecological Resilience, Next Generation EU and Sustainable Social Systems)

16 pages, 2329 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Sustainable Environmental Development from the Regional Perspective—The Interesting Case of Poland

by Eva-Luz Tejada-Gutiérrez, Zofia Koloszko-Chomentowska, Mariantonietta Fiore and Alessia Spada

Sustainability 2023, 15(5), 4368; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15054368 - 01 Mar 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1940

Abstract

The EU regional development policy aims to reduce through its cohesion policy the socio-economic development disparities between its most developed regions and peripheral regions. Research shows that despite this strategy, the economic development of EU countries in the spatial system is not homogeneous. In addition, contemporary strategies take into account economic development with respect to environmental protection. The goal of this paper was to assess sustainable regional development in Poland, taking into account environmental and innovative activity indicators, as well as mobility and accessibility in remote areas. To recognize the effects of supporting sustainable development, the evaluation was carried out considering the indicators from the Statistics Poland platform, concerning 2011 and 2021, and related them to economic development, the environment, mobility and accessibility of 16 regions. Comparing results obtained with the K-means clustering method with those obtained with the partitioning around medoids method, it was possible to verify, with greater reliability, the migration of regions into different clusters. Results showed that development of all the regions was significant yet highly disproportionate, thus highlighting the consolidated presence of dynamically growing regions versus peripheries, which means further regional polarization. An educational cross-sectorial approach can play a crucial role in promoting green pro-innovative development. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ecological Resilience, Next Generation EU and Sustainable Social Systems)

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23 pages, 2106 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Scaling Local Bottom-Up Innovations through Value Co-Creation

by Chiara Marradi and Ingrid Mulder

Sustainability 2022, 14(18), 11678; https://doi.org/10.3390/su141811678 - 17 Sep 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1966

Abstract

Bottom-up initiatives of active citizens are increasingly demonstrating sustainable practices within local ecosystems. Local urban farming, sustainable agri-food systems, circular supply chains, and community fablabs are exemplary ways of tackling global challenges on a local level. Although promising in accelerating towards future-proof systems, these hyper-localized, bottom-up initiatives often struggle to take root in new contexts due to embedded socio-cultural challenges. With the premise that transformative capacity can be co-created to overcome such scaling challenges, the current work addresses the identified gap in scaling bottom-up initiatives into locally embedded ecosystems. While how to diffuse such practices across contexts is not straightforward, we introduce a three-phased approach enabling knowledge exchange and easing collaboration across cultures and ecosystems. The results allowed us to define common scalability criteria and to unfold scaling as a multi-step learning process to bridge identified cognitive and context gaps. The current article contributes to a broader activation of impact-driven scaling strategies and value creation processes that are transferable across contexts and deemed relevant for local ecosystems that are willing to co-create resilient socio-economic systems. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ecological Resilience, Next Generation EU and Sustainable Social Systems)

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18 pages, 321 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Assessment of Sustainable Economic Development in the EU Countries with Reference to the SDGs and Environmental Footprint Indices

by Kęstutis Biekša, Violeta Valiulė, Ligita Šimanskienė and Raffaele Silvestri

Sustainability 2022, 14(18), 11265; https://doi.org/10.3390/su141811265 - 08 Sep 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2019

Abstract

The article analyses sustainable economic development of EU countries according to the sustainable development goals (SDGs), by using indices of integrated sustainable development and environmental footprint. Sustainable economic initiatives can be driven by economic, environmental and social aspects, applying principles of innovation and knowledge. However, development requires skills, human and financial resources; in turn, it increases productivity, efficiency, competitiveness, profit, and promotes a better working environment. In general, sustainable business initiatives contribute to SDGs and reduce the environmental footprint. The scientific problem is how to develop a sustainable economy while ensuring the achievement of SDGs and at the same time reducing the environmental footprint. The object of the scientific research is the evaluation of sustainable economic development through the analysis of integrated sustainable development indicators. The aim of the research is, upon the evaluation of SDGs and environmental footprint indices as well as the analysis of the integrated sustainable development indicator, to identify the opportunities for sustainable economic development in the EU countries. The research has been carried out by analysing the scientific literature, and applying SDGs and environmental footprint methodology to calculate individual and integrated sustainable development indices. The results have shown that despite the disparity of SDG indices, the overall value of the integrated sustainable development indicator is distributed quite evenly among the EU countries. The impacts from each of the SDG indices range from 11% to 31% but the environmental footprint index has the greatest impact on the sustainable development of a country—up to 31%. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ecological Resilience, Next Generation EU and Sustainable Social Systems)

Review

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13 pages, 1085 KiB

Open AccessReview

Resources Management for a Resilient World: A Literature Review of Eastern European Countries with Focus on Household Behaviour and Trends Related to Food Waste

by Maria-Georgeta Moldovan, Dan-Cristian Dabija and Cristina Bianca Pocol

Sustainability 2022, 14(12), 7123; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14127123 - 10 Jun 2022

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2638

Abstract

Increasing concern about food waste and the consequences of human lifestyle on the environment have intensified attention on this topic. While waste and loss of food occur in all stages of the food chain, more than 50% of the blame relies on the consumers’ shoulders, regardless of their geographical location, age, culture, or historical roots. Ideally, wasted food (from agricultural production to storage and transportation stages, down to final consumers) should return to the habitat it came from (circular economy concept), but man-made materials do not naturally decompose quickly, or they decompose in several hundreds of years, destroying untouched resources. Simply presented, reducing lost or wasted food means more food for us all in the future, more visible economic growth (especially in low-income countries), and less pressure on the environment. While these concepts are largely being investigated in Western economies, Eastern Europe lacks a proper understanding, especially in the best relevant practices. Therefore, this systematic review highlights the need for further research on Eastern European households’ attitudes and the importance of identifying long-term trends in changing behaviour causing wastage. This can only be done properly if past experiences, societal culture, traditions, and food habits are mirrored in future predictions by considering the inherent factors influencing the decision-making process. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ecological Resilience, Next Generation EU and Sustainable Social Systems)

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