Search Results (7,534)

Gender inequality remains a persistent challenge in academia, shaping career trajectories and access to critical resources. Research funding plays a central role in academic advancement, yet studies of gender disparities often overlook how patterns vary across disciplines and stages of the grant process. This study analyzes gender differences in both the submission and allocation phases using administrative data from four national Israeli funding agencies, covering nearly 5000 applications submitted over two years (2017–2018). It examines two key dimensions within both stages—PI gender and grant amount—and disaggregates results across 12 academic fields. The findings indicate isolated, rather than systematic, gender inequalities, with disparities appearing more frequently in STEM fields but remaining limited overall. The results underscore the importance of field-specific analysis for understanding gender inequality and suggest that targeted interventions, rather than uniform policies, are needed to promote gender equity in research funding. Full article

The scientific investment decision of Park-level Integrated Energy System (PIES) projects is of great significance to energy enterprises for improving the efficient utilization of funds, promoting green and low-carbon transformation, and achieving the goal of carbon neutrality. This paper proposed a two-stage investment framework that integrates a multi-objective 0–1 programming model with a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) technique to determine the optimal PIES project investment portfolios under the constraint of quota investment. First, a multi-objective (MO) 0–1 programming model was constructed for typical PIES projects in Stage-I, which considers economic and environmental benefits to obtain Pareto frontier solutions, i.e., PIES project portfolios. Second, an evaluation index system from multiple dimensions was established, and a hybrid MCDM technique was adopted to comprehensively evaluate the Pareto frontier solutions in Stage-II. Finally, the proposed model was applied to an empirical case, and the simulation results show that the decision framework can achieve the best overall benefit of PIES project portfolios with maximal economic benefit and minimum carbon emissions. In addition, the robustness analysis was performed by changing the indicator weights to verify the stability of the proposed framework. This research work could provide a theoretical tool for investment decisions regarding PIES projects for energy enterprises. Full article

Introduction/Objective: Peritonitis remains a serious complication in patients undergoing automated peritoneal dialysis (APD), requiring prompt and effective antibiotic administration. This study evaluated whether delivering antibiotics directly through APD bags is as effective as administering them via an additional manual daytime exchange. Methods: We conducted a randomized, single-blind, non-inferiority clinical trial involving patients diagnosed with peritonitis. Participants were randomly assigned to receive Ceftazidime and Vancomycin, either via APD bags or through a combined approach of continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) plus APD. A total of 64 patients (32 per group) were enrolled, with comparable baseline demographic and clinical profiles, including laboratory markers of infection severity and dialysis history. Results: Peritonitis resolved in 90.6% of the patients treated via APD bags and in 81.3% of those receiving antibiotics through manual exchange plus APD. Although this difference did not reach statistical significance ($p$ = 0.281), the observed absolute difference of 9.3% was well within the predefined non-inferiority margin of 30%, supporting the clinical non-inferiority of the APD-only method. The mean time to resolution was similar between groups ($p$ = 0.593). Post hoc power analyses indicated limited statistical power (18.5% for the resolution rate and 9.2% for time to resolution), suggesting that modest differences may not have been detectable given the sample size. Nevertheless, the high resolution rates observed in both groups reflect valid and encouraging clinical outcomes. Conclusion: Antibiotic administration via APD bags demonstrated comparable clinical effectiveness to the combined manual exchange plus APD method for treating peritonitis. Given its operational simplicity and favorable results, the APD-only strategy may offer a pragmatic alternative in routine care. Further studies with larger sample sizes are recommended to confirm these findings and optimize treatment protocols. Trial registration: NCT04077996. Funding source: None to declare. Full article

Advanced technologies, such as robotic process automation, blockchain, and machine learning, increase audit efficiency. Nonetheless, some Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) have not undergone digital transformation. This research aimed to develop a comprehensive framework for supreme audit institutions to adopt and integrate emerging technologies into their auditing processes using a hybrid theoretical approach based on the TAM (Technology Acceptance Model) and TOE (Technology–Organisation–Environment) models. The framework was informed by insights from nineteen highly experienced experts in the field from eight countries. Through a two-round Delphi questionnaire, the experts provided valuable input on the key factors, challenges, and strategies for successful technology adoption by public sector audit organisations. The findings of this research reveal that technology adoption in SAIs starts with solid management support led by the chief technology officer. They must evaluate the IT infrastructure and readiness for advanced technologies, considering the budget and funding. Integrating solutions like the SAI of Ghana’s Audit Management Information System can significantly enhance audit efficiency. Continuous staff training is essential to build a positive attitude toward new technologies, covering areas like data algorithm auditing and big data analysis. Assessing the complexity and compatibility of new technologies ensures ease of use and cost-effectiveness. Continuous support from technology providers and monitoring advancements will keep SAIs aligned with technological developments, enhancing their auditing capabilities. Full article

Land Value Capture (LVC) is increasingly being emphasized as a key mechanism for financing mass transit systems, promoted as a sustainability-oriented policy tool amid tightening public budgets. China has adopted a development-led approach to value capture through the “Rail plus Property (R + P)” model, drawing inspiration from the Hong Kong experience. The Shenzhen Metro’s “R + P” strategy has been widely acclaimed as the key to its reputation as “the only profitable transit company in mainland China without subsidies.” This paper questions this assumption and argues that the Shenzhen model is neither sustainable nor replicable, as its past performance depended on two exceptional conditions: an ascending phase of a real-estate cycle and unique institutional concessions from the central state. To substantiate this argument, we contrast Shenzhen’s value capture strategy with that of Nanjing—a provincial capital operating under routine institutional conditions, with governance and spatial structures broadly reflecting the prevailing urban development model in China. Using a comparative framework structured around three key dimensions of LVC—urban governance, risk management, and the transit company’s shift toward real estate—this paper reveals how distinct urban political economies give rise to contrasting value capture approaches: one expansionary, prioritizing short-term profit and rapid scale-up while downplaying risk management (Shenzhen); the other conservative, shaped by institutional constraints and characterized by reactive, incremental adjustments (Nanjing). These findings suggest that while LVC instruments offer valuable potential as a funding source for public transit, their long-term viability depends on early institutional embedding that aligns spatial, fiscal, and political interests, alongside well-developed project planning and capacity support in real estate expertise. Full article

Much U.S. research supports the effectiveness of parenting education delivered via the home visiting method. Home visitors are essential to reaching fathers in this context, but not all have favorable attitudes toward father engagement or feel confident working with fathers. Given that father involvement is important for a wide range of child and adolescent outcomes and that fathers benefit from parenting education, it is important to better understand the forces that shape home visitors’ attitudes toward fathers, and thus their subsequent efforts to include them in publicly funded programming. Using survey data from 95 home visitors in Tennessee, this study explores whether home visitors’ beliefs about fathers and attitudes toward father engagement vary as a function of home visitor or agency characteristics. Results suggest training in social work, reporting father-friendly organizational attitudes and behaviors at one’s agency, and reporting supervisor support specifically for father engagement relate to various favorable fathering attitudes. Home visitors’ strategies to engage fathers in home visiting are presented, including strategies for before, during, and after the home visit. Overall, family service agency administrators are in key positions to make decisions that can improve agency father-friendliness, home visitor attitudes toward fathers, and subsequent outcomes for fathers, mothers, and children. Full article

Digital transformation as a strategic goal is not new in the cultural heritage sector, yet it gained momentum due to COVID-19. This is reflected in policies and national strategies across Europe, where digitalisation is often seen as key to sustainable development. This study focuses on small heritage institutions in peripheral settings and explores the opportunities and limitations of digitalisation and its impact on sustainable regional development. A mixed-methods approach was applied, including a literature review, an online survey, focus groups, and a stakeholder interview, complemented by a case study. The findings show an uneven distribution of the perceived benefits, depending on funding, staff, and location. Nevertheless, digital transformation has positive social impacts by enhancing access to, participation in, and awareness of cultural heritage and therefore well-being. However, its economic effects in peripheral regions should not be overestimated. Digitalisation’s ecological impact on sustainable regional development is an underrepresented topic in the literature. Moreover, digitalisation is particularly challenging in peripheral regions and for smaller institutions with limited resources and should not be regarded as a guaranteed pathway towards sustainability. This paper contributes to an emerging field by examining the intersection of heritage institutions, digitalisation, and sustainable regional development in peripheral areas. Full article

This study examines the role of public–private partnerships in promoting the sustainable development of travel destinations through a comparative analysis of two emblematic heritage-based hospitality projects: Dar Tantora in Al Ula, Saudi Arabia, and Sextantio Le Grotte della Civita in Matera, Italy. These case studies were analysed through both architectural–urban and economic–legal perspectives to highlight how public–private partnership models can support heritage conservation, community engagement, and responsible tourism development. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining quantitative indicators—such as projected profitability, tourist volume, and employment—with qualitative insights from interviews with key stakeholders. The analysis reveals that while both models prioritise cultural authenticity and adaptive reuse, they differ significantly in funding structures, legal frameworks, and governance dynamics. Dar Tantora exemplifies a top-down, publicly funded model integrated into Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 strategy, whereas Sextantio reflects a bottom-up, private initiative rooted in social enterprise. The findings offer insights into how different public–private partnership configurations can foster sustainable tourism development, depending on local context, institutional frameworks, and strategic goals. The study contributes to the broader discourse on regenerative tourism, architectural conservation, and policy-driven heritage reuse. Full article

This study conducts a comprehensive systematic review of the economic impact of Digital Twin (DT) technology within the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry, following the PRISMA methodology. While DT adoption has been accelerated by advancements in Building Information Modelling (BIM), the Internet of Things (IoT), and data analytics, significant challenges persist—most notably, high initial investment costs and integration complexities. Synthesising the literature from 2016 onwards, this review identifies sector-specific barriers, regulatory burdens, and a lack of standardisation as key factors constituting DT implementation costs. Despite these hurdles, DTs demonstrate strong potential for enhancing construction productivity, optimising lifecycle asset management, and enabling predictive maintenance, ultimately reducing operational expenditures and improving long-term financial performance. Case studies reveal cost efficiencies achieved through DTs in modular construction, energy optimisation, and infrastructure management. However, limited financial resources and digital skills continue to constrain the uptake across the sector, with various extents of impact. This paper calls for the development of unified standards, innovative public–private funding mechanisms, and strategic collaborations to unlock and utilise DTs’ full economic value. It also recommends that future research explore theoretical frameworks addressing governance, data infrastructure, and digital equity—particularly through conceptualising DT-related data as public assets or collective goods in the context of smart cities and networked infrastructure systems. Full article

Our four-year interdisciplinary behavioral weight loss program is fully covered by public health insurance for patients with a body mass index of ≥35 kg/m². We evaluated the real-world outcomes of anthropometric, metabolic and psychologic parameters collected prior to the start (t₀, n = 381, 71% women) and after each segment of the program (t_1–4, n = 243, 126, 94, and 77). It is a prospective evaluation of clinical real-world data including all patients who started the first segment of behavioral treatment until they quit/finished the program. The mean dropout rates per treatment segment were 23%. Body weight after one year decreased from 127.3 kg to 122.2 (p < 0.001). Average hemoglobin A1c value decreased from 5.8% to 5.6% in all patients (p < 0.001) and from 6.6% to 6.2% in patients with type 2 diabetes (p < 0.001). Further metabolic and psychological parameters improved significantly as well. The average weight nadir was reached after two segments, co-occurring with the most beneficial changes in laboratory parameters. Afterwards, mean weight slightly increased accompanied by a discrete loss of benefits in laboratory parameters. Our real-world data with significant health improvements adds important value to discussions about the funding of obesity therapy and thus has the chance to improve therapy availability for obesity patients worldwide. Full article

Background: The management of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) is undergoing a paradigm shift, with increasing emphasis on kidney transplantation as a preferred treatment modality for elderly patients (≥65 years), who constitute a substantial portion of new ESRD cases. Transplantation offers markedly superior survival and quality of life (QoL) advantages compared to dialysis for this demographic. Nevertheless, key determinants such as frailty, physical functionality, and cognitive function have emerged as critical predictors of post-transplant success. Despite their relevance, standardized methodologies for evaluating these parameters in transplantation candidacy remain absent. This systematic review examines the influence of frailty, physical functionality, and cognitive function on outcomes in elderly kidney transplant recipients. Methods: Adhering to PRISMA guidelines, a rigorous literature search was conducted across PubMed, CINAHL, Embase, PsycINFO, and the Web of Science for studies published up to October 31, 2024. Relevant studies focused on elderly transplant candidates and examined correlations between frailty, physical functionality, or cognitive function and post-transplant outcomes. The Newcastle–Ottawa Scale was employed to evaluate studies quality. Results: Seven studies met the inclusion criteria. Five explored physical functionality, demonstrating that better pre-transplant physical performance predicts enhanced survival. Two studies addressed frailty, utilizing the Fried frailty phenotype, and linked frailty to elevated mortality and diminished QoL recovery. Notably, no studies explored cognitive function in elderly kidney transplant candidates or recipients and its association with post-transplant outcomes, exposing a salient gap in the literature. The included studies’ varied methodologies, reliance on single time-point assessments, and exclusive focus on kidney transplant recipients restrict both comparability among studies and the generalizability of findings to the broader end-stage renal disease (ESRD) population. Conclusions: These findings underscore the profound impact of physical functionality and frailty on transplant outcomes in the growing elderly kidney transplant population, illuminating the necessity for standardized assessment protocols and targeted pre-transplant interventions. The critical gap in cognitive function research underscores a vital direction for future investigation. This research received no external funding. This review is registered with PROSPERO under registration ID CRD42025645838. Full article

The 100-Day Mission, coordinated by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and endorsed by significant international stakeholders, aims to shorten the timeframe for developing and implementing vaccines to 100 days after the report of a new pathogen. This ambitious goal is outlined as an essential first step in improving pandemic preparedness worldwide. This review highlights the mission’s implementation potential and challenges by examining it through the lens of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), which often face barriers to equitable vaccine access. This article explores the scientific, economic, political, and social aspects that could influence the mission’s success, relying on lessons learned from previous pandemics, such as the Spanish flu, H1N1, and COVID-19. We also examined important cornerstones like prototype vaccine libraries, accelerated clinical trial preparedness, early biomarkers identification, scalable manufacturing capabilities, and rapid pathogen characterization. The review also explores the World Health Organization (WHO) Pandemic Agreement and the significance of Phase 4 surveillance in ensuring vaccine safety. We additionally evaluate societal issues that disproportionately impact LMICs, like vaccine reluctance, health literacy gaps, and digital access limitations. Without intentional attempts to incorporate under-resourced regions into global preparedness frameworks, we argue that the 100-Day Mission carries the risk of exacerbating already-existing disparities. Ultimately, our analysis emphasizes that success will not only rely on a scientific innovation but also on sustained international collaboration, transparent governance, and equitable funding that prioritizes inclusion from the beginning. Full article

This article explores the role of the European Union (EU) as a normative gender actor promoting women’s participation in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) within the Eastern Partnership (EaP) region. In a context marked by global inequality and overlapping international efforts, this paper assesses the extent to which EU-driven Europeanisation influences national gender policies in non-EU states. Using a postfunctionalist lens, this research draws on a qualitative analysis of EU-funded programmes, strategic documents, and a detailed case study encompassing Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine, Belarus, and Azerbaijan. This study highlights both the opportunities created by EU initiatives such as Horizon Europe, Erasmus+, and regional programmes like EU4Digital and the challenges presented by political resistance, institutional inertia, and socio-cultural norms. The findings reveal that although EU interventions have fostered significant progress, structural barriers and limited national commitment hinder the long-term sustainability of gender equality in STEM. Moreover, the withdrawal of other global actors increases pressure on the EU to maintain leadership in this area. This paper concludes that without stronger national alignment and global cooperation, EU gender policies risk becoming symbolic rather than transformative. Full article

Against the backdrop of ecological civilization construction and regional coordinated development strategies, functional zone (MFOZ) planning guides national spatial development through differentiated policies. However, a prominent conflict exists between the ecological protection responsibilities and regional development rights in restricted and prohibited development zones, leading to a vicious cycle of “ecological protection → restricted development → poverty exacerbation”. This paper focuses on the synergistic mechanisms between ecological compensation and targeted poverty alleviation. Based on the capability approach and sustainable development goals (SDGs), it analyzes the dialectical relationship between the two in terms of goal coupling, institutional design, and practical pathways. The study finds that ecological compensation can break the “ecological poverty trap” through the internalization of externalities and the enhancement of livelihood capabilities. Nevertheless, challenges remain, including low compensation standards, unbalanced benefit distribution, and insufficient legalization. Through case studies of the compensation reform in the water source area of Southern Shaanxi, China, and the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) of the European Union, this paper proposes the construction of a long-term mechanism integrating differentiated compensation standards, market-based fund integration, legal guarantees, and capability enhancement. The research emphasizes the need for institutional innovation to balance ecological protection and livelihood improvement, promoting a transition from “blood transfusion” compensation to “hematopoietic” development, thereby offering a Chinese solution for global sustainable development. Full article

This paper explores the effectiveness of an innovative FinTech risk-scoring model to predict the risk-appropriate return for short-term credit sales. The risk score serves to mitigate the information asymmetry between the seller of receivables (“Seller”) and the purchaser (“Funder”), at the same time providing an opportunity for the Funder to earn returns as well as to diversify its portfolio on a risk-appropriate basis. Selling receivables/credit to potential Funders at a risk-appropriate discount also helps Sellers to maintain their short-term financial liquidity and provide the necessary cash flow for operations and other immediate financial needs. We use 18,304 short-term credit-sale transactions between 23 April 2020 and 30 September 2022 from the private FinTech startup Crowdz and its Sustainability, Underwriting, Risk & Financial (SURF) risk-scoring system to analyze the risk/return relationship. The data includes risk scores for both Sellers of receivables (e.g., invoices) along with the Obligors (firms purchasing goods and services from the Seller) on those receivables and provides, as outputs, the mutual gains by the Sellers and the financial institutions or other investors funding the receivables (i.e., the Funders). Our analysis shows that the SURF Score is instrumental in mitigating the information asymmetry between the Sellers and the Funders and provides risk-appropriate periodic returns to the Funders across industries. A comparative analysis shows that the use of SURF technology generates higher risk-appropriate annualized internal rates of return (IRR) as compared to nonuse of the SURF Score risk-scoring system in these transactions. While Sellers and Funders enter into a win-win relationship (in the absence of a default), Sellers of credit instruments are not often scored based on the potential diversification by industry classification. Crowdz’s SURF technology does so and provides Funders with diversification opportunities through numerous invoices of differing amounts and SURF Scores in a wide range of industries. The analysis also shows that Sellers generally have lower financing stability as compared to the Obligors (payers on receivables), a fact captured in the SURF Scores. Full article