Search Results (601)

Over the last fifteen years, the Google Earth Engine (GEE) has become a pivotal tool for large-scale geospatial analysis, with growing applications in urban environmental monitoring. This review examines the peer-reviewed literature, published between 2015 and 2024, that utilizes GEE to evaluate urban environments through remote sensing-derived indices. The literature search strategy was guided by predefined search terms, which were applied to online databases including Scopus and Google Scholar. The inclusion criteria for this review comprised English-language publications, limited to articles only from journals, while book series, books, and conference articles were excluded. The eligibility criteria applied aimed to identify peer-reviewed studies that applied GEE to urban contexts using vegetation, thermal, greenness, or density indices. Studies without a clear urban focus or not employing GEE as a primary tool were excluded. The selection process followed a structured methodological flow, where a total of 291 studies were identified that fulfilled the applied criteria. This review indicates that key methodological trends encompass both conventional techniques, such as Random Forests (RFs), Support Vector Machines (SVMs), and classification/regression trees, as well as emerging machine learning algorithms, with Landsat, Sentinel, and MODIS as the most commonly used satellite datasets. The articles included in this review show a geographic focus, with over 44% of publications from China, 11% from the United States, and 9% from India, while the rest of the countries identified in this review contribute fewer than 5% each, suggesting that there is a significant opportunity for research in underrepresented regions. The main result of this review is that GEE proves to be an effective, scalable, and reproducible platform for urban environmental analysis, with most studies focusing on vegetation and thermal indices using Landsat, Sentinel, and MODIS data. As GEE has become one of the most widely used platforms for urban environmental monitoring, future research should focus on addressing challenges such as the standardization of indices, the consistency of methodological approaches, and the expansion of global coverage through advanced cloud-based geospatial frameworks. Full article

Land degradation is a critical global issue threatening environmental health, food security, and sustainable development. Afforestation has emerged as a vital nature-based solution to combat land degradation by restoring soil structure, enhancing water regulation, sequestering carbon, and supporting biodiversity. Despite extensive research on degraded lands and forestry, there remains a notable gap specifically addressing afforestation of degraded lands, which this study aims to fill through a comprehensive bibliometric and qualitative review of global trends, species use, ecological impacts, and restoration techniques. This study was conducted in two main phases: a bibliometric analysis followed by a traditional literature review. A total of 631 publications published between 1993 and 2024 on the afforestation of degraded lands were analyzed, with the majority consisting of research articles (87%), followed by review papers (5%), book chapters (4%), and conference proceedings (4%). In conclusion, afforestation of degraded lands is a well-established and actively studied field, supported by a substantial body of empirical research and expanding interdisciplinary engagement. The literature encompasses a wide variety of publication types, enabling both the production and dissemination of knowledge across ecological, technical, and socio-economic areas. Full article

Within the circular economy, repair is increasingly recognised as a crucial yet underexplored strategy that extends product lifespans and reduces waste. Service design offers approaches to support this transition by addressing technical, social, and systemic dimensions. This review aimed to synthesise how service design contributes to repair practices and identify research gaps. Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, we systematically searched Scopus and Web of Science, applied inclusion criteria focusing on service design and repair within the circular economy, and conducted multi-step screening and snowballing. From 132 initial records, 73 studies were included (journal articles, conference papers, book chapters). Thematic synthesis identified three areas: micro-level interactions between producers, products, and users (e.g., motivations, trust, communication); meso-level tools, frameworks, and platforms enhancing accessibility and efficiency; and macro-level societal transformation through regulations, standards, and communities. Results highlight service design’s potential to foster systemic change by integrating environmental, social, and economic aspects, while also revealing notable research gaps related to the limited engagement of repairers, policymakers, and cross-level collaboration. Compared to previous studies, this review contributes a novel integrated framework linking micro-, meso-, and macro-level dimensions of repair within the circular economy, offering both conceptual insights and actionable directions for practitioners and policymakers. The study is limited by language constraints and the lack of a formal bias evaluation. All reviewed materials are publicly accessible on OSF. This research was conducted without external financial support. Full article

In recent years, public discourse on pesticide impacts has increasingly recognized institutional and structural racism as key drivers of health disparities in Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities. While pesticides are vital for crop protection from causing yield losses, extensive research highlights their adverse effects on environmental quality and human health. These impacts disproportionately burden BIPOC populations, making pesticides a major environmental justice (EJ) concern like many other environmental pollutants. Despite progress in understanding these effects and advancing EJ, significant technical, social, and policy gaps remain. The objective of this review is to systematically examine critical gaps in technical, social, and policy dimensions, as well as the environmental and human health impacts of pesticide exposure on BIPOC communities in the United States, through the lens of environmental justice. This review synthesizes 128 sources peer-reviewed articles, books, reports on pesticides, EJ, and BIPOC communities in the U.S. Key findings reveal uneven distribution of pesticide-related health and environmental burdens along racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic lines. Non-Hispanic Blacks and Mexican Americans exhibit higher pesticide biomarkers and greater exposure risks than non-Hispanic Whites. Structural racism and classism, rooted in historical systems, perpetuate these inequities, compounded by regulatory failures and power imbalances. In addition, the EPA has flagged 31 pesticide manufacturing facilities for “Significant Violations” of key environmental laws, including the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. These systemic issues underscore urgent needs for transparency, accountability, and equitable policy reform. An EJ framework exposes critical knowledge gaps and calls for structural changes to ensure equal protection and responsive policies for the most affected communities. Full article

This article addresses the pressing need for knowledge on how digital technologies, artificial intelligence, and blockchain can revolutionize opportunities in the marine economy and sustainably support business while balancing environmental protection and economic growth, and legal instruments and policy innovations for marine environmental protection. However, implementation, legal, and governance concerns still exist. This study discusses the development and challenges of these technologies according to their environmental, economic, business, and regulatory dimensions, following a literature review of more than 100 peer-reviewed articles, books, and a synthesis of global shipping policies, risk, policymakers, industry experts, and environmental scientists. The findings highlight the need for aligned international regulations to strike a balance between innovation and environmental goals, risks, and technology. This study introduces an innovative governance assessment framework, bridging the gap between technology scalability and equitable policy responses, as well as the environmental impact and ecosystem balance. We conclude with actionable recommendations for policymakers and companies to harness digital innovations while strategizing for long-term sustainability in the maritime sector and aligning UN Sustainable Development Goals with the principles of maritime law, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and the United Nations Environment Programme Regional Seas Programme, offering ways to mitigate governance fragmentation. This study informs interdisciplinary discussion by bridging technical feasibility and legal feasibility, providing actionable suggestions to policymakers to reconcile digital innovation with the sustainability of the marine ecosystem. Full article

Scientific collections are recognized as important instruments for research, conservation, and teaching of biodiversity; however, they remain underused as pedagogical resources for Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). The Ichthyological Collection of the Federal University of Western Pará (UFOPA), in western Pará, gathers representative specimens of Amazonian ichthyofauna, constituting a regional scientific and cultural heritage. This article describes the methodology for using technical–scientific data from this collection to produce four educational products about the diversity of fishes in the Tapajós River: a memory game, a coloring book, an illustrated species guide, and a school activity workbook. The research combined document review, interviews, data systematization, and translation into accessible language, integrating principles of ESD and science teaching. The results demonstrate that using the collection to produce educational materials, when based on contextualized methodologies, enhances scientific literacy for conservation. By translating scientific data into accessible pedagogical materials, this study provides practical support for environmental education policies and for the inclusion of local biodiversity content in school curricula, expanding the social reach of scientific collections and promoting direct impacts on conservation and sustainable development, thereby strengthening SDGs 4, 14, and 15. Full article

Background and Objectives: Parkinson’s disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder after Alzheimer’s disease, and its incidence increases with age, being particularly high in people over 70 years of age. For patients with this condition, medical rehabilitation can have a profound impact, helping to improve mobility, preserve functional autonomy, and enhance quality of life. Focal vibration stimulation is a promising, well-tolerated, and easy-to-apply method with potential to facilitate motor activity and support the motor learning process, making it also useful in gait reeducation for patients with various neurological conditions. This systematic review aims to analyze the existing scientific evidence on the effectiveness of focal muscle vibration therapy in managing symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Materials and Methods: This systematic review of the literature was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, and the protocol was registered in PROSPERO under the protocol registration number CRD420251120737. Searches were conducted in five databases (PubMed, PEDro, ScienceDirect, Cochrane Library, Web of Science). The selection criteria targeted original clinical studies, published in English between 2010 and the present, that investigated focal muscle vibration therapy in patients with Parkinson’s disease and were fully available, excluding review papers, meta-analyses, books, and articles inaccessible in full text. Version 2 of the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomized trials (RoB 2) was used to assess the quality of the included studies. Results: The results of the studies were interpreted individually for each study, and the main information was synthesized in a comparative table to facilitate analysis. The final analysis included five studies that investigated the effects of focal muscle vibration in patients with Parkinson’s disease. The results suggest that this form of stimulation may offer benefits for patients with gait disorders, improving balance and stability. Among the study’s limitations are the small number of included articles (n = 5) and the restriction to English-language publications, which may limit the applicability of the results. Conclusions: Given the promising results, focal muscle vibration therapy could represent a useful option in the management of Parkinson’s disease. Integrating this method into rehabilitation plans could bring significant functional benefits, but further studies are needed to confirm its long-term effectiveness and to establish standardized application protocols. No external funding was received for the conduct of this review. Full article

Renewable energy sources, such as photovoltaic panels and wind turbines, are increasingly integrated into domestic systems to address energy scarcity, rising demand, and climate change. However, their intermittent nature requires efficient energy storage systems (ESS) for stability and reliability. This systematic review, conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines, aimed to evaluate the size and chemical composition of battery energy storage systems (BESS) in household renewable energy applications. A literature search was conducted in Scopus in August 2025 using predefined keywords, and studies published in English from 2015 onward were included. Exclusion criteria included book chapters, duplicate conference proceedings, geographically restricted case studies, systems without chemistry or size details, and those focusing solely on electric vehicle batteries. Of 308 initially retrieved records, 83 met the eligibility criteria and were included in the analysis. The majority (92%) employed simulation-based approaches, while 8% reported experimental setups. No formal risk-of-bias tool was applied, but a methodological quality check was conducted. Data were synthesized narratively and tabulated by chemistry, nominal voltage, capacity, and power. Lithium-ion batteries were the most prevalent (49%), followed by lead–acid (13%), vanadium redox flow (3.6%), and nickel–metal hydride (1.2%), with the remainder unspecified. Lithium-ion dominated due to high energy density, long cycle life, and efficiency. Limitations of the evidence include reliance on simulation studies, heterogeneity in reporting, and limited experimental validation. Overall, this review provides a framework for selecting and integrating appropriately sized and composed BESS into domestic renewable systems, offering implications for stability, efficiency, and household-level sustainability. The study was funded by the PNRR NEST project and Sapienza University of Rome Grant. Full article

This review seeks to understand what urban planning and management can do to reduce disaster risk and help cities adapt to the impacts of climate change. To achieve this, it examines various streams of the literature, as the topic sits at the intersection of several distinct but relevant disciplinary fields. These include urban planning in hazardous areas, recovery planning, disaster risk reduction (an umbrella term encompassing disciplines from engineering to geography and sociology), and, more recently, climate change adaptation. To navigate this vast body of knowledge, a conceptual framework is proposed to guide the selection of the relevant literature, and the strategy for this selection is detailed in the methodological section. This review adopts elements of both critical and theoretical approaches: it does not aim to be comprehensive or to systematically search each disciplinary domain addressed. While acknowledging the limitations and potential biases in the selection of articles and books, the review reflects an evolution in the discourse on urban planning for resilience. The discussion explores how the concept of resilience has emerged as a valuable bridge between disaster risk reduction, sustainability, and climate change adaptation—especially as cities face increasing exposure and vulnerability to stresses that are now more frequently compounded, multi-hazard, and cascading. The conclusion outlines the gaps and challenges that researchers, practitioners, and policy makers need to address moving forward. Full article

Information on care leaver outcomes in England is collected by local authorities to inform local services and national policy, but the focus of these measures reflects a narrow definition of ‘success’ imposed on care leavers by policy-makers and practitioners. Our article is a co-production by academics and care-experienced consultants, in which we conduct a rapid review of the journal articles, book chapters and Doctoral dissertations on definitions of ‘success’ for all young adults, drawing on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. The analysis utilises expertise by experience to (a) compare these definitions against the measures currently collected for care leavers in England, and (b) centre the views of care leavers in considering how ‘success’ should be defined. We identify limitations of both depth and breadth in existing statutory outcome measures as indicators of success, and highlight how both quantitative and qualitative differences between care leavers and other young adults have implications for the types of outcomes that should be measured. We conclude that policy-makers and practitioners need a more comprehensive approach to understanding and measuring success using care leavers’ own definitions. Full article

In the digitally saturated hospitality environment, research on digital transformation remains dominated by macro-level adoption trends and user-generated content, while the potential of micro-level web-behavioural data remains largely untapped. Recent systematic reviews highlight a fragmented body of literature and note that hospitality studies seldom address first-party behavioural data or big-data analytics capabilities. To address this gap, we collected clickstream, navigation and booking-funnel data from five luxury hotels in the Mediterranean and employed big-data analytics integrated with simulation modelling—specifically fuzzy cognitive mapping (FCM)—to model causal relationships among digital touchpoints, managerial actions and customer outcomes. FCM is a robust simulation tool that captures stakeholder knowledge and causal influences across complex systems. Using a case-study methodology, we show that first-party behavioural data enable real-time insights, support knowledge-based decision-making and drive digital service innovation. Across a 12-month panel, visitor volume was strongly associated with search traffic and social traffic, with the total-visitors model explaining 99.8% of variance. Our findings extend digital-transformation models by embedding micro-level behavioural data flows and simulation modelling. Practically, this study offers a replicable framework that helps managers integrate web-analytics into decision-making and customer-centric innovation. Overall, embedding micro-level web-behavioural analytics within an FCM framework yields a decision-ready, replicable pipeline that translates behavioural evidence into high-leverage managerial interventions. Full article

Fire spotting (FS), the process by which firebrands are lofted, transported, and ignite new fires ahead of the main flame front, plays a critical role in escalating extreme wildfire events. This systematic literature review (SLR) analyzes peer-reviewed articles and book chapters published in English from 2000 to 2023 to assess the evolution of FS models, identify prevailing methodologies, and highlight existing gaps. Following a PRISMA-guided approach, 102 studies were selected from Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar, with searches conducted up to December 2023. The results indicate a marked increase in scientific interest after 2010. Thematic and bibliometric analyses reveal a dominant research focus on integrating the FS model within existing and new fire spread models, as well as empirical research and individual FS phases, particularly firebrand transport and ignition. However, generation and ignition FS phases, physics-based FS models (encompassing all FS phases), and integrated operational models remain underexplored. Modeling strategies have advanced from empirical and semi-empirical approaches to machine learning and physical-mechanistic simulations. Despite advancements, most models still struggle to replicate the stochastic and nonlinear nature of spotting. Geographically, research is concentrated in the United States, Australia, and parts of Europe, with notable gaps in representation across the Global South. This review underscores the need for interdisciplinary, data-driven, and regionally inclusive approaches to improve the predictive accuracy and operational applicability of FS models under future climate scenarios. Full article

This article examines the creation of Dr. John E. Esslemont’s seminal work Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era (1923), the first comprehensive introductory book in English on the Bahá’í Faith. Drawing particularly on the extensive correspondence between Esslemont and Luṭfu’lláh Ḥakím, the article traces Esslemont’s journey from his initial encounter with the Bahá’í teachings in 1914 to the book’s publication and subsequent global impact. The unique involvement of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi in reviewing and correcting the manuscript is highlighted, along with Esslemont’s collaboration with prominent early Bahá’ís. Rather than specifically addressing the book’s content, this paper examines its preparation and publication, its rapid translation and worldwide dissemination in multiple languages. Finally, Esslemont’s legacy is considered, both through his book and his personal example as a pioneering Western adherent of the Bahá’í Faith. Esslemont’s original spelling of Bahá’í names and terminology in his correspondence has been maintained. Full article