Search Results (1,391)

In recent decades, the global fashion and textile market has been facing an unprecedented sector-wide crisis. The growing demand for clothing, combined with continuously decreasing prices and driven by the constant availability of new quantities and styles, has allowed fast fashion and super-fast fashion business models to flood the market with low-quality, short-lived, and high environmental impact products. Starting from 1 January 2025, the separate collection of textile waste came into force in the European Union. However, under current conditions, this regulatory change has generated an imbalance between collection capacity and the availability of effective sorting and recycling channels. Furthermore, due to the low market demand for recycled fibers, warehouses and landfills are increasingly filling with post-consumer textile waste, materials that could potentially serve as secondary raw materials but currently remain unsold. Moreover, the fast fashion business model promotes the use of short fibers and complex fiber blends that are resource-intensive and generate large volumes of low-quality waste. This material profile further limits reuse and recycling options, exacerbating inefficiencies within existing waste management systems. This review aims to identify and discuss available opportunities to address textile waste containing low-quality fibers through the examination of scientific literature, technical publications, and market-ready products that utilize regenerated textile materials. The results highlight open-loop applications and processes, such as those in the automotive, building, and design sectors, thereby opening to new end-of-life scenarios for waste textiles. Full article

In this study, we develop a game-theoretic optimization framework to analyze competing vessels’ technology choices between shore power (SP) and low-sulfur fuel oil (LSFO) within a maritime supply chain which is regulated by a cap-and-trade mechanism. Using a Stackelberg game approach, we construct two models—one port-led and the other vessel-led—to derive closed-form equilibrium for pricing, service quantities, profits, emissions, and social welfare. The results reveal three key findings. First, the leader in either Stackelberg structure always achieves higher profits, while total supply chain profits remain identical across power structures. Second, at low carbon prices, LSFO-equipped vessels provide more services and earn higher profits due to cost advantages. As the carbon price rises—which directly incentivizes emission reduction and accelerates maritime decarbonization—SP becomes more attractive and eventually dominates in profitability despite higher initial investment. Notably, although SP has lower unit emissions, its total emissions may surpass those of LSFO at certain carbon-price thresholds because the SP-equipped vessel optimally expands output. Third, intensified competition reduces service quantities, profits, and emissions, with a more substantial reduction effect on LSFO vessels. Overall, our results provide mathematically grounded insights for optimizing low-carbon technology adoption in maritime transport and offer actionable policy implications for carbon pricing that balance environmental objectives and supply chain efficiency. This research contributes specifically to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure). Full article

The interplay between fiscal and monetary policy is critical for small open economies exposed to global volatility, yet the regime-dependent nature of this transmission often remains underexplored. This study investigates whether the Hungarian economy operated under fiscal or monetary dominance from 2010 to 2024, a period marked by significant external shocks. Adopting a Markov Regime-Switching VAR (MS-VAR) framework tailored to an open-economy context, the research estimates state-dependent reaction functions and Impulse Response Functions (IRFs) for both the central bank and the fiscal authority. The model explicitly controls for exogenous geopolitical and economic crises and is validated through rigorous stationarity and regime-selection tests. Empirical results reveal that Hungary predominantly operated under fiscal dominance, with the fiscal authority exhibiting non-Ricardian behavior and no significant response to debt accumulation across the sample. Conversely, the Magyar Nemzeti Bank demonstrated regime-switching behavior: a “Passive” stance accommodating fiscal expansion from 2013 to 2019, followed by a forced shift to an “Active” regime in 2022 characterized by aggressive responses to inflation and high-interest rate volatility. These findings suggest that in small open economies, policy dominance is frequently dictated by external constraints, with the burden of macroeconomic stabilization falling disproportionately on monetary policy during crisis episodes. Full article

With the rapid development of the shipping industry, the collision risk among ships in open waters has been steadily increasing, making effective multi-ship collision avoidance decision-making a critical issue for ensuring navigational safety. This paper proposes a multi-ship collision avoidance decision-making method based on the COLREGs. First, a fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method is used to construct a collision risk index model. Then, considering navigational safety, COLREG compliance, turning amplitude, and path economy, an objective function for ship collision avoidance is formulated. Next, the AVOA is improved by incorporating SA to simulate the foraging and navigation behavior of vultures. The Metropolis acceptance criterion is applied to help the algorithm escape local optima and enhance global search capabilities. Experiments conducted in the VSC simulation environment show that the proposed method significantly improves decision-making performance in multi-ship encounter scenarios compared to the standard AVOA. Full article

In recent years, industry development has become closely connected with Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and trade openness. This research explores how industry, ICT, economic activity, and trade openness affect the environment, highlighting the importance of investing in low-carbon technologies and energy-efficient machinery. The goal of this research is to investigate the short- and long-run impacts of industrialization, ICT, economic activity, and trade openness on per capita carbon emissions in Lithuania from 2000 to 2024. This study employs the ARDL econometric model along with several diagnostic tests. The Breusch–Godfrey Serial Correlation test indicated no serial correlation, while the Breusch–Pagan–Godfrey test indicated no heteroscedasticity. The Ramsey RESET test confirmed that the model specification is appropriate and significant for the research. Additionally, the VIF test for multicollinearity indicates that no multicollinearity exists among the research variables. The research results show that industrialization and economic activity are positively associated with per capita carbon emissions and environmental harm. In contrast, trade openness and ICT are negatively associated with per capita carbon emissions in Lithuania, thereby contributing to environmental sustainability. The novelty of this research: a specific combination of variables combining key structural (industrialization), integration (trade openness), and digital diffusion (ICT penetration) determinants of CO₂ emissions within a specific single-country context, applying the ARDL framework for the Baltic EU member state, Lithuania. While prior studies primarily relied on multi-country panels and often treat ICT through heterogeneous proxies, this study operationalizes ICT as internet-user penetration to capture digital integration effects—an important distinction for small open economies where energy-intensive digital infrastructure may be located abroad. By separating short-run from long-run dynamics, the analysis offers evidence on how the environmental effects of openness, growth, and digitalization unfold over time, using recent data up to 2024 and providing policy recommendations encouraging decarbonization strategies. Full article

This article presents an academic literature analysis of 75 Industry 4.0 (I4.0) and Industry 5.0 (I5.0) maturity models published between 2020 and 2024, examining their empirical validation, sectoral scope, geographical origin, and stated applicability to developing-country contexts. The study combines descriptive profiling, contingency-table analyses with exact tests and effect sizes, and a large-scale synthesis of 562 research gaps reported by model authors. Knowledge production is highly concentrated in single-country studies (77.3%) and in developed economies, while most models do not explicitly or implicitly document applicability to developing-country settings (approximately 83%). Empirical validation practices are uneven, with multiple-case studies (33.3%) and surveys (24.0%) dominating, and sectoral coverage is strongly skewed toward manufacturing, limiting transferability to other sectors relevant for emerging economies. A statistically detectable association is observed between the development level of the model’s country of origin and the presence of applicability statements (${\chi }^2$ = 17.13, $p<0.05$, moderate effect size), whereas authorship configuration shows no substantive association. Thematic analysis of reported gaps highlights persistent deficits in empirical rigor, sectoral breadth, SME orientation, operationalization of human-centric and sustainability dimensions associated with Industry 5.0, availability of implementation tools, and longitudinal or predictive evidence. The article concludes by outlining a research agenda focused on context-aware validation designs, broader sectoral grounding, and greater transparency and reproducibility, supported by open access to all underlying data, codebooks, and taxonomies. Full article

This study examines the determinants of inflation volatility in Tunisia, focusing on central bank independence (CBI), economic transparency, and macroeconomic fundamentals. Although CBI is widely regarded as essential for monetary credibility, its effectiveness depends on its institutional framework. Our contribution is twofold. First, we develop a theoretical framework based on game theory to illustrate how the effectiveness of economic transparency and CBI shapes the welfare of both the central bank and the private sector in the presence (or not) of fiscal policy. Second, we use a binary threshold nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag (NARDL) model to capture long-run relationships and a Markov-switching GARCH (MS-GARCH) framework to model volatility dynamics. As a continuous measure, CBI has no significant impact on volatility. Paradoxically, high de jure independence in a binary regime is associated with a slight increase in inflation fluctuations. This indicates that legal independence alone is insufficient without fiscal discipline or effective coordination between the monetary and fiscal authorities. Notably, under fiscal pressure, greater CBI substantially reduces inflation volatility, highlighting the need for a coherent macroeconomic framework. Economic transparency generally increases short-term volatility but stabilizes inflation when supported by credible fiscal signals. Among the macroeconomic fundamentals, volatility in broad money is strongly destabilizing, whereas fluctuations in industrial production and the real exchange rate are largely insignificant. Government spending and exposure to external shocks, including import prices and geopolitical risks, further amplify this volatility. The observed negative trend over time reflects gradual improvements owing to policy reforms. Policy recommendations emphasize the establishment of genuinely independent and credible monetary institutions, enhancing coordination with fiscal policy, improving communication strategies, and strengthening risk management. Full article

This study examines the conceptualization of sustainability in heritage tourism in Saudi Arabia following the introduction of the Saudi Vision 2030 program and the country’s opening to tourism in 2019, both of which aim to diversify the economy and promote cultural heritage. A scoping review methodology based on the Arksey & O’Malley framework has been adopted; data were charted according to the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) charting method based on the PRISMA-ScR reporting protocol. Publications from 2019 to 2025 were systematically collected from the database and manual research, resulting in 25 fully accessible studies that met the inclusion criteria. Data were analyzed thematically, revealing six main areas of investigation, encompassing both sustainability outcomes and cross-cutting implementation enablers: heritage conservation and tourism development, architecture and urban planning, policy and governance, community engagement, marketing and technology, and geoheritage and environmental sustainability. The findings indicate that Saudi research in this field is primarily qualitative, focusing on ecological aspects. The studies reveal limited integration of social and technological dimensions, with significant gaps identified in standardized sustainability indicators, longitudinal monitoring, policy implementation, and digital heritage tools. The originality of this study lies in its comprehensive mapping of Saudi heritage tourism sustainability research, highlighting emerging gaps and future agendas. The results also provide a roadmap for policymakers, managers, and scholars to enhance governance policies, community participation, and technological integration, which can contribute to sustainable tourism development in line with Saudi Vision 2030 goals, thereby fostering international competitiveness while preserving cultural and natural heritage. Full article

Energy recovery technology is becoming a crucial part of modern approaches that address decarbonization, efficiency, and transitioning into a circular economy. In addition, apart from its advancements in efficiency and environmental benefits, its progress appears to be progressively limited due to its maturity and increasing complexity. In this case, innovation that focuses solely in the firm appears ineffective because more and more important knowledge in terms of innovation in processes and environmental aspects is becoming and remaining outside of organizational boundaries. In this paper, open innovation will be explored in its function as a structural innovation method of advancing energy recovery technology. The paper employs the narrative literature review of peer-reviewed literature indexed in the Scopus database to explore the implications of the outside-in model of open innovation, the inside-out model of open innovation, and the coupled model of open innovation with respect to the primary recovery processes of energy such as combustion, gasification, pyrolysis, anaerobic digestion, and landfill gas recovery. The literature incorporates findings about the implications of knowledge inflows and outflows with respect to the mentioned energy recovery processes. The results show that open innovation efficacy strongly varies according to the degree of technological maturity and performance issues, in that outside-in open innovation tends to be very effective in mature and semi-mature technology sectors, where incremental improvements in efficiency require specialized knowledge outside the industry, while coupled open innovation is crucial for addressing system-wide issues in areas such as emissions, regulatory compatibility, and infrastructure integration, while inside-out innovation is largely a means of facilitating technology dissemination and standardization once a degree of technological maturity had been realized. This study, through the association of selective open innovation practices with corresponding energy recovery technology and challenges, aims to provide a more nuanced perspective on the assistive potential of collaborative innovation in effecting sustainable development in energy recovery technology. Full article

Amid intensifying global competition, key core technology breakthroughs have become central to advancing technological self-reliance and strengthening national productive capacity. Using panel data on Chinese A-share listed firms from 2011 to 2023, we adopt a difference-in-differences framework to identify the effect of digital–intelligence policy synergy on firm-level key core technology breakthroughs. The empirical results show that digital–intelligence policy synergy significantly promotes firms’ key core technology breakthroughs, and this finding remains robust to a battery of robustness checks, including a double machine learning approach. Mechanism analyses indicate that digital–intelligence policy synergy promotes breakthroughs through three channels: deeper technology convergence between the digital economy and the real economy, improved industry–research compatibility, and the accumulation of human capital trained for digital–intelligence. Heterogeneity analyses further suggest that the effect is more pronounced among state-owned enterprises, firms in strategic emerging industries, and firms located in regions with stronger intellectual property protection. Overall, this study offers empirical evidence that orchestrating policy synergies is critical for fostering an innovation ecosystem conducive to technological self-reliance. Full article

As an important industrial organizational form in the era of the digital economy, digital industry agglomeration exerts a profound impact on urban ecological resilience. Using panel data of 281 prefecture-level cities in China from 2011 to 2021, this study measures the level of digital industry agglomeration by means of the location entropy method, and constructs an urban ecological resilience evaluation system based on the “Pressure-State-Response (PSR)” model. It systematically examines the impact effects and action mechanisms of digital industry agglomeration on urban ecological resilience. The results show that: (1) The spatio-temporal evolution of the two presents a gradient pattern of “eastern leadership and central-western catch-up”, and their spatial correlation deepens over time, with the synergy maturity in the eastern region being significantly higher than that in the central and western regions. (2) Digital industry agglomeration significantly promotes the improvement in urban ecological resilience, and this conclusion remains valid after endogeneity treatment and robustness tests. (3) The promotional effect is more prominent in central cities, coastal cities, and key environmental protection cities, whose advantages stem from digital infrastructure and innovation endowments, industrial synergy and an open environment, and the adaptability of green technologies under strict environmental regulations, respectively. (4) Digital industry agglomeration empowers ecological resilience by driving green innovation and improving the efficiency of land resource allocation, while the construction of digital infrastructure plays a positive regulatory role. Full article

The transition toward a circular economy (CE) is progressively recognized as a strategic pathway to reconcile economic growth with environmental sustainability. Municipal solid waste management in Jordan remains mostly linear, with over 90% of the generated waste disposed of in landfills and open dumpsites. This study critically examines the prospects of adopting CE principles in Jordan’s waste sector by evaluating current practices, policy frameworks, and potential recycling pathways. A mixed-methods approach was adopted, combining quantitative modeling with qualitative insights from stakeholders and public surveys. Three recycling scenarios were assessed against the baseline scenario: 25%, 50%, and 75% waste recovery by 2034. The U.S. EPA WARM model was used to estimate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy savings. It was inferred that the net avoided emissions (against the baseline) for Scenarios 1, 2, and 3 are 14.5%, 29.0%, and 44%, respectively, with paper/cardboard contributing most to avoided emissions. Nonetheless, only Scenarios 2 and 3 were deemed environmentally sustainable, as their projected net GHG emissions for 2034 were lower than those recorded in the base year. Socio-economic analysis identified the major barriers as limited public awareness and participation, infrastructural gaps, and financial and institutional constraints. The analysis further reveals that despite the relatively high capital and operating costs associated with advancing toward CE in waste management, the long-term environmental and socio-economic gains are expected to outweigh the associated costs, particularly in terms of avoided GHG emissions and reduced landfill dependency. Full article

Digitalisation is reshaping commercial systems in Europe, yet the joint evolution of national digital capabilities, e-commerce and macroeconomic performance remains imperfectly understood. This article develops a parsimonious Digital Maturity Index for the EU-27 over 2015–2023 and examines its association with the share of enterprise turnover generated through e-commerce using a systems-oriented econometric design. Two-way fixed-effects and dynamic panel models show that e-commerce turnover is strongly persistent within countries and systematically higher in more trade-open economies and in labour markets with slightly higher unemployment, after controlling for income and unobserved heterogeneity. The marginal effect of digital maturity on e-commerce intensity is small and statistically fragile, suggesting that digital capabilities act more as a slow-moving state variable than as a direct short-run driver of online sales. The marginal within-country effect of digital maturity on e-commerce intensity is small and statistically fragile once unobserved heterogeneity is controlled for, whereas trade openness and labour-market conditions remain robust correlates. The PVAR results suggest a stable system with strong persistence in e-commerce and digital maturity, limited spillovers to growth and a pronounced temporary contraction in output during the COVID-19 shock. Full article

Digitalization is widely heralded as a catalyst for growth, yet its role in achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 10 (Reduced Inequalities) remains deeply contested. Moving beyond linear assumptions of “digital dividends,” this study adopts a complex socio-technical systems perspective to unravel the configurational pathways linking digitalization to national income inequality. We analyze a high-quality balanced panel of 56 major economies from 2012 to 2022. Employing Panel Fuzzy-Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (Panel fsQCA) and Necessary Condition Analysis (NCA), this study proposes an evidence-based typology of digitalization-inequality pathways. We reveal that the impact of digital transformation is asymmetric and contingent on geo-economic contexts. NCA identifies Digital Infrastructure, Innovation, and Governance as necessary “bottlenecks” for social equity. Sufficiency analysis uncovers three distinct sustainable development modes: an “Open Innovation Mode” in affluent small economies, driven by global integration and technological frontiers; a “Governance-Regulated Industry Mode” in major economies, where strong state capacity regulates digital industrial scale; and an “Open Niche Mode” for transition economies, leveraging openness to bypass domestic structural deficits. Conversely, we identify a critical “Hollow Governance Trap” in the Global South, where digital governance efforts fail to reduce inequality in the absence of real industrial and infrastructural foundations. These findings challenge one-size-fits-all policies, suggesting that bridging the global digital divide requires context-specific strategies—ranging from synergistic integration to asymmetric breakthroughs—that align digital investments with institutional capacity. Full article

Concrete production contributes approximately 4–8% of global cardon dioxide emissions, largely due to Portland cement. Incorporating municipal solid waste (MSW) into concrete offers a pathway to reduce cement demand while supporting circular economy objectives. This study evaluates the mechanical performance, environmental impacts, and optimization potential of concrete incorporating three MSW-derived materials: cardboard kraft fibers (KFs), recycled high-density polyethylene (HDPE), and textile fibers. A maximum 10% cement replacement strategy was adopted. Compressive strength was assessed at 7, 14, and 28 days, and a cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment (LCA) was conducted using OpenLCA to quantify global warming potential (GWP100) and other midpoint impacts. A surrogate-based optimization implemented using Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II (NSGA-II) was applied to minimize cost and GWP while enforcing compressive strength as a feasibility constraint. The results show that fiber-based wastes significantly reduce embodied carbon, with KF achieving the largest GWP reduction (19%) and textile waste achieving moderate reductions (10%) relative to the control. HDPE-modified concrete exhibited near-control mechanical performance but increased GWP and fossil depletion due to polymer processing burdens. The optimization results revealed well-defined Pareto trade-offs for KF and textile concretes, identifying clear compromise solutions between cost and emissions, while HDPE was consistently dominated. Overall, textile waste emerged as the most balanced option, offering favorable environmental gains with minimal cost and acceptable mechanical performance. The integrated LCA optimization framework demonstrates a robust approach for evaluating MSW-derived concrete and supports evidence-based decision-making toward low-carbon, circular construction materials. Full article