Search Results (39,311)

The emergence of energy communities in the energy transition world could be beneficial for sustainable development, particularly in ancient town centers. The interaction between energy groups, renewable energy sources, and electric vehicles in Italy’s historic cities is the primary concern of this work. It examines the potential for these interconnected components to collaborate to revitalize Italian historical sites and ensure their sustainable management. This study focuses on the overall potential of energy communities to boost democracy and energy security, and decrease negative environmental impacts. It is studied by analyzing rules and regulation along with new technologies and changes in society and economy that are affecting the energy sector. This paper focuses on approaches to the application of renewable energy resources and examines electric mobility and its role in realizing ecologically sustainable transportation in cities. It also demonstrates the needs to occur with infrastructures, use rates and policies that must be implemented to get a person to drive electric cars around historic districts. This improves the management’s capacity to implement an easy transition to low carbon because, related to energy production and consumption, techniques of comprehensive planning should be adopted. Full article

Food insecurity is a complex and multidimensional phenomenon embedded in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Addressing it requires robust tools and indicators that reflect the diverse and interconnected drivers of hunger, particularly in countries of the Global South. This study proposes the Multidimensional Food Insecurity Index (MUFII) and illustrates its construction and application through a case study in Brazil. MUFII’s development included four main steps: (1) collecting indicators from official open data sources, (2) selecting indicators, (3) normalizing these indicators, (4) calculating the index using the average of the standardized indicators, and (5) conducting validation and sensitivity analyses. The index ranges from 0 to 1, with higher values indicating worse levels. MUFII was calculated for all 27 Federative Units of Brazil and for the years 2018 and 2022. The index score ranged from 0.09 to 0.67 in 2018 and from 0.10 to 0.72 in 2022. Higher index scores were observed for Federative Units located in the North and Northeast of the country in both years, with the situation worsening in 2022, even among those with low scores in 2018. Validation and sensitivity analyses confirmed the robustness of the index. By expanding the diagnosis of hunger beyond single-dimension metrics, MUFII provides a systemic framework for monitoring food insecurity and identifying policy priorities. Its methodological structure is scalable and replicable, offering a practical tool for tracking progress towards the SDGs in diverse national contexts. Full article

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted social interactions, family dynamics, and economic stability, disproportionately affecting vulnerable populations. Tuberculosis and leprosy perpetuate poverty and, once manifested, hinder socioeconomic development due to their high potential for disability. Methodology: This study analyzed the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic using DATASUS health data and assessed the influence of socioeconomic interventions (SAGICAD data) on tuberculosis and leprosy case notifications in Brazil. A correlation analysis was performed between regional diagnoses and variables such as Bolsa Família (a national social welfare program), BCG vaccination coverage, and COVID-19 immunization rates, applying Pearson’s correlation test. Results: No significant correlations were found between COVID-19 vaccination rates and tuberculosis/leprosy diagnoses. However, a strong negative correlation (p < 0.05) was observed between BCG (Bacillus Calmette–Guérin) vaccination coverage and leprosy incidence in the Northern region. The findings also suggest that social assistance programs such as Bolsa Família play a pivotal role in preventing infectious diseases in vulnerable areas. Conclusions: Understanding the complex interplay between socioeconomic determinants and public health outcomes is essential for guiding future research and informing health policies, including potential revisions to social programs and vaccination protocols. Full article

This study examines the impact of technological progress on food price dynamics and supply stability across the 27 European Union Member States during 2011–2024. Using a balanced panel dataset, the analysis explores four dependent indicators—consumer food prices, food price inflation, price volatility, and food supply variability—while controlling for trade openness, GDP per capita growth, and population. Technological progress is estimated through panel least squares regression with fixed effects. The results reveal that technological advancement significantly reduces food prices and inflation, suggesting that innovation-driven productivity and efficiency gains stabilize consumer markets. However, its influence on food price volatility and supply variability is statistically insignificant, indicating that innovation alone cannot fully mitigate systemic risks in the European food system. The results provide policy-relevant evidence supporting the integration of technological innovation into food system governance across the European Union. They underline the need for targeted investment and regulatory coordination to translate innovation gains into tangible resilience outcomes, thus offering practical guidance for policymakers and stakeholders involved in implementing the European Green Deal and the Farm to Fork Strategy. Full article

Background: A cesarean section (CS) is a method of childbirth involving a surgical cut made in the abdominal and uterine wall to deliver the infant. But while it saves the lives of women and infants, it has been implicated in several immediate and long-term complications and adverse consequences as a result of its ineffective use. This study attempts to address the major public health issue of the inappropriate use of CS by exploring its impact on maternal, neonatal, and child health. More specifically, the study aims to investigate the immediate and long-term health impacts on the mother, including her physical and mental health, as well as the immediate and long-term psychosomatic consequences on the neonate’s, infant’s, and child’s health as a result of the inappropriate use of CS. Methods: A scoping review was conducted spanning from 2015 to 2025 according to the PRISMA criteria and checklist. Searches were performed in PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar. The inclusion criteria comprised original articles with clear exposure and outcome written in English, and studies that did not involve reviews of any kind or letters to the editors. Results: The review identified 42 relevant studies. The results showed several immediate and long-term complications of CS in mothers, neonates, infants, and children, while its ineffective use carries equally high risks, such as high levels of morbidity and mortality. Conclusions: This scoping review presents the problems that arise in the immediate and long-term health of mother and child from the improper use of cesarean section and underlines the need for immediate action and measures to be taken by health policy makers. Full article

Background/Objectives: This study aims to evaluate whether the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) are effective for maintaining a healthy diet among Mexican-descent populations in the US or if a more culturally tailored policy approach is warranted. Methods: As a first outcome, 20 healthy women of Mexican descent from the Seattle area participated in a pilot randomized controlled trial. They were randomly assigned (10 participants each) to either a group receiving instruction on the standard 2015 DGA or a group receiving an adaptation of the DGA focused on traditional Mexican cuisine and culture. In this 12-week study (with follow-ups at 3 and 6 months), participants’ acceptability of the cultural adaptation of the DGA was compared with that of the standard DGA with end-of-study surveys. Ten blood-based metabolic biomarkers were assessed at baseline and 3 months. Dietary changes at 3 months were assessed with a Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) that was translated into Spanish but not culturally adapted. The secondary outcome was dietary change at 6 months. Results: The primary findings at 3 months showed that serum free fatty acids were reduced for the standard DGA arm. Carbohydrate consumption was reduced in the standard DGA arm only. The end-of-study survey results suggested that both interventions were well received by participants. Conclusions: The preliminary findings from this small sample size suggest that depending on a person’s priorities, either intervention could be offered, with each arm showing slightly different dietary and biomarker outcomes. Full article

District heating is critical for low-carbon urban energy systems, yet most networks remain centralized in both heat generation and data ownership, fossil-dependent, and poorly integrated with digital, customer-centric, and market-responsive solutions. While artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), and automation offer transformative opportunities, their adoption raises complex challenges related to business models, regulation, and consumer trust. This paper addresses the absence of a comprehensive synthesis linking technological innovation, business-model evolution, and institutional adaptation in the digital transformation of district heating. Using the PRISMA-ScR methodology, this review systematically analyzed 69 peer-reviewed studies published between 2006 and 2024 across four thematic domains: digital technologies and automation, business-model innovation, customer engagement and value creation, and challenges and implementation barriers. The results reveal that research overwhelmingly emphasizes technical optimization, such as AI-driven forecasting and IoT-based fault detection, whereas economic scalability, regulatory readiness, and user participation remain underexplored. Studies on business-model innovation highlight emerging approaches such as dynamic pricing, co-ownership, and sector coupling, yet few evaluate financial or policy feasibility. Evidence on customer engagement shows increasing attention to real-time data platforms and prosumer participation, but also persistent barriers related to privacy, digital literacy, and equity. The review develops a schematic conceptual framework illustrating the interactions among technology, business, and governance layers, demonstrating that successful digitalization depends on alignment between innovation capacity, market design, and institutional flexibility. Full article

Despite growing scholarly interest in leadership within entrepreneurial settings, little is known about how relational leadership operates in informal, resource-constrained ecosystems. This study examines how entrepreneurial leadership fosters positive relational dynamics and collaborative resilience within Ecuador’s highly informal entrepreneurial ecosystem. Drawing on entrepreneurial cognition and relational leadership theories, it investigates how entrepreneurs act as informal leaders who cultivate trust, empathy, and mutual support in the absence of formal institutional structures. Using an original mixed-method lexical–clustering design, data were collected from 880 micro and small entrepreneurs in Quito, who categorized 75 entrepreneurial attributes using a forced-choice instrument. Two dominant narratives emerged: collaborative resilience (65%), defined by empathy, adaptability, and social cohesion, and structural vulnerability (35%), marked by bureaucracy, fear, and emotional strain. Gender differences revealed that women emphasize relational stress and communal coping, while men focus on structural barriers and operational constraints. The findings extend leadership research by demonstrating how positive relational processes enable entrepreneurs to transform adversity into collective strength. The study advances relational leadership theory by revealing its cognitive and emotional foundations in nontraditional contexts. It offers policy insights for designing inclusive, trust-based ecosystems that promote psychological safety, collaboration, and sustainable entrepreneurship in emerging economies. Full article

This study examines herding behavior in six MENA stock markets, with a focus on the impact of geopolitical risks and downward/upward market conditions during COVID-19/non-COVID-19 periods. Empirical results reveal significant differences among MENA countries regarding herding behavior and the impact of geopolitical events. We conclude that herding was more pronounced during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially during downward markets. Additionally, we found that geopolitical risks further amplified herding during dramatic market periods, particularly at lower quantiles. An exception was the Saudi stock market, which exhibited resilience to geopolitical risks, likely due to strong government support and robust policies. In contrast, Lebanon’s stock market has been exposed to an increased herding due to political instability. These findings suggest that regulators should enhance mechanisms to monitor market activities and introduce efficient policies to mitigate systematic risk and strengthen financial stability during downturns. Full article

Background/Objectives: Streptococcus pneumoniae is a major human pathogen causing illnesses that range from mild respiratory infections to severe invasive diseases. More than 100 known S. pneumoniae serotypes differ in their virulence, prevalence, and levels of drug resistance. Additionally, different clonal types within the same serotype may exhibit varying disease potential and genetic characteristics. This study aimed to determine phenotypic and molecular characteristics of S. pneumoniae isolated from patients with invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD). Methods: The serotypes of invasive S. pneumoniae isolates collected between 2022 and 2025 from adult patients hospitalized in a tertiary hospital were determined. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) was performed on isolates with reduced susceptibility to penicillin to assess their molecular epidemiology. Results: Serotype 3 was the most common among all invasive isolates (29/85; 34.1%), followed by serotype 19A (22/85; 25.9%). Most penicillin-resistant isolates belonged to serotypes 19A and 19F. Three of the eight 19A isolates with reduced penicillin susceptibility were assigned to ST320 (37.5%), a clinically significant clone due to its high virulence and antibiotic resistance. While 15.3% of all isolates were multidrug-resistant (MDR), nearly half of the isolates with reduced penicillin susceptibility were MDR, most frequently exhibiting the erythromycin–clindamycin–tetracycline resistotype. Conclusions: This study highlights the predominance of serotype 19A, particularly the highly virulent and resistant ST320 clone, among invasive isolates with reduced penicillin susceptibility. These findings underscore the ongoing threat of antimicrobial resistance in IPD and the importance of continued surveillance of serotype distribution and resistance patterns to guide treatment strategies and vaccination policy decisions. Full article

In this study, the effects of horizontal and vertical cross-ownership on innovation are examined, along with the influence of controlling parties on innovation incentives in cross-ownership firms. Since state-owned enterprises (SOEs) have better resources, the focus question of the study is to understand if SOE-controlled cross-ownership firms have stronger innovation incentives and possess higher efficiency. By using regression methods to analyze the firms listed in Chinese market, the results show that horizontal cross-ownership increases innovation incentives, but vertical cross-ownership decreases them. When firms with cross-ownership are controlled by non-SOE institutions, investments in innovation decrease. However, the environmental protection score of such a firm is higher. Lower investment and greater environmental protection indicate greater efficiency, and cross-ownership provides greater synergy in terms of sustainability. When the firms are SOEs, there is no such effect, indicating a less efficient synergy. However, SOEs attract more research visits from financial institutions. This study provides significant value for understanding the cross-ownership business system in the Chinese market. It demonstrates that the controlling party of cross-ownership can impact the efficiency of joint research and innovation, which is crucial for transitioning from a push-based, digitalization-focused Industry and Society 4.0 to a more pull-based, human-centered Industry and Society 5.0 era. The results show that policymakers should consider initiating policy revisions to further support business sustainability and change SOEs’ leading business norms to support innovation. Full article

Disinformation poses a substantive challenge to democratic governance, particularly in contexts marked by foreign influence. While the broadcasting of Russia Today (RT) in Europe has received significant attention, comparatively little is known about its impact and audience reception in Latin America. This study addresses this gap by analysing Ecuadorians’ perceptions and uptake of RT’s broadcast narratives during a period of acute economic and security crisis. The objectives are (1) to establish the news narratives presented on RT, (2) to identify citizens’ perceptions of the news narratives, and (3) to determine the uptake of the narratives. A mixed methodological approach is undertaken, including narrative analysis of three audiovisual news pieces published by RT in Spanish, a survey, and three online focus groups. The results reveal the deployment of sophisticated narrative strategies that mix information with unsubstantiated claims and emotional appeals, resulting in a discernible bias favouring Russian perspectives. The findings underscore the urgency of strengthening media literacy and public policy responses in Latin America to counter the internalisation of such narratives. In addition, the research contributes to debates on information security, democratic resilience, and the protection of public opinion in vulnerable environments. Full article

This study evaluates resident satisfaction with small-town infrastructure and generates a policy-ready ranking of improvement priorities using a modified importance–performance analysis (IPA) that infers indicator importance statistically rather than from self-reported scores. We surveyed small towns in the new districts of Wuhan, China, and developed a resident satisfaction-based evaluation framework spanning road and transport, basic living facilities, public services, public activity space, and townscape and character. We assessed reliability in SPSS, estimated implicit importance via partial correlations with overall satisfaction, and mapped indicators into quadrants to set priorities. Results indicate that overall performance is perceived as generally good, yet road and transport and townscape and character consistently emerge as high importance/low satisfaction domains, and there was notable variation across towns. The framework offers a replicable, user-centered diagnostic that turns resident feedback into a ranked set of priority indicators to guide targeted investment and operations, with transferability to comparable regions. Full article

Background: Mental health conditions are a growing public health concern among U.S. adolescents, particularly high school students. Emerging data show a strong link between exposure to neighborhood violence and increased risk of poor mental health outcomes, such as depression, anxiety, and persistent sadness. Objective: This study examined the relationship between neighborhood violence exposure and mental health outcomes among high school students. Method: This is a cross-sectional study using the 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey. The sample included 19,910 students in grades 9–12 across gender and race. Mental health status and exposure to neighborhood violence were analyzed using chi-square tests and logistic regression models. Results: Students exposed to neighborhood violence had significantly higher odds of reporting poor mental health outcomes (AOR = 1.789, 95% CI: 1.573–2.035, p < 0.001) than the unexposed. Additionally, female, Hispanic/Latino, and multiracial students reported higher rates of mental health disorders than the male students. Conclusions: Neighborhood violence exposure was significantly associated with poor mental health outcomes among high school students. These findings signify the need for targeted interventions to support affected students and reduce neighborhood violence exposure, particularly in marginalized communities. The findings will inform public health professionals, educators, and policymakers to make targeted school-based mental health interventions and community-centered policies addressing neighborhood safety and adolescent mental health. Full article

Access to safe water and sanitation remains a pressing challenge in Sub-Saharan Africa. Rapid urbanisation, fragile governance, and increasing climate hazards continue to undermine the sustainability of WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) services. This study examines whether Mozambique’s normative and institutional framework effectively supports sustainable urban WASH service delivery in Beira, the country’s second-largest city. Combining a critical policy review with six semi-structured interviews involving institutional actors and community leaders, the research employs a qualitative, phenomenological design to explore the interaction between national frameworks and local practices. Findings reveal five interrelated dimensions shaping sustainability: governance coordination, infrastructure robustness and maintenance, community participation, climate resilience, and financial viability. Although post-disaster investments and recent policy reforms have led to improvements, significant challenges persist. These include overlapping institutional mandates, underdeveloped preventive maintenance systems, limited recognition and support for community-led initiatives, fragmented climate adaptation efforts, and strong dependence on external funding. The study also reveals how historical legacies, particularly colonial-era governance structures, continue to shape water and sanitation delivery. By integrating policy analysis with local perspectives, the paper contributes to debates on WASH sustainability in African cities, particularly in climate-vulnerable secondary urban centres. It highlights the need for systemic reforms that clarify institutional roles, institutionalise maintenance practices, formalise community engagement, embed nature-based adaptation strategies, and strengthen financial transparency. These changes are essential if Beira, and similar cities across sub-Saharan Africa, are to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6 under mounting climate pressure. Full article