Search Results (226)

Smart-city programmes in emerging economies often produce climate-risk registers, dashboards, and narrative reports that do not lead to real changes in technical specifications or budget decisions. This study examines how the internal audit function can transform such symbolic compliance into enforceable climate-governance practices within Egypt’s state-led smart-city developments. This paper applies an interpretive single-case study design, drawing on interviews, documents, and field observations to analyse how climate-risk signals move from operational systems into governance, procurement, and reporting routines. A unified risk-and-control framework is introduced that integrates enterprise risk management, internal control over sustainability information, and the requirements of the international climate-disclosure standards. The findings show that an internal audit provides the enforcement mechanism that converts climate-scenario breaches into mandatory amendments to design clauses, acceptance tests, and operating and capital expenditure decisions across critical assets such as coastal protection, water systems, district cooling, mobility, and data-centre infrastructure. This study offers a practical governance architecture—such as threshold-to-specification tables, climate-weighted procurement gates, quarterly compliance certifications, and verifiable data-lineage controls—that enables public managers to embed accountable and transparent climate resilience within smart-city programmes. This research contributes to sustainability governance by demonstrating how an internal audit moves climate-risk management from narrative reporting toward enforceable, auditable action. Full article

Background: The emergence of alternative methods of obtaining groceries since the COVID-19 pandemic has raised new concerns regarding food safety. In this study, we sought to evaluate these concerns by evaluating how the procurement method of ground beef impacts the microbial load in the beef, as this has not been thoroughly studied. Methods: Specifically, we compared beef samples obtained from in-store shopping, grocery delivery, and meal kit delivery services to determine if these new, more convenient methods of grocery shopping impact the total microbial load or Escherichia coli present in the beef. We homogenized a total of 65 beef samples and plated dilutions on trypticase soy agar, MacConkey agar, and CHROMagar. Results: We found that in-store samples had the highest microbial load with an average of 5.06 log CFU/g, while grocery delivery samples resulted in an average of 4.76 log CFU/g and meal kit samples had an average of 4.23 log CFU/g when plated on TSA. This represents a 6.7-fold change between in-store samples and meal kit samples. These differences were not statistically significant (p = 0.1, ANOVA). When plated on MacConkey agar, in-store samples had a bacterial count at 3.0 log CFU/g, while grocery delivery samples had 2.99 log CFU/g and meal kit delivered samples had 3.05 log CFU/g. Suspected E. coli O157 colonies were detected using CHROMagar plates, as these plates function to change the coloration of positive E. coli O157 colonies to pink. Suspected E. coli O157 colonies were observed in three in-store samples, two grocery delivery samples, and one meal kit sample. After confirmatory agglutination testing, one meal kit sample was confirmed as E. coli O157. Conclusions: While trends suggest possible lower microbial contamination in delivery methods versus in-store shopping procurement, no statistical significance between methods was found. These findings indicate no significant changes in microbial loads in delivered ground beef, and the high variance suggests that all procurement methods still pose some level of risk. Full article

Hospitals play a central role in promoting health and well-being, yet they are also among the most resource-intensive institutions, contributing significantly to environmental degradation through high energy and water consumption, extensive waste generation, and reliance on single-use materials. This conceptual paper explores how principles of the circular economy and green economy can be integrated into hospital operations through a strategic Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) framework, reframing sustainability as a strategic management issue rather than a compliance-driven activity. Drawing on environmental economics, sustainability studies, and institutional theory, the paper develops an integrated conceptual model structured around the environmental, social, and economic pillars of sustainability. Within this framework, four interconnected operational domains are identified: waste management and circular practices, energy consumption and renewable integration, sustainable procurement and circular supply chains, and economic and policy incentives. The social dimension explicitly encompasses healthcare staff and patients, addressing issues of workforce well-being, health education, safety, quality of life, and equitable care delivery. This advances theory by positioning strategic CSR as a function of circular and green economy, yielding a new model for hospitals, S-CSR = f(CE, GE). The paper also examines institutional and cultural barriers that constrain sustainability implementation and highlights the role of strategic leadership, governance, and system-wide innovation in overcoming these challenges. While not empirical, the study provides a theoretical foundation to inform future research, policy development, and strategic decision-making aimed at advancing sustainable, low-carbon, and resilient healthcare systems. Full article

Environmental awareness is playing an increasingly important role in all segments of the world, with sustainability and recycling being key elements. The aim of the research is to examine the challenges companies face in terms of sustainability when implementing procurement and supply chain management processes related to interior design. The research focused on four main questions: how procurement and supply chain management are reflected in construction processes, what challenges these processes face, and how they can influence the sustainable use of materials in architectural supply chains. The literature review was based on a systematic literature review using the PRISMA screening process and the PEO framework, utilizing the SCOPUS database and processing 70 scientific articles following the selection process. During the research, I also used the Critical Incident Technique (CIT), in which I asked interior designers about their positive and negative experiences with the procurement of sustainable materials and supply chain management processes. The methodology thus provided deeper insight into the decision-making processes of professionals, where sustainability conflicts with economic and operational realities. The qualitative research was supplemented by a questionnaire survey, which aimed to assess sustainability, its prevalence, and professional obstacles. The results of the research show that this topic is a research gap, but the openness of professionals shows a positive trend. Companies face numerous challenges related to new technologies and environmental awareness in order to create or transform well-functioning supply chain management processes. Full article

Although smart-city benchmarking has produced many indices and rankings, cities still lack a practical way to assess whether successful initiatives can be transferred across institutional contexts and converted into implementable urban roadmaps. In this study, we aimed to develop and empirically test a paired donor–recipient “problem–solution” methodology that bridges comparative city analysis with implementation readiness gap assessment, addressing the persistent disconnect between smart-city benchmarking and actionable transfer guidance. The smart-city ecosystem was decomposed into eight functional dimensions covering digital foundations, service platforms, finance and procurement, innovation capacity, governance, legal adaptability, and citizen participation. The method was applied to the Ottawa-Astana pair using a systematic desk-based analysis of publicly available strategic documents, legislation and policy frameworks, and implementation materials (e.g., roadmaps, program guidelines, departmental plans, and monitoring outputs). Data were analyzed using a structured gap analysis algorithm employing a three-level qualitative compliance scale (Full Compliance, Partial Compliance, and Non-compliance) to assess recipient city status against donor benchmarks across all eight functional dimensions. The results reveal Astana’s partial compliance with the Ottawa benchmark, with moderate readiness and pronounced “hard-soft” asymmetry; that is, greater progress in regard to infrastructure and platforms, but persistent gaps in adaptive regulation, experimentation-friendly legal instruments, and participatory governance. These findings suggest that progressing toward a Smart City 2.0 model requires prioritizing regulatory sandboxes, adaptive procurement pathways for pilots, and scalable civic-tech mechanisms alongside continued investment in talent and innovation ecosystems—understood here as interconnected networks of universities, technology parks, civic-tech communities, and incubation infrastructure that collectively sustain capacity for technology absorption and local adaptation. The proposed paired framework is replicable and supports phased, actionable transfer roadmaps for policymakers. Full article

As a proactive response, reserving a certain amount of relief materials in advance is crucial for responding to potential disasters. Different from public tendering and bidding, this study proposes the purchasing mode of authorization, under which a nonprofit organization (NPO), as a buyer, wholly authorizes the procurement of relief materials to a professional agent. The relief material procurement system under the purchasing mode of authorization is regarded as a bilevel relief supply chain consisting of one buyer, one agent, and two suppliers with private information about the quality levels of relief materials. For the disclosure of private information, the quality-related procurement strategy is designed in the form of a menu based on the suppliers’ private information. A bilevel optimization model is developed based on agency theory to derive the optimal strategic decisions, and the impacts of the main influencing factors on the optimal procurement strategy and the buyer’s minimum expected cost are discussed via numerical analysis. Then, the study is extended by exploring supplier’s alternative cost functions and supply availability, as well as proposing future research directions. This paper presents an optimal quality-related procurement strategy, which provides rules for quickly responding to the changes in influencing factors during the material procurement process, as well as the minimum expected cost for the buyer to purchase relief materials, which serves as a threshold for screening a reliable retail enterprise as the agent. Finally, three managerial implications with practical significance, drawn from our findings, are presented to facilitate cooperation between NPO and large retail enterprises in order to achieve effective procurement of relief materials at the pre-disaster preparation stage. Full article

To address the long-term operational challenges of space environment monitoring buoys under extreme Arctic conditions, this paper proposes an energy management optimization method based on deep reinforcement learning (DRL). By constructing a buoy system model that integrates renewable energy sources, a primary lithium battery power supply, and a battery energy storage unit, combined with an Arctic environmental model incorporating low-temperature efficiency degradation, a reward function was designed to minimize power supply deficits while ensuring system reliability. The Twin Delayed Deep Deterministic Policy Gradient (TD3) algorithm was employed to optimize energy scheduling strategies. Simulation results based on real Arctic data (August 2024–January 2025) demonstrate that integrating wind turbines significantly reduces reliance on primary lithium batteries. Specifically, the required lithium battery capacity was reduced by 87.5% (from 61.44 kWh to 7.685 kWh), and procurement costs were lowered by approximately $68,830 compared to non-rechargeable schemes1. This method significantly enhances the buoy’s endurance and scheduling intelligence, offering valid insights into energy management in intelligent polar observation equipment. Full article

Wildfire escalation is increasingly threatening ecosystems and communities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Pakistan, particularly in forest and rangeland landscapes where ecological flammability interacts with human activity. While environmental and climatic drivers are well studied, governance factors remain underexplored despite their decisive role in shaping how ecological risk translates into disasters. Regional forests show considerable ecological diversity, including chir pine-dominated stands, mixed temperate conifer forests, broadleaved oak-associated systems, and shrub rangeland mosaics, each differing in fuel structure and fire behavior. Dependence on fuelwood collection, grazing, and forest access further influences ignition probability and fire spread. This study examines how governance failures influence wildfire risk and severity through a Governance-Fire Risk Framework. Governance is treated as a determining institutional condition affecting prevention capacity, regulation of hazardous land use, fuel management, and emergency response effectiveness. A cross-sectional survey of 540 stakeholders from rural (Dir Lower, Dir Upper) and peri-urban districts (Swat, Mansehra, Abbottabad) was analyzed using SPSS (version 26) and AMOS (version 24) (CFA and SEM). Governance failure significantly escalates wildfire risk through delayed emergency response, regulatory non-compliance, political interference, and weak institutional coordination. Institutional preparedness and response capacity reduce risks, whereas corruption intensifies them. Corruption functions through illegal land conversion, diversion of fire management resources, procurement irregularities, nepotistic staffing, and selective enforcement, increasing ignition sources, fuel accumulation, and response delays. Rural districts show stronger governance-fire linkages. Wildfire escalation in KP is governance-driven in interaction with ecological conditions and community dependence on forest resources. Effective mitigation requires anti-corruption measures, rapid response systems, stronger enforcement, and improved preparedness. The study offers a transferable governance-focused framework for wildfire management in fire-prone developing regions. Full article

This study aims to examine eating practices during pregnancy as socially organized everyday labor (foodwork) embedded in daily life. Drawing on the sociology of food, it analyzes how pregnancy reshapes eating routines, food classifications, procurement practices, and care responsibilities. The research is based on in-depth qualitative interviews conducted with 38 pregnant women living in Türkiye. The findings demonstrate that eating during pregnancy becomes a multilayered social practice shaped by normative expectations, structural inequalities, and identity construction. First, eating routines emerge as a central site for the construction of maternal identity, as women regulate their food practices through expert advice, risk discourses, and norms of “good motherhood.” Second, body-related norms concerning aesthetics and weight control discipline eating practices under conditions of public surveillance and self-monitoring, shaping everyday eating arrangements. Third, pregnancy functions as a social lens that intensifies concerns related to food safety and food security; pesticides, additives, regulatory uncertainty, and economic access become central elements of everyday foodwork. By moving beyond medical and ideological approaches to pregnancy nutrition, this study foregrounds eating practices as foodwork and contributes to the sociology of food by linking motherhood, care labor, and food systems. Full article

Background: Access to affordable essential medicines is critical for effective management of hypertension (HTN) and diabetes mellitus (DM). In Zimbabwe, frequent stock-outs in public facilities position private pharmacies as important alternative sources of these medicines. Aim: To assess availability, pricing, and stock-out levels of essential HTN and DM medicines in private retail pharmacies in Gweru Urban District, Zimbabwe. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 40 registered private pharmacies. Data on medicine availability, retail prices, monthly stock-outs, and supply-chain factors were collected using a structured interviewer-administered questionnaire, stock cards, and observational checklists. Local prices were compared with international reference prices (IRPs). Chi-square analyses evaluated associations between pharmacy characteristics, medicine prices, availability, and stock-out durations. Results: Most tracer medicines for HTN and DM were available in ≥80% of pharmacies, with average stock-outs generally <3 days per month. Pharmacy characteristics were not significantly associated with availability or stock-outs. Medicines with <80% availability and those priced at ≥USD 5 were significantly associated with prolonged stock-outs of ≥7 days (p = 0.006 and p = 0.001, respectively). Local retail prices exceeded IRPs and public facility prices, suggesting potential affordability barriers in the context of an economic crisis, where most health expenditures are out-of-pocket. Key drivers of stock-outs included wholesaler shortages, delivery delays, limited procurement funds, and substitution with alternative medicines. Conclusions: While medicine availability and short-term stock-outs were generally favourable, high retail prices pose a major potential barrier to access. The cost burden is amplified by the common HTN-DM comorbidity, requiring multiple medications per person, thereby further increasing out-of-pocket expenses. High prices may limit adherence, reduce functional capacity, and negatively impact productivity. Policy interventions targeting pricing regulations and value-chain optimization are urgently needed to enhance equitable access to essential NCD medicines in urban Zimbabwe. Full article

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are increasingly recognized as strategic contributors to a sustainable society. Although sustainable procurement is widely acknowledged as a key mechanism for advancing sustainability goals, many HEIs encounter persistent barriers to its effective implementation. Within the academic research, sustainable procurement in HEIs is a largely overlooked topic. This study explores an often neglected perspective: the experiences of staff-level employees involved in procurement processes. Through focus group research conducted among staff members at five universities of applied sciences in the Netherlands, we identified barriers at the organizational and functional levels. Findings underscore the critical importance of (other) top management priorities, financial considerations and the lack of clear goals and guidelines for implementing sustainable procurement. Focus group participants identified the invisibility of sustainable procurement’s impact as a key challenge in generating buy-in and enthusiasm among colleagues. This invisibility is closely linked to difficulties in measurement and to inadequate monitoring systems. In addition, contract and supplier management appear to be blind spots within HEIs. Staff-level employees feel that they could greatly benefit from the experiences of peers in other institutions. The results of this study highlight untapped potential for advancement in both professional practice and academic research. Full article

Government building projects are particularly complex due to their scale and number of end users, which makes construction prices time-consuming and prone to error. Machine learning is recognized for its ability to process large volumes of complex data quickly with high accuracy, but only a limited number of studies have applied Deep Learning in the early construction stage. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate the potential of Deep Learning to predict construction contract prices for government buildings. Factors were identified through a literature review and interviews with eight experts, and data were collected from 300 government construction projects obtained from Thailand’s Electronic Government Procurement (e-GP) database, the national centralized platform for transparent public bidding. By varying the number of parameters, 80 models were developed and tested. The best-performing model had a three-hidden-layer ratio of 128:64:32 with a Quadratic Loss Function, achieving an R² of 0.918 and an RMSE of 2.022. The results showed 14 significant factors, with the top 5 being (1) usable area, (2) number of sanitary wares, (3) number of rooms, (4) height, and (5) number of elevators. Sensitivity analysis was subsequently conducted to enhance the explainability of the model. The findings demonstrate the potential of Deep Learning to enhance the accuracy of determining construction price and support more effective government budget planning and decision making. Full article

Health systems face pressure to strengthen resilience against supply chain disruptions while maintaining cost-effective service delivery. This mixed-methods study describes a pilot project that integrated 3D printing services into a Canadian provincial health authority. Quantitative data were derived from internal clinical engineering work orders, where a scenario-based economic analysis compared original equipment manufacturer (OEM) procurement with modelled 3D-printed parts. Using conservative assumptions, selected non-electronic structural parts were assigned a fixed unit cost. Qualitative data were collected from two focus groups with clinical engineers and other end-users. Results from an exploratory scenario-based economic analysis suggest that substituting selected structurally simple clinical engineering parts with 3D-printed alternatives would be associated with modelled cost impacts ranging from a 67.4% net increase (OEM prices halved and 3D-printing costs doubled) to a 69.6% cost reduction (OEM prices increased by 10% and 3D-printing costs decreased by 20%). Demand changes affected absolute savings but not the percent difference (58.1% under ±50% quantity changes), and a pessimistic procurement scenario (OEM prices decreased by 30% and 3D-printing costs increased by 50%) reduced savings to 10.3%. Focus groups highlighted perceived benefits and implementation challenges associated with integrating additive manufacturing. Implementation was facilitated through an outsourcing model, which was perceived to shift certain responsibilities and risk-management functions to the vendor. Long-term adoption will require clearer communication and targeted education. This pilot study suggests that, under constrained regulatory scope and scenario-based assumptions, additive manufacturing may contribute to supply chain resilience and may be associated with modelled cost advantages for selected low-risk components. Full article

Background/Objectives: Donor kidney function measured by glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is widely used as a selection criterion in kidney transplantation (KT). This study addresses the knowledge gap regarding the relationship between donor GFR at organ procurement and graft function in deceased donor KT. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 918 deceased donor KTs and compared donor GFRs at procurement and recipient GFRs after KT at hospital discharge and in the one-year follow-up. The Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) formula was used to estimate and compare GFRs. Donor baseline GRF was defined as the last available estimated GRF prior to organ procurement. The Kaplan–Meier analysis was used to estimate recipient and graft survival. Results: The median donor GFR was 92.8 mL/min/1.73 m², while the median recipient GFR at hospital discharge was 37.5 mL/min/1.73 m² (−60% to donor baseline, p < 0.001), increasing to 51.4 mL/min/1.73 m² (+37%, p < 0.001) at one-year follow-up. One-year graft and patient survival rates were 95.3% and 98.1%, respectively. Except for grafts from donors with a GFR < 15 mL/min/1.73 m² due to acute renal failure that resulted in a significantly higher delayed graft function (DGF) rate and inferior graft survival (71.4%), no correlation was observed between baseline GFRs and DGF occurrence nor graft survival. Conclusions: Excellent results can be achieved in KT with subnormal donor GFR. The decision to refuse a kidney offer for KT should not solely be based on donor GFR. Kidneys from donors with very low GFR (<15 mL/min/1.73 m²) may be transplanted, but our observation is based on a very small sample (n = 7) and should therefore be interpreted with caution, particularly given the associated higher risk of DGF and lower graft survival. Full article

Background: Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TTC) has been historically considered a contraindication for heart donation due to its transient left ventricular dysfunction. However, emerging evidence supports that hearts from donors with fully recovered Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy can be safely transplanted. Methods: This case series describes seven heart transplantations performed between January 2022 and September 2025 using donors with previously diagnosed Takotsubo cardiomyopathy. Donor characteristics, intraoperative data, echocardiography data and postoperative outcomes were analyzed. Results: The mean donor age was 33.5 years (range 18–58), with a male-to-female ratio of 6:1. All donors exhibited echocardiographic evidence of Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy at the time of brain death, with full or partial recovery before procurement. Coronary angiography excluded obstructive coronary disease. Echocardiographic follow-up demonstrated the mean LVEF increased to 52 ± 6%, reaching 58 ± 4% at 12 months, global longitudinal strain (GLS) improved progressively (from −14.2 ± 2.8% to −18.5 ± 1.9%), confirming normalization of myocardial deformation and the right ventricular function, assessed by TAPSE, rose from 15 ± 3 mm at discharge to 20 ± 2 mm at 12 months. All patients transplanted with donors who had Takotsubo cardiomyopathy are alive at the 12-month follow-up. Conclusions: Hearts from donors with resolved Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy can be safely used for transplantation without compromising early- or mid-term outcomes. Expanding donor eligibility criteria to include selected TTC donors may contribute to mitigating organ shortages in advanced heart failure patients. Full article