Search Results (458)

This study intends to provide insights and challenges for the shape of the B movement, an emerging paradigm that fosters cross-sectoral partnerships and encourages ethical business practices through so-called purpose-driven businesses. Focusing on Italy, the first European country to adopt this managerial model, the research investigates Italian Benefit Corporations, known as Società Benefit (SB), and their most appealing sustainability claims from a consumer perspective. The analysis intends to inform theory development by assuming the cultural and creative industry (CCI) as a field of interest, utilizing a within-subjects experimental design to analyze data from a diverse consumer sample across various contexts. The results indicate that messaging centered on economic sustainability emerged as the most effective in generating positive consumer responses, highlighting a prevailing inclination toward pragmatic factors such as affordability, economic accessibility, and tangible benefits rather than social issues. While sustainable behaviors are not yet widespread, latent ethical sensitivity for authentic, value-driven businesses suggests that economic and ethical dimensions can be strategically synthesized to enhance consumer engagement. This insight highlights the role of BCs in catalyzing a shift in consumption patterns within ethical-based and creative-driven sectors. Full article

Background: Family caregivers are a vital yet often under-recognized part of the healthcare system. They provide essential emotional, physical, and logistical support to individuals with illness, disability, or frailty, and their contributions improve continuity of care and reduce system strain. However, many healthcare and social service providers are not equipped to meaningfully engage caregivers as partners. In Alberta, stakeholders validated the Caregiver-Centered Care Competency Framework and identified the need for a three-tiered education model—Foundational, Advanced, and Champion—to help providers recognize, include, and support family caregivers across care settings. This paper focuses on the development and early evaluation of the Advanced Caregiver-Centered Care Education modules, designed to enhance the knowledge and skills of providers with more experience working with family caregivers. The modules emphasize how partnering with caregivers benefits not only the person receiving care but also improves provider effectiveness and supports better system outcomes. Methods: The modules were co-designed with a 154-member interdisciplinary team and grounded in the competency framework. Evaluation used the first three levels of the Kirkpatrick–Barr health workforce education model. We analyzed pre- and post-surveys from the first 50 learners in each module using paired t-tests and examined qualitative feedback and SMART goals through inductive content analysis. Results: Learners reported a high level of satisfaction with the education delivery and the knowledge and skill acquisition. Statistically significant improvements were observed in 53 of 54 pre-post items. SMART goals reflected intended practice changes across all six competency domains, indicating learners saw value in engaging caregivers as partners. Conclusions: The Advanced Caregiver-Centered Care education improved providers’ confidence, knowledge, and skills to work in partnership with family caregivers. Future research will explore whether these improvements translate into real-world practice changes and better caregiver experiences in care planning, communication, and navigation. Full article

This study investigates the critical capabilities and integration mechanisms that enable organizations to achieve substantive sustainability transformations. Using a mixed-methods approach combining survey data (n = 234), in-depth interviews (n = 42), and comparative case studies (n = 6), the research identifies how organizations effectively navigate sustainability paradoxes while developing integration practices that embed sustainability throughout organizational systems. Our research is primarily grounded in paradox theory, complemented by insights from organizational learning theory, institutional logics, and power dynamics perspectives to develop a comprehensive theoretical framework. Statistical analysis reveals strong relationships between paradox navigation capabilities and transformation outcomes (β = 0.31, p < 0.01), with integration practices emerging as the strongest predictor of sustainability success (β = 0.42, p < 0.01). Qualitative findings illuminate four essential integration mechanisms—governance integration, strategic integration, operational integration, and performance integration—and their temporal development. The significant interaction between power mobilization and integration practices (β = 0.19, p < 0.01) demonstrates that structural interventions are insufficient without attention to power relationships. The research contributes to sustainability science by advancing theory on paradoxical tensions in transformation processes, demonstrating how organizations can transcend the gap between sustainability rhetoric and substantive action through both structural integration and power-conscious approaches. By identifying contextual contingencies across sectors and organizational types, the study challenges universal prescriptions for sustainability transformation, offering instead a nuanced framework for creating organizational conditions conducive to context-specific transformation toward more sustainable futures. Our findings offer practical guidance for organizations navigating the complex landscape of sustainability transformation and contribute to the implementation of UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals). Full article

Research highlights a growing demand for active, experiential learning methods in higher education, especially in teacher education. While the benefits of parental involvement (PI) are well-documented, Hungary lacks tools to effectively prepare teacher trainees for fostering family–school cooperation. This study addresses this gap by introducing a custom-designed board game as an innovative teaching tool. The game simulates real-world challenges in PI through a cooperative, scenario-based framework. Exercises are grounded in international and national research, ensuring their relevance and evidence-based design. Tested with 110 students, the game’s educational value was assessed via post-gameplay questionnaires. Participants emphasized the strengths of its cooperative structure, realistic scenarios, and integration of humor. Many reported gaining new insights into parental roles and strategies for effective home–school partnerships. Practical applications include integrating the game into teacher education curricula and adapting it for other educational contexts. This study demonstrates how board games can bridge theory and practice, offering an engaging, effective medium to prepare future teachers for the challenges of PI. Full article

The issue of school absenteeism has received increased attention in previous years due to the widespread absences caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, Canadian research is sparse on the topic, and a data-based picture of the extent of the problem does not exist. In this conceptual article, we briefly trace the origins of school absenteeism and outline the current status of prevalence data and research in the area of school absenteeism in Canada, drawing on a broad range of sources including national and international surveys. Our exploration suggests several recommendations to advance knowledge and practice in the area, including the identification and sharing of attendance-related data within and across provinces and territories, the development of partnerships between researchers and school boards, the integration of discipline-specific research in the area and the analysis of school absenteeism through nuanced, complex lenses. Full article

This article demonstrates how positioning residents as active co-designers fundamentally transforms both the process and outcomes of carbon-positive building development. Through structured collaborative workshops, shared decision-making protocols, and continuous partnership throughout the building lifecycle, the REN+HOMES Positive Carbon Building methodology challenges the conventional expert-driven approach to sustainable construction. Developed and validated through the H2020 REN+HOMES project, this resident-centered approach achieved remarkable technical performance—65.9% reduction in final energy demand—while simultaneously enhancing community ownership and long-term sustainability practices. By integrating participatory design with Zero Emissions Building (ZEB) criteria, renewable energy systems, and national carbon offset programs, the methodology proves that resident collaboration is not merely beneficial but essential for creating buildings that truly serve both environmental and human needs. This research establishes a new paradigm where technical excellence emerges from authentic partnership between residents and sustainability experts, offering a replicable framework for community-driven environmental regeneration. Full article

Throughout the generations, traditional academic writing skills development has taught students in socio-human programs to express their knowledge and thoughts with an evidence-based foundation, helping them make a special connection with their professional fields. However, a lack of digital learning and writing resources in this process has been identified. This study of the social work field connects digital academic writing, social protection functionality, and research innovations, identifying and exploring open-access (OA) educational and social resources for social work higher education (SWHE). Applying content analyses to online documents and websites, we identified key terms characteristic of social work, following a standard approach on formulating research questions, identifying categories, creating a code book, sampling, and measuring information. The research questions were as follows: How is digital academic writing being developed in social work education programs in Romanian universities? Where do researchers, students, teachers, and professionals gather OA digital information and data for academic innovation? What kind of OA information and data are contained in websites for academic writing? We also used OA socio-educational resource analysis to derive digital, evidence-based, and academic writing codes. The frequencies of these elements in documents and websites were examined. Professional samples of four OA documents and five academic and non-academic Romanian websites with extensions were processed. Furthermore, information from a non-academic official website concerning social protection functionality was observed, identified, and measured. We concluded that academic writing is not included as an independent course in the curricula of Romanian social work programs at universities; this topic is rarely researched. Digital and evidence-based education is also a marginalized topic in socio-human scientific resources. OA information, laws, reports, and statistics were identified. Information on scientific research, academic–non-academic partnerships, descriptions of good practices, and human resources information was lacking. In conclusion, this study contributes to increasing productivity and developing digital academic skills in social work education and research. Full article

The integration of advanced computer vision and artificial intelligence (AI) techniques into collaborative robotic systems holds the potential to revolutionize human–robot interaction, productivity, and safety. Despite substantial research activity, a systematic synthesis of how vision and AI are jointly enabling context-aware, adaptive cobot capabilities across perception, planning, and decision-making remains lacking (especially in recent years). Addressing this gap, our review unifies the latest advances in visual recognition, deep learning, and semantic mapping within a structured taxonomy tailored to collaborative robotics. We examine foundational technologies such as object detection, human pose estimation, and environmental modeling, as well as emerging trends including multimodal sensor fusion, explainable AI, and ethically guided autonomy. Unlike prior surveys that focus narrowly on either vision or AI, this review uniquely analyzes their integrated use for real-world human–robot collaboration. Highlighting industrial and service applications, we distill the best practices, identify critical challenges, and present key performance metrics to guide future research. We conclude by proposing strategic directions—from scalable training methods to interoperability standards—to foster safe, robust, and proactive human–robot partnerships in the years ahead. Full article

The development of technology has influenced agricultural production and the establishment of the Agriculture 4.0 system in practice. This research is focused on the selection of equipment and machinery suppliers for the needs of the MAMEX Company. When selecting suppliers, an approach based on the application of an intuitionistic fuzzy set for decision-making was used. This approach allows the uncertainty present in decision-making to be incorporated, considered, and, hopefully, reduced in order to make a final decision on which of the observed suppliers is the most suitable for this company. Ten criteria were used that enable the application of sustainability in the supply chain. Eight local suppliers of equipment and machinery were observed with these criteria. The results obtained by applying the SWARA (Step-wise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis) method showed that the most important criterion for selecting suppliers is the reliability and quality of equipment and machinery, while the results of the CORASO (COmpromise Ranking from Alternative Solutions) method showed that the SUP2 supplier is the best choice for establishing partnership relations with the MAMEX company. This supplier should help the MAMEX company improve its business and achieve better results in the market. The contribution of this research is to improve the application of intuitionistic fuzzy sets in decision-making, and to emphasize the importance of equipment and machinery in agricultural production in the Agriculture 4.0 system. Full article

The rapid increase in waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) creates major environmental and governance issues in developing countries like Ecuador struggle because they with minimal formal collection and recycling rates. This research presents a potential sustainable management approach that tracks products through their life cycles while following circular economy principles that include product extension and material extraction and waste minimization. A systematic literature review (SLR) using the PRISMA methodology combined with a bibliometric analysis found essential global strategies and technological frameworks and regulatory frameworks. The analysis of articles demonstrates that information management systems (IMSs) together with digital technologies and consistent regulations serve as essential elements for enhancing traceability and material recovery and formal recycling processes. A WEEE management IMS model was developed for the Ecuadorian market through an analysis of the findings; it follows a five-stage development process, starting from the technological infrastructure setup to complete data visualization integration. The proposed model is designed to enable public–private–community partnerships using digital tools that promote sustainable practices. The combination of circular strategies with traceability technologies and strong regulatory frameworks leads to improved WEEE governance, which supports sustainable system transitions in emerging economies. Full article

The contribution of small-scale sporting events to tourism sustainable development in local communities has been well recognized in the literature. Small-scale running events in particular are essential in the promotion of sustainable tourism in the community due to their localized impact. Although research has largely focused on the demand side—including participants, spectators, and host communities—limited attention has been given to the supply side, particularly the perspectives of sport event organizers and their role in implementing sustainable practices. This study aims to address this gap and answer key research questions that concern the factors which contribute to the success of these events in relation to their economic, social, and environmental impacts through the lens of the events’ primary decision-makers, their organizers. This study employs an exploratory research method, conducting interviews with twenty-five organizers of diverse Greek running events that represent a variety of geographical contexts and event characteristics of the country, based on their long-standing presence. Findings contribute to sustainable sport tourism literature by developing a theoretical framework which encompasses the three dimensions of sustainability, highlighting inclusivity as a key component within the social dimension. Results indicate that organizers perceive their running events as having a positive economic impact and enhancing social cohesion. They are also aware of the potential environmental impact, like trail preservation, and consequently implement responsible measures to protect the environment. Organizers share a variety of specific strategies and practical suggestions aimed at improving the sustainability of running events, such as managing waste effectively or improving accessibility for diverse participants, offering transferable insights for other event planners and local authorities. This paper showcases the key role of organizers in developing partnerships to implement effective sustainable sport event practices in the destination. Full article

Background: Dog agility is a rapidly growing sport involving a partnership between a dog and the handler, running through an obstacle course. Despite its increasing popularity and physical benefits, research on handler injuries remains limited. This study aimed to assess injury epidemiology of athletes practicing dog agility. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted using a comprehensive online survey consisting of 124 items, available in both English and Italian. The questionnaire was divided into four sections: Introduction collected demographic data and medical history; Materials and Methods focused on agility-related activities; Results explored injuries sustained in the past 12 months; Discussion examined training habits unrelated to agility. Results: Among 389 participants, the most represented age group ranged between 30 and 40 years old. Overall, 7% reported upper limb injuries, while 27% experienced at least one lower limb injury. Additionally, 20% of participants used medication, and 25% reported at least one chronic illness. On average, handlers trained twice per week and competed in two events per month. Lower limb injuries were predominantly muscular (49%) or ligamentous (14%) and most commonly occurred on grass pitches (56%). These injuries were more common in participants with a higher BMI, those using dynamic handling styles, and those competing at higher levels. Conclusions: This cross-sectional study highlighted the importance of identifying risk factors associated with dog agility handlers. Lower limb injuries were the most common, often associated with increased physical demands and handling styles involving intensive running and correlated with reduced physical fitness. Athletic conditioning, including structured warm-up and cool-down practices, might help decline injury risks. Full article

The UN’s “Global Agenda for Change” focused on global challenges, with the aim of improving quality of life. The focus on People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace, Partnership, and Integrated Action (EU) orients its efforts towards socially needed change. Although the above perspectives, which ultimately shape the goals of sustainable development, refer in effect to the security of the functioning of societies and economies, this issue has not been sufficiently explored in the literature. Taking the above into account, this paper explains the aspect of people’s sustainable security and well-being, and also indicates the importance of determining the social competences needed for a broadly understood sustainable future, which is the main goal of this article. Considering the importance of sustainable awareness among the younger generation, who are responsible for the future modeling of the pace and direction of sustainable changes, the analysis of the literature in the practical findings was supported by qualitative and quantitative methods, as well as statistical analysis techniques using PQstat software, to ensure in-depth research. The results confirm that the studied population generally has good knowledge of the idea of sustainable development. Importantly, this population combines development in a sustainable direction with actions to strengthen people’s safety and well-being. It should be noted that the studied population is most strongly aware of the environmental pillar of sustainable development, suggesting potential to improve knowledge in this area—which is crucial for effective development towards a safe future and important for future decision-makers (the young generation). The findings can serve as a source of information for teams designing study programs and information campaigns on sustainable development in order to further strengthen social education in the studied area. Full article

Young people are frustrated and disheartened with the lack of adult leadership and action to address the climate crisis. Although youth representation in global, regional, and local decision-making contexts on climate change is steadily growing, the desired role and effect of youth in environmental and climate decision-making has shifted from a focus on having youth voices heard, to having a direct and meaningful impact on policy and action. To meaningfully integrate youth perspectives into climate policies and programs, intergenerational approaches and youth–adult partnerships are key. This paper explores strategies to support youth action and engagement as adult partners by investigating youth perspectives on what adults and adult-led organizations should consider when engaging young people in climate-related work. This qualitative research study introduces a revised version of the 7P youth participation framework, developed through focus groups with high school youth. This paper provides reflective questions and practical recommendations for participants engaged in youth–adult partnerships to help guide engagement beyond token representation and create meaningfully participatory conditions for youth agency in climate organizing spaces. Full article

Improper stakeholder practices are considered a primary driver of food loss. This study aims to investigate the consequences of pre- and post-harvest practices on extending the shelf life of agro-food products, identifying which practices yield the highest marginal returns for quality. Using Fractional Regression Models (FRM) and Ordinary Least Squares (OLS), the research analyzed data from 343 Egyptian grape farmers and intermediaries. Key findings at the farmer level include significant food loss reductions through drip irrigation (13.9%), avoiding maturity-accelerating chemicals (24%), increased farmer-cultivated area (6.1%), early morning harvesting (8.7%), and improved packing (13.7%), but delayed harvesting increased losses (21.6%). For intermediaries, longer distances to market increased losses by 0.15%, while using proper storage, marketing in the formal markets, and using an appropriate transportation mode reduced losses by 65.9%, 13.8%, and 7.9%, respectively. Furthermore, the interaction between these practices significantly reduced the share of losses. The study emphasizes the need for increased public–private partnerships in agro-food logistics and improved knowledge dissemination through agricultural extension services and agri-cooperatives to achieve sustainable food production and consumption. This framework ensures robust, policy-actionable insights into how stakeholders’ behaviors influence postharvest losses (PHL). The findings can inform policymakers and agribusiness managers in designing cost-efficient strategies for reducing PHL and promoting sustainable food systems. Full article