Search results

The purpose is to conduct a systematic review of circular water management and its role in improving water availability amid increased demand and decreased supply.

A systematic literature review was implemented, which helped in the identification, selection and critical appraisal of the various research to answer the research question. It was guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews (PRISMA) statement. The review was conducted mainly on Web of Science and Scopus databases between November 20 and December 8, 2022, with search strategies involving free-text searching, phrase searching, truncation and Boolean operators.

The search process yielded 46 articles exploring circular water management. The findings reveal that circular water management offers more promise than linear or business-as-usual approaches. There are various circular water management models, although most of them emphasize a shift from the “take, make, consume and waste” principles. Contrarily, the success of the circular water management framework hinges on its ability to embrace resilience based on changing environmental conditions. Furthermore, the model focuses on improving inclusiveness with various stakeholders working together to improve water management.

The research is the first of its kind as it identifies a critical gap, the imperative need to develop a universal framework that can significantly advance the comprehension of circular water management.

Municipalities have the potential to become models of the circular economy (CE). This paper aims to examine the impact of the municipal council’s characteristics on municipal CE disclosure and promotion.

This paper is based on the resource dependence and upper echelons theories. For a sample of the 100 largest cities in Canada, a mixed methodology is used to code and analyze data and test the hypotheses.

Municipal councillors’ education and experience related to the environment or sustainability are both likely to affect CE disclosure, and their sector membership (public or private) moderates the relationship between CE disclosure and councillors’ experience. This experience may be reinforced by membership in the private sector, which has applied CE principles more extensively than the public sector has. Municipal councils with a greater number of councillors from the private sector appear to perform better in matters of transparency and to disclose more CE information on their public websites.

Municipalities could use the findings to foster their transition to CE by implementing a CE-related training plan for their councillors. A CE-dedicated section on their websites could improve transparency and inform and educate residents about CE.

The public sector could learn from the private sector’s best practices regarding CE.

This paper contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence of the transparency and engagement of municipalities toward CE. The authors extend the resource dependence and upper echelons theories to a new context, that of public organizations.

The shift toward a circular economy (CE) represents a collaborative endeavor necessitating the presence of efficient frameworks, conducive contexts and a common comprehension. This research serves as a pivotal stride towards this goal, presenting an exclusive prospect for the investigation and fusion of these frameworks, with particular emphasis on the Quintuple Helix Model (5HM), into a unified theoretical framework that underscores the core principles of the CE. This study is centered on three pivotal questions aimed at decoding the CE transition in specific regional settings.

Adopting an abductive approach firmly anchored in a two-stage qualitative process, this study specifically merges the foundational principles from institutional theory, entrepreneurship literature and CE frameworks to provide insights into the dynamics of circular ecosystems, with a specific focus on the Huelva region in Spain.

The findings demonstrate significant potential in the CE, ranging from the integration of product and service systems to innovations in eco-industrial practices. Yet, a notable deficiency exists: the absence of institutional entrepreneurs, highlighting the essential role that universities can play. As recognized centers of innovation, universities are suggested to be key contributors to the transformation toward a CE, aligning with their societal and economic responsibilities.

This study highlights the importance of managing relationships with entities like SMEs and policymakers or academia for effective CE adoption. Policymakers can refine strategies based on the research’s insights, while the impact of university-driven circular ecosystems on sustainable societies is another crucial area for research.

The sustainability models cited in CE literature may not be comprehensive enough to prevent problem shifting, and it can be argued that they lack a sound theoretical and conceptual basis. Furthermore, the connections between sustainability objectives and the three levels of the CE operating system remain vague. Additionally, there is insufficient information on how regions foster the involvement of the environment in fivefold helix cooperation and how this impacts the CE.

Circular economy (CE) is receiving increasing worldwide attention as a manner to overcome the challenges linked to current trends of unsustainable energy and resource consumption. This paper aims to fill this gap and analyze the adherence to sustainable, access-based and collaborative consumption practices by exploring the role of CE awareness, specifically in the context of Porto, the second-largest city of Portugal.

The methodology of choice is quantitative, based on partial least square-based structural equation modeling.

The result shows that there is an influence of CE awareness on subsequent sustainable consumption models.

Present research contributes to the theory on CE awareness and sustainable consumption. It proposes a model that could be applied in other countries. As this research is developed within the city of Porto, it may limit generalizations of obtained results.

As CE practices are embodied into national and local policies, this research contributes to understanding local contexts of CE practices dissemination, providing practical suggestions for businesses and policymakers aiming the transition to the CE.

An original approach to measuring the awareness of CE economy is proposed, that is analyzed not only from the familiarity perspective but in six dimensions of its construction: familiarity, importance, perception or interpretation, advantages, social impact and barriers in this process. Further, the conceptual model of the impact that these dimensions have on the adoption of sustainable consumption models (purchase of sustainable products, access-based and collaborative consumption) is proposed.

This paper aims to explore the intellectual structure shaping the circular economy (CE) discourse within the built environment in Africa.

The study adopted a bibliometric analysis approach to explore the intellectual structure of CE in the built environment in Africa. The authors collected 31 papers published between 2005 and 2021 from the Scopus database and used VOSviewer for data analysis.

The findings show that there are six clusters shaping the intellectual structure: demolition, material recovery and reuse; waste as a resource; cellulose and agro-based materials; resilience and low-carbon footprint; recycling materials; and the fourth industrial revolution. The two most cited scholars had three publications each, while the top journal was Resources, Conservation and Recycling. The dominant concepts included CE, sustainability, alternative materials, waste management, lifecycle, demolition and climate change. The study concludes that there is low CE research output in Africa, which implies that the concept is either novel or facing resistance.

The data were drawn from one database, Scopus; hence, adoption of alternative databases such as Web of Science, Google Scholar and Dimensions could potentially have yielded a higher number of articles for analysis which potentially would result in different conclusions on the subject understudy.

This study made a significant contribution by articulating the CE intellectual structure in the built environment, identified prominent scholars and academic platforms responsible for promoting circularity in Africa.

The present study is aimed at developing a multi-level framework for assessing circularity in agri-food industries by providing the user with a step-by-step approach and selecting a customized set of indicators capable of accurately assessing the circular economy (CE) level.

The framework is composed of four stages. In the first stage, a CE theoretical model based on operations, product and services, culture, organization and ecosystem criteria has been implemented and adapted to the agri-food sector. In the second stage, users are required to collect a set of indicators capable of measuring each criterion. In the third stage, a weight is assigned to each indicator using analytical hierarchy process (AHP). Lastly, a geometric multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) model, called axial distance-based aggregated measurement (ADAM) model, is used to normalize, assess and aggregate the results and produce final scores for the different alternatives to be ranked based on their final circularity scores.

The model can be a useful tool to support corporate decisions in the CE, making entrepreneurs aware of their starting level. It indicates the extent to which companies are implementing circular business models across different dimensions and, thus, where they are still lacking.

Beyond the attempts to measure the circularity of corporate performance from a purely environmental perspective, the study adopts a holistic view, considering the complexity and disruption of all the principles of the CE.

This paper delves into the critical role of women in the domains of architecture, engineering, construction and urban planning, particularly within the context of the United Nations sustainable development goals (SDGs) and the imperative of achieving gender parity. Concentrating on the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, this paper explores the profound importance of women as essential contributors to urbanisation and sustainable development. It scrutinizes the existing gender disparities within the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industries; evaluates prevailing women empowerment indices in diverse sectors; and presents a strategic framework for harnessing women’s engagement to cultivate inclusive and sustainable urban cultures in the GCC. This conceptual paper introduces an actionable framework that can serve as a guiding agenda for empowering women in the AEC sectors by incorporating their socio-cultural, economic and ecological contributions towards creating sustainable cities.

Centring its focus on Gulf Cities, this paper employs a comprehensive approach to examine the current gender disparities within the architecture, engineering and construction sectors. It probes potential barriers and advocates for leveraging women’s participation to foster inclusive and sustainable urban development in the GCC. The study introduces the Women’s Empowerment Index (WEI) for the Gulf AEC industry elucidating how these measures are translated into a tailored framework.

The paper presents a practical framework that provides actionable guidance for engaging various stakeholders, including governments, academia and industry players, to empower women within the AEC industries. An “Agenda for equitable AEC industries for sustainable urban development: Our Common Gulf Cities” is culminated in a Women Empowerment Index for the AEC Industry (WEI-AEC) designed to serve as a guidance tool to monitor progress within industry, governments and academia.

Future research endeavours could advance the framework by conducting institutional support analyses, multi-stakeholder collaboration studies and practical testing of the framework within real-world scenarios.

The findings of this study can guide and influence a diverse range of initiatives, including policy development, educational strategies, corporate endeavours, awareness campaigns, capacity-building programs, skill enhancement initiatives and knowledge exchange among the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.

This conceptual paper introduces a practical framework that can serve as a roadmap for implementing the study’s potential to shape policies, educational programs and corporate initiatives aimed at advancing both gender equality and the development of sustainable cities.

This study aims to add to the understanding of the significance of football in cities, where most major football clubs are located. Specifically, this study offers a distinctive perspective on what might be regarded as “football cities” by the study's mobilisation of theories of the urban mosaic, the calculable city and identity. This study contributes to the emergent field of popular culture (Jeacle, 2012) and, within this field of popular culture, the significance of soccer. The particular setting of this study is the city. This paper is a contribution to the established accounting literature on city studies but within the neglected study of football in cities.

This paper's focus is on the significance of football clubs in one city. The theoretical approach adopted is a blending of studies of the urban mosaic (Timms, 1975), the calculable city (Lapsley et al., 2010) and the established trend of identification studies in accounting. This investigation was undertaken in the city of Edinburgh by observation of football in city life. This research is a form of participant observation in which the author lived in the city in this study. The researcher undertook interviews with key actors in both football clubs and city management, made use of local media and scrutinised publicly available documents on both the clubs and the city administrations.

This research reveals the importance of the city mosaic in explaining the limited significance of football in this city. This approach underlines the merits of contextual studies. However, the evidence presented also reveals the presence of strong identity relationships between football clubs and the clubs' fans. These results reveal an internal perspective on city management and the activities of football clubs and the clubs' host city. The presence of multiple football clubs in a single city offers more diffuse identity relationships, with football clubs fostering stronger identification with the club than with the city. There is also evidence of single, dual and multiple identity relationships in this study which contrasts with the single identity perspectives of prior accounting research.

The focus of this paper is on the research question posed in the Call for Papers - Is there a Soccer Society? The findings of this study offer only limited evidence of a soccer society.

There is a need to study other cities with football clubs to determine those which are mosaics and those which are dominated by football.

This a study which embraces the importance of social context in finding meaning in accounting research. This paper introduces the novel concept of the city mosaic which is a novel way of understanding different city contexts.

Prior research on football has examined fans' behaviour, financial crises at football clubs and governance structures. This paper extends these earlier analyses by addressing the social context of football clubs in the city. Whilst most accounting research revealed rapid changes in identity during reforms, this study reveals a more complex relationship which aims to build continuity and commitment of fans' identity with the bigger football clubs in this city.

This study aims to identify in literature the role of construction stakeholders in the implementation of circular economy (CE) in the construction industry (CI). This study also sought to identify the status quo and research trend, “hot themes”, areas requiring more research and future research direction of stakeholders’ role in CE implementation in the CI.

A literature search was conducted using the Scopus search engine, augmented by Google Scholar to produce 50 relevant articles for the identification of stakeholders’ roles using content analysis. The scientometric study was undertaken using VOSviewer on 42 articles obtained from Scopus search to identify the status quo, “hot themes”, knowledge gaps and future research direction of the role of stakeholders in CE implementation.

Through content analysis, the identified roles of government as a stakeholder are to develop efficient policy instruments, legislation support and financial investment in research and development activities that will promote the smooth implementation of CE. The role of academia/research is to engage in research aimed at investigating both the short-term behaviour and the durability of recycled materials and products. In addition, the roles of professionals in the consultant/design/procurement team are to design with life cycle assessment and reused materials, design for deconstruction and disassembly, etc. The role of the user/consumer is to ensure knowledge diffusion and awareness exchange that recognize the available opportunities for long-term material usage (including repair, reuse, refurbishment and recycling). The research status quo identified from the scientometric analysis include how stakeholders can come up with innovative ways in demolition that will ensure that more of the materials can be reused. Stakeholders should focus on enacting policies and laws that can promote the use of recycled materials in buildings, etc. Research that focuses on how to engage the various construction stakeholders to come up with specific public policy that will promote CE implementation, identifying the specific roles to be played by stakeholders during policy enactment as well as managing the environment, laws and legislations towards CE implementation. The role of stakeholders in the extension of the life span of projects, the use of strategies to minimize waste generation and standardization of building materials, components and connectors with the purpose of simplifying disassembly are the research gaps and areas for future research studies. Some of the research “hot themes” include “circular business models in the CI”, “environmental sustainability policy implementation”, “environmental, economic and social sustainability”, “policy, laws and legislations on waste management” and “environmental and industrial economics” towards CE implementation.

The findings from this study serve as a valuable reference for construction stakeholders to assess their specific roles as stakeholders and to identify the status quo and research trend, “hot themes”, areas requiring more research and future research directions on stakeholders’ roles in CE implementation in the CI.

Identifying the role of stakeholders for CE implementation is one bold step towards the achievement of CE implementation in the CI.

This study aims to identify the interfaces between Industry 4.0 (I4.0) technologies and circular supply chains (CSC) in Brazilian foodtechs, focusing on key stakeholders’ perspectives to understand the efficiency and sustainability impacts of these integrations.

Using a qualitative exploratory research design, the study analyzes eight Brazilian foodtechs through interviews and content analysis. It identifies CSC practices and examines the adherence of I4.0 technologies within these enterprises, assessing stakeholder engagement and the implications for CSC optimization.

Fifteen CSC practices were identified across the foodtechs, with notable integration of three distinct I4.0 technologies. The findings suggest that while I4.0 technologies enhance efficiency in CSC, their adoption is in early stages. Stakeholder engagement emerges as a crucial element for optimizing CSC in the context of Brazilian foodtechs.

This study contributes to the academic discussion on the synergy between I4.0 and circular economy (CE) models, providing empirical evidence of their application in the foodtech sector and highlighting the role of stakeholders in facilitating these integrations.

The findings suggest that stakeholder engagement in circular practices is vital for both supply chain and organizational levels, with potential benefits including improved efficiency and sustainability outcomes. The research also underscores the need for public sector support, including regulatory frameworks and incentives for adopting I4.0 technologies.

By demonstrating how I4.0 technologies can support CE practices in foodtechs, the study highlights the potential for these integrations to contribute to more sustainable and efficient food systems, addressing environmental concerns and promoting social well-being.

This study addresses a gap in the literature by exploring the interface between I4.0 technologies and CSC in the emerging context of Brazilian foodtechs, offering insights into the practical and societal benefits of these integrations.