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Microfinance impact evaluation studies help in discovering client needs which are diverse, special and different from the needs of the conventional bankable clients. Thus, such area of market research is becoming essential for microfinance institutions for designing better client-centred products. In this research, the authors discuss the specific model of household economic portfolio (HEP) for qualitative impact evaluation in microfinance. The paper aims to discuss the complexity limitations of the HEP. Solutions are provided for overcoming these limitations. The modified household economic portfolio (M-HEP) model is simplified and detailed, and two types of diaries are suggested for implementing it.

First, the authors briefly review the literature on impact assessment methods in microfinance and on the HEP model. In the second part of the paper, the M-HEP is suggested and discussed in detail. In the third part, the authors present a case study to illustrate the additional information that can be generated by using our suggested research tool and model. Finally, the authors wrap up with a summary of the findings.

Solutions are provided for overcoming the limitations of the HEP model. The suggested model (M-HEP) is simplified and detailed, and two types of diaries are suggested for implementing it. The case study shows that, certainly, time and money are related. While time may mean money for a rich person, for a poor person, if money is not forthcoming, she may spend time on non-income generating work that adds to her social esteem. She may also consume inexpensive assets because spending time at low cost is important. Finally, she spends time in conducting activities for which she cannot afford to pay.

The paper offers two novelties. First, it details the interactions between the elements of the HEP model of Chen and Dunn. This improvement to the original model is highly important for defining the measures that are required for redrawing the economic portfolio of an individual. The second novelty is in suggesting the collection of time-use and financial daily data. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time a combined diary is used in microfinance research. These two novelties allow the application of a modified version of the highly interesting HEP model in spite of its complexity.

The study aims to identify the severe socioeconomic, environmental, and ecological impacts caused by the construction of mega and large hydro-power plants in Uttarakhand, India. In addition to identifying the attributes, the study creates an integrated index that will assist in the development of sustainable hydro-power.

The methodology used for this impact identification was based on extensive literature review, focused expert discussions and further validation through a primary survey among the stakeholders in the hydropower sector. The sustainability index (SI) was estimated using the fuzzy logic theory.

The study area SI shows that few projects are in extreme zones, and through suggestive measures, few project sites can be made viable for long-term sustainable project site. A Hydropower Sustainability Assessment Protocol–based conceptual model is also proposed for mitigation of impacts.

Hydropower plays an essential role in access to cleaner and cheaper sources of energy; it defines the usage of water resources toward inflation-free green energy and holds spectacular operational flexibility. Despite the significant advantages associated with hydroelectric power projects, there are adverse side effects as well. The water-based power sector industry contributes to any nation through both economic and environmental ways. Although one-third of the power business in India is carried out through water-based hydropower projects, recent trends in water-based hydropower projects show significant socioeconomic and environmental impacts that create a debate about the sustainability of these projects.

Agency theory motivated this study, posing that leverage mitigates the agency problem. The aim was to examine whether leverage influences the relationship between executive-employee pay gaps (EEPGs) and firm performance. The study was conducted in the mining and retail sectors between 2012 and 2021.

Two EEPGs were featured based on their executive fixed pay and variable incentives accumulation. Proxies of firm performance were headline earnings per share; return on assets; earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation; and return on stock price. Data were collected from 76 JSE-listed firms in the retail and mining sectors and analysed using the two-step generalised method of moments.

The results revealed the hybrid implication of the pay gap for firm performance in the retail and mining sectors of South Africa, depending on the performance measures emphasised. More importantly, the study shows that with the moderating effects of leverage, firms can improve their performance while shrinking the pay gap.

The results have implications for policy addressing income inequality, debt management, executive compensation and regulatory reforms in South Africa concerning productivity and remuneration decisions.

The article provides specific literature for retail and mining industries on pay gaps, shows that it is possible to reduce the pay gap without compromising performance and suggests a new measure of performance that is more attuned to pay gap effect measurement.

This paper aims to investigate the influence of advertised reference price (ARP) and sales price (SP) as anchor points on the latitude of expected price, and subsequently on purchase intention (PI). The research involves the theoretical lens of selective anchoring mechanism, which allows investigation of the influence of ARP and SP in a situation where price estimation task is a “non-thoughtful processes”.

On the basis of quasi-experimental design, the study involves intercept survey of 142 shoppers.

The study finds that due to anchoring effect, the highest and the lowest expected prices shift toward ARP and SP, respectively. Consequently, it influences the latitude of expected price, which in turn influences purchase intention. In addition, the study proposes and tests a method to forecast expansion and contraction of the latitude of expected price.

It suggests a new mechanism to understand the simultaneous influence of ARP and SP, provides a mechanism to understand shifts in price latitude’s end-points and investigates a phenomenon with two externally provided anchors.

The study highlights the role of the latitude of expected price in understanding consumers’ response. Results suggest that a plausible ARP, when joined with an above-expectation SP, can fetch better consumer responses.

The study uniquely investigates a problem with two anchor points and two estimation targets, and proposes a construct of internal price uncertainty (IPU).

The architects of institutional policy are rarely those tasked with operationalising it. This can create gaps between what is set out in policy and what happens on the ground. This is an under-researched area and one this chapter will shed a light on. This chapter examines the role that widening participation (WP) practitioners play in operationalising policy. Focusing upon the implementational level of the policy enactment staircase, it examines the roles of individuals working at the coalface in enacting WP policy. Drawing upon research conducted by the author in 2016–2017 with higher education providers (HEPs) in England (Rainford, 2019), it supplements this with data from a sector-wide survey conducted by the editors of this book in 2021. In drawing together these two data sets, it offers a rich picture of who works in WP within HEPs in England. It examines the multitude of roles undertaken by these practitioners and how this varies across the sector both in HEPs and collaborative Uni Connect partnerships. This chapter also highlights how practitioners can shift the focus of how policy is operationalised. In doing so, it examines some of the challenges faced by practitioners and the extent to which they are given the tools to carry out this essential work. While this chapter argues that practitioners have a level of agency in the work they do, this can be constrained by both national and institutional policies. It argues that these constraints are often shaped by competing imperatives of both social justice and economic drivers.

A hybrid-electric unmanned aerial vehicle (HE-UAV) model has been developed to address the problem of low endurance of a small electric UAV. Electric-powered UAVs are not capable of achieving a high range and endurance due to the low energy density of its batteries. Alternatively, conventional UAVs (cUAVs) using fuel with an internal combustion engine (ICE) produces more noise and thermal signatures which is undesirable, especially if the air vehicle is required to patrol at low altitudes and remain undetected by ground patrols. This paper aims to investigate the impact of implementing hybrid propulsion technology to improve on the endurance of the UAV (based on a 13.6 kg UAV).

A HE-UAV model is developed to analyze the fuel consumption of the UAV for given mission profiles which were then compared to a cUAV. Although, this UAV size was used as reference case study, it can potentially be used to analyze the fuel consumption of any fixed wing UAV of similar take-off weight. The model was developed in a Matlab-Simulink environment using Simulink built-in functionalities, including all the subsystem of the hybrid powertrain. That is, the ICE, electric motor, battery, DC-DC converter, fuel system and propeller system as well as the aerodynamic system of the UAV. In addition, a ruled-based supervisory controlled strategy was implemented to characterize the split between the two propulsive components (ICE and electric motor) during the UAV mission. Finally, an electrification scheme was implemented to account for the hybridization of the UAV during certain stages of flight. The electrification scheme was then varied by changing the time duration of the UAV during certain stages of flight.

Based on simulation, it was observed a HE-UAV could achieve a fuel saving of 33% compared to the cUAV. A validation study showed a predicted improved fuel consumption of 9.5% for the Aerosonde UAV.

The novelty of this work comes with the implementation of a rule-based supervisory controller to characterize the split between the two propulsive components during the UAV mission. Also, the model was created by considering steady flight during cruise, but not during the climb and descend segment of the mission.

The purpose of this paper is to present a report of the 2007 annual meeting of the International Association of Technological University Libraries (IATUL) held at the KTH, Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden.

Provides a brief review of the main themes of the conference: Public access; New tools and services, Metrics; and Economics, Bridging the gap.

Scientific publishing directions are changing the environmental landscapes of science and academic research libraries as well as in how scientists are conducting their work in all disciplines and communicating and collaborating with each other. The increasingly more complex and global environments indicate that access to the scientific literature and information sharing are paramount interests of scientists, national governments, the scientific community at‐large, professional societies and commercial publishing interests.

Libraries are evolving into far more than repositories of bound volumes as eScience and eCollections mature. The changing role of librarians and of the physical library to handle and treat much more than books and journals is demonstrated by many addresses at this conference.

This paper aims to investigate the effect of unknown noise parameters of Kalman filter on velocity and displacement and to enhance the measured accuracy using adaptive Kalman filter with particle swarm optimization algorithm.

A novel method based on adaptive Kalman filter is proposed. Combined with the displacement measurement model, the standard Kalman filtering algorithm is established. The particle swarm optimization algorithm fused with Kalman is used to obtain the optimal noise parameter estimation using different fitness function.

The simulations and experimental results show that the adaptive Kalman filter algorithm fused with particle swarm optimization can improve the accuracy of the velocity and displacement.

The adaptive Kalman filter algorithm fused with particle swarm optimization can serve as a new method for optimal state estimation of moving target.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a description of the SCOAP³ model, aiming to achieve a transition of peer‐reviewed literature of an entire field, high‐energy physics to open access.

An historical survey of publishing patterns in high‐energy physics puts open access in that discipline in context. A detailed, quantitative study of the publishing landscape in high‐energy physics is discussed, providing the economic basis for the SCOAP³ model.

The yearly publication output of high‐energy physics is concentrated on six journals by four publishers. This relatively compact publication landscape and the historical cohesion of the community make a transition of the entire field to open access feasible.

The results relate to a very specific field with a high potential for migration to open access. In open access there is no “one‐size‐fits‐all” solution, and other fields have to proceed to similar analyses to identify their most convenient model on the road to open access journals.

The SCOAP³ initiative seems to be a sustainable way for a transition to open access of scientific publishing of an entire discipline. It could serve as an example, and an experiment, in the search for viable business models for open access.

The paper provides an insight into the design of a business model for open access around the particular needs and publication landscape of a particular discipline.

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the HEPS project (Healthy Eating and Physical Activity in Schools) and discuss initial steps of the project implementation within EU countries. On the basis of the Health Promoting School approach as a conceptual foundation for the project, HEPS aimed at developing and implementing an effective tool for supporting the development of national policies on healthy eating and physical activity in schools across Europe. For this purpose, a package of publications (HEPS Toolkit) was produced and disseminated within the Schools for Health in Europe (SHE) network.

An initial implementation survey was carried out with national coordinators of the SHE network (n=24).

Results indicate that more than half of the respondents were familiar with and disseminated the HEPS Toolkit to relevant stakeholders at national, regional and local levels. However a number of problems and barriers in the implementation were encountered, such as lack of support and resources, existence of competing programmes, and frequent education and health reforms.

The findings are discussed against two models of implementation and a few recommendations are suggested for optimizing the further implementation of this, and other similar projects.

THE HEPS toolkit is the first attempt to support all EU member states in the development and implementation of a national policy on healthy eating and physical activity in schools. The involvement of the national coordinators of a well established European network of school health can be seen as an innovative way to implement and disseminate the project outcomes.