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Using a generic cheese as an anchor product, in this study consumers' preferences for different EU quality schemes have been investigated. Specifically, the study aims to understand whether “Protected Designation of Origin” (PDO), “Organic” and “Mountain Product” labels are independent or if there are some synergies existing between them, questioning – at the same time – whether this alleged exchange of value plays a positive or negative role in terms of consumers' willingness to pay.

A discrete choice experiment (DCE) was conducted on 600 Italian consumers performing a random parameter logit model. The respondents were representative of the Italian population in terms of age, gender and geographical distribution. Consumers' preferences for the presence of “Organic” and “Mountain product” labels were assessed in the DCE, together with the effect of price, for both PDO and generic cheeses.

Consumers are willing to pay a premium in price for “Organic” and “Mountain Product” per se, for cheese with and without the PDO denomination. Considering the interaction effects, results showed that the combined use of “Organic” and “Mountain Product” labels do not decrease consumers' intention to buy. However, when applied on a PDO product, these attributes generate a lower consumers' willingness to pay in comparison with the generic ones, highlighting a possible overlapping between them.

Despite the abundant literature on EU quality schemes in many food categories, this study represents one of the first attempts to measure the interaction effect between different EU quality schemes.

This study aims to investigate the intricate relationships between a community energy system, water resources and biodiversity conservation, with a specific focus on augmenting community energy resilience in Bondo. The primary objective is to gain an in-depth understanding of how community members perceive and experience the challenges related to balancing the often-conflicting demands of energy, water and biodiversity conservation within this context.

The research uses a qualitative approach to unravel the multifaceted dynamics of community energy systems, water resources and biodiversity conservation in Bondo. Data were collected through focus groups and direct observations, enabling a nuanced exploration of community perspectives and lived experiences. The subsequent analysis of this qualitative data follows established thematic analysis procedures.

The study's findings shed light on the formidable barriers that impede rural communities in Malawi from accessing electricity effectively. Even in communities fortunate enough to have electricity connections, the lack of knowledge regarding productive electricity use results in community energy systems operating at significantly reduced load factors. Furthermore, the intricate challenge of managing a biodiversity hotspot persists, exacerbated by the densely populated peripheral communities' continued reliance on forest, land and water resources. These activities, in turn, contribute to ecosystem degradation.

In a context where government-led management of forest reserves and game reserves has not yielded the expected results due to a multitude of factors, there arises a compelling need for innovative approaches. One such innovation involves fostering partnerships between the government and experienced trusts as lead organisations, providing a fresh perspective on addressing the complex interplay between community energy systems, water resources and biodiversity conservation. This novel approach opens doors to explore alternative pathways for achieving the delicate balance between human energy needs and the preservation of vital ecosystems.

This paper aims at assessing the role of authenticity of local food in contributing to tourism as an ecosystem service in a small mountain tourism destination, i.e. Alagna Valsesia (North-West of Italy).

A mix method approach has been adopted. The research has been carried out by using both CAWI (Computer Assisted Web Interview) and PAPI (Paper And Pen Interview) methodologies for surveys on the accommodation facilities managers and tourists. In addition, an analysis of electronic word-of-mouth platforms (TripAdvisor and Google) was implemented to understand more in-depth the local foodservice.

Findings show that Alagna Valsesia embodies its authenticity with the tradition of the local culture, characterised by natural heritage and Walser uses. Some tools are identified to improve the attractiveness of the tourist destination.

The main limitation of this study can be found in the study' application to a rather limited and geographically restricted area.

The results provided by this study can help local policy-makers in driving local policies and public funds in implementing ecotourism based practices.

Although the role of local food has been much studied in relation to the tourism sector, to the knowledge of the authors, this contribution represents a first attempt to analyse local food's role in terms of local food's crossover contribution to supporting cultural tourism.

The case was developed from two 2-h interviews with the Chief Operating Officer of A-Basin, Alan Henceroth; there is no CEO of A-Basin. The second interview was recorded on a Zoom call to provide accuracy of quotations and information. A variety of secondary sources were used in terms of better understanding the current state of the ski industry, as well as its history.

Arapahoe Basin (A-Basin) is a historic, moderately sized, ski area with proximity to metropolitan Denver, Colorado. For over 20 years A-Basin partnered with Vail, allowing skiers to use the Vail Epic Pass, for which A-Basin received some revenue from Vail for each skier visit. The Epic Pass allowed pass holders unlimited days of skiing at A-Basin. More and more skiers were buying the Epic Pass, thus increasing the customer traffic to A-Basin. However, the skier experience was compromised due inadequate parking, long lift lines and crowded restaurants. The renewal of the contract with Vail was coming due, and A-Basin had to consider whether to renew the contract with Vail. The case is framed primarily as a strategic marketing case. The authors use Porter’s five forces model to assess the external environment of A-Basin, and the authors use the resource-based view and the VRIO tool to assess A-Basin’s internal strengths. Both frameworks provide useful analysis in terms of deciding whether to continue A-Basin’s arrangement with Vail or end the contract and pursue a different strategy. In 2019, after consultation with the Canadian parent company Dream, A-Basin made the decision to disassociate itself from the Epic Pass and Vail to restore a quality ski experience for A-Basin’s customers. No other partner had ever left its relationship with Vail. An epilogue details some of A-Basin’s actions, as well as the outcomes for the ski area. Generally A-Basin’s decision produced positive results and solidified its competitive position among competitors. Other ski areas have since adopted a similar strategy as A-Basin. A-Basin’s success is reflected in a pending offer from Alterra, Inc., to purchase the ski area.

The A-Basin case can be used in both undergraduate and graduate strategic (or marketing) management courses. It is probably best considered during the middle of an academic term, as the case requires students to apply many of the theoretical concepts of strategy. One of the best books to enable students to use Porter’s five forces is Understanding Michael Porter by Joan Magretta (Boston: Harvard Business Review Press, 2012). Magretta was a colleague of Porter for many years and was an Editor of the Harvard Business Review. For a discussion of the VRIN/VRIO concept, see Chapter 4 of Essentials of Strategic Management by Gamble, Peteraf and Thompson (New York: McGraw-Hill Education, 2019).

This study aims to explore the connection between demographic traits and the choice of attraction patterns among international repeat tourists.

The study employed a questionnaire survey to collect data from 1550 international repeat tourists who visited Tanzania between November 2022 and July 2023. Convenient sampling was employed as tourists were selected from the three international airports of Tanzania, namely Kilimanjaro International Airport, Julius Nyerere International Airport, and Abeid Aman Karume International Airport. A multinomial logistic regression model was used to examine the impact of socio-demographic characteristics on the selection of attraction patterns among international repeat tourists.

The study revealed that demographic factors, including age, marital status, income level, occupation, and education level, exhibit statistically significant correlations with preferences for distinct attraction patterns. This significance was established through a p-value of less than 0.05 for all the aforementioned variables.

This study is primarily focused on international repeat tourists, thereby limiting insights into the preferences of domestic tourists. To better inform strategies aimed at attracting a larger domestic tourist base, future research may prioritize the investigation of choice of attractions patterns among domestic tourists in relation to their demographic characteristics.

This study contributes to the nuanced understanding of international tourist behavior by unraveling the extent to which demographic traits impact tourists’ choices of attraction patterns, thereby providing insights crucial for effective marketing strategies, improved visitor experiences, and sustainable tourism development strategies.

The early care and education (ECE) workforce plays a pivotal role in shaping early childhood developmental trajectories and simultaneously experiences significant mental health disparities. The purpose of this study is to investigate how social determinants of health and external stressors are associated with the mental health of ECE staff, which represent a low-resourced segment of the workforce; how psychological capital (psycap) can mitigate these associations.

The authors administered an 89-item survey to 332 ECE staff employed in 42 Head Start centers in the USA. The authors ran three hierarchical linear regression models to analyze associations between social determinants of health, external sources of stress, psycap and potential moderation effects and mental health outcomes.

Individuals experiencing greater finance-related stress reported 0.15 higher scores on the depression scale and 0.20 higher scores on the anxiety scale than those experiencing less finance-related stress (p < 0.05). Individuals experiencing greater work-related stress reported 1.26 more days of poorer mental health in the past month than those experiencing less work-related stress (p < 0.01). After controlling for all sociodemographic variables and sources of stress, psycap was significantly and negatively associated with depressive symptomology (b-weight = −0.02, p < 0.01) and the number of poor mental health days reported in the past month (b-weight = −0.13, p < 0.05). Moderation models suggest that higher levels of psycap may mitigate the association between work-related stress and the number of poor mental health days reported in the past month (b-weight = −0.06, p = 0.02).

The implications of these findings suggest a need for policy change to mitigate social determinants of health and promote pay equity and multi-level interventio ns that target workplace-related stressors and psycap to combat poor mental health of the ECE workforce.