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The purpose of this paper is to propose an approach regarding the management measures for solving environmental problems in protected areas. Two neighboring protected areas with different features were chosen in order to investigate the similarity of the environmental problems with regard to these two areas and if it is possible for these problems to be solved through a network of protected areas.

The research was carried out through the use of a questionnaire which was distributed to the inhabitants and visitors of both areas, as well as through interviews with the representatives of organizations responsible for the management and administration of those areas and representatives of the municipalities and the regional authorities these two national parks belong to. Simple random sampling was applied to the inhabitants and cluster sampling to the visitors.

The results show that with regard to the visitors the most important problem is illegal hunting while for the inhabitants equally important is the problem of pollution and cleanliness. However, those responsible with the management of the two National Parks think that the greatest threat to the wider area is the problem of floods.

The views of the stakeholders in a given time, provides us with the best possible information for solving the problems faced and can be used as a tool for increasing the effectiveness of the measures which have been taken to deal with the particular problems.

The purpose of this paper is to document the contribution of alternative forms of tourism in the eco-development of mountain areas with rich natural and cultural environment.

The paper follows two methods: first, bibliographical research and second, personal fieldwork and study which included interviews with the local body and citizens; collection of information from public agencies; research of the particular characteristics of the natural and cultural environment and registration of socioeconomic activities; visits in the villages, photographing of landscapes and traditional houses and data from the author’s participation in the research program “Possibilities of a self-reliant local development, respecting the environment“, which refers to the mountainous region of Xanthi Prefecture District and with the involvement of Greek and German scientists.

The utilization of the existing tourism resources of the region with ecological perception, combined with the excellent management of the two national parks, will contribute to eco-agritourism in the eco-development of the area. The ecological center in Drymia, with its completion and expansion to a European Ecological Centre, in direct connection with the national parks, will contribute significantly to the attraction of Greek and European researchers and eco-agritourists.

The scientific community has not thoroughly studied the region of Drymia, which presents unique ecological interest in Greece and Europe.

The purpose of this paper is to outline the views of citizens on issues related to energy saving and the realization of bank products in buildings under renovation such as energy saving interventions in the building envelope, installment of maximum efficiency air-conditioning systems, etc.

The collection of data was done through a structured questionnaire. The data are important because they show the attitudes of citizens while they simultaneously assess the effectiveness of the program after the application for many years of the energy saving program by the state.

The results of the research show that with regard to responsible actions by citizens as far as impacts on climate change are concerned, cognitive factors are more important than behavioral factors. The most important reason with regard to citizens restricting the consumption of electrical energy is saving money. Finally, the vast majority of citizens declare that they know about the existence of “green” bank financial programs and claim that these contribute to environmental protection. Despite all this, a very small percentage of citizens have realized some sort of financial program in order to save energy claiming that the main reason for their choice was the country’s economic crisis.

This investigation of the views of citizens may constitute a tool both for designing of effective environmental policy but also for the assessment of energy saving programs such as the one discussed in this paper.

Tourism is a service-intensive industry where tourists’ experiences are framed by the quality of service provided. The main aim of this chapter is to offer conceptual guidelines on the service quality expectations and experiences of tourists and how this can be maintained through customer care.

A literature review was conducted where theories relevant to service quality and customer care were explored to design conceptual frameworks and guidelines for small business entrepreneurs/managers.

Psychological aspects related to the delivery of quality service are influenced by an array of characteristics, variables and managerial perspectives. Furthermore, tourists value the same service quality variables in the service quality assessment of their expectations and experiences.

Due to the exploratory nature of this chapter, interpretation of the findings must be done in the context of the discussed literature review with practical examples.

Service quality and customer care are essential elements in meeting tourists’ expectations. The five-step approach to address the service quality gaps in a tourism business provides valuable guidelines in the inter-relationships between the various aspects related to service delivery. The delivery of quality service is maintained by the creation of good relationships through customer care.

The illustration of the inter-relationships between analytical frameworks and models provides a unique opportunity for small business entrepreneurs to create an awareness of the delivery of quality service and customer care.

The purpose of this study is to assess the role of animals in creating a satisfactory experience at a natural park by investigating the impact on visitors of the exposure to, or absence of, fauna, towards the visitors’ overall experience.

The work is based on a quantitative data collection of tourists visiting a nature park. Altogether, 532 valid questionnaires were collected and used for the analysis. A series of factor analyses was conducted on pull and push factors for animal encounters. The resulting factor domains (FDs) were used as independent variables in ordinal logistic regression models to describe customer satisfaction.

The results of this study show that important FDs characterize the main visitor characteristics. Although human–animal encounters are an important factor for some visitors, the encounters should be encouraged in the most natural manner possible and not in captivity. This brings us to the concept of “Interpretation”, where guides and guided tours can help with the encounters. Information given prior to and during the visit can ensure visitors are aware that animal encounters are subject to nature and cannot be guaranteed.

The presence of areas where a number of animals are in captivity and can be viewed by visitors is an important decision for national parks and protected areas, as animals represent a potential attraction for visitors. Nevertheless, this decision creates an ethical dilemma in relation to the exploitation of animals, exacerbated by recent and increasing pressure on sustainable management. This study provides valuable results for guiding park managers in making reasoned decisions.

Tourism researchers proposed that service quality dimensions of tourist destinations can contribute in developing a favorable or unfavorable image among travelers which affect visitors’ loyalty or disloyalty as well as destination image. However, such claims are seldom evaluated into in avitourism locations, which are a niche tourism, but fast growing. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between service quality, visitor satisfaction and destination image and destination loyalty among avian tourists.

Following a positivist research philosophy with a quantitative, cross-sectional descriptive study design, the study addressed five direct and two indirect relationships in the model. The research followed expectation dis-confirmation theory of Gartner to test the theoretical model. Following purposive sampling, a sample of 384 international avitourists was collected from five avitourism locations of Malaysia. The study applied SmartPLS SEM to analyze the data.

The results show that the service quality provided by the park management has a positive impact on visitor satisfaction, destination image and destination loyalty. The study also shows partial mediation effect of visitor satisfaction on destination image and destination loyalty among avitourists. The study extends practical, policy and theoretical implications to the stakeholders of avitourism.

The study limits the possibility for generalization of the findings into five avitourism sites located in three states of Malaysia. Hence, the scope of the study needs to be augmented with samples from more regions to meet the expected generalization. Add to the point, this study lacks qualitative data observations to get an in-depth understanding of the issues pertaining to visitor’s expectations on serviced quality, satisfaction, destination image and loyalty. Hence, it is suggested that more qualitative research interventions need to be made with the tools of in-depth interviews, content analysis and with the method of focus group discussions and Delphi applications.

This study provides the park management a clearer understanding on service quality critical factors in enhancing the satisfaction of avian tourists and building a better avitourism destination image and destination loyalty. The avitourism park management may look into the services for these niche tourists, as these resources are directly linked to nature-based tourism with its diverse requirements to keep visitors satisfied. Park authorities require a sound understanding and skills in managing the biodiversity of the natural resources, birds and animals, to match their services with tourists’ expectations.

Biodiversity is important in supporting vital ecosystem services (ES) for human as well as animals. The study has its social implications in generating a greater number of employment opportunity for people surrounding the area of avian destinations preserving the biodiverse area. The people in the surroundings area of avitourism locations will get better employment opportunity as guides and nature trail experts, if the avian tourism develops in its real principle.

Avitourism is a niche tourism. The expectations of the visitors of avitourism locations are entirely varied in comparison with general tourism. Very less studies focused into expectations of the visitors linking human factor of service quality, emotional intelligence, visitor satisfaction, etc. like dimensions that will contribute into dynamic destination image and destination loyalty among avitourists. With the support of quantitative research tools, representative sampling and theoretical selection, the study findings are original in their form, ensuring external validity further to generalize into other birdwatching locations across the countries. The study observations are highly valuable to all stakeholders of avitourism.

The purpose of this study is to identify the reasons for visiting the urban park Antonis Tritsis in Athens, Greece, focusing on visitors’ motives and perceived characteristics of the park. When urban parks are located in areas that are particularly densely populated are characterized as green lungs and are easily accessible to the residents of the municipality. Therefore, the aim of the study is to analyze both the motives and perceived characteristics that visitors attribute in the case of the biggest urban park in Athens, Greece.

The survey was conducted from August 2018 to March 2019 and the responses of 377 visitors were collected. Antonis Tritsis Park is the largest metropolitan park in the Attica, Greece. A principal component factor analysis was used and two-factor models were developed to determine the reasons for visiting the Tritsis Park.

The application of factor analysis revealed the presence of three components in case of the motives for the visit and six components concerning the perceived characteristics of the park. Results suggest that visitors’ motives are related to environmental and social benefits. The park contributes to increased real estate value. Educational and cultural activities are also found as important benefits, whereas lack of safety and limited infrastructure are considered important barriers to revisit the park.

Recognizing the motivations of visitors, policymakers will be able to configure the park infrastructure according to the stated preferences.

Recognizing the motivations of visitors and the perceived characteristics of the park, policymakers will be able to configure the park infrastructure according to the stated preferences. If the services provided by the Tritsis Park are based on the preferences of its visitors, their satisfaction can be maximized and consequently improve the quality of life and contribute to sustainable development.

The innovation of the study is to analyze not only the perceived positive characteristics of the park but also barriers that affect visitors’ revisit intention toward the urban park of Antonis Tritsis. This is important in the case of metropolitan areas because the researchers understand what benefits are provided to them and how public administration should manage barriers to visiting urban parks so as to promote effective sustainability.

This study aims to investigate the performance of open-plan office layouts and to identify occupants’ concerns in existing open-plan office layouts.

Workplace activity questionnaire (WAQ) was administered in the form of an online survey in March 2019, as part of a design briefing process for the expansion of the office facilities located in Bangalore, India, for a Fortune 100 software technology company. A total of 4,810 questionnaires were distributed and 3,877 responses were received (80.6% response rate). After that, 849 incomplete responses were eliminated from the analysis, resulting in a final sample size of 3,028. The questionnaire included 11 key activities conducted by the office workers and established the gap between the workers’ perceived importance and support from their existing facilities using a five-point Likert scale.

The findings of this study provide strong evidence that different physical environments influence the satisfaction of occupants. An improvement of the facilities, especially by enabling areas for quiet working, should be prioritized in relation to the other activities surveyed. Also, office workers perceived significantly different support levels for quiet working depending on their department, while there was no significant difference between the workers of different buildings.

Individual demographic information was not collected because of the possibility of personal identification. There was also a lack of objective environmental measures, such as temperature and noise level. Thus, the quality of indoor environments was unknown. In this study, some respondents mentioned dissatisfaction with indoor environmental quality, including noise, temperature and air quality in their comments.

In the programming stage of a workplace design process, the WAQ survey tool has value because it renders important insight into the perception of a live workplace, which can then be used to determine priorities for a design effort. It clearly identifies the areas to focus on, ask questions about and develop improvements. Validating its reliability will enhance its credibility and confidence in its use. In addition, the large sample size provides statistical advantages in the data analysis, providing a higher likelihood to find a true positive of the findings of the study. Also, having a relatively high response rate provides an advantage of mitigating the risk of having non-response bias in the analysis.