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The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of information technologies (IT) in the impact of environmental practices on environmental performance.

The authors use data from the fifth (2009) round of the International Manufacturing Strategy Survey (IMSS) which includes responses from manufacturing plants within the manufacturing industry in Brazil, China, Germany, Hungary and USA. The authors use multiple regression analysis to test the relationship between environmental practices and environmental performance and the moderating effect of IT.

The paper finds evidence that IT strengthens the relationship between environmental practices and environmental performance. The IT construct is operationalized through IT-enabled control and IT-enabled coordination. The results confirm the established relationship between environmental practices and environmental performance and show that IT-enabled coordination moderates the relationship between environmental practices and environmental performance.

This research contributes to the literature of green operations in the following ways: First, this paper offers an alternative explanation about the role of IT; the authors provide evidence that existing IT resources that support the coordination between product design and manufacturing strengthen the effect of environmental practices. Second, this paper provides evidence that environmental practices can take advantages of the IT resources embedded in daily plants’ routines to enhance plants’ environmental performance. Overall, this research provides suggestions to managers about the role that IT plays in the implementation of environmental practices.

Este artículo explora el rol que las tecnologías de información tienen en la relación entre prácticas medio ambientales empresariales y el rendimiento ambiental de la empresa.

Este artículo utiliza datos de la quinta ronda (2009) de la encuesta internacional de estrategia de manufactura (IMSS por sus siglas en inglés), la cual incluye datos de plantas manufacturadoras en Brasil, China, Alemania, Hungría y Estados Unidos. Se utiliza análisis de regresión múltiple para evaluar el efecto entre prácticas medio ambientales empresariales y el rendimiento ambiental de la empresa; y el efecto moderador de tecnologías de información en la relación anterior.

Este artículo encuentra que las tecnologías de información fortalecen la relación entre prácticas medio ambientales empresariales y el rendimiento ambiental de la empresa. El constructo de tecnologías de información es operacionalizado a través de indicadores de tecnologías de la información que facilitan el control de la producción y la coordinación. Los resultados confirman la relación positiva entre prácticas medio ambientales empresariales y el rendimiento ambiental; y evidencian que tecnologías de información que facilitan la coordinación moderan la relación anterior.

Esta investigación contribuye a la literatura de “operaciones verdes” de la siguiente forma: Primero, esta ofrece una explicación alternativa sobre el rol de tecnologías de información; se provee evidencia que tecnologías de información existentes en la empresa que apoyan la coordinación entre diseño de producto y manufactura hacen más efectivas a las prácticas medio ambientales empresariales. Segundo, este artículo presenta evidencia que la implementación de prácticas medio ambientales empresariales puede apalancarse sobre la tecnología de información existente para mejorar el rendimiento ambiental de la empresa. En general, esta investigación ofrece sugerencias a los empresarios sobre el rol que las tecnologías de información tienen en la implementación de prácticas medio ambientales.

Following the recommendation of the food and agriculture organization of the United Nations in agricultural innovation, for taking advantage of emerging technologies, in benefit of small-farmers, the present study explores one of the most ancient crops in the world that privileging the application of tacit knowledge, to become a succulent plant called agave, into the so-called drink of the gods, the mezcal. For this, the purpose of this study is to discover innovation opportunities and reconfiguring knowledge interaction dynamics of the agricultural artisan production of agave-mezcal from Oaxaca, Mexico, using emerging technologies

Following a qualitative-quantitative approach, the study was carried out with 44 mezcal producers from Oaxaca, Mexico, through face-to-face session, questionaries’ application and field visits, based on the model of socialization, externalization, combination and internalization (SECI) through Likert-scale questions, combining the non-parametric statistical analysis and digital compass, for the detection of technological opportunities

Basing on artisanal process, context-knowledge place, technological resources and SECIs model results, the opportunities must go in the route of labour in the logic of digital performance. In this sense, becomes relevant to develop an easy-use mobile application for improving the interaction of mezcaleros with external agents and another’s producers., A second proposal is the creation of mezcal-tech-hub, thinking as collaborative space, for promoting the interaction producer-to-producer and producer-to-external agent.

The value of the present study is the empirical description of knowledge dynamics interaction contained in the agricultural artisan production of agave-mezcal through SECI model; the identification of problems, failure or barriers contained in the knowledge interaction dynamics of the agricultural artisan production agave-mezcal; the proposal of innovation opportunities for reconfiguring the knowledge interaction dynamics of the agricultural artisan production agave-mezcal from a developing economy, using emerging technologies.

The purpose of this research was to determine the current status of the library services for visually impaired and physically handicapped people in Argentina.

A survey was made of 20 different libraries throughout Argentina that provide services for visually impaired and physically handicapped people. A questionnaire composed of 114 questions based on American Library Association guidelines was developed and delivered by e‐mail and post to participating libraries. Additionally, visits were made to ten of these libraries with the objective of obtaining information by means of interviews with their respective directors as well as library personnel and users who were present at the time of the visit.

It was concluded that these libraries are not in a position to provide the best library services for visually impaired and physically handicapped individuals: it was seen that there are still many things to correct and improve.

It is considered that the present model of special libraries in Argentina is a possible contributor to the isolation and confinement of visually impaired and physically handicapped people. For this reason a new model of service should be considered. This should take into account an integrated library approach based on the Unesco manifesto 1994 for public libraries. It is suggested that the Unesco model of integrating universal library services will effectively ensure access to information for visually impaired and physically handicapped people, thus ensuring “a public library for everyone”.