13361 research outputs found
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Addressing community oppositions in biowaste incineration infrastructure: Key factors and strategic solutions for a sustainable circular bioeconomy
No full textThe rapid urbanisation in China has substantially increased municipal waste generation, with biowaste comprising the largest portion. Due to its high organic content, biowaste can be recycled or incinerated to produce bioenergy, making incineration a predominant waste treatment method. However, biowaste incineration facilities have often raised community-level concerns due to worries about environmental pollution and public health risks. These issues are typically classified as “Not In My Backyard” (NIMBY) conflicts in public management. Despite the prominence of these conflicts, research lacks a comprehensive examination of their key driving factors. This study addresses this gap by systematically investigating the primary risk factors underlying NIMBY incidents associated with biowaste incineration infrastructure. A hybrid model combining the Decision-Making and Trial Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL), Interpretative Structural Modelling Method (ISM) and Bayesian Network (BN) was applied to conduct causation chain and sensitivity analyses, enabling the identification of critical risk factors. The results reveal that insufficient public participation, inadequate information transparency and misaligned risk perceptions are the primary contributors to NIMBY conflicts. Strategic solutions are proposed for governments and infrastructure enterprises to address these issues, including enhancing public engagement, improving information disclosure and implementing effective risk communication strategies. These measures aim to mitigate NIMBY conflicts, foster social harmony and facilitate the implementation of essential infrastructure projects. This study enhances the understanding of NIMBY conflicts by systematically identifying and analysing the key risk factors specific to biowaste incineration infrastructure, an area that has been underexplored in existing research. Additionally, the use of the DEMATEL-ISM-BN hybrid model introduces a significant methodological innovation, facilitating a comprehensive examination of causality, hierarchical structures, and probabilistic relationships among these risk factors.</p
Enhancing stakeholder engagement and performance evaluation in building design using BIM and VR
No full text“VR + BIM” technologies address the growing complexity of construction evaluation systems driven by digital transformation, as traditional methods struggle to meet diverse stakeholder demands. This paper develops an automated evaluation framework integrating Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Virtual Reality (VR) to enhance decision-making processes and enable immersive multi-stakeholder collaboration and data-driven assessments. To verify system effectiveness, a “green + healthy” building scenario under sustainable construction trends is selected. Analysis based on a cloud model of 18 performance indicators reveals superior performance in user experience indicators such as “light environment”, “spatial privacy” but limitations in resource management indicators like “water conservation” and “source control.” The overall system performance transitions from “average” to “relatively good,” confirming automated assessment feasibility. The research contributes a quantitative methodology for BIM-VR integration, enhancing stakeholder engagement and building performance evaluation, offering micro-level design recommendations and macro-level policy interventions for “green + healthy” buildings, advancing digital, intelligent construction practices.</p
Impact of video information intervention on public perceptions of waste-to-energy incineration facilities: An information processing theory perspective
No full textThis innovative study investigates the novel realm of video information interventions and their transformative role in shaping public perceptions of waste-to-energy (WTE) incineration facilities. A behavioral survey experiment with 127 participants aims to uncover unique shifts in attitudes toward WTE incineration facilities, offering fresh insights into the impact of video information interventions on public perspectives. The study reveals two distinctive outcomes. Firstly, it highlights the unprecedented influence of video information intervention in shaping public perceptions of WTE incineration facilities. This intervention emerges as a dynamic force adept at presenting a nuanced and balanced view that mitigates potential negative impacts and encourages a more comprehensive understanding of the technology. Secondly, a novel perspective is introduced on the relationship between public perception and acceptance, emphasizing the intervention's innovative role in reshaping opinions. The research, therefore, signifies a major change in the governance of potentially risky facilities. The empirical evidence highlights the novelty of video information interventions as crucial tools for effective risk communication and community engagement. By paving the way for positive public perceptions through innovative interventions, the study contributes to the sustainable development and acceptance of such facilities as WTE incineration, marking a significant advancement in societal and environmental goals.</p
The implementation effectiveness of Transit Metropolis policy: A case study of information intervention experiments
No full textTo assess the effectiveness of the Transit Metropolis policy in advancing sustainable urban transportation, this study examines how information interventions influence public travel attitude, policy responsiveness, and support. The research in pilot cities across China involved an information intervention experiment targeting urban residents to understand changes in their transportation choices and attitudes toward the policy. A Propensity Score Matching-Difference-in-Differences (PSM-DID) approach was employed to rigorously evaluate the policy's impact. This combined methodology allows for a more accurate estimation of effects by reducing potential biases in the data, revealing important insights into the policy's role in enhancing public transit preference and reducing private car reliance. The PSM-DID approach, supported by robustness and heterogeneity analyses, provided reliable findings highlighting the intervention's significant influence on urban residents’ attitude. Specifically, the results indicate a substantial increase in residents’ willingness to use public transportation and a noticeable decrease in private vehicle use. Moreover, residents’ responsiveness to policy goals and overall support for the Transit Metropolis policy have increased significantly following the intervention, suggesting that targeted information can effectively promote sustainable mobility choices. These findings yield valuable recommendations for policy enhancement, highlighting the value of sustained public engagement and targeted interventions to boost public transit's modal share. Additionally, they suggest the necessity of rational private car usage to reduce environmental impact further. By encouraging public support and influencing travel choices, the Transit Metropolis policy demonstrates significant potential to contribute to sustainable urban development and mobility in China's rapidly urbanizing cities.</p
Collaborative strategies for enhancing pro-environmental behavior in renovation waste management: An evolutionary game approach to achieving a circular economy
No full textThe growing volume of renovation waste presents major environmental and societal challenges, pressing governments and contractors to find effective solutions. Encouraging pro-environmental behavior (PEB) among renovation workers is essential for reducing waste at its source. However, the lack of coordinated and stable strategies among key stakeholders, workers, contractors, and local governments impeded effective PEB implementation on renovation sites. This study utilizes an evolutionary game model to investigate these stakeholders' dynamic decision-making processes and develop collaborative strategies for enhancing PEB. Initially, a payoff matrix was constructed for the three stakeholders. Each stakeholder's equilibrium and stability strategies were analyzed, and simulations assessed the impact of initial strategy choices and parameter variations on decision-making. The findings indicate that (1) Government incentives and penalties are effective in motivating contractors and workers to adopt PEB; (2) The government's influence on workers' PEB is indirect, whereas contractors exert a more direct influence; and (3) Optimal strategies vary with the industrial development stage: early-stage strategies are less effective, while mature-stage strategies see increased engagement in PEB by workers and contractors, with the government adopting more relaxed regulatory approaches. These insights suggest targeted measures to achieve PEB in renovation waste through multi-party collaboration to realize a circular economy.</p
Financial inclusion and the global net-zero emissions agenda: Does governance quality matter?
No full textWe inspect the impact of financial inclusion on carbon (CO2) emissions and the role that quality of governance plays using a global dataset from 119 countries between 2004 and 2020. We address endogeneity using the dynamic two-step generalized method of moment estimator and further test the robustness of results using the Driscol-Kraay estimator, which is crucial for addressing cross-sectional and temporal dependence. The findings showed that financial inclusion and quality of governance exhibited a positive and significant impact on CO2 emissions. Further analysis shows that the impact of financial inclusion and governance on CO2 emissions varies across countries at different stages of economic development. We also documented significant variations in the results across six geographical regions. The evidence from moderation and marginal effect analysis revealed that the marginal effect of financial inclusion on CO2 emissions is contingent on governance quality and that improving governance quality (scores) conditions financial inclusion to minimize CO2 emissions across the globe. We, therefore, demonstrate that in countries with relatively higher (better) governance scores, such as the United Kingdom, Denmark, Singapore, and New Zealand, financial inclusion significantly mitigates CO2 emissions compared to countries with relatively lower (weak) governance scores, such as Iraq, Zimbabwe, Ghana, and Chad. Finally, mediation analysis also highlights that the effect of financial inclusion on CO2 emissions is mediated by renewable energy consumption, industrialization, and household consumption. The policy implications are discussed
Optimizing regional disparities in green building evaluation: A random walk-linear regression analysis in China
No full textChina's vast geographic expanse encompasses significant regional variations in climate, economic development, and resource endowment. These disparities complicate the effective utilization of regional climatic and resource conditions for energy-saving efforts in green building evaluations under generalized systems. This study aims to construct a green building evaluation system that accounts for regional differences across China. Through a combination of literature review and questionnaire surveys, 14 regional characteristic influencing factors and 36 green building evaluation points were identified. The relationships between the influencing factors and evaluation points were established using hesitant fuzzy set theory and the analytical hierarchy process. A weight modification model based on the Random Walk-Linear Regression algorithm was then developed to quantify the impact of regional differences and dynamically adjust the weights of the green building evaluation system. By applying this model to adjust the evaluation indicator weights for China's provincial-level administrative regions, the results revealed differences in weight adjustments across regions, reflecting their distinct climate, economic, and resource conditions. Furthermore, dynamically adjusting the green building evaluation system to account for specific regional characteristics enhances energy efficiency, reduces costs, and promotes sustainability in green building practices. This study underscores the importance of tailoring green building evaluation systems to regional attributes and provides a theoretical foundation for policymakers to refine assessment systems and foster regionally adapted, sustainable green building development.</p
Conceptualizing the state of the art of social license to operate: A visualization-based word frequency analysis
No full textSocial license to operate (SLO) has emerged as a key concept in understanding the relationships between communities, businesses, and governments, particularly in industries with significant social and environmental impacts. This study conducts a systematic literature review to examine the status quo, trends, and gaps in research into SLO. A systematic process involving a two-phase word frequency analysis and search of research topics helps to identify core research clusters and reduced subjectivity in hotspot detection. The analysis revealed four major thematic areas: SLO measures, Factors affecting SLO, access mechanisms to SLO, and Spatio-temporal dynamic evolution. Findings highlight clear disparities in SLO knowledge production between the Global North and the Global South, with SLO-related research concentrated in developed Western countries represented by Australia, Canada, Netherlands, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Based on the above discussion, this study proposes four directions for future research, and these insights offer a roadmap for advancing the theoretical and practical understanding of SLO across diverse contexts.</p
Examining the relationship among supply, service, and attractiveness of urban public transport under the “dual carbon” objective
No full textUnder the “Dual Carbon” goal, China has implemented the Transit Metropolis policy to foster sustainable urban transport. This study explores the coupling and coordination among public transport supply, service, and attractiveness in pilot cities, using an evaluation index system adapted to four city types. The coupling degree is used to analyze the extent of interaction among the three subsystems of urban public transport, while the coupling coordination degree further evaluates the level of coordinated development among these subsystems based on the coupling degree. This study proposes a novel methodological framework that integrates the entropy weight method with the coupling coordination degree (CCD) model to evaluate the coordination level among the three subsystems. This approach offers actionable insights for enhancing urban public transportation systems. The findings show that the comprehensive evaluation of the three public transport subsystems improved from the initial to the acceptance stage of the Transit Metropolis policy. The coupling degree reached a high level, and the coupling coordination degree (CCD) also advanced. Megacities achieved extreme coupling coordination, while the other three city types reached a high level, approaching the extreme coordination. Based on these findings, policy recommendations are proposed to address disparities in the coupling and coordination among the four city types. These recommendations aim to guide relevant government departments in encouraging the sustainable development of urban transportation, contributing to balanced and sustainable growth across diverse urban environments.</p
Exploring the effect of procedural fairness on the social license to operate of resource development projects: A meta-analysis
No full textResearch indicates that fairness in procedures plays a crucial role in how positively communities view resource development projects. This study conducts a meta-analysis, which involves analyzing existing research findings on this topic, to investigate the impact of procedural fairness on community acceptance of such projects, known as the Social License to Operate (SLO). The analysis pools data from 10 separate studies published between 2008 and 2022. The results reveal two main points: firstly, ensuring fairness in procedures significantly enhances community acceptance of resource development projects; secondly, the level of economic development in a country influences how procedural fairness affects SLO, with differences observed between developed and developing countries. However, the type of industry, whether mining or non-mining, does not significantly alter this effect. These findings contribute significantly to our understanding of how procedural fairness relates to SLO and offer guidance to resource development companies. By prioritizing fairness in procedures, these companies can potentially improve their chances of gaining community acceptance for their projects.</p