1,720,986 research outputs found
What drives the solar energy transition? The effect of policies, incentives and behavior in a cross-country comparison
No full textThe development of photovoltaic (PV) systems in Southern Europe has been boosted by favourable sunshine levels but also by the policies implemented. Europe's ambitious plans for a green transition require new power to be installed but also new consumption habits that tend to be more responsible. The transformation of cities goes through the emergence of prosumers and the percentage of self-consumption is the variable that determines the profitability of PV systems. This work is based on an online energy survey conducted in two southern European countries (i.e. Italy and Spain), in which both expectations and behaviour of consumers with regards to solar energy are compared between countries. Among other things, interviewees were asked to quantify the introduction of a subsidy for self-consumption. Interestingly, results show an average of 4 cent€/kWh and 3 cent€/kWh for Italy and Spain, respectively. Additionally, the survey allowed eliciting the price subjects believe one ought to pay for both fossil fuel-based and renewable energy, resulting in a green premium of 10 cent€/kWh and 8 cent€/kWh for Italy and Spain, respectively. Finally, the crucial role played by policies in shaping consumers’ perceptions emerged as decisive in fostering the development of PV systems in European countries
Nonlinear banking duopoly model with capital regulation: The case of Italy
Full text linkWe analyse a nonlinear banking duopoly model with capital regulation and asymmetric costs. We follow the literature on banking and capital regulation focusing on Italian banks. We extend the banking duopoly model with nonlinear costs of Brianzoni and Campisi (2021), by introducing the hyperbolic inverse demand function, following Puu (1991). In this way, we include a further nonlinear component in the model consisting of nonlinear demand of loans. We proceed in two parts. First, we concentrate on the analysis of the local stability of the model.
Given the high number of parameters, we support the analytical study with several numerical simulations. In the second part, we focus on the conditions under which small banks are more efficient than large banks. For this purpose, we study the dynamics of loans when different parameters vary simultaneously. Our results confirm the empirical evidence that small banks play a central role in supporting local firms and families more than
large banks
Survey data to assess consumers’ attitudes towards circular economy and bioeconomy practices: A focus on the fashion industry
Full text linkThis data article presents data collected through a survey with the aim of understanding consumers’ behavior in the fashion industry. The analyses of these data are elaborated in the article “The circular economy and bioeconomy in the fashion sector: Emergence of a “sustainability bias”” (Colasante and Adamo 2021). As highlighted in the literature, the fashion industry contributes significantly to environmental pollution in all steps, from the production to the delivery. Often, consumers are not aware of the impact of their fashion habits on the environment and this led to the emergence of the well-known fast fashion phenomenon. Even though there is a lack of evidence on this topic, shifting consumers to embrace bioeconomy as well as circular economy principles constitutes a possible solution to reduce the impact of the fashion sector on the environment. We collected these data on consumers’ habits and preferences regarding both bioeconomy and circular economy by means of a questionnaire in which a total of 402 Italian people took part by using Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) platform. This paper aims at presenting the data split in the three main blocks: (i) consumer perception; (ii) purchasing habits; and (iii) consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP). The results obtained are of interest to citizens, business, academics and policy makers to understand consumers’ perception of sustainability in the fashion industry. The proposed dataset can be replicated on a global scale, on specific market segments of the fashion industry and can be used to compare the perception of the circular bioeconomy in other sectors
Interacting locally, acting globally: trust and proximity in social networks for the development of energy communities
No full textIn this article, we analyze the role of social capital in the formation of sustainable energy communities. Specifically, we study the impact of different dimensions of social capital (i.e., structural, relational, cognitive) in determining willingness to participate in an energy community. Our survey data suggest that social contexts contribute to the development of energy communities, via (at least) two channels: (i) a family path, with individual perspectives showing a partial correlation with those of at least one relative, and (ii) a social channel, with higher social trust and greater interaction with neighbors favoring the propensity to participate in an energy community. The social coordination required for the formation of sustainable energy communities is determined by the quality of social interactions, and the spread of virtuous behavior is determined by not only economic policies (i.e., incentives), but also forward-looking policies favoring local aggregation and the creation of high-quality social capital. Thus, local actions and interactions can contribute to solving global climate change challenges
An exploratory study of stakeholder views on the sustainable development of mountain tourism
Full text linkSustainable tourism can combine recreation for people, economic opportunities for entrepreneurs, and environmental protection, but for mountain tourism, climate change and the predicted reductions in snowfall require urgent action. Therefore, this study aims to identify sustainable mountain tourism strategies and consumption patterns using a multi-criteria decision methodology and data collected through an online survey and expert opinions. The results show the importance of stakeholder engagement and the relevance of three strategies: (i) zero-emission lodges; (ii) energy communities, and (iii) zero-emission ski lifts. As well as pointing out the need for sustainability awareness and education. While respondents pay a great deal of attention to sustainability, the analysis highlights three policy interventions to safeguard mountain tourism: (i) financing the conversion of facilities; (ii) expanding infrastructure to reach mountain resorts, and (iii) rewarding consumers for choosing a certified zero-emission resort
Self-love, growth, and competition in a public good game
No full textCompetition and cooperation are not always at odds and contributions to public goods are almost never one-off one-shot temporally isolated events. We examine voluntary contribution in a new public good experiment where "self-love" competitive motivations and time dynamic interdependencies are simultaneously considered. The competitive motivations are manipulated via subjects competing in each group (intragroup competition) for higher return factors on their public expenditure, whereas time dynamic interdependencies are modeled by letting returns from previous periods available for future contributions to public goods (CG). We ran two control conditions where intragroup competition (C) and time dynamic interdependencies (G) are separately implemented. Our findings showed that shares of endowment contributed were significantly greater and increasing over time when endowments growth and heterogeneous returns factors were simultaneously introduced. This effect can be attributed to return factors obtained in previous periods. Accordingly, wealth exponential growth has been greatly accelerated relative to our control condition. Distributive equity concerns have been also documented. Although Gini coefficients were significantly lower in the presence of heterogeneous return factors and endowments growth, inequality trends seemed to converge at control condition values in the long term
A strategic analysis of renewable energy communities in achieving sustainable development
No full textThis study aims to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats associated with renewable energy communities (RECs) in Italy. The results, obtained through an incentivised online survey and an analytic hierarchy process, showed that economic saving on energy costs is the most relevant criterion for both consumers and expert stakeholders. Also, technical barriers and energy independence emerged as relevant in developing RECs. Consumers are more sensitive to the social opportunities behind RECs, while experts focus only on the economic aspects. The economic benefits, pragmatism, and effective management of human and physical resources within RECs can help achieve sustainable development
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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