1,721,046 research outputs found
Fair Trade and Universities: The Case of Certified Fairtrade Universities in the UK (Extended Abstract)
No full textThe fair trade is a social movement that promotes a fair and sustainable development of the global economy as a possible option within the traditional trade system (Fisher, 2009). In addition, the fair trade encourages a sustainable trade system by aligning targets and objectives with the Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (UN - SDGs, 2015), with particular reference to full and decent employment, inclusive and sustainable economic growth (Goal 8), and responsible consumption and production patterns (Goal 12). The fair trade operates as a system, with local national organizations, or FTOs (Fair Trade Organizations) acting as a bridge between producers from emerging countries and profit companies from developed countries (Moore, 2004). These “intermediate organizations” (Simeoni et al., 2020) basically sell to their own country the products they purchase through a fair value chain from the international context. There exist three major intermediate organizations operating at the worldwide level (WFTO, 2017): the US organization, the German organization and the Italian organization (Altromercato Impresa Sociale Soc. Coop). In the remaining countries, and in the UK in particular, several organizations with less impact at the single level operate in a more widespread and pervasive way (Anderson, 2015). Irrespectively of the organizational form, from the more centralized to the more fragmented ones, the aim of fair-trade organizations is double: on the one hand, they support producers from the Global South through economic empowerment, while, on the other hand, they raise public awareness and engagement about fair and sustainable production and consumption patterns in developed countries. The fair-trade system is widely acknowledged for its fundamental impact in the creation of a better society and for its full contribution to the concept of sustainable development. Universities and higher education institutions are also acknowledged for their important role in the creation of a more sustainable society (Sallaku et al., 2019). As it has been highlighted by previous literature, universities can significantly influence wider society (Kaplowitz et al., 2009), they carry the moral responsibility to solve public challenges and to contribute to sustainability (Cortese, 1992), and, as proper part of their mission, they are in charge of fostering education in sustainable consumption patterns in order to educate people for a better future (Barth and Rieckmann, 2012; Meyer, 2016). Taking into account the important contribution of both universities and the fair-trade system to the creation of a more sustainable society, it is reasonable to argue that synergic results and increased impacts could be achieved if these institutions cooperate and work together in the creation of public value. In the UK, Fairtrade Foundation is the main promoter of the fair-trade system. Fairtrade Foundation belongs to the wider Fairtrade International, that was founded in the ‘90s, as a non-profit, multi-stakeholder association with numerous partners all over the world (three regional producer networks and over 25 national Fairtrade organizations and marketing organizations). In countries where no major FTO exist, not as in the case of US, Germany or Italy, Fairtrade International national organizations are the proper reference point for fair trade. Hence, Fairtrade Foundation has undoubtedly the largest impact on the UK fair-trade system. Fairtrade Foundation has adopted an interesting social relevant strategy aimed at increasing stakeholder and public engagement, with particular reference to higher education institutions. The Foundation, in fact, has developed a specific program providing the opportunity to become a Certified Fairtrade University, i.e. a University or College that has made a commitment to supporting and using as many Fairtrade products as possible and to raising awareness of Fairtrade with students and staff about the benefits that it brings to workers and farmers in developing countries. Certified Fairtrade Universities are also allowed to use the Fairtrade logo, and being part of this fair-trade network, they can also benefit from opportunities for knowledge transfer and best practices sharing. Previous literature has dealt with several relations or cooperations involving the fair-trade movement: relations with producers from the Global South, relations among producers themselves, relations with consumers in developed countries, relations of fair-trade organizations as intermediate organizations between southern producers and companies from developed countries (e.g. Nicholls and Opal, 2004; Stiglitz and Charlton, 2005; Raynolds et al., 2007; Bezencon and Blili, 2009; Simeoni et al., 2020 ). However, very few studies have investigated the relation of fair trade with the school system, and even less with universities and higher education institutions, despite the relevance of this kind of cooperation for the creation of public value for the overall society. Therefore, the aim of the current research is to properly investigate the case of the Certified Fairtrade Universities, and in particular: to explore how the cooperation between Fairtrade Foundation and the Certified Universities works; to collect examples of good practices implemented by the Certified Universities; and to compare this successful cooperation model with the current Italian model, with specific reference to the engagement within the fair-trade system displayed by the University of Verona, in order to understand which positive aspects of the UK cooperation model could be possibly integrated within the Italian model. The University of Verona, in fact, is also cooperating with the fair-trade system even if not with the Italian branch of Fairtrade International, but with Altromercato Impresa Sociale Soc. Coop., which is the leading FTO at the Italian level. Both the goals and the functioning of this cooperation differ from the UK model, the cooperation mainly rests at a scientific level and no proper Certification system for universities exists in Italy. However, it is reasonable to believe that some good practices from Certified Fairtrade Universities could usefully be replicated also in the Italian context, in order to make the cooperation between Altromercato and the University of Verona even more valuable. Good practices and positive externalities, moreover, are obviously not limited to the case of Verona, but could also be further enlarged to other Italian universities, making the cooperation more valuable both for stakeholders and the overall society
Walking Tourism: Opportunities and Threats for Sustainable Development. The Case of the Va’ Sentiero Project
No full textPurpose of the paper: Slow travel and tourism is a sustainable type of tourism from a social, economic and environmental point of view. The purpose of this research is to determine if and, particularly, how walking tourism can become an ‘instrument’ to share interests and protect the cultural, historical and natural heritage of a region. This research also seeks to investigate the ways in which funds for the development of walking tourism can be collected by exploiting mechanisms of citizen engagement. Methodology: Considering that the research topic has been under-investigated until now, we selected a case-study approach for this initial foray. However, this study represents the first step of a major research effort that follows the action research method to gain in-depth knowledge of this issue. Main findings: This study reveals the principal features of a project for the development of walking tourism and the principal opportunities and threats for all public and private stakeholders. Practical implications: Understanding the principal features of such a project is an important topic for the tourism sector, public bodies, crowdfunding platforms, not-for-profit organisations and citizens. Originality/value: To our knowledge, this is the first study to create a link between the development of walking tourism and instruments for funding it. Type of paper: Research pape
Citizens’ engagement in funding renewable and energy efficiency projects: a fuzzy set analysis
No full textThe achievement of climate change targets needs an expansion of renewable energies and the restructuring of the whole energy system. Investments in renewable and energy efficiency projects require huge amounts of funds. A model based on the direct participation of energy users in energy production and in the fundraising process is a sustainable way in which these climate change targets can be attained and guaranteed. The cooperative model and the crowdfunding model are two ways of engaging citizens/endusers in fostering this energy transition and supplying the missing funds needed for this transition. The study focuses on the role played by citizens in the funding of renewable and energy efficiency projects, by wondering which factors can influence a more effective participation of citizens in the fundraising process. By analysing the ‘Citizenergy’ platform, the first European platform that provides information on sustainable energy projects, the study employs a fuzzy set analysis to identify different combinations of factors that can lead to citizens’ positive engagement in fundraising for renewable and energy efficiency projects seeking funds. The research suggests the relevance of a combined use of cooperative and crowdfunding models to foster the transition to renewable energy and achieve the ambitious climate change goals. Results also highlight the critical role played by social networks in projects promotion and by the use of the English language in projects description. On the other hand, findings show that investment size does not condition the level of citizen engagement in sustainable energy projects fundraising process
Evoluzioni nelle condotte delle imprese per il presidio dei mercati internazionali: competenze, ruoli, gestione della conoscenza
No full textObiettivi. Prendendo avvio dal lavoro “Tecnica economica industriale e commerciale” di Panati e Golinelli del 1991, questo studio si propone di fare emergere le recenti e più significative evoluzioni nei processi decisionali delle imprese, in particolare in quelle di piccola e media dimensione, per il presidio dei mercati internazionali. Metodologia. Il lavoro si configura come un contributo concettuale con l’intento di sviluppare alcune riflessioni a partire dalla letteratura scientifica e dai dati secondari disponibili sul tema, integrati anche dagli studi e dalle interazioni dirette degli autori con imprenditori e manager. Risultati. Il lavoro presenta tre gruppi di evoluzioni emergenti nei processi decisionali della funzione ‘commerciale estero’ o ‘export’ dell’impresa: i cambiamenti nelle competenze necessarie e nelle modalità di accesso ad esse; le persone e i ruoli, con un focus sull’export manager e sul temporary export manager; la gestione della conoscenza, includendo i nuovi strumenti disponibili per analizzare i dati e trasformarli in conoscenza. Limiti della ricerca. Considerata l’elevata varietà dei contesti e delle imprese, le riflessioni proposte nel paper non sono necessariamente estendibili a tutte le imprese impegnate nello sviluppo commerciale nei mercati internazionali. Implicazioni pratiche. Il lavoro fa emergere come i margini di miglioramento nei processi decisionali per lo sviluppo internazionale delle piccole e medie imprese siano significativi e indica alcuni elementi concreti sui quali agire a tale scopo. Originalità del lavoro. Il lavoro presenta un quadro delle novità recenti nei processi decisionali delle imprese impegnate nello sviluppo commerciale nei mercati internazionali
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
The economic impact of cultural events. A focus on professionals’ perceptions
No full textPurpose of the paper: The purpose of this research is to explore the economic impact of a cultural event, Tocatì – International Festival of Street Games, that takes place each year in Verona (Italy). In particular, the perceptions of professionals operating in the hospitality and food service businesses about the economic impacts of the Festival are investigated. Methodology: The qualitative research is conducted through in-depth interviews with 14 professionals addressing the economic impacts of the Festival for their business and the city. The sample includes 7 hospitality businesses and 7 food service businesses. Main findings: Interviewees display an overall positive perception regarding the economic impacts of the Festival, both for their business and the city. A major difference however emerges between hospitality and food service businesses, since the large majority attending the Festival consists of residents or day-trippers, that do not stay in Verona overnight. Practical implications: Festival organizers should promote the participation to the Festival for more days, encouraging people to remain in Verona overnight. Professionals’ awareness about the Festival should also be improved. Originality/value: Differently from other impact studies, this research is based on the perceptions of professionals working in hospitality or food services businesses during the Festival, a topic that has generally been neglected by previous research. Type of paper: Research pape
Valutazione del rischio e vulnerabilità degli acquiferi - protezione dell'acquifero delle Sorgenti del Peschiera
No full textRethinking occupational welfare policies in long-term care organisations during the COVID-19 pandemic: an organisational ethics approach
No full textNon-profit organisations, in particular long-term care organisations, have faced several challenges arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Long-term care organisations have had to meet these challenges by relying on their core ethical values and human capital. This paper examines the occupational welfare policies adopted by a long-term care organisation during the pandemic and the individual, managerial, organisational and societal effects of these policies from an organisational ethics perspective. The study explores the case of a non-profit organisation – Fondazione Monsignor Alessandro Marangoni – that adopted occupational welfare policies, enabling it to manage the early COVID-19 outbreak without negative consequences. The findings show that organisational ethics are embedded into occupational welfare policies and demonstrate their role for the welfare society in times of crisis
The economic impact of cultural events: a focus on residents’ expenditures
No full textExtended Abstract on the economic impact of cultural events: a focus on residents’ expenditures. The purpose of this paper is to estimate the direct economic impact of a cultural event - namely the Tocatì, International Festival of Street Games held in Verona - by specifically considering expenditures by residents that are committed to the event
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