Organizational culture and human resources in the environmental issue: a review of the literature

From the resourced-based view, the weakness of organizations' business culture and their shortcomings in human resources may be important obstacles in the process of environmental action. However, as the number of works on these questions is still limited, our aim is to integrate the classical literature concerning business culture and human resources and the small number of works concerning these aspects of environmental management. Several issues, such as managerial duties, the role of organizational culture in the formation of environmental internal stakeholders' awareness, organizational involvement in environmental issues, environmental training and concern, environmental motivation and incentives and implementation and organizational innovations, may be very important for thesuccess of companies' environmental strategy. However, it seems necessary to carry out studies in which qualitative and quantitative methodologies are applied.     

Littering in protected areas: a conservation and management challenge – a case study from the Autonomous Region of Madrid,Spain

This paper examines issues surrounding littering in protected areas (PAs), one of the most ubiquitous and conspicuous impacts of tourism activity. In addition to obvious visual, landscape-affecting impacts, litter may have hazardous consequences for biodiversity and humans. In order to precisely assess littering in a densely populated region with high levels of visitation to natural and protected areas, we counted, measured and classified all types of non-organic litter covering an area of 1 cm² or more found on the ground in zones intensively used by visitors (picnic areas and paths) within the 10 PAs of the Autonomous Region of Madrid. On average, 11.65 m²/ha of litter were recorded in those zones. Strict visitor management measures greatly reduced that figure. Over 75% of all litter was paper and cardboard, and plastic; 88% of litter coverage was by large pieces over 25 cm² in size. We tested the hypothesis that the amount of waste found on paths is correlated with the distance to the entrance to a PA, but no general model fitted actual litter distribution patterns, although empirical results backed the hypothesis for most cases. A range of waste management strategies are explored and litter management measures suggested for problematic PAs.     

From objective to constituted risk: an alternative approach to safety in strategic technological innovation in the European Union

Safety is a legitimate means of limiting technological innovation in our societies. However, the potential socio-economic impact of curtailing techno-industrial progress on the grounds of safety means that risk governance policies tend to restrict the range of legitimate approaches to safety on the principle that it can only be discussed in the frame of an allegedly objective scientific representation of risk. In European risk governance, socio-economic factors such as the underlying innovation rationales and goals are not openly considered to be related to the constitution of safety, but tend largely to be treated as factors of subjective reaction towards risk and technology. This paper seeks to overcome that approach by proposing a ‘constitutive’ understanding of how risk and socio-economic factors and dynamics relate, focusing in particular on the ‘safe and responsible’ development of nanotechnology in the European Union (EU). I argue that risk is constituted according to socio-economic considerations, and that the controllability of the environmental and health risks of nanotechnology in the EU is assumed on principle in the very strong institutional commitment to the industrial exploitation of nanotechnology R&D. Using a constitutive approach, we may legitimately conceive a broader set of potential safety scenarios, while at the same time highlighting major obstacles to implementing more critical constitutions of techno-industrial risk in the framework of a highly competitive knowledge-based global economy.     

Motivations of educational tourists in non-English-speaking countries: the role of languages

ABSTRACT

Learning a language or improving one’s foreign language skills may be a key motivator for students to decide to participate in an exchange program as well as choose the destination for their studies. Nevertheless, studies on educational tourism are limited, and there is no research on the motivations of students visiting non-English-speaking countries. To fill this gap, this paper aims to examine the motivations of university students in non-English-speaking destinations by using the push-and-pull framework. Primary data were collected through an online survey from 190 and 205 students who participated in mobility programs in a Spanish university and in a German university respectively. Empirical findings reveal that languages are a key motivating factor for either growing personally through cultural enrichment, or growing professionally. Furthermore, these data allow generic recommendations so that the destinations can attract a larger number of international students.     

Is there adaptation to predictable climate change along the temperature-conflict nexus? Evidence from the El Niño Southern Oscillation

A growing body of research connects short-run deviations in weather with violence. Less well understood is the scope for agents to adapt to medium and longer-run climate fluctuations. We follow existing research and use the existing climactic forces of the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) to analyse climate change – exploiting the fact that in 1989 published forecasts of these fluctuations became available. In a generalized differences framework, we contrast the impact of ENSO in affected areas of the globe relative to unaffected areas before and after 1989, finding no robust evidence that adaptation efforts are successfully mitigating conflict or civil unrest occurring as a result of these fluctuations.     

Time spent on erythropoietin stimulating agents administration in hemodialysis centers in Panama: a time and motion study

Objectives: There is a lack of data in Panama on the potential differences in total healthcare professional (HCP) time between routine administrations of short-acting erythropoietin simulating agents (ESAs) (i.e. epoetin alfa) and continuous erythropoietin receptor activator (CERA) (i.e. methoxy polyethylene glycol–epoetin beta). This study aimed to quantify the HCP time associated with a single administration of epoetin alfa and CERA for the treatment of anemic patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) on hemodialysis.

Methods: This was a multi-center, cross-sectional study, using a time-and-motion methodology. Costs related to HCP time and consumables usage associated with administration of epoetin alfa and CERA were estimated.

Results: Based on 60 administrations of either CERA or epoetin alfa, the estimated savings in mean total active HCP time were 2.34 (95% confidence interval?=?1.87–2.81) min (–30%) per administration. When extrapolating to a full year’s treatment with intravenous ESA, it would require a total of 20.3 (95% CI?=?19.90–20.71) h of HCP time for epoetin alfa vs 1.1 (95% CI?=?1.01–1.19) h for CERA per patient per year. Estimated savings in active HCP time per patient per year were 19.20 (95% CI?=?19.20–19.21) h (–95%). This, in turn, translates into staff cost efficiency that favors Mircera with an estimated annual saving of $78.24 (95% CI?=?78.24–78.28) (–95%) per patient.

Conclusions: Data from a real-world setting showed that the adoption of CERA could potentially lead to a reduction in active HCP time.

• Highlights

• Few comparative data have explored the costs and potential savings of using long-acting erythropoietin–stimulating agents (ESA) instead of short-acting ESAs to treat anemia in CKD patients on hemodialysis.

• This time-and-motion study shows that use of CERA reduces total healthcare professional time and could represent a save for an institution in a real-world setting in Panama.

     

Determinants of margin in microfinance institutions

Microfinance institutions (MFIs) lend to the poor. However, microfinance clients suffer from high interest rates, a type of poverty penalty. This article analyses the margin determinants in MFIs. A banking model has been adapted to microfinance. This model has been tested using 9-year panel data. Some factors explaining bank margin also explain MFI margin, with operating costs being the most important factor. Specific microfinance factors are donations and legal status, as regulated MFIs can collect deposits. It has also been found that MFIs operating in countries with a high level of financial inclusion have low margins.     

Protest Responses and Willingness to Accept: Ecosystem Services Providers’ Preferences towards Incentive‐Based Schemes

The identification and treatment of protest responses in stated preference surveys has long been subject to debate. We analyse protest responses while investigating ecosystem services providers’ preferences for incentive‐based schemes. We use a choice experiment for olive farmers’ preferences for agri‐environmental scheme participation in southern Spain. Our two main objectives are: first, to identify and discuss a range of possible motives for protest responses that emerge in a WTA context; second, we analyse the impact on WTA estimates of censoring serial non‐participation linked to protest or high compensation requirements (very high takers). Using a random parameter logit model in WTA space, we find that the inclusion or exclusion of serial non‐participants in the analysis can have a significant impact on marginal and total WTA estimates. Based on the findings, the paper makes recommendations on how to reduce the incidence of protest responses through survey design, regarding the identification of protesters as opposed to very high takers, and regarding the treatment of both groups of respondents for WTA estimation.     

Routing design for less-than-truckload motor carriers using Ant Colony Optimization

One of the most important challenges that confronts less-than-truckload carriers serving many-to-many distribution networks consists of determining how to consolidate flows of small shipments. The objective is to determine a route for each origin–destination pair that minimizes the cost while still guaranteeing a certain level of service. This research studies different aspects of the problem and provides a metaheuristic algorithm (based on Ant Colony Optimization techniques) capable of solving real-life problems in a reasonable computational time. The viability of the approach has been tested with a real case in Spain and encouraging results have been obtained.