International Journal of Innovation and Sustainable Development (66 papers in press)

Regular Issues

• Problems and solutions: the sustainable development goals in the age of green economy  
  by João M. Lopes, José Castro Oliveira 
  Abstract: This paper aims to understand the green economys role in sustainable business strategies. Interviews were conducted with managers in Portuguese companies, which take sustainable development goals into account in their business strategies. The results suggest that sustainable development and business strategies are not always adopted integrally top-down within a company. It was also noted that political changes and decisions imposed by the government positively affect the sustainable business strategies of companies in the renewable energy sector but not in the construction sector. Thus, policymakers should strengthen general awareness of this matter by reinforcing existing knowledge of or introducing the topic of the problems and solutions inherent in the concept of a green economy in compulsory education. Companies could form R&D partnerships with higher education institutions to innovate in their sector of activity. Companies could further explore the concept of industrial symbiosis, developing new products and exploring new markets.
  Keywords: green economy; sustainable development goals; green business; sustainable business strategies; competitive advantage.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10053285
   
  
• Organizational leadership for sustainability: employees perception on talent retention  
  by Priscila Cerutti, João Sarate, Janaina Macke 
  Abstract: This paper aimed to evaluate the factors of sustainable leadership and the relation of these factors with the intention to remain the job. The research analysed 324 interviews with employees from southern Brazil through quantitative techniques, such as linear regression, factorial analysis, and variance analysis. The study revealed that the economic dimension explains 27.60% of the leadership for sustainability, while social and environmental dimensions explain 25.54% and 20.27 %, respectively. Notwithstanding the importance given to the environmental dimension of leadership for sustainability (M= 3.647; SD=0.896), only social and economic dimensions were significantly related to the intention to remain in the organization (adjusted R2 = 0.327). From a leadership for sustainability viewpoint, the research concludes that: (i) human resource policies should be proposed from the leadership for sustainability perspective; (ii) sustainability-focused company programs and actions should be better communicated to employees; and (iii) organizations should invest more in sustainability programs and efforts for the internal public, as a strategy to talent retention. Finally, the study provides relevant evidence for social researchers and human resource managers by distinguishing factors that influence talent retention and recommending elements for a sustainable human resource management debate.
  Keywords: leadership for sustainability; sustainable leadership; triple bottom line; talent retention; developing countries.
  
  
• Integrating knowledge for environmental innovations in research centres: the key role of industry-based boundary spanners  
  by Thomas Lauvås, Marianne Steinmo 
  Abstract: Although the specialised knowledge of universities is considered a significant contribution to firms environmental innovations, gaps remain regarding how firms integrate this knowledge. A rising literature stream on boundary spanning and knowledge integration seeks to investigate how firms achieve such integration; however, in-depth studies at the individual level are lacking. To develop this understanding, we conducted a longitudinal study of industry-based boundary spanners and their knowledge integration activities in research centres. We identified a set of underpinning knowledge transferring, translating, and transforming activities that are performed internally in firms and externally towards research centres to create environmental innovations. We also revealed a pattern in how boundary spanners attend to these activities in the establishment, performance, and end stages of research centres, thus providing guidance for theory and practice on how to develop environmental innovations in research centres.
  Keywords: inter-organisational collaboration; open innovation; university-industry collaboration; research centre; environmental innovation; boundary spanning; boundary spanner; knowledge management; knowledge integration; knowledge transferring; knowledge translating; knowledge transforming; Norway.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10051884
   
  
• Environmental Concerns and Financial Performance: Evidence from the EU Regulatory Framework  
  by Ricardo Correia, Carmen Mendoza, NURIA SUAREZ 
  Abstract: We analyze the impact of carbon and greenhouse gas emissions on firms accounting and market performance. Over a sample of 115 non-financial firms from 9 European countries during the 2008-2016 period, our results suggest that higher volume of both country-level carbon and greenhouse emissions have, on average, a positive and statistically significant impact on firms accounting performance. However, although negative, no statistical effect is found in terms of stock market performance. The results are more relevant in the case of firms with higher levels of equity and higher levels of intangible assets. We document the existence of an inverse U-shaped relationship between country-level greenhouse emissions and firms performance suggesting that, after a certain point, greenhouse gas emissions negatively affect firms sales. Our results are robust to different estimation technics and control variables, to the consideration of the financial crisis period, and to the inclusion of financial firms in the sample. rn
  Keywords: Carbon emissions; Greenhouse gas emissions; Accounting performance; Market performance; EU.
  
  
• Drivers of sustainable consumption: gender moderating effect  
  by Laura Grau-Berlanga, Elena Higueras-Castillo, Aijaz A. Shaikh, Francisco Liébana-Cabanillas 
  Abstract: Sustainable consumption reduces environmental problems. This paper aims to examine the intention to purchase sustainable products and how gender moderates the intention. For this purpose, stimulus-organism-response model was chosen at the level of predicting sustainable behaviour. Data were collected using the online survey from the current or potential users of sustainable goods and services. Major results revealed that perceived behavioural effectiveness and ecological awareness are significant factors driving sustainable purchasing. This research makes explicit contribution to the industry and suggested the importance of adopting a promotional focus on spreading the benefits of sustainable consumption and reducing the environmental problems that plague the planet. In addition, women show a greater predisposition towards sustainable consumption which suggests important practical implications.
  Keywords: sustainable consumption; environmental products; SOR model; gender moderating effect; perceived behavioural effectiveness; ecological awareness; promotional focus.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10049169
   
  
• Environmental factors in the manufacturing process and its role in the sustainable product life cycle: a thematic analysis of Indian manufacturing sustainability reports  
  by Savita Sodhi 
  Abstract: Manufacturing industries are beginning to realise the negative impact of ignoring environmental factors during the manufacturing process. Every product has a life cycle which starts from extraction and utilisation of raw material, production and uses to final disposal of a product. Incorporating environmental factors during the manufacturing (production, assembly and testing) stage of the product life cycle leads to sustainable manufacturing. It leads to the improvement and development of a sustainable product life cycle approach. The study's main aim is to identify and explore the significant environmental factors with the impact to improve sustainable product life during product manufacturing. The conducted research helps manufacturing managers to understand various issues related to environmental aspects of the product and how they can be used gainfully to improve the sustainable product life cycle for other products (B2B). This further helps the company to benchmark itself with other companies in its public domain.
  Keywords: TBL; triple bottom line; sustainability; manufacturing; sustainability factors; product life cycle; sustainable product life cycle.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10049677
   
  
• Whether the role of technological innovation and intellectual property rights on sustainable development different in developing and developed countries? A panel data analysis  
  by Sunil Kumar Ambrammal 
  Abstract: The study explores the relationship between innovation indicators and Intellectual Property Rights on sustainable development (SD) in 129 countries. Based on Porters hypothesis, the study argues that properly framed IPR laws can induce innovations that may promote a nations sustainable development. The hypothesis ascertains that stringent regulation may not hamper the innovative process but instead promote it by producing more efficient and less- pollutant products and processes. The study constructs three indexes of SD; genuine saving, ecological footprint, and pollution-sensitive Human Development Index. For innovation, the study proxies with the patent application, trademark application, and research and development expenditure (R&D). The intellectual property rights index measures the strength of IPR in a country. The individual estimation among the countries lower-middle-income, upper-middle-income, and high-income categories establishes the significant role of R&D on SD irrespective of index and countrys classification. The results, however, produce mixed evidence of the impact of other innovation variables on SD. The U-shaped relationship between IPR and SD indicates the immediate negative and long-run positive impact of IPR on SD.
  Keywords: sustainable development; technological innovation; intellectual property rights; research and development; patents and trademarks.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10050021
   
  
• Evaluation of blockchain technology in the three dimensions of sustainability and sustainable development goals: a systematic literature review  
  by Giovana Catussi Paschoalotto, Paulo Sérgio De Arruda Ignácio, Muriel De Oliveira Gavira 
  Abstract: It is argued that technologies of the Industry 4.0 can impact on sustainable development. This paper aims to evaluate blockchain technologies in order to understand their impact on the dimensions of sustainability and drive in which marks of the sustainable development goals it has the capacity to contribute to its achievement. A systematic literature review was carried out and it was found that there is a predominance of applications on the economic and environmental dimensions in private sector, while social results are largely linked to public administration challenges. It was found that blockchain can support the achievement of sustainable development goals, with the exception of poverty, quality education, gender equality and partnerships for the goals, which were not found in the literature. Finally, there are some barriers to the implementation of blockchain as a support tool for sustainability such as low dissemination and high cost, energy consumption and processing time.
  Keywords: sustainability; environmental; economic; social; blockchain; sustainable development goals; systematic literature review.
  
  
• Institutional changes in science, technology and innovation policy towards SDGs: evidence from Michoacan  
  by José Alberto Solis-Navarrete, Saray Bucio-Mendoza, Cinthia Fabiola Ruiz-López, Laura Isabel Nava-Acevedo 
  Abstract: The territorialisation of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) defined by the United Nations in the 2030 Agenda requires a public policy enhance that contemplates endogenous territorial characteristics in all development areas, particularly needs support of knowledge to solve social problems. This challenge demands a science, technology and innovation policy (STIP) suited to the territorys characteristics. The state of Michoacan in Mexico has undergone several institutional changes to its STIP, reconfiguring its institutional infrastructure. We analyse the contribution of institutional changes to building an innovation system capable of facilitating the SDGs territorialisation in Michoacan. These changes have not responded to generating regional agendas that meet the challenges identified at territorial level. A STIP governance model is necessary to promote mechanisms for configuring an innovation system that fosters solutions considered by the SDGs. Our research highlights the importance of linking the institutional changes and the SDGs with a territorial perspective.
  Keywords: institutional change; science and technology; innovation policy; innovation systems; sustainable development goals; Michoacan; Mexico.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10051912
   
  
• Does the adoption of circular economy principles impact the value proposition and performance of companies? Effects on the origin and sector of activity of the companies  
  by Pedro Mendonça Silva, José Freitas Santos, Ana Flávia Torres 
  Abstract: The alarming environmental reality of the planet demands the adoption of practices related to the circular economy principles. In the business world, more studies are needed to investigate the application of circular economy principles to stimulate companies to invest in innovative practices that can open new opportunities to enhance their competitive advantage. This study shows that implementing the circular economy principles can enhance the value proposition of the company to its customers and, therefore, generate financial and operational benefits for companies. The study also reveals differences related to the origin of the companies (domestic vs. foreign) and the sector of activity (industry vs. services) in adopting the circular economy principles. This research adds to the body of knowledge about the introduction of circular economy principles to the performance of companies.
  Keywords: circular economy; value proposition; business performance; Portuguese and foreign companies; sustainability; manufacturing; services; structural equation modelling.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10053128
   
  
• Sustainability in the food sector: a bibliometric and network analysis of the literature  
  by Serena Filippelli 
  Abstract: The issue of sustainability in the food sector is gaining increasing interest Although this issue is of considerable interest to researchers and practitioners, to our knowledge there is not yet a literature review which illustrates the areas of greatest interest The aim of this paper is to explore the status of sustainability research in the food sector, identifying the most discussed research fronts The methodology adopted to carry out this literature review is network analysis through bibliometric tools, which are very effective in identifying current and new issues of interest Starting from a sample of 601 articles, through the use of bibliometric tools four major clusters of research are identified: food waste management, environmental impact, models for sustainable supply chain design and consumers' behavior towards food sustainability These results can help researchers and practitioners to understand trendestting topics, to detect potential research gaps and to outline future research avenues.
  Keywords: sustainability; food sector; bibliometric analysis; network analysis; food waste; food sustainability.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10053427
   
  
• Model of strategic development and sustainability of partnerships with construction suppliers: shared values and competitive advantages  
  by Radka Vaníčková 
  Abstract: The purpose of the paper was to establish new procedures for the selection of suppliers, which consisted in their evaluation. Proper evaluation of suppliers can be an important and prosperous step for many construction companies to gain long-term cooperation and trust. The aim of the paper was to point out the principle of sustainability in the construction sector and to create a model of sustainability for those companies. Proper application of the sustainability model in the corporate environment can bring new strategies and thus help create new added value for all parties involved in contractual partnerships. The methods that were chosen are the method of observation, data analysis and Scoring model and EFQM criterion etc. It was found that the construction process contributed to the emergence of links between the strategies of construction companies and individual operational activities. An important output for construction companies is a focus on strategic development and feasibility with construction suppliers.
  Keywords: construction industry sector; shared economy; business model; continuous improvement; sustainable partnerships.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10054044
   
  
• Desire for exploration beats price: empirical study on customer motives for using digital monetary food sharing platforms  
  by Fiorella Frank, Julia Winterstein, André Habisch 
  Abstract: Fourteen percent of the global food produced is wasted every, posing an environmental, ecological, and social problem. Digital monetary food sharing (MFS) platforms have been proposed to reduce food waste by a more efficient use of resources. Yet, literature did not inquire the motivation of consumers to use the platforms. Hence, this paper intends to fill the gap by contributing to the literature on a (food) sharing economy. This study is the first that empirically investigates motives to use MFS platforms in Germany. We apply an exploratory sequential mixed-method approach combining indepth interviews with a quantitative online survey, using structural equation modelling. Our results suggest that intrinsic motives have a stronger influence than extrinsic motives: the desire to explore new food was more strongly correlated to the behavioural intention to use the platforms than perceived economic benefit and sustainable motives. Concluding, the research deduces theoretical and managerial implications for different stakeholders.
  Keywords: food waste; food waste reduction; sustainability; sharing economy; food sharing; MFS; monetary food sharing; sharing platform; business model innovation; theory of planned behaviour; customer motives; mixed-method approach.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10055067
   
  
• Towards sustainable innovation - systematic literature review  
  by Mariusz Sołtysik, Szymon Jarosz, Karol Włodyka, Małgorzata Zakrzewska 
  Abstract: The great strength that organisations must consider when implementing innovation is their impact on the environment, social or economic consequences. Crises in climate, biodiversity, energy are critical to deal with on local as well as global scales. It must be stressed that organisations operate in an economy that relies on human resources, which is a key asset of companies that can provide a significant competitive advantage by creating innovations. Researches indicated a need for bridging the scientific gap in the research field of responsible and sustainable innovation. There are claims that a quantitative and systematic way of studying this problem is not found in the literature and draw attention to the fact that researchers should consider analysing sustainable innovation from a global perspective. This paper aims to conduct a bibliometric analysis of sustainable innovations topic and to capture trends in the description of this issue.
  Keywords: sustainable innovation; systematic literature review; innovation; sustainable development; bibliometric analysis; modern economy.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10055645
   
  
• The development of sustainable innovation capability in Brazilian industrial companies  
  by Felipe Cavalheiro Zaluski, Clarice Vepo Do Nascimento Welter, Jessica Casali Turcato, Clandia Maffini Gomes, Gilnei Luiz Moura, Roberto Schoproni Bichueti, Luana Inês Damke 
  Abstract: This study aimed to analyse the development of sustainable innovation capability in industrial companies in southern Brazil. The study was conducted by surveying 142 large- and medium-sized industrial companies and quantitative data analysis through structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). This study provides empirical evidence of the skills, processes, and routines of dynamic capabilities that can be explored and developed to improve the development of innovations that support the pillars of sustainability and leverage their sustainable innovation capability. In addition, this manuscript contributes to the theoretical framework around understanding how sustainable innovation can become a dynamic capability and favour an organisation to adapt, change, and innovate towards new sustainable paradigms.
  Keywords: capabilities; innovation; sustainability; innovation; industry.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10055829
   
  
• Social innovation in food production: an insertion analysis  
  by Joana Cardozo De Moura, Luiz Ney D'Escoffier, Marco Antonio Barbosa Braga 
  Abstract: The aggravation of socio-environmental problems, combined with the projection of high production and consumption patterns, instigates studies related to social innovation as an alternative to new sustainable development standards. More studies are required concerning the flow of social innovation in agriculture and food production worldwide. Therefore, this study presents the insertion of social innovation in food production through a bibliometric analysis of the Web of Science and Scopus databases. The papers were classified based on the approach top-down or bottom-up used for social innovation. Italy appears to be the country with the most significant amount of studies, and all bottom-up cases have developed new social reconfigurations, but not all have improved the quality of life of the local population. Supported by public policies, initiatives that do not reinforce patterns of exclusion have a good chance of being solutions that enable sustainable territorial development.
  Keywords: social innovation; food production; bibliometric analysis; agriculture.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056163
   
  
• A review of impact of COVID-19 on environment from lens of sustainable development goals  
  by Dadabada Pradeep Kumar 
  Abstract: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) impacted the Environment a lot. It is very much helpful to countries to study such impact in bringing things back to normal. This paper presents a novel 3R (Reasons-Responses-Recommendations) approach to study and review the impact of COVID-19 on the Environment from the lens of five related sustainable development goals (SDGs). Exploratory data analysis (EDA) is a facilitator to the 3R approach for uncovering findings from the data using statistical methods and visualisation.
  Keywords: COVID-19; environment; review; sustainable development; EDA; exploratory data analysis; SDG; sustainable development goal.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2021.10043427
   
  
• Evaluation of food technologies across supply chain actors: a systematic review of explanatory models  
  by Carolin Kamrath, Joshua Wesana, Hans De Steur, Xavier Gellynck, Stefanie Bröring 
  Abstract: Acceptance of novel technologies along the food supply chain is essential for technology-based innovations to be effective in tackling global challenges such as food security. In order to obtain insights and identify research gaps in the context of food technology evaluation research, this study conducts a systematic review of empirical studies that utilised established explanatory models with food chain actors. Out of 183 primary studies included from 1991 to 2017, the majority was conducted in developed countries, while only 23% targeted developing countries. Further, most studies have looked at genetically modified food, with consumers being the most common stakeholder considered. Regarding the models, theory of planned behaviour and protection motivation theory were by far the most frequently applied explanatory models. Our results highlight the need for research on the evaluation of novel food technologies by non-consumer actors for a holistic understanding across the supply chain.
  Keywords: evaluation; acceptance; adoption; explanatory models; TPB; theory of planned behaviour; PMT; protection motivation theory; food technology; food chain actors; farmer; processor; consumer; systematic review.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10045397
   
  
• The contributions of design thinking to the conception of a green production model  
  by Dusan Schreiber, Paola Schmitt Figueiró, Vanessa Theis 
  Abstract: This theoretical-reflexive essay seeks to add to the debate on alternatives for the conception of a Green Production model, analysing the contributions offered by the design thinking approach. The hermeneutic and interpretative methodology was adopted, providing a comprehensive dialogue between the authors selected for this research. The researchers were careful to choose both classic, seminal and contemporary authors, texts from books and journals, on issues related to sustainability, production management, design thinking and green production, fostering a rich environment for the exchange of ideas and perceptions about possible thematic convergence. In conclusion, characteristics of the design thinking approach permit the identification of details regarding operational activities, which could be omitted when using other approaches, like those of a positivist and rational nature.
  Keywords: production management; green production; design thinking; sustainability; operations; hermeneutic; interpretative approach; conception of the theoretical framework.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10055769
   
  
• Sustainable lighting standards to reduce energy consumption at building sector as requirements in implementing ISO 20400:2017: a case study in Indonesia  
  by Dhandy Arisaktiwardhana 
  Abstract: The sustainable lighting standard specifies requirements related to energy efficiency aspects. This study aims to examine whether SNI IEC 60969:2009 as a requirement for testing Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) performance can be used sustainably for reducing energy consumption in the building sector to support the implementation of sustainable procurement according to ISO 20400:2017.After improving energy efficiency under IEC Guide 118:2017, the study results show that the power factor values that can be selected as the requirements for performance testing of SNI IEC 60969:2009 are in the range of 0.55-0.95. With the value range of this power factor, in theory, producers and consumers' energy consumption to turn on 15 W CFL will decrease in minimum per year by 41,304,183 kWh and will reduce in maximum per year by 247,825,099 kWh.
  Keywords: sustainable lighting standards; energy efficiency; SNI IEC60969:2009; ISO 20400:2017; CFL; IEC Guide 118:2017; power factor; energy consumption.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10054638
   
  
• Government regulations as an opportunity to foster the creation and application of innovations in the context of green organisations: the case of Lithuania  
  by Ilona Skačkauskienė, Juliana Smirnova 
  Abstract: The purpose of the research is to identify future directions for improving government regulatory measures that would foster the creation and application of innovations in the context of green organisations. The research methodology included critical analysis, synthesis, and abstraction of scientific literature and strategic documents. The authors conducted structured interviews with representatives of green organisations and an in-depth interview with the representative of a consulting company. The results were processed using the methods of comparative analysis and content analysis. Directions for the improvement of government regulatory measures at the national level have been proposed in order to promote the creation/application of innovations in the context of the development of green organisations. The results of the research have practical implications of forming a basis for improving future governmental regulatory measures in order to foster the creation and application of innovations in green organisations.
  Keywords: green organisation; opportunity to foster innovations; application of innovations; government regulations; development of green organisations; government regulatory measures; promotion of innovations; government support/promotion; legal regulation.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10047167
   
  

Special Issue on: ARTEM OCC The Interplay Between Creativity and Sustainability Moving from Presence to Future

• The art of eco-nudging: interactive digital art as didactic agents of change in the built environment  
  by Carmela Cucuzzella, Sherif Goubran, Firdous Nizar 
  Abstract: It is impossible to ignore the damage humankind has caused to the environment. Most of the destruction, however, remains beyond individuals direct control and is caused by the prevailing modes of consumption and production. Imagery has been instrumental in communicating the environmental degradation caused by human activity, many of which have mostly relied on techno-scientific visualisations. In this paper, we are exploring eco-art as a promising public enlightenment strategy for enabling specific actions. This paper describes the outcome of an experiment focused on eco-nudging (i.e., bridging the gap between environmental awareness and action). Can interactive experiences with digital art shift participants behavioural choices toward the optimisation of their interior spaces environmental settings? If so, how? With this experiment, we highlight the significance of daily technological companionship through digital eco-art as a research field for exploring how to better inform and activate human eco-behaviour.
  Keywords: environmental art; eco-art; eco-art and design; eco-didacticism; eco-awareness; eco-action; companionship; human-building interaction; human-building interfaces; energy-actions.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10055401
   
  

Special Issue on: Innovation and Sustainability in a Post-COVID World

• Did Covid 19 influence adoption of e-commerce among elderly citizens? The role of social presence, self-efficacy and trust  
  by Boudhayan Ganguly, Tirthankar Nag, Pritha Chakraborty 
  Abstract: The 2020 lockdown amidst the Covid 19 pandemic has so far been the biggest lockdown in recorded world history. During this phase many of the elderly citizens had reduced their frequency of visiting marketplaces and some of them had shifted their buying behaviour from offline marketplaces to online apps with the intention of minimising the risk of getting infected. Although this has been supported by literature there are many studies that state lack of trust to be the primary reason for avoiding online shopping. This study has focused on the influence of social presence and Internet self-efficacy of elderly citizens in building trust with the apps. We have also empirically shown that trust acts as a mediator the relationships between social presence and purchase intention and between self-efficacy and purchase intention amongst elderly citizens.
  Keywords: self-efficacy; social presence; trust; purchase intention; elderly citizens; mediator; moderator; online apps; Covid19; pandemic.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10049604
   
  
• Global value chains in the era of changing globalisation scenario: perspective from BRICS  
  by Arti Yadav, Badar Alam Iqbal 
  Abstract: The aim of the present study is to empirically examine the role of selected macro-economic variables on the global value chains participation index of BRICS countries using the Pooled Mean group Auto-Regressive Distributed Lag method. The study also highlighted the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the global value chains (GVC). The findings show that foreign direct investment is significant in the long run as well as short-run, while real effective exchange rate, current account balance, trade, and gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate are significant only in the long run for BRICS economies. The study further suggests that globalisation has way more positive effects than moving away from it.
  Keywords: GVC; global value chains; globalisation; BRICS; Covid-19; economic growth; backward GVC; forward GVC; foreign direct investment; trade openness; current account balance.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10052067
   
  
• Social enterprise marketing strategies to achieving sustainable development goals in an emerging economy: lessons from emerging economies  
  by Jashim Uddin Ahmed, Quazi Tafsirul Islam, Asma Ahmed 
  Abstract: The paper focuses on the social business enterprise model that has recently gained significance in Bangladesh using case study methodology on GDFL, a French-Bangladeshi joint venture. The purpose is to evaluate and establish whether similar social business models can be implemented in developing and transitional economies to address poverty issues and achieve several sustainable development goals (SDGs). The authors intend to establish how social businesses impact economies and improve peoples lives. Based on this article, it can be argued that GDFL is a social enterprise that utilises the blended revenue approach to remain economically sustainable. The multifaceted GDFL initiative positively contributes to sustainable development across the value chain and in achieving SDG 1, 2, 3, 8. This can also be successfully implemented in similar developing and transitional economies in Asia and Africa. Using Grameen Danone as an illustration, the study explores the nature, operations, objectives, and implications of social businesses.
  Keywords: social enterprise; Bangladesh; Grameen Danone; BOP; SDGs; sustainable development goals; social business; strategy.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10052119
   
  
• Effects of macroeconomic disturbances on the banking sector and equity markets in Sri Lanka: with special reference to civil war and COVID-19 pandemic  
  by Manjula Kumara Wanniarachchige 
  Abstract: This paper argues that the macroeconomic disturbances resulting from prolonged civil war and the recent COVID-19 pandemic have substantially curtailed the banking sector and equity market in Sri Lanka through widening interest spreads, contracting bank credit, slowing down equity market activity, and constraining bank branch network expansion. Further, the findings show how the banks and equity market have favourably responded during periods of relative macroeconomic stability. The contributions of this paper are threefold. First, it fills a vital gap in the Sri Lankan banking literature by providing evidence on the effects of the civil war on equity markets, financial intermediation and banking system performance. Second, it explains why banking systems in some countries with advanced financial infrastructures and healthy interest spreads have failed to achieve their potential growth. Third, it explores how widespread pandemics like COVID-19 can constrain the performance of banking systems and equity markets.
  Keywords: civil war; COVID-19 pandemic; credit expansion; stock market; interest spread; bank branches; Sri Lanka.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10053129
   
  
• Coping strategies of ready-made garments workers in Bangladesh during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative assessment  
  by Kazi Mahmudur Rahman, Kishore Kumer Basak, Nibras Bin Sayed 
  Abstract: COVID-19 has so far affected the global readymade garments (RMG) industry in multifaceted ways, and the RMG of Bangladesh was no exception in terms of facing repercussions. While there is a public perspective about the RMG workers being mostly unaffected by the pandemic, the study reveals a different narrative as the majority of the respondents suffered economically; while some received their wages at irregular intervals, others faced a huge dent in their savings. In addition, the respondents seemed to have operated in conditions which largely ignored the health risks of the pandemic. Nevertheless, workers developed different kinds of coping strategies to battle against the pandemic. Some coping mechanisms were found to be positive, whereas other strategies revealed the hidden hardships, for instance, reduced food consumption, a tendency to seek loans, which too were hard to find, resulting in rising debts, and a constant struggle of finding alternative sources of income.
  Keywords: COVID-19; pandemic; garment workers; RMG sector; apparel industry; coping strategy.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2024.10056184
   
  
• Assessing Bangladesh’s administrative leadership and governance challenges in tackling the corona virus crisis  
  by Mohammad Imran Hossain 
  Abstract: Coronavirus Disease has turned to be a major health crisis in Bangladesh. The densely populated poor country is struggling to battle the health hazards through implementing various preventive measures. However irregularities, mismanagement and lack of good governance has put the nation in dire straits. This study tries to articulate Bangladesh’s administrative leadership and governance challenges in tackling the crisis. A content analysis of various textual data is used to exemplify the COVID-19 catastrophe by evaluating measures and actions taken by the relevant agencies. Seven governance indicators have been explored. The study found that there is a huge deficit in every indicator of good governance. The long-term lack of planning, lack of effective leadership, and inadequate budget allocation have exposed the weak capacity of the Bangladesh government. Lacks in transparency, accountability and coordination in various activities undertaken by the government has been clearly noticed.
  Keywords: COVID-19; Bangladesh; responsiveness; capacity and effectiveness; coordination and participation; transparency; accountability; and civic engagement.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2024.10056388
   
  
• Is the new normal driving sustainability: evidence from Indian wedding industry  
  by Rabi Narayan Kar, Kusha Tiwari 
  Abstract: This paper highlights the industrialisation of weddings in India which is in contradiction with the importance given to the marital union in Indian culture and tradition. Weddings of late in India are not just extravagant celebrations, they are also the sites of wasteful expenditure, conspicuous consumption and exhibition of wealth. The overindulgence and ostentatious expenditures are reflective of the utter disregard for teachings and wisdom of Indian knowledge system. The pan-Indian patterns of hyper-consumerism pose challenges to sustainability and ethical living. By applying qualitative research methods, the paper has explored the impact of Covid-19 on the Indian wedding industry and initiated a dialogue around a more permanent shift towards curbing conspicuous consumption and conspicuous waste that the weddings have come to symbolise lately. The findings indicate towards the proposition that the new normal phenomenon is driving towards curbing wastefulness and promoting sustainable living which has a strong foundational footing in ancient Indian value system and culture.
  Keywords: Covid-19; Indian wedding industry; sustainability; conspicuous consumption; wasteful expenditure; curbing wasteful expenditure.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2024.10056461
   
  
• Changing patterns of household water consumption and conservation behaviour in Bangladesh: an exploration in the context of COVID-19 pandemic  
  by Bipasha Singha, Osama Eljamal, Shamal Chandra Karmaker 
  Abstract: COVID-19 prevention and control strategies have relied heavily on water. Thus, the goal of this research was to realise how the pandemic changed household water usage and conservation practices. We collected data from 418 participants across Bangladesh using an online survey. Our study revealed that during COVID-19, individuals used more water to wash hands, shower, wash foods after purchasing, and wash clothes than they did previously. However, no significant variations in water conservation were noted between before and during COVID-19. Individuals with a higher level of education, who resided in an urban setting, and had elderly family members in their houses were more likely than others to engage in water consumption while less likely to involve in conservation behaviours during COVID-19. Therefore, households should conserve water by using water-saving technologies, reusing treated water, storing rainwater, and establishing a water-saving culture in their homes to meet future demands.
  Keywords: COVID-19; future water demand; hygiene-related diseases; water conservation; water consumption.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2024.10056462
   
  
• Reverse migration, sustainable development and innovation during Covid-19 pandemic: a case study of Indian women and children  
  by Subhomay Saha, Karan Peer, Shrabani Saha 
  Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has created a devastating and far-reaching consequences for countries and communities across the globe. However, a month-long national-lockdown during the first wave of COVID-19 in March-April 2020 in India has drawn enormous attention from media, policy makers and researchers around the world. The national lockdown has been especially difficult for the sizable migrant population of India, whose woes were heightened by their engagement in Indias informal economy, which denied them any access to social security benefits upon stoppage of work. This was reflected in the unprecedented reverse migration witnessed in India. Hence, this study uses an analytical framework with some statistical figures to explore the effects of the pandemic on migrant workers in particular women and children and how it threats the Unites Nations sustainable development goals (SDGs). It also critically analyses the current policies to reduce the economic effect of this adverse shock.
  Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic; return migration; women and children; sustainable development goals; India.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2024.10056463
   
  
• Green algae Caulerpa lentillifera cultivation technique utilising CO2 and its social impacts  
  by Mir Shariful Islam, Izuru Senaha, Kazunari Nagamatsu, Yoshifumi Yoda, Bidyut Baran Saha 
  Abstract: The demand for the Caulerpa lentillifera, an important mariculture species in Okinawa, Japan, is rapidly increasing due to its wide use as food. Moreover, the extracted sulphated polysaccharides from Caulerpa lentillifera inhibit coronavirus. However, the harvesting capacity is insufficient throughout the year as per demand. Importing food from abroad due to COVID-19 poses a severe health risk, and local production needs to be increased. Accordingly, it is required to ensure the supply of this algae by improving the production technologies. It has been reported that adding CO2 can upsurge the growth rate of algae to seawater, but no case has been yet examined on a laboratory scale. Therefore, the growth effect was observed to increase the weight ratio by about 1.8-fold in CO2-enriched seawater. Moreover, the high value of R2 (0.9974) and low value of RSS (0.00198) implied that modified Gompertz model was significantly fitted with the experimental data.
  Keywords: algae; Caulerpa lentillifera; COVID-19; CO2; Gompertz model; logistics model.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2024.10056684
   
  

Special Issue on: Innovation Management and Technology for Sustainability

• The customer trust evaluation of e-commerce market based on portfolio weighting: cloud model  
  by Wei Chu, Huaxi Chen 
  Abstract: In order to improve the evaluation effect of customer trust in e-commerce market, this paper studies the evaluation method of customer trust in e-commerce market based on combination weighting and cloud model. According to the technical, business, the customer first three factors, e-commerce market customer trust evaluation index system; then the combined weight of evaluation index is determined by the improved analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and entropy method; finally through the cloud model building customer trust evaluation level discriminant model, introducing fuzzy entropy for final evaluation results. Experiments show: the method is constructed of the evaluation index in the index layer Cronbach s were significantly higher than 0.7, shows that this method has a better effect of index system building, can effectively promote the electronic commerce often customer trust evaluation results.
  Keywords: combination weighting; cloud model; e-commerce market; customer trust; AHP; analytic hierarchy process; entropy value method.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056529
   
  
• Research on the integrated development of innovation and entrepreneurship education curriculum structure optimisation and employment guidance  
  by Lihua Ding 
  Abstract: In order to alleviate the current difficult employment situation, this paper discusses the integrated development of innovation and entrepreneurship education curriculum structure optimisation and employment guidance. First, analyse the background of integration development and clarify its necessity, then elaborate the current innovation and entrepreneurship education curriculum structure and employment guidance mode, and analyse the five existing problems. Then it analyses the positive impact of integrated development, and puts forward a new concept of integrated development based on employment and driven by innovation and entrepreneurship, including: establishing a new way of integrated development, improving students participation enthusiasm, improving and optimising the current curriculum structure, establishing a professional teacher resource team, etc. The results show that the application effect index of the integration strategy has reached more than 0.9, and the grade has reached excellent, which shows that the application of the integration strategy has achieved good results.
  Keywords: innovation and entrepreneurship education; course structure optimisation; employment guidance; integrated development.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056530
   
  
• Study on evaluation method of online education reform effect based on analytic hierarchy process  
  by Minglun Wu 
  Abstract: In order to overcome the problems of low accuracy and long time-consuming of the effect evaluation method, this paper proposes an evaluation method of the effect of education reform based on AHP. First, the reform effect evaluation system was established to obtain 22 evaluation indicators such as the number of login platforms and the time of watching videos; Secondly, the factor set is determined by analytic hierarchy process (AHP), and the evaluation judgement matrix is constructed. The rationality of the matrix is verified by consistency test. Finally, the index weight and membership vector are calculated by AHP, and the comprehensive score of the reform effect of the membership vector is obtained by grade assignment method. The results show that the evaluation accuracy of the proposed method can reach 100%, and the evaluation time is only 7.59 s, indicating that the proposed method can improve the evaluation effect.
  Keywords: AHP; analytic hierarchy process; online education; reform effect; judgement matrix; index weight.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056531
   
  
• Analysis of the role of higher vocational education in the sustainable development of social economy  
  by Xiuhong Qin, Yujia Wang 
  Abstract: With the aim of improving the contribution rate of higher vocational education in social and economic growth, this paper analyses the role of higher vocational education in social and economic sustainable development. Firstly, the relationship between higher vocational education and sustainable development of social economy is analysed. According to the analysis results, the impact of higher vocational education on the input-output structure of sustainable development of social economy is analysed. Secondly, use Denisons educational econometric model to calculate the social economic growth rate. Finally, the contribution rate of higher vocational education to economic growth is analysed according to the calculation results. The experimental results show that the contribution rate of social and economic growth of this method can reach 11.3%, and the prediction accuracy of social and economic growth can reach 99.66%, which verifies the effectiveness of this method.
  Keywords: Cobb Douglas production function; educational factors; weight distribution method; higher vocational education; socioeconomic.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056532
   
  
• Research on the path of integrating the concept of sustainable development into innovation and entrepreneurship education  
  by Yuan Song 
  Abstract: In order to improve the quality of innovation and entrepreneurship education, we should study the path of integrating the concept of sustainable development into innovation and entrepreneurship education. Under the understanding of the relationship between sustainable development and innovation and entrepreneurship education, this paper analyses the main problems of innovation and entrepreneurship education, and according to the analysis results, integrates the concept of sustainable development into innovation and entrepreneurship education, builds a brand-new innovation and entrepreneurship education system, and puts forward the innovation and entrepreneurship education path based on this. Through the experimental test, it can be seen that the highest satisfaction of the students in this study can reach 98%, and the highest efficiency of innovation and entrepreneurship education can reach 98.6%, which improves the satisfaction of students and the efficiency of innovation and entrepreneurship education.
  Keywords: sustainable development; innovation and entrepreneurship education; analytic hierarchy process; index weight; relationship; satisfaction.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056533
   
  
• Can mobile banking apps usage contribute towards the environmental sustainability: a mediation analysis  
  by K. Katini, S. Amalanathan 
  Abstract: In digital transformation, digital finance has emerged as an alternative to conventional financial services. Currently, digital financial aspects and environmental sustainability are urgent issues receiving research attention for environmental mitigation. This empirical research addresses digital finance on environmental sustainability through mobile banking app usage. It is among the convenient digital financial technologies developed in recent years for the benefit of various stakeholders. The current model integrated UTAUT2 with perceived security and environmental sustainability. The partial least square structural equation modelling was used to test the hypothesis and other statistical power. This paper provides sustainable perspectives encouraging the Indian tribals to adopt digital technology in financial transactions. The findings have several important policy implications for developing countries, particularly vulnerable populace and those settled in remote areas. This research confirms the positive relations of mobile banking app usage on environmental sustainability through a cross-sectional approach.
  Keywords: UTAUT2; northeast tribals; environmental sustainability; mobile banking apps; PLS; partial least squares structural equation modelling.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056547
   
  
• An evaluation method of college students innovation and entrepreneurship ability based on AHP method  
  by Wenhua Liu 
  Abstract: In order to overcome the problems of low efficiency and poor effect of evaluation, this study designed an evaluation method of college students innovation and entrepreneurship ability based on analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method. Firstly, the structure of college students innovation and entrepreneurship ability is analysed based on grounded theory and an evaluation index system is designed. Then AHP evaluation matrix is constructed to determine the reference data column. Finally, the correlation coefficient is calculated to determine the correlation degree, and AHP method is used to carry out the single ranking of indicators, so as to realise the effective evaluation of college students innovation and entrepreneurship ability. Experimental results show that the evaluation accuracy of this method can reach 99.38%, the evaluation process takes only 22 s at most, and the satisfaction rate of ability evaluation is 99.0%, indicating that this method can effectively improve the evaluation effect.
  Keywords: AHP method; evaluation matrix; correlation; hierarchical single ordering; innovation and entrepreneurship ability.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056551
   
  
• Research and exploration on the optimisation of innovation and entrepreneurship education model from the collaborative perspective  
  by Jialin Zhang 
  Abstract: In view of the problems existing in the current innovation and entrepreneurship education model in colleges and universities in China, this paper studies and exploration on the optimisation of innovation and entrepreneurship education model from the collaborative perspective. Firstly, the current overall situation of entrepreneurship in China is analysed, and the key and difficult points in the process of college students innovation and entrepreneurship are determined; Secondly, a concrete analysis of the problems existing in the innovation and entrepreneurship education is made, such as weak entrepreneurship awareness, backward innovation and entrepreneurship education, and low achievement conversion rate; Finally, focusing on the collaborative perspective, the optimisation of the education model is completed through the design of scientific innovation and entrepreneurship education courses and the strengthening of teacher teams. The experimental results show that the average score of the innovation and entrepreneurship course of this method is 88.
  Keywords: collaborative perspective; innovation and entrepreneurship education; model optimisation research and exploration; questionnaire method; scientific innovation; entrepreneurship education courses.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056552
   
  
• A Performance evaluation method of innovation and entrepreneurship policy based on DPSIR model  
  by Liuqing Shi 
  Abstract: This paper proposes an innovation and entrepreneurship policy performance evaluation method based on DPSIR model. Under the construction principles of evaluation index system such as operability principle, conciseness principle and standardisation principle, the innovation and entrepreneurship policy performance evaluation system is constructed through DPSIR model, and the evaluation index is obtained. According to the obtained evaluation index, a multi-level fuzzy comprehensive evaluation factor set is established, and the weight of each level of innovation and entrepreneurship policy performance evaluation index is calculated by analytic hierarchy process, and the innovation and entrepreneurship policy performance evaluation is carried out according to the weight calculation results. The simulation results show that the accuracy of the proposed method for the performance evaluation of innovation and entrepreneurship policy is up to 100%, and the evaluation time is within 9.06 s. The evaluation accuracy is high and the evaluation time is short.
  Keywords: DPSIR model; innovation and entrepreneurship policy; performance appraisal; analytic hierarchy process; industrialisation; evaluation.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056554
   
  
• The contribution of higher vocational education to regional economic growth  
  by Mei Mei 
  Abstract: In order to deeply explore the relationship between higher vocational education and regional economy, this paper studies the contribution of higher vocational education to regional economic growth. Firstly, this paper analyses the current situation of higher vocational education and regional economy, and uses Cobb Douglas production letter to build an econometric model to calculate the contribution rate of higher vocational education to regional economic growth. Then it analyses the problems of the contribution of higher vocational education to regional economic growth, and puts forward three countermeasures: the balanced layout of higher vocational education, the formulation of professional standards suitable for regional economic development, and the establishment of vocational education parks. Experimental test shows that the contribution rate of higher vocational education to regional economic growth can reach more than 19%, and its contribution rate to regional economic growth is higher, and its contribution to regional economic growth is greater.
  Keywords: higher vocational education; regional economic growth; contribution rate; Cobb Douglas production letter.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056555
   
  

Special Issue on: Social Innovation for Enterprise Sustainable Development

• Disclosure behaviour of sovereign wealth funds in relation to environmental, social and governance and sustainable development goals  
  by Marty-Jörn Klein 
  Abstract: This paper deals with the current state of environmental, social and governance (ESG) and sustainable development goals (SDG) disclosure by 97 sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) worldwide, which together account for 99% of global total SWF assets. The aim of the paper is to give an overview of current disclosure behaviour for different types of SWFs and on a regional basis in view of the macro-economic environment. Pursuing an econometric approach, we test a series of hypotheses using various measures of the sustainable behaviour of SWFs on both the institutional and country levels. Our findings suggest that self-reported ESG and SDG data are still mostly opaque. Variations in the scope, measurement, and weight of parameters make comparisons difficult. Forty-nine percent of all SWFs do not disclose on ESG, and 73% do not disclose SDG data. Furthermore, 56% of SWFs from developed countries do not report on ESG.
  Keywords: SWFs; sovereign wealth funds; ESG; environmental; social and governance; SDG; sustainability reporting; economic development; origin of assets; One Planet SWF initiative; International Forum of SWF; Linaburg-Maduell Transparency Index; reputational risk.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056363
   
  
• Design of enterprise human resource allocation model based on radial basis function neural network  
  by Yi Wang, Lei Li 
  Abstract: In order to allocate enterprise human resources effectively and correctly, an enterprise human resources allocation model based on radial basis function (RBF) neural network is constructed. The input vector of clustering is divided by RBF neural network algorithm, the membership value of data is processed by fuzzy rules, the data category is output, and the directional connection between departments is monitored by association matrix to realise the allocation of human resources in enterprises. The experimental results show that the contribution rates of this model resource allocation planning factors is less than 85%, the mean square error results is less than 0.00914, the missed alarm rate is less than 2%, the false alarm rate is less than 1.5%. The above data prove that the model has correct and effective enterprise human resource allocation results, with good performance, high accuracy, strong anti-noise performance, high diagnostic accuracy and good practicability.
  Keywords: RBF neural network; human resources; membership function; resource allocation; fuzzy rules; incidence matrix.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056642
   
  
• Construction of the informatisation management platform for enterprise audit based on cloud computing  
  by Zhen Tian 
  Abstract: Based on the research of enterprise audit informatisation planning and construction, this paper designs an accurate classification system of enterprise audit information in the cloud computing center environment according to the operation process of enterprise audit. The Hadoop and MapReduce technologies of the cloud computing center are used to collect, store, and process information about neutral items in the audit preparation, implementation, and termination stages to implement information-based management of the entire enterprise audit process. The results show that the platform can clearly and accurately present the information of different audit stages of enterprise projects to be audited, which is convenient for enterprises to effectively analyse their own audit status and ensure the smooth implementation of enterprise audit.
  Keywords: cloud computing; enterprise audit; informatisation management; audit implementation stage; Hadoop technology; MapReduce technology.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056667
   
  
• Data analysis method of university bidding and purchasing based on improved Apriori algorithm  
  by Tianyu Feng 
  Abstract: With the increasing scale of university bidding projects and funds year by year and the development trend of Internet + bidding and procurement, the establishment of high-quality data analysis methods has become the focus of building an Internet-based University bidding and procurement management system. In view of the shortcomings of traditional data analysis methods, based on the analysis of the construction strategy of university bidding and procurement, this study designs a data analysis method of University bidding and procurement based on improved Apriori algorithm. According to the experimental results, the method has high analysis timeliness, accuracy and stability, indicating that the method effectively achieves the design expectation.
  Keywords: higher education; bidding procurement; data analysis; feature recognition; improved Apriori algorithm; the characteristics of clustering.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056668
   
  
• Innovative management model of human resources for entrepreneurial enterprises under the concept of sustainable development  
  by Guangchao Yan 
  Abstract: In 2014, the country put forward the concept of mass entrepreneurship and innovation, and introduced corresponding policies to encourage entrepreneurship. However, the development of most entrepreneurial enterprises is difficult, with an average survival time of less than 2 years. In addition to the lack of capital and technology, the management of entrepreneurial enterprises is full of loopholes, especially the lack of attention to human resource management (HRM). The research proposes a human capital evaluation system based on an improved squeeze network model to improve the efficiency and accuracy of entrepreneurial enterprises in evaluating candidates or entrepreneurs. The evaluation indicators are derived from a questionnaire survey of outstanding entrepreneurs in Dalian and related literature. The experimental results show that compared with the benchmark model, the accuracy of the evaluation of human capital by this model is increased by 20%, and the error between the evaluation of experts and experts is between 3% and 6%, which can meet the needs of use.
  Keywords: HRM; human resource management; human capital; sustainable development; improved SN model.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056669
   
  

Special Issue on: Sustainability in Innovation Performance and Business Performance

• Online mobile learning resource recommendation method based on deep reinforcement learning  
  by Pingyang Li, Juan Zhang 
  Abstract: In order to improve the recommendation effect of learning resources, this paper designs an online mobile learning resource recommendation method based on deep reinforcement learning. Firstly, the similarity between learners and learners, the similarity between learning resources and learning resources, and the similarity between learners search preference results and learning resources are calculated. Secondly, based on the results of similarity calculation, a multi-agent deep reinforcement learning network is designed, which includes a recommendation agent and a classification agent. Finally, according to the learners interest preferences (states) of different learning resources, the online mobile learning resources (execution actions) are recommended to the learners, and the final recommendation scheme is obtained through the recommendation agent. According to the experimental results, the maximum recommendation result hit rate of this method is 95.5%, and the highest average ranking degree is 0.926, indicating that the recommendation effect of this method is better.
  Keywords: online mobile learning; learning resource; similarity; recommendation agent; classification agent; recommended scheme.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056670
   
  
• Evaluation method of service quality of college students' innovation and entrepreneurship education based on AHP-DEA method  
  by Qingqin Chen 
  Abstract: In order to overcome the problems of time-consuming and low accuracy of quality evaluation methods, this paper proposes a service quality evaluation method of college students innovation and entrepreneurship education based on Analytic Hierarchy Process-Data Envelopment AnAlysis (AHP-DEA). Firstly, the evaluation system of education service quality is constructed, and the service quality evaluation data is collected by using multithread new application programming interface (NAPI). Secondly, meaningless evaluation data is removed by time constraint. Then, the judgement matrix is constructed, the quality evaluation function is constructed with data envelopment analysis (DEA) method, the total ranking weight is calculated, and the evaluation value is solved by linear weighting method to realise the service quality evaluation. Experimental results show that the average time of this method is 52.8 ms, the weight calculation error rate is 2.2%, the average evaluation accuracy rate is 96.4%, and the practical application effect is good.
  Keywords: AHP-DEA; college students; innovation and entrepreneurship education; service quality evaluation; multi-threaded NAPI.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056671
   
  
• The comprehensive evaluation of innovative education quality from the perspective of balanced and stable development  
  by Xiaoping Feng 
  Abstract: In order to overcome the problems of long data collection time, high error rate of index weight calculation and low accuracy of traditional evaluation methods, a comprehensive evaluation method of innovative education quality from the perspective of balanced and stable development is proposed. Firstly, the comprehensive evaluation index of innovative education quality under the background of balanced and stable development is preliminarily determined. The K-means clustering algorithm is used to collect education data, and the data are fused and reduced. Then, the comprehensive evaluation system of innovative education quality is established. Finally, the weight of evaluation index is calculated by AHP, and the comprehensive evaluation of education quality is realised by three-level fuzzy comprehensive evaluation model. The experimental results show that the average data acquisition time of this method is 0.63 s, the maximum error rate of evaluation index weight calculation is 2%, and the evaluation accuracy is above 94%.
  Keywords: Balanced and stable development; innovative education; comprehensive quality evaluation; K-means clustering algorithm; reduction processing; three-level fuzzy comprehensive evaluation.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056677
   
  
• Evaluation method of innovation and entrepreneurship education quality in colleges and universities based on entropy weight method  
  by Xiaoying Bai, Yulong Wan 
  Abstract: To overcome the problems of poor accuracy and long-time evaluation of innovation and entrepreneurship. This paper puts forward the quality evaluation method of innovation and entrepreneurship education in Colleges and Universities Based on entropy weight method. First, the index system of innovation and entrepreneurship is designed. Secondly, 12 innovation and entrepreneurship data such as the number of enterprise teachers and the number of entrepreneurship are obtained according to the index system; Then, the judgement matrix is constructed, the weight value is calculated by the difference, the initial weight is corrected by the correction coefficient obtained by the entropy weight method, and the comprehensive evaluation score is calculated to realise the quality evaluation of innovation and entrepreneurship. The experimental results show that the accuracy of this method is up to 99.9%, and the evaluation time is less than 6S, which can improve the evaluation effect of innovation and entrepreneurship.
  Keywords: correlation function; entropy weight method; weight coefficient; judgement matrix; matter element method.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056678
   
  
• Research on evaluation of hybrid teaching reform based on hidden Markov  
  by Yu Cao, Hui-sheng Zhu 
  Abstract: In order to improve the accuracy of the mixed teaching reform evaluation results, a hybrid teaching reform evaluation method based on Hidden Markov is proposed. The information is collected from the PTA aided teaching platform, and the data of the mixed teaching reform is fused and preprocessed using support vector machine; Based on the principles of measurability and feasibility, the evaluation index system of mixed teaching reform is constructed; The hidden Markov theory is used to evaluate the effect of the mixed teaching reform. The experimental results show that the Cronbach coefficient of the reliability and validity of the evaluation indexes selected in this paper is higher than 0.8, and the evaluation accuracy of the teaching reform evaluation method is as high as 97.6%, which shows that the research effect is remarkable.
  Keywords: hidden markov; hybrid teaching; reform evaluation; cross entropy; evaluation grade; index system.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056681
   
  
• Modular construction of teaching mode of innovative talents training under the background of integration of industry and education  
  by Xiaojing Bai, Shijuan Shen, Qingqing Shi 
  Abstract: In order to improve the teaching effect of innovative talents training, a modular innovative talents training teaching mode is constructed under the background of integration of production and education. First, analyse the problems existing in the modular teaching mode, and then analyse the causes of the problems. Second, determine the necessity of the integration of modular production and teaching. Finally, explain the connotation of the categorical teaching modular relationship, analyse the main factors of talent cultivation by using the analytical method, and construct a modular teaching mode by combining consistency and coverage indicators. The case analysis shows that the consistency of conditional variables does not reach 0.9, which indicates that variables are not necessary for high performance. After the application of this model, students' scores have been improved by more than 10 points, and the proportion of difference in scores has reached 0.14, which verifies that this model has a higher teaching effect.
  Keywords: consistency; coverage; integration of industry and education; cultivation of innovative talents; necessity analysis; modularisation of teaching mode.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056683
   
  

Special Issue on: Sustainable Operations Management in the Digital Transformation Era

• Impact of lean-green practices on production performance: evidence from SMEs of a developing economy  
  by Muhammad Junaid Ahsan 
  Abstract: Environmental concerns and sustainability issues attracted many practitioners' and researchers' attention still numerous small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in emerging economies are reluctant to invest in environment-friendly practices with a doubt that investment in such practices might lead to negative production performance outcomes. To settle down this tension, our study examines the effect of green production practices on production performance and the intervening effect of lean practices between green production practices and production performance. The study employs a quantitative research method where survey-based data were collected from 227 SMEs from an emerging economy - Pakistan. Results unveil that green production practices have a significant positive impact on production performance. The interactive effect indicates a sharp rise in production performance when a firm implements lean practices in the production process. The study can help firm managers related to the investment in green and lean practices in the production system of SMEs in emerging economies.
  Keywords: Green production; lean production; production performance; sustainability.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2022.10052598
   
  
• Emerging trends in ICT applications and environmental sustainability  
  by Abubakar Shettima Abdulkadir, Yaser Banadaki, Victor Mbarika, Shettima Abdulkadir Saidu 
  Abstract: Information and communication technology (ICT) has greatly impacted how humans live and interact with the environment. This work reviews the various ways in which ICT has influenced sustainability; it cuts across the role of ICT in establishing a low-carbon society, Green ICT and energy, cloud computing and virtualisation, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and the Internet of Things (IoT), and most recently, the drive towards establishing Smart Cities, as they fit within the concept of the sustainability principles. Additionally, we reviewed the current and emerging sustainability frameworks shaping innovation in this area, models such as the lifecycle, enabling, structural impact (LES) model, and other instrumental models to the green concepts paradigm and its application of emerging technology, including AI and 5G technologies. Finally, the consensus is that the impact of ICT on environmental sustainability can be either positive or negative depending on the principles guiding its deployment.
  Keywords: ICT; information and communication technology; sustainability; frameworks; IoT; Internet of Things; artificial intelligence; climate change.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10054679
   
  
• An inventive coupled approach of Pearson correlation and principal component while analysing the sustainability of digital marketing for the Indian handicraft artisans  
  by Uma Anurag, Simran Kaur 
  Abstract: The Indian handicraft industry has contributed to Indias economy by employing the economically weaker society, especially women. Due to a lack of awareness and knowledge related to recent marketing trends, Indian artisans face many challenges in reaching their target audience. The study has highlighted 15 critical factors that influence digital platforms in the handicraft industry. Pearson correlation was employed for analysing the relation between random factors, with 98% significance. Secondly, the weights of the factors were derived using principal component analysis (PCA). The Pearson relation shows that proper training and generation of awareness will increase tax collection, and direct selling will enhance the broader coverage of the market. The PCA outlines the internet and connectivity as the most critical factor with weight (11.2), followed by gender bias (10.8) and digital illiteracy (10.36). The negligence of the factors creates a barrier to using digital marketing platforms. The study indicates that due to a lack of awareness and knowledge related to recent marketing trends, Indian artisans face a lot of challenges to reach their target audience.
  Keywords: digital marketing; handicraft; artisans; Pearson correlation; PCA; principal component analysis; P-value.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10055611
   
  
• Ceramic packaging design and brand development: a case study of Jingdezhen  
  by Yanfei Chen 
  Abstract: Taking the Jingdezhen ceramic products packaging design as an example, on the basis of packaging cushion material, this paper introduces the ways to design an excellent packaging system by analysing packaging structure, packaging marketing strategy and brand development. With regard to an excellent packaging system, the mechanical property of cushion material shall be fully understood, and then the packaging cushion material can be selected reasonably in accordance with the bulk product feature and circulation environment, which can not only improve the innovation of packaging structure and the utility value of packaging, but reduce the product cost and contribute to product marketing and brand image construction.
  Keywords: packaging material; packaging structure; ceramic packaging; brand culture; Jingdezhen.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056464
   
  
• Empirical correlation between enterprise technology strategy and enterprise function strategy  
  by Feng He 
  Abstract: This paper studies the correlation between enterprise’s technology strategy and corporate’s functional strategy. Three enterprises are selected in the science and technology industry as the research sample, the enterprise’s technology strategy index is taken as the independent variable, and the patent strategy and market strategy in the corporate’s functional strategy are taken as the dependent variable for empirical research. The reliability and validity test results verify that the scale designed by the empirical research has high effectiveness and can obtain effective empirical research results. The empirical results show that there is a correlation between enterprise’s technology strategy and patent strategy; there is correlation between enterprise’s technology strategy and market strategy. It is verified that enterprise’s technology strategy and corporate’s functional strategy are related. and they affect, cooperate and are inseparable. The research results provide an important reference for the upgrading and optimization of enterprise’s technology strategy and corporate’s functional strategy.
  Keywords: enterprises technology strategy; corporates functional strategy; correlation; patent strategy; market strategy; validity test.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056528
   
  
• Construction of digital transformation system of enterprise marketing in the internet era  
  by Weinan Shen 
  Abstract: In order to provide a reference for more enterprises to complete the modernisation transformation, this paper conducts a research on the digital transformation system of enterprise marketing in the internet era. This paper first analyses the mobile internet market environment and marketing model, and based on this, builds digital marketing platforms such as Business Busi-ness (B2B) platform, C2C platform and O2O platform. Then complete the digital marketing business process design, and realise the expansion of the system in combination with marketing resource allocation, marketing resource allocation, customer credit evaluation analysis, and digital marketing legal risk prevention. Finally, specific opinions are put forward for the digital transformation of enterprise marketing in the internet era. It is hoped that the research in this paper can provide help for the digital transformation of enterprises.
  Keywords: mobile internet; enterprise digital transformation; marketing; business process; profit model.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056546
   
  
• Analysis and research on financial accounting management strategy under sustainable development strategy  
  by Dan Zhao 
  Abstract: This paper analyses the defects of the traditional financial accounting management mode from the accounting layer, control layer and support layer, gives the organisational structure of the financial accounting management department, and analyses the basic content of financial management. Analyse the operation effect of financial management mode, obtain the capital operation management ability of the enterprise through DuPont analysis method, construct a weighted evaluation matrix, calculate the positive ideal solution and negative ideal solution, and evaluate the effect of financial accounting management by TOPSIS method. Finally, it gives the financial accounting management strategy under the sustainable development strategy. Through experiments to verify the effect of financial accounting management, the accuracy of financial accounting data management of this method can reach 99.2%. It shows that the effect of financial accounting data management under the sustainable development strategy of this method is better.
  Keywords: weighted evaluation matrix; TOPSIS method; positive ideal solution; negative ideal solution; DuPont analysis.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056548
   
  
• Threat measurement method of enterprise competitiveness considering intelligence and wisdom services  
  by Yanjuan Yuan 
  Abstract: In order to accurately measure the comprehensive strength and threat degree of competitive enterprises, and enable enterprises to maintain their advantages in long-term competition, this paper studies a threat measurement method of enterprise competitiveness based on intelligence and intelligence services. Firstly, it analyses the application necessity of intelligence and intelligent service technology, processes the collected enterprise competitiveness data on this basis, then constructs the enterprise competition threat measurement index system, it includes: establishing a set of measurement indicators, determining the weight coefficient, evaluation matrix, fuzzy comprehensive evaluation and measuring the level of enterprise competitive threat, and finally determining the level of enterprise competitive threat. The empirical analysis results verify that enterprise a has a great threat to enterprise competitiveness, and prove that the design method can complete the threat measurement of enterprise competitiveness. The research content can help enterprises understand their own situation, formulate targeted competitive strategies, and provide necessary data support for enterprise development.
  Keywords: intelligence and intelligent service technology; enterprise competitiveness; threat measurement; evaluation matrix; weight coefficient.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056549
   
  
• A human resource management model based on blockchain technology  
  by Dongmei Yin 
  Abstract: In order to manage human resource information safely and effectively, this paper studies the human resource management model based on blockchain technology. The client node obtains the human resource information through the intelligent terminal, submits it to the SDK access node, encrypts and signs it with the encryption algorithm, and then transmits it to the blockchain network. The consistency node of the blockchain network uses the improved practical byzantine fault tolerance (PBFT) consistency algorithm to pack the information into blocks, complete the charging process and broadcast it to the master node. The master node broadcasts the billing copy to the storage node to complete the secure storage of human resource information. The experimental results show that the model has advantages in human resource information encryption, submission and new user identity authentication. The model provides guarantee for the effective implementation of human resource management.
  Keywords: blockchain technology; human resource management; encryption algorithm; PBFT consensus algorithm; smart contract.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056550
   
  
• Research on sustainable development, innovation and Entrepreneurship Transformation needs of key energy industries  
  by Liang Tang 
  Abstract: In order to improve the sustainable development ability of the energy industry, the artificial intelligence algorithm is introduced into the sustainable development prediction, the sustainable development evaluation model of L-M improved BP neural network is proposed, and the grey prediction model is used to predict the transformation demand. The algorithm simulation shows that the fitting degree between the L-M improved BP neural network and the expected value of experts in the evaluation of sustainable development has reached 0.98. In addition, the prediction performance test of the grey prediction model shows that its prediction accuracy has reached 99.4%. The above results show that it is effective to use L-M improved BP neural network to evaluate the sustainable development of the energy industry, which can help the energy industry understand the current development status.
  Keywords: energy industry; sustainable development; transformation needs; improved BP neural network; gray prediction.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056553
   
  
• A study of user comment mining and new media marketing under multi-categorical evidence inference  
  by Yukui Luo 
  Abstract: We study the construction of a new media sales review mining model based on convolutional neural network (CNN) review text recognition algorithm and artificial intelligence classification decision algorithm of evidence inference. A long and short term memory algorithm is introduced in the CNN model to extract the contextual meaning of the text, and the classification structure of evidence inference is used to carry out the text semantic reclassification of the model. The experimental results show that the support of evidence classification of the model is within the range of 0.770.79, and the correlation between evidence and classification is obvious. The classification accuracy is 0.947 and the recall rate is 0.728. Compared with other experimental algorithms, the classification accuracy and recall rate of the proposed algorithm are higher. The correlation experiments and validity experimental data prove that the CNN-ER models has high classification accuracy, stable algorithm computation and robustness in online sales user evaluation.
  Keywords: CNN; convolutional neural network; evidence inference algorithm; semantic recognition; network sales; long and short-term memory algorithm; classification support.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056556
   
  
• Research on digital online inspection of product quality in tobacco production enterprises  
  by Feng Chen, Minye Liao, Chunning Deng, Ling Su 
  Abstract: Nowadays, many cigarette appearance quality problems in tobacco production enterprises lead to the frequent occurrence of unqualified cigarette products, and at present, there is a lack of automatic detection methods for cigarette appearance quality. In order to solve this problem, the deep convolution network model is applied to the automatic cigarette appearance quality detection system. First, the optimal parameters of the deep convolution network model are determined, and the optimal parameters of the model are: learning rate 0.01, maximum pooling function and relu activation function. The quality detection system is applied to the actual detection, and the results show that the accuracy rate of the automatic detection system of the deep convolution network model is 98.54%, and the false detection rate is 2.5%, which are better than the traditional manual sampling method. The above results show that the deep convolution network model does have high accuracy for automatic detection of cigarette appearance, and provides a new research idea for online detection of tobacco product appearance quality.
  Keywords: tobacco appearance quality; CNN network; automated detection; VGG network; ReLU activation function; Sigmoid function; Gaussian filter.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056557
   
  
• Intention and behaviour towards sustainable consumption of Vietnamese consumers in the context of Covid-19  
  by Tran Thi Diu, Tran Le Huy, Nguyen Ngoc Anh, Nguyen Thi Phuong Linh 
  Abstract: The paper aims to investigate factors affecting the intention and behaviour toward sustainable consumption of Vietnamese consumers in the context of Covid-19 based on the extended integrated model: theory of planned behaviour (TPB) and norm activation model (NAM). The authors combined qualitative and quantitative research. Data collected from 551 Vietnamese consumers was used for exploring the relationship between eight factors in integrating model TPB-NAM and two other factors (environmental awareness, Covid-19). Collected data were processed including Cronbachs Alpha reliability test, exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and structural equation modelling (SEM) by using SPSS 22.0 and SmartPLS 3.0 tools. Awareness of consequences, the ascription of responsibility, personal norms, attitude, environmental awareness, and Covid19 were found to have a positive influence on intention; which personal models had the most substantial impact. Meanwhile, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control have confirmed that there is no relationship with the intention toward sustainable consumption of Vietnamese consumers.
  Keywords: Covid-19; environmental awareness; NAM; norm activation model; sustainable consumption; TPB; theory of planned behaviour; Vietnam.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJISD.2023.10056640