A study in the International Journal of Environment and Waste Management found a direct link between Ghana's mounting urban flooding challenges and unregulated waste disposal practices. The findings have significant consequences for public health, the real estate market, and broader urban development. The researchers focused on the cities of Kumasi and Tamale and found that open dumping, fly-tipping as it is known in some parts of the world, where households discard waste indiscriminately in streets, drains, and vacant lots, has become a serious problem associated with urban vulnerability. Four out of five households surveyed admitted to open dumping.

The research used waste management theory alongside statistical regression modelling to look at the prevalence of waste mismanagement and showed that it is a central factor in recurring flood events. The number of households engaging in open dumping is surprising, as the infrastructure for waste management does exist in many of the areas where this occurs. The behaviour is perhaps rooted more in public attitudes and a lack of civic awareness than problems with the waste management systems.

Increased flood risk associated with waste mismanagement has led to a reduction in residential property values. Moreover, the researchers found that tenants are reluctant to pay higher rents in areas that are vulnerable to floods, even when the architectural standards of the buildings are high. The team quantified this market reaction using statistical analysis and found a consistent downward pressure on rental prices in flood-prone zones.

Falling property values is important economically to landlords and developers, but also to the financial viability of investing in urban housing, particularly in lower-income neighbourhoods. The researchers warn that this downward pressure on prices might threaten the health of mortgage markets and reduce local government revenues that depend on property-related taxes—creating a cycle of underinvestment and further degradation.

Ofori, P. (2025) 'Indiscriminate disposal of waste challenges and implication for urban flooding and property values in emerging cities', Int. J. Environment and Waste Management, Vol. 37, No. 1, pp.88–133.
DOI: 10.1504/IJEWM.2025.146388

Research in the International Journal of Shipping and Transport Logistics has looked at one of the less obvious, but crucial, parts of global trade: how goods move between seaports and their inland destinations. This aspect of logistics is known as hinterland connections. The team have looked at how a digital scheduling system called the Truck Appointment System (TAS) might be used. They suggest that this technology has the potential to reduce congestion and improve efficiency, but its ultimate success will depend less on the tool itself and more on the corporate business models in which it is embedded.

TAS is a platform that allows haulage companies to book specific time slots for container pickups and drop-offs at ports. It aims to streamline operations by spreading truck arrivals more evenly throughout the day, cutting down queues, and helping ports manage capacity. But despite these obvious advantages, the system has had mixed results. Some ports see tangible benefits, others find it adds complexity without obvious improvements in efficiency.

The new work, based on interviews and field observations at five European container ports, investigates why TAS is effective in some contexts but falters in others. The research moves beyond technical analysis to examine how the system interacts with the commercial and operational priorities of ports and their logistics partners.

The team used a business model canvas, as a framework to break down the different components of a business, such as cost structures, revenue streams, and customer relationships. By approaching their analysis in this way, they could show how TAS could lead to improvements in efficiency but also change the way in which ports operate and engage with stakeholders to their advantage. For example, the findings show that ports with more flexible TAS policies, where truckers can cancel or change appointments without penalty, for instance, tend to have higher user participation.

Unfortunately, this flexibility undermines the reliability of scheduling data, making it harder for terminal operators to plan and allocate resources. Conversely, stricter regimes that penalise missed appointments deliver better data but deter some hauliers, especially smaller firms sensitive to cost and time constraints. There are thus deeper tensions between operational efficiency, service quality, and business relationships that TAS implementation can expose.

Ports with better hinterland connections can offer faster and more predictable service and so become more attractive to international shippers, potentially enhancing their economic competitiveness. By integrating TAS with real-time tracking and predictive systems, appointment scheduling could evolve into a broader coordination mechanism. This approach could link ships, terminals, hauliers, and even rail operators in a more dynamic and responsive logistics network. But, TAS needs to be aligned with business aims otherwise it simply becomes an additional layer of complexity in an already complex logistical world.

Wide, P., Rogerson, S. and Williamsson, J. (2025) ‘A business model perspective to enhance efficiency of port hinterland connection with truck appointment system – a multiple case study of ports in northern Europe‘, Int. J. Shipping and Transport Logistics, Vol. 20, No. 2, pp.271-289.
DOI: 10.1504/IJSTL.2025.146589

Research in the International Journal of Applied Decision Sciences describes how artificial intelligence could be used to root out internal threats in the US Army. The research centres on the Army's Insider Threat Hub, a facility that assesses the danger posed by individuals flagged for potentially harmful behaviour. It then introduces a deep learning tool capable of significantly improving how such cases are prioritised and processed.

Insider threats are very different from external threats. That much is obvious, by definition. Individuals with legitimate access to sensitive systems or information can wreak havoc if they have a mind to or even unintentionally. Such individuals might be current or former staff or contractors. In a military context, data disruption can be a matter of life or death.

The US Army has hundreds of thousands of personnel and endless incoming threat reports. According to the researchers, there is an absence of a standardised system to triage threat reports, which complicates efforts to identify risks and so the backlog of unresolved cases continues to accrue.

The research offers a novel response to the problems facing the US Army: a classification model trained on historical data from previously reviewed cases that can determine whether a given individual is a negligible threat or high risk. The output from the system then allows staff to prioritise their efforts in handling the high risk cases first. The system uses known personality traits, such as impulsiveness or aggression, and situational indicators such as external financial pressures or personal trauma to judge the threat an individual might pose. The interplay of these elements gives the most predictive insight.

Tests with the trained model on a second set of historical data gave a detection accuracy rate of 96%. The system assessed the severity of most threats accurately or if it didn't it slightly overestimated the risk, which is a better result than overlooking dangerous individuals.

Ali, S., Deverill, H., Lindquist, J. and Roginski, J. (2025) 'Human and machine partnership: natural language processing of army insider threat hub data', Int. J. Applied Decision Sciences, Vol. 18, No. 7, pp.1–22.
DOI: 10.1504/IJADS.2025.146569

Migrant-serving organisations (MSOs) along the border between Mexico and the USA are an important, yet underappreciated, component of the global humanitarian infrastructure, according to research in the International Journal of Migration and Border Studies.

The research has looked at how these frontline groups persist despite unrelenting challenges. Operating in a region shaped by shifting immigration policies, recurrent humanitarian emergencies, and increasing flows of displaced people, these organisations have developed a form of resilience based on day-to-day adaptability rather than formal plans.

The study assessed 40 MSOs through surveys and interviews to examine how these organisations maintain services such as healthcare, legal aid, and shelter under constant pressure. Rather than relying on long-term strategic planning or physical infrastructure, MSOs were found to survive largely thanks to their capacity for bricolage. Bricolage is a term borrowed from art where diverse materials that just happen to be available are used creatively to assemble a solution.

This improvisational approach, the research suggests, is largely driven by staff commitment, trust among partners, and participatory leadership rather than financial resources or facilities. Such a human approach allows organisations to adapt quickly in the face of crises, such as pandemics, conflicts, or sudden increases in migration.

These traits have allowed MSOs to sustain their response capabilities, but the research also shows that there is a lack of long-term strategic development. Few MSOs have mechanisms in place to systematically learn from past crises or plan for future disruptions. Many simply operate under the working assumption that crisis is not a temporary disruption, but a constant condition. As such, conventional approaches to organisational resilience, that are built around discrete shocks and have recovery phases, are inadequate.

The research could help guide policymakers and stakeholders along the Mexico-US border and elsewhere in the world. This will be increasingly important as the effects of climate change, political instability, and conflict displace even more people. The demand for grassroots humanitarian work is thus growing, a broader understanding of what organisational resilience entails is needed to allow MSOs to do their work.

Burrowes, S., Sullivan, S., Cazares, R., Hunt, J. and Hwang, G. (2025) 'The border is always changing: a mixed-methods study of resilience among migrant serving organisations in the USA and Mexico', Int. J. Migration and Border Studies, Vol. 9, No. 5, pp.1–28.
DOI: 10.1504/IJMBS.2025.146567

Research from India published in the International Journal of Business Excellence suggests that personality traits, rather than simply income or family size, has a role to play in whether a person takes out life insurance. The finding has implications for insurers, policymakers, and financial planners alike.

The researchers surveyed 580 individuals across India and found that specific personality characteristics are closely tied to a person's view of financial risk. Risk aversion, they found, significantly influences the intention to buy life insurance. They add that three traits from the psychological Big Five model (conscientiousness, being responsible and organized, neuroticism, the tendency to emotional instability, and openness to experience, curiosity and broad-mindedness) were found to affect risk aversion. Risk aversion itself then mediated a person's life insurance intentions.

Risk aversion, in this context, refers to an individual's tendency to avoid uncertain outcomes, especially those with potentially negative financial consequences. It has long been assumed that buying life insurance is broadly a rational decision based on life stage or income. However, this research shows that a person's character and dispositions affect their perception of risk and security and so their intention to take out life insurance.

The researchers suggest that the finding is particularly relevant across India's emerging economy, where changes in social structure and increasing urbanization are changing the way in which families manage their financial responsibilities. As extended families give way to nuclear households and more younger people enter the workforce, the role of life insurance has expanded beyond income replacement. It now encompasses wealth preservation, estate planning, and long-term financial independence.

The work could help insurers better predict customer needs and tailor their products accordingly. By taking this behavioural approach, it might be possible to close the protection gap, the difference between the amount of insurance coverage a person has and what they actually need. This gap is alarmingly wide in developing countries.

Elangovan, J., Premkumar, M.D. and Yoganandan, G. (2025) 'Exploring the mediating role of risk aversion in the relationship between personality traits and life insurance purchase intention', Int. J. Business Excellence, Vol. 36, No. 5, pp.1–26.
DOI: 10.1504/IJBEX.2025.146552

Efforts to revitalise rural areas are increasingly turning towards approaches that balance functional and aesthetic values, as well as the emotional element that people have for such places. There are broad implications for communities in this sense and far beyond their local environment. Research in International Journal of Environment and Pollution has combined scientific visual analysis with participatory planning techniques and offers a new model for rural development that is both technically informed and grounded in the lives of residents.

The work focuses on the "rural scene", which is not just about how rural areas look, but about how they function and how we experience them. The research proposes that enhancing rural environments should not be just a cosmetic task, but should include strategic interventions that have a wide range of goals. These goals might include improving the quality of life for residents, encouraging tourism, stimulating local economies, and preserving cultural identity.

The researchers combined two distinct methodologies to carry out their analysis. The first is "entropy image analysis"a technique derived from information theory and applied here to the visual structure of rural landscapes. In this context, "entropy" refers to the complexity and variability of visual information in a scene. A high-entropy image might feature a chaotic mixture of elements, cluttered signs, jarring colours, or disordered layouts, while a low-entropy image appears more coherent and visually calm.

By applying this kind of entropy analysis, planners can assess how factors such as clarity, visual openness, texture, and colour affect how people feel emotionally about a place. The researchers found that certain configurations, those perceived as open, orderly, and visually rich, were associated with being relaxing and aesthetically pleasing. This insight might allow designers to move beyond intuition and use data to shape environments that are emotionally engaging as well as functionally effective.

The second component of the work was co-creation design tools that give rural residents a greater say in shaping their surroundings. These tools include both digital platforms and in-person workshops, which invite a range of participants, villagers, designers, officials, and even tourists, to collaborate on development plans.

This marks a shift away from the top-down models of rural reconstruction that have simply seen government agencies or urban-based design firms taking the lead. Such an approach with only limited consultation with those who live and work in these rural communities often means tourism or infrastructure is improved, but not the daily needs nor the cultural expectations of the people who live there. Co-creation seeks to correct this imbalance.

Wang, W., Zhou, D., Yan, L., Sun, Q. and Teng, Y. (2025) 'Visualising micro-renewal in rural landscapes: design and application of co-creation tool', Int. J. Environment and Pollution, Vol. 75, No. 5, pp.1–22.
DOI: 10.1504/IJEP.2025.146551

Research in the International Journal of Management and Enterprise Development has looked at how Sámi entrepreneurs in Northern Sweden and Norway are reshaping the concept of rural business. The Sámi are the indigenous people of Norway, Sweden, the Kola Peninsula, and Finland.

The work suggests that far from being confined to their immediate locales, indigenous business owners are actively bridging the local and the global, drawing on cultural heritage while engaging with networks that stretch well beyond their home territories. The research offers a new look at the implications for how rural entrepreneurship is understood and supported. It could be equally applicable beyond the European Arctic across complex cultural and environmental landscapes worldwide.

The researchers used four case studies, following Sámi entrepreneurs to see how they navigate their "spatial contexts", a term used to capture both rooted places imbued with cultural and historical significance, and the broader movements and relationships that cross local boundaries. Revealing this dual relationship with space challenges the received wisdom that rural business is inherently place-bound and reliant solely on local resources, labour, and markets.

The Sámi offer a unique perspective on rural entrepreneurship. Historically, they live a semi-nomadic lifestyle with reindeer herding being perhaps the most well-known of their activities. As such, the people have always operated across vast territories and through what are now national borders. Today, this legacy of mobility gives their businesses not only a regional identity but allows them to work on a much wider, sometimes internationally.

The research works beyond conventional business theory and identifies key motivations and methods used by Sámi entrepreneurs to navigate their spatial contexts. The work then shows how Sámi entrepreneurs integrate cultural values into their business practices. Rather than viewing tradition and innovation as opposing forces, they blend them and go beyond simplistic economic survival to encompass well-being, cultural continuity, and environmental balance. Such an integrated approach is largely absent from mainstream entrepreneurship discourse, but the new findings might be used to improve policy affecting the Sámi and other entrepreneurs way beyond this region.

Jørgensen, E.J.B., Johansson, J., Nygaard, V. Öhman, M-B. (2025) 'Both right nearby and far away: Rural Sámi entrepreneurs' engagement with spatial contexts', Int. J. Management and Enterprise Development, Vol. 24, No. 5, pp.1–22.
DOI: 10.1504/IJMED.2025.145210

Enterprise resource planning systems could transform management accounting for publicly listed firms, according to research in the International Journal of Economics and Business Research. The focus of the work is on Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and offers both practical insights for business leaders and a broader perspective on digital transformation that could apply to other emerging markets.

Vietnam, as with many emerging markets, is undergoing rapid digital transformation. Listed companies in Vietnam are particularly relevant subjects due to their visibility, regulatory obligations, and the growing need for transparency.

Tran Thi Phuong Lan and Duong Thi Thuy Lien of the University of Finance-Marketing in Ho Chi Minh City, explains that enterprise resource planning systems are integrated software platforms that bring together various business functions ranging from finance and human resources to procurement and supply chain management. This integration into a centralised digital framework allows real-time data sharing and more coordinated workflows among company departments. For management accountants, this means a shift away from traditional, manual data processing towards a more strategic, analysis-driven role.

The research focuses on management accounting practices, internal methods and tools used by firms to assess financial performance, allocate resources, and support strategic decision-making. The efficiency of such practices is crucial to a company's long-term viability. In Vietnam, where companies face increasing pressure to meet global standards, enterprise resource planning systems will help them modernise their internal processes.

The team found that the key to successful implementation of enterprise resource planning is strong commitment from senior management. Companies where leadership actively supports the rollout of these systems through resource allocation, clear goal-setting, and cultural endorsement are far more likely to see improvements in management accounting practices. The researchers add that other influential factors, such as the quality of the used software, vendor support, adaptability of the organisational structure, and incorporation of complementary technologies are also important to success.

Lan, T.T.P. and Lien, D.T.T. (2025) 'Factors affecting management accounting practices under mediating role of enterprise resource planning system: case in Vietnam', Int. J. Economics and Business Research, Vol. 29, No. 13, pp.29–49.
DOI: 10.1504/IJEBR.2025.146379

A new approach to assessing educational quality in teaching is discussed in the International Journal of Computational Systems Engineering. The approach improves on earlier methods by side-stepping reliance on top-down performance evaluations and instead blends traditional classroom instruction with digital tools, with the aim of building more adaptable, inclusive, and data-informed learning environments.

Central to this new approach is a dynamic feedback system that monitors not just what students learn, but how they learn. It also considers how external factors might interrupt or shape their learning. The system looks at teaching effectiveness, student adaptability, and the impact of classroom disruptions. Most importantly, though, it puts both teachers and students at the centre of attention, regarding them as being in an active partnership. Instead of the conventional one-way street of teaching, the team offers a collaborative model of responsibility for educational outcomes in what they refer to as the "school effort partnership".

The team explains that educational success depends not simply on curriculum content, but on the interplay between the teacher's knowledge and their students' capabilities. In this new approach, teachers are encouraged to take on the role of facilitators, they are then guides who might adapt their methods based on real-time feedback. For their part, the students are expected to develop what the researchers term "inventive consciousness" a state of active, creative, self-directed engagement with the learning tasks presented to them.

Classroom observations and surveys have given them the empirical evidence to show that this approach can work well. It is especially successful in the education of students struggling with behavioural or attention-related challenges. When teachers adjust their approaches based on student needs and classroom dynamics, the team saw measurable improvements in participation and comprehension.

At a time when educational inequality is a persistent problem and when digital transformations continue to reshape work and life, this new approach could provide a timely, educational solution based on a more holistic view of teaching and learning that uses the very digital tools that have disrupted other areas of human endeavour.

Huang, C., Zhang, F. and Li, X. (2025) 'A network model for a mobile learning environment to track students' progress', Int. J. Computational Systems Engineering, Vol. 9, No. 9, pp.1–8.
DOI: 10.1504/IJCSYSE.2025.146390

Efforts to combat food waste in university canteens have generally focused on what students leave on their plates. A study in the International Journal of Environment and Waste Management turns the tables on campus catering and suggests that there are opportunities for saving server-side too.

Food waste is more than a logistical inconvenience, explain Boineelo Pearl Lefadola, Annemarie Viljoen, and Gerrie du Rand of University of Pretoria in South Africa. It is a growing problem feeding into climate change, resource depletion, and falling global food security. Unfortunately, many interventions in institutional settings remain reactive rather than proactive and tend to home in on the plate-scraping after the dining session is over rather than looking at improving efficiency in the kitchen and behind the serving hatch.

The team recommends a systems approach that puts every aspect of food service on the efficiency menu. For starters, they consider ingredient procurement, the mains of storage, preparation, service, and the just desserts of food waste disposal. Systems theory cooks up the idea that inefficiencies or failures at any stage can ripple through to the next course, fattening up the waste bins. The team looked at the data, talked to staff, focus groups, and made first-hand observations within a university's food service operation.

Their findings reveal that setting a place for a series of coordinated practices can significantly reduce waste. Improving various aspects of a canteen's operations can improve efficiency and reduce food waste from automated inventory that forecasts and aligns supply and demand, strict adherence to food quality and storage protocols, careful portioning based on consistent recipes, and tight controls on timing and temperature during preparation and service, can all help. Carrying out routine meal audits further help staff identify and address sources of excess and so waste. Combining all these ingredients offers a tasty recipe for change, the research suggests.

Lefadola, B.P., Viljoen, A. and du Rand, G. (2025) 'Tackling food waste in a university food service operation: a case study', Int. J. Environment and Waste Management, Vol. 36, No. 5, pp.1–14.
DOI: 10.1504/IJEWM.2025.146362