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Lower Mekong Basin (LMB) experiences a recurrent drought phenomenon. However, few studies have focused on drought monitoring in this region due to lack of ground observations. The newly released Climate Hazards Group Infrared Precipitation with Station data (CHIRPS) with a long-term record and high resolution has a great potential for drought monitoring. Based on the assessment of CHIRPS for capturing precipitation and monitoring drought, this study aims to evaluate the drought condition in LMB by using satellite-based CHIRPS from January 1981 to July 2016. The Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) at various time scales (1–12-month) is computed to identify and describe drought events. Results suggest that CHIRPS can properly capture the drought characteristics at various time scales with the best performance at three-month time scale. Based on high-resolution long-term CHIRPS, it is found that LMB experienced four severe droughts during the last three decades with the longest one in 1991–1994 for 38 months and the driest one in 2015–2016 with drought affected area up to 75.6%. Droughts tend to occur over the north and south part of LMB with higher frequency, and Mekong Delta seems to experience more long-term and extreme drought events. Severe droughts have significant impacts on vegetation condition.

Floods are among the most devastating disasters in terms of socio-economics and casualties. However, these natural disasters can be managed and their effects can be minimized by flood modeling performed before the occurrence of a flood. In this study, flood modeling was developed for the Göksu River Basin, Mersin, Türkiye. Flood hazard and risk maps were prepared by using GIS, HEC-RAS, and HEC-HMS. In hydraulic modeling, Manning’s n values were obtained from 2018 CORINE data, return period flow rates (Q25, Q50, Q100, Q500) were obtained from HEC-HMS, and the application was carried out on a 5 m resolution digital surface model. In the study area, the water depths could reach up to 10 m, and water speeds were approximately 0.7 m/s. Considering these values and the fact that the study area is an urban area, hazard maps were obtained according to the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) method. The results indicated that possible flood flow rates from Q25 to Q500, from 1191.7 m3/s to 1888.3 m3/s, were detected in the study area with HEC-HMS. Flooding also occurred under conditions of the Q25 flow rate (from 4288 km2 to 5767 km2), and the impacted areas were classified as extremely risky by the DEFRA method.

To reduce plastic waste generation from failed product batches during industrial injection molding, the sustainable production of representative prototypes is essential. Interesting is the more recent hybrid injection molding (HM) technique, in which a polymeric mold core and cavity are produced via additive manufacturing (AM) and are both placed in an overall metal housing for the final polymeric part production. HM requires less material waste and energy compared to conventional subtractive injection molding, at least if its process parameters are properly tuned. In the present work, several options of AM insert production are compared with full metal/steel mold inserts, selecting isotactic polypropylene as the injected polymer. These options are defined by both the AM method and the material considered and are evaluated with respect to the insert mechanical and conductive properties, also considering Moldex3D simulations. These simulations are conducted with inputted measured temperature-dependent AM material properties to identify in silico indicators for wear and to perform cooling cycle time minimization. It is shown that PolyJetted Digital acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) polymer and Multi jet fusioned (MJF) polyamide 11 (PA11) are the most promising. The former option has the best durability for thinner injection molded parts, and the latter option the best cooling cycle times at any thickness, highlighting the need to further develop AM options.

Digital Transformations (DT) play an increasingly important role in academia and business, yet their significant Environmental Footprint (EF) is often overlooked, sidelining their potential for Environmental Sustainability (ES). This paper bridges this gap by integrating ES into the discourse of DT, proposing Green Enterprise Architecture (GREAN) as a method for sustainable transformation. Utilizing a Design Science Research approach, we developed an artefact outlining a comprehensive strategy for embedding ES in DT across various layers of an organization. The tool’s need was validated via a systematic literature review (SLR), highlighting the significant research gap in Green Enterprise Architecture. The artefact provides concrete Courses of Action (CoAs) for incorporating ES into the organizational strategy, business, data, application, and technology layers and proposes relevant capabilities to address this. The paper further presents an ES-aware business capability modelling, an innovative business modelling approach that integrates environmental sustainability principles by using (in a novel way) the presentation and analysis methods that capability mapping offers. The proposed artefact serves as a starting point for environmentally sustainable DTs. Future research directions include in-depth exploration of each enterprise layer for ES, real-world validation of our proposed tools and concepts, and the expansion of these into a full framework.

Walkability has become a research topic of great concern for preserving public health, especially in the era of the COVID-19 outbreak. Today more than ever, urban and transport policies, constrained by social distancing measures and travel restrictions, must be conceptualized and implemented with a particular emphasis on sustainable walkability. Most of the walkability models apply observation and subjective methods to measure walkability, whereas few studies address walkability based on sense perception. To fill this gap, we aim at investigating the perceived neighbourhood walkability (PNW) based on sense perception in a neighbourhood of Brussels. We designed a survey that integrates 22 items grouped into 5 dimensions (cleanness, visual aesthetics, landscape and nature, feeling of pressure, feeling of safety), as well as the socio-demographic attributes of the participants. Using various statistical methods, we show that socio-demographics have almost no effects on perceived neighbourhood walkability. Nonetheless, we found significant differences between groups of different educational backgrounds. Furthermore, using a binomial regression model, we found strong associations between PNW and at least one item from each grouping dimension. Finally, we show that based on a deep neural network for classification, the items have good predictive capabilities (78% of classification accuracy). These findings can help integrate sense perception into objective measurement methods of walkable environments. Additionally, policy recommendations should be targeted based on differences of perception across socio-demographic groups.

This study investigates the extending negative effects of impression management (IM) on organizational outcomes in the nursing context. Specifically, this study aims to understand the impact of IM on workplace exclusion through workplace deviance. The data came from 277 head nurses (nurses in leadership positions) in elderly care homes in Belgium. Structured paper-and-pencil questionnaires were administered on site in the respondents’ workplaces. In the findings of the current research, IM is positively related to workplace exclusion and the relationship is mediated by workplace deviance. Although, initially, IM is performed by the actors as a natural behavior to maintain their image, at some point, the actors can become fatigued with maintaining their image. Under ego depletion theory, the exhausted IM actors will be highly experienced in deviance or bad performance. Furthermore, consistent with social information processing theory and a correlation study between employees’ poor performance and workplace exclusion, the IM actors who fail to deliver good performance or behavior following their like-based rewards may be subject to social exclusion in their workplace.

Increasing material use efficiency is important to mitigate future supply risks and minimize environmental impacts associated with the production of the materials. The policy mix presented in this paper aims to contribute to reducing the use of virgin metals in the EU by 80% by 2050 without significant shifting of burdens to other material resources, environmental impacts, or parts of the world. We used a heuristic framework and a systems perspective for designing the policy mix that combines primary instruments designed to increase material efficiency, recycling and substitution of materials (a materials tax, the extended producer responsibility, technical regulations, and environmental taxes) and supportive instruments aimed to reduce barriers to implementing the primary instruments and to contribute towards the policy objectives (e.g., research and development support, and advanced recycling centers). Furthermore, instruments were designed so as to increase political feasibility: e.g., taxes were gradually increased as part of a green fiscal reform, and border-tax adjustments were introduced to reduce impacts on competitiveness. However, even in such a policy mix design ongoing ex-ante assessments indicate that the policy mix will be politically difficult to implement—and also fall short of achieving the 80% reduction target. Nonetheless, we suggest combining primary and supportive instruments into coherent and dynamic policy mixes as a promising step towards system reconfigurations for sustainability.

Bio-based plastics are increasingly appearing in a range of consumption products, and after use they often end up in technical recycling chains. Bio-based plastics are different from fossil-based ones and could disturb the current recycling of plastics and hence inhibit the closure of plastic cycles, which is undesirable given the current focus on a transition towards a circular economy. In this paper, this risk has been assessed via three elaborated case studies using data and information retrieved through an extended literature search. No overall risks were revealed for bio-based plastics as a group; rather, every bio-based plastic is to be considered as a potential separate source of contamination in current recycling practices. For PLA (polylactic acid), a severe incompatibility with PET (polyethylene terephthalate) recycling is known; hence, future risks are assessed by measuring amounts of PLA ending up in PET waste streams. For PHA (polyhydroxy alkanoate) there is no risk currently, but it will be crucial to monitor future application development. For PEF (polyethylene furanoate), a particular approach for contamination-related issues has been included in the upcoming market introduction. With respect to developing policy, it is important that any introduction of novel plastics is well guided from a system perspective and with a particular eye on incompatibilities with current and upcoming practices in the recycling of plastics.