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This paper evaluated the environmental effects of socially responsible investments (SRIs) in European countries and analyzed the differentiation between them in terms of SRIs and selected features in the environmental dimension. The first section of the paper discusses contemporary trends in Europe and in certain European countries, whilst the second compares SR environmental investments and environmental factors in selected European countries from a multidimensional perspective. The aim of the study was to identify and evaluate these trends as well as to find similarities and differences between European countries, and subsequently to indicate groups of countries with similar approaches to pro-ecological investments. In order to solve the problem, descriptive and multidimensional statistical methods were used, namely correspondence analysis (CA). Although the research results clearly revealed upward tendencies in the volume of SR environmental investments in the analyzed period, they nonetheless represent a relatively low share in the total number of socially responsible investments. The overall growth in SRIs in Europe may have resulted from the more intense activities of policymakers in some countries as a consequence of concluding agreements reached during the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21) in 2015. The results of the study also revealed no significant correlations between SR environmental investments and environmental variables among the European countries analyzed; hence, there is no substantial evidence that investors’ assets contribute to the improvement of the environment.

Background: The global palm oil market experienced a remarkable boom since the year 2000. Since palm oil can be used for biodiesel production, the global expansion of oil palm cultivation has been associated with the global biofuel boom. Biofuel policies—especially those adopted in the European Union (EU)—have been blamed for the socio-environmental impacts of oil palm expansion. We explore how the global biofuel boom interacts with national geographies and social-economic and political processes to produce country-specific trajectories of biofuel crops expansion. We analyse the expansion of oil palm cultivation in Colombia between 2000 and 2010 from a political ecology perspective. Methods: The analysis is based on a framework that positions expansion of commodity frontiers within the ‘space-of-flows’ and the ‘space-of-place’. Through this approach, we identify the markets and geographies that define the country-specific trajectories of expansion of oil palm in Colombia, and their connections with general patterns of land control. The empirical analysis is based on primary data collected during fieldwork, and on an extensive review of secondary data about the palm oil sector and the socio-environmental effects of oil palm expansion in the country. Results: The contemporary oil palm expansion in Colombia was not specifically influenced by the international biofuel market. Expansion was characterized by an increasing production of palm oil for biodiesel, to supply a policy-driven national biofuel market controlled by national palm oil producers. The evidence shows that this oil palm expansion proceeded through a variety of land control practices that constitute forms of ‘accumulation by dispossession’ and ‘assimilation’. These are embedded in contextual factors that include the agrarian history of Colombia, the armed conflict, and government policies. Conclusions: Our study shows that the ways in which expansion of biofuel crops unfold in each producing country depend not only on the global biofuel market. They are also shaped by the country-specific geographies and political economies. Therefore, research and policies on the global expansion of energy crops should account for the complex and interrelated factors that mediate the specific ways in which the global demand for biofuels creates biofuel crop booms at country level.

The number of women who settle in urban areas from rural villages is growing in South Africa. The promise of a better life for these women in cities appears real. The government has done much in building low cost houses and bringing services to many poor families. However, as numbers burgeon, so does the demand for better life and essential services. This case study examines the experiences of eight women in educating their children in the city. They are all residents of Nene Informal Settlement where life has become hard. These participants were observed, shadowed and interviewed. Trying to feed their children, their stories reflect life of poverty and ill-health. With no full time jobs, they have no hopes of moving out of the squalor. However, the schooling of their children does not appear to be the ultimate solution to poverty. These poor women’s homes lack social and cultural capital necessary to support the children. Yet, with no motivation and necessary resources, it appears as if the children will live the life of their mothers. The paper concludes by showing that unless these women change own their lives, they can never change the dire course of their children’s journeys. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n14p546

Abstract The consumption of takeaway food is increasing worldwide. Single-use containers used for takeaway food represent a significant source of waste and environmental impacts due to their low recyclability. Consequently, it is important to identify the best available alternatives and improvement opportunities to reduce the environmental impacts of fast-food containers. For these purposes, this study estimates and compares for the first time the life cycle impacts of three most widely-used types of takeaway container: aluminium, polypropylene and extruded polystyrene. These are also compared to reusable polypropylene containers. The findings suggest that single-use polypropylene containers are the worst option for seven out of 12 impacts considered, including global warming potential. They are followed by the aluminium alternative with five highest impacts, including depletion of ozone layer and human toxicity. Overall, extruded polystyrene containers have the lowest impacts due to the lower material and electricity requirements in their manufacture. They are also the best option when compared to reused takeaway polypropylene containers, unless the latter are reused 3–39 times. The number of uses needed for the reusable “Tupperware” polypropylene food savers is even higher, ranging from 16 to 208 times, with terrestrial ecotoxicity being always higher than for extruded polystyrene, regardless of the number of uses. However, extruded polystyrene containers are currently not recycled and cannot be considered a sustainable option. If they were recycled in accordance with the European Union 2025 policy on waste packaging, most of their impacts would be reduced by >18%, while also reducing littering and negative effects on marine organisms. Most of the impacts of the other two types of container would also be reduced (>20%) through increased recycling. Implementing the European Union 2025 policy on recycling of waste packaging would reduce all the impacts by 2%–60%, including a 33% reduction in global warming potential. Based on 2025 million takeaway containers used annually in the European Union, the latter would save 61,700 t CO2 eq./yr, equivalent to the emissions of 55,000 light-duty vehicles. The outcomes of this study will be of interest to packaging manufacturers, food outlets, policy makers and consumers.

This research presents a 100% renewable energy (RE) scenario by 2050 with a high share of electric vehicles on the grid (V2G) developed in Ecuador with the support of the EnergyPLAN analysis tool. Hour-by-hour data iterations were performed to determine solutions among various features, including energy storage, V2G connections that spanned the distribution system, and long-term evaluation. The high participation in V2G connections keeps the electrical system available; meanwhile, the high proportions of variable renewable energy are the pillar of the joint electrical system. The layout of the sustainable mobility scenario and the high V2G participation maintain the balance of the electrical system during most of the day, simplifying the storage equipment requirements. Consequently, the influence of V2G systems on storage is a significant result that must be considered in the energy transition that Ecuador is developing in the long term. The stored electricity will not only serve as storage for future grid use. Additionally, the V2G batteries serve as a buffer between generation from diversified renewable sources and the end-use stage.

AbstractOur results introduce the preferences and attitudes of farmers and the internet-orientated population regarding renewable energy sources (RES) in Kosovo. The research included 243 internet-orientated participants and 30 farmers. The data was gathered through questionnaires (in both groups) and deep interviews (just in farmers). The results showed that the awareness of RES was high for especially solar, wind and hydro energy, the relationship among them was very strong. It was justified that firewood was typically used by respondents with low income, but not considered as renewable energy source, similarly to Hungary and the USA. A special feature of Kosovo is that electricity has very high importance for the man in the street, even for heating. Better education, higher income and environmental-consciousness definitely support better knowledge of RES, similarly to international tendencies. Males and employed participants had more knowledge about RES than females, or unemployed ones. Moreover, the results showed that the participants prefer environment rather than convenience, which is also typical of less wealthy countries. Our results might be useful as a typical less developed country case study for international comparison and helps to eliminate the unknown willingness in RES for the development of future agricultural strategies in Kosovo.

This paper presents an open standards-based information system supporting the democratization and consumer empowerment through flexibility activation. The paper describes a functional technical reference infrastructure: a secure, standard-based and viable communication backbone for flexibility activation. The infrastructure allows connection, registering, activation and reporting for different types of granular consumer flexibility. The flexibility sources can be directly controllable set points of chargers and stationary batteries, as well as controllable loads. The proposed communication system sees all these flexibility provisions as distributed energy resources in a wider sense, and the architecture allows consumer-level integration of different energy systems. This makes new flexibility sources fully available to the balancing responsible entities in a viable and realistically implementable manner. The proposed reference architecture, as implemented in the FLEXCoop project, relies on established open standards as it is based on the OpenADR and OAuth2 / OpenID standards and the corresponding IEC 62746-10 standard, and it covers interfacing towards other relevant standards. The security and access implications are addressed by the OpenID security layer built on top of the OAuth2 and integrated with the OpenADR standard. To address the data protection and privacy aspects, the architecture is designed on the least knowledge principle.

Rising wealth—the progress from a “state of nature”—is contingent upon an ever wider division of labour. The web of mutual dependence and co-operation thus created has since long transgressed state borders. But as of late this global net of interdependence has become tightly woven. Being thus dependent on others seems at odds with the prime aim of national security, which is to preserve identity and full freedom of action. However, this definition of national security is no longer functional in this era of globalisation. Broad and useful interaction with others enhances national security; while isolation undermines it. There is a moral aspect to this: “identity” demands the “significant other”; and a diversified and wider identity thus calls for a wide interface with many such “others”. Wide interaction is also contingent on the participants being seen as trustworthy. It thus depends on—and creates—a culture of mutual responsibility. 1. Editor's note: it is the policy of Global Society occasionally to pub...