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The SmartBay NIAP fund was made available in 2012 through Dublin City University over a two year period to enable researchers to access the SmartBay Ireland National Test and Demonstration Facility in Galway Bay. Research proposals were invited for funding under a number of activity types that are in line with the objectives of the SmartBay PRTLI Cycle 5 programme. This fund provided small awards (typically €2-25K) to research teams through a national competitive process, which was open to all higher education institutions on the island of Ireland. There were both open and biannual calls. The SmartBay NIAP fund was established to enable researchers in academia and industry to access the SmartBay Ireland national test and demonstration infrastructure. Proposals to access the infrastructure were brief and required information on the researcher(s), a description of the proposed research and its potential impact to the research team arising from the access to SmartBay Ireland. Marine Institute

Tourism sustainability is a ubiquitous topic of scientific circles. To this day, there is controversy about the environmental, economic and socio-cultural sustainability of this global industry. Although selective forms are increasingly being promoted, mass tourism is still dominant, with many consequences. Its impacts are especially visible in small and sensitive areas, with many visitors and associated infrastructure (uncontrolled urbanization). Therefore, this paper aims to point out the sustainability of its development in the area of the mountain center Zlatibor in southwestern Serbia. As one of the most visited destinations after the capital of Belgrade and Vrnjačka Banja Spa, in the last two decades have been under increasing pressure that exceeds its capacity. The European Union methodology for comparative indicators of sustainable tourism was used. The survey was supplemented by an analysis of official statistics. The obtained results highlighted numerous problems in terms of environmental sustainability (red zone), while a significantly better situation was observed in terms of a social and economic system. In this way, this research can be a starting point for key tourism policymakers and future development directions.

Great part of the History of mankind is registered in the form of documents or works of art on paper support. Paper can be deteriorated due to physical, chemical and biological agents. Within microorganisms, fungi are the major paper biodeteriogens. Throughout history, several toxic methods have been used to prevent and stop fungal deterioration on paper based materials. More recently, a growing concern about environmental and health issues has led to the research on new antifungal alternatives, with lower toxicity. However, the existent antifungal methods and compounds still have drawbacks in terms of efficacy, health hazards, damaging effects on paper, or lack of thorough testing. In this context, the present thesis focused on testing and developing accessible antifungal treatments with low toxicity, which could prevent the long term paper deterioration. The selection of antifungal compounds was made taking into account the results from a literature review on antifungals used on paper conservation, a survey to paper conservators, and a review of antifungals used in cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries, having as a basic premise their low toxicity. Aspergillus niger, Chaetomium globosum, Cladosporium cladosporioides, Penicillium chrysogenum and Penicillium corylophilum were selected as test fungal species. Fungal growth on paper was evaluated by measuring colonization areas and biomass dry weight determination. A formulation containing parabens and calcium propionate (PBs+CP) presented the best antifungal activity on paper samples, followed by a formulation containing clotrimazole and calcium hydroxide nanoparticles (CLT+NPs), and ultimately 70% ethanol (70%EtOH). Before application on cultural heritage materials, conservation treatments have to be thoroughly tested to assess if they can cause any damage on the treated materials in the short and long term. The effects of the tested formulations on paper were evaluated in terms of pH, colourimetry, folding endurance and molecular alterations, using moist heat artificial ageing. Besides plain paper, paper previously biodeteriorated by A. niger was tested in order to evaluate the potential of each compound to prevent further deterioration caused by fungal metabolites. The obtained results on biodeteriorated samples illustrate how tremendously damaging the products excreted by fungi can be in the long term. PBs+CP formulation was the only one capable of preventing long term acidification, loss of folding endurance, and discoloration caused by fungal metabolites, but on the other hand, on plain samples, this formulation caused paper discoloration. CLT+NPs formulation significantly prevented the acidification and loss of folding endurance, although causing a minor discoloration on paper at a long term. 70%EtOH had a mild positive impact in the chemical stabilization of paper and did not cause any paper discoloration. The information provided in this thesis contributes to a deeper understanding on safer options for preventing and treating paper deterioration by fungi and opens the way for further research in this challenging field of heritage conservation.

This Article examines the genesis and context of SE4All, placing the effort within both itshistorical and international policy contexts. It highlights the voluntary nature of the initiative andargues that its effective implementation and the achievement of its goals require the articulation ofan applicable international legal framework that aids the transformation of SE4All’s policy actionsinto binding international legal commitments. The article contends that such a transformation doesnot depend on the creation of entirely new legal rules or institutions. Instead, an effective frame-work for successful implementation of SE4All can be derived from existing rules of internationalhuman rights law and sustainable development law. Reliance on these twin bodies of interna-tional law will increase the prospects for SE4All to achieve energy access and related goals thatits predecessor initiatives have failed to accomplish

Mix design is a process in which one determines the relative quantities of the ingredients prior to mixing to produce the desired quality of concrete. By varying the mix proportions of the ingredients, different strength grades of concrete can be obtained. Several factors, which include water cement ratio, workability, curing type and duration, sizes of coarse aggregate, and sand silt content are among the several factors attributing to the quality of concrete. In this paper, attempts have been made to provide mix design proposals considering the most important factors contributing to the quality of concrete. Fxtensive concrete mix preparations were made to obtain concrete strength grades up to C-45 using .Hessebo Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC). Realizing the various factors contributing to the quality of concrete, 43 trial batches of different mix designs were investigated. Based on the test results, equations were derived to relate compressive strength to w/c and to predict the 28 days compressive strength from the 7 days compressive strength. In all cases, Messebo OPC was used and the results show that it can be used to produce concrete grades of higher quality (up to C-45) for the construction industry of normal practices.Key words: Aggregate, Compressive strength, Concrcte, Curing, Mix proportion, Portland cement, Tensile strength, W/c ratio, Workability. 

The paper discusses a case study of the Trás-os-Montes region to assess the resilience and sustainability of the local sheep sector. The area is a low-density mountainous region where small ruminant production is a relevant sector of the economy and is mainly based on natural resources. The study employed a mixed methodological approach to identify the socio-economic profile of different actors and the main obstacles and opportunities of this livestock activity. The research found that the main strength of the sector is the intrinsic quality of the products with origin in the various indigenous sheep breeds. However, marketing channels associated with this mechanism are generally limited, and its market shares are minimal. The analysis highlights the constraints resulting from the holdings’ small average size, the advanced age of most farmers, the lack of successors, the low profitability of the lamb meat, and producers’ weak bargaining power. Also, wool's lack of economic interest is an economic and environmental problem for farmers. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Resposta à Audiência Pública - Discussion Paper and comment letters: Proposed Targeted Amendments to the IFRS Foundation Constitution to Accommodate an International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) to Set IFRS Sustainability Standards.

Bio-based and biodegradable plastics (BBPs) are innovative materials, wholly or partially produced from biomass, with the potential to enhance the circulation of resources in the biological cycle of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s butterfly diagram. Although BBPs are generally considered more environmental-friendly than conventional plastics, robust scientific evidence is still missing. The lack of tools and metrics to assess the circularity and sustainability of the BBPs industry poses relevant challenges for its upscaling and contribution to climate neutrality goals in Europe. It calls for adopting system and life cycle thinking, guided by multi-level and multi-dimensional examinations, which led researchers to build a comprehensive picture of trends, gaps and future orientations that may boost a sustainable circular bioeconomy in the sector. The value- chain based and multi-faceted SWOT analysis that emerged from the intersection of system and corporate data reveals the need to establish a combined circular bioeconomy strategy where incentives to integrated local supply chain, dedicated EPR scheme, eco-design guidelines, revised EoL standards, new clear labelling schemes and harmonised sustainability criteria should be prioritized and conjointly pursued to accelerate the transition towards a sustainable circular bioeconomy of the BBPs value chain. European Journal of Social Impact and Circular Economy, V. 4 N. 2 (2023)

In recent years, the fact that the concern for the nature has declined not only threatened the natural environment but also increased the amount of waste materials and pollution rates. As it became necessary to recycle the disposed items, popularizing the usage of the recyclable products has gained great importance. The increasing pollution rates reached a serious level day by day and it became hard to prohibit. "Energy Park" Project which aims to make citizens become more conscious about this subject and to be able to spend time in a natural environment...