• Energy Research
• 13. Climate action close
• 8. Economic growth close
• Sumy State University close

Introduction—I begin by considering two competing definitions of sustainability (utilitybased versus throughput-based), and offer reasons for rejecting the former and accepting the latter. Next I consider the concept of development as currently understood (GDP growth led by global economic integration), and why it conflicts with sustainability, as well as with the premises of comparative advantage. Then I turn to the more general necessity of introducing the concept of throughput into economic theory, noting the awkward consequences to both micro and macro economics of having ignored the concept. Finally I consider some policy implications for sustainable development that come from a more adequate economic theory. These policies (ecological tax reform and/or cap and trade limits on throughput) are based on the principle of frugality first, rather than efficiency first. As a concluding addendum I comment on the World Bank’s 2003 World Development Report, dedicated this year to the topic of sustainable development, and note points of agreement and difference with the ideas presented here.

Over the past decades, as a result of global environmental, energy and economic crises, the level of development of the fuel and energy complexes in the world has become one of the dominant factors determining the level of national security, the country’s competitiveness in the world market and its economic stability. At the same time, today the level of environmental and natural and technogenic safety of energy companies is extremely low in the world. Taking this into account, scientists and representatives of state authorities of various countries of the world, as well as intergovernmental associations and international organizations discuss the problem of searching for innovative sources of electric power generation for obtaining new types of energy products that can change innovative sources of electricity production and the global economy as a whole, and will increase the rationality of resource use and environmental safety of the country, regions and people.

The war in Ukraine dealt a crushing blow to the country’s economy. The relevance of the topic is due to the marketing ability to be an effective tool for restoring and developing business in Ukraine. The paper aims to define the state and prospects for developing business and its marketing component during the war in Ukraine. The research analysis demonstrates that the share of business representatives who completely or partially ceased their activities during the first three months of the war decreased from 75.3% in March to 49.0% in May (compared to February 24, 2022), which is indicative of the gradual resumption of business in Ukraine. At the same time, it was found that in May 2022, the food retail, non-food retail, household appliances, and electronics sectors partially resumed their work. The best renewal rates are observed in the jewelry sector, and the worst – in the entertainment sector. A study of marketing activities in Ukraine shows that the most positive changes regarding gradual renewal are observed in digital marketing. The paper highlights the key consequences of hostilities for Ukrainian business and its marketing activities: supply chain disruption, reduced purchasing power, changes in consumer demand, stockpiling, and a state of uncertainty among business representatives. In addition, the study offers general approaches to adapting marketing and SMM during the war to preserve, restore, and further develop business in Ukraine.

The article summarizes the arguments and counterarguments within a scientific discussion on the issue of increasing the level of motivation and job satisfaction in organizations. The main objective of the study is to identify facts of increasing the employee job satisfaction and to determine key tools for increasing their motivation towards effective and quality work. The systematization of literary sources and approaches to solving the problem of improving the productivity of economic entities indicates the significant urgency of the problems associated with the low level of motivation of employees. The relevance of solving this scientific problem lies in the fact that motivation plays an important role, since it forms the basis of managerial functions in the context of planning and organizing business, improves the performance of employees in an organization. Methodological tools of the research were methods of data analysis and synthesis, surveys and statistical methods. The subject of the study is employees of the University of Africa and Market Square Bayelsa State. The paper presents the results of an empirical analysis, which show that motivation and job satisfaction are considered a means of increasing the effectiveness of the organization and providing quality services, as well as a tool to achieve high productivity. The study anchored on Herzberg two factors theory of motivation and the research adopted a qualitative technique. The research empirically confirms and theoretically proves that there is a strong link between motivation and job satisfaction for efficient service delivery in the various organizations and that wages, bonuses also play an important part of motivating employees which increases job satisfaction within organizations. The study recommends prompt payment of salaries and all entitlements, which actually help to encourage employees towards effective job satisfaction. Keywords: employees, job satisfaction, motivation, organization, performance.

In autumn 2021, the world faced the first round of energy crisis [...]

The most critical parameters of the microclimate in greenhouses are air and soil temperature, air and soil moisture, plant illumination, and carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration in photosynthesis. New energy sources and resource-efficient management of microclimate parameters in greenhouses can be utilized to reduce greenhouse crop cultivation costs and increase profits. As the plant mass increase depends on photosynthesis, which involves the formation of glucose in the plant chloroplasts from water and carbon dioxide under the influence of light radiation, the saturation of greenhouses with carbon dioxide has become popular in recent decades. However, insufficient light slows down the process of glucose formation, while excessive light intensity negatively affects photosynthesis. Based on the experimentally proven Van Henten model of plant growth and using the MATLAB environment, a methodology was proposed, and the dependence between CO2 concentration and leaf lettuce illumination power required for maximum photosynthesis was determined. It is equal to 0.57 ppm/(W/m2). Such dependence should be considered when designing control systems to reduce resource and energy costs for greenhouse crop cultivation while ensuring maximum yield.

This paper summarizes the arguments and counterarguments within the scientific discussion on the issue of state and local governments’ support of small businesses in U.S. states. The main purpose of the research is to determine whether state or local government’s support positively affects entrepreneurial activity, firm growth, and business owner’s optimism in the United States. Non-parametric methods of estimation and analysis of statistical hypotheses were used as the methodological basis of the conducted research, based on which 41 country were analyzed. 2013 was chosen as the study period. The study of the impact of state support on business, company growth and optimism of business owners is carried out in the following logical sequence: each state is assigned to one of two groups, based on their estimates of the level of support of state authorities. First, each state is assigned into one of two groups based on their score on state government support. The states that have a score higher than the mean state were assigned into the “High-State Govt Support” group and the others were assigned into the “Low-State Govt Support” group. Then, the two groups were compared in terms of entrepreneurial activity, firm performance, and optimism. Then, the same procedure is followed for local government support. The study empirically confirmed that greater support from the state or local government has a positive effect on the growth and optimism of the firm. The article presents the results of an empirical analysis for small firms in these countries, which showed that government support is an important driver of company growth and business owner optimism. The paper presents the results of an empirical analysis for small firms in these states, which showed that government support is important for firm growth and owner’s optimism. The research empirically confirms and theoretically proves that more state or local government support positively affects firm growth and optimism. The results of the research can be useful for governments that consider supporting small businesses in their region/area. Keywords: entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, government support, growth, optimism, small business.

This paper aimed at studying the current state of development of liquid biofuels’ world market. The authors considered the theoretical bases of liquid biofuels production, their types, disadvantages and advantages. The world experience of introducing stimulation mechanisms of development and their influence on the sectors’ growth is analyzed. In this study’s frame, there is outlined the world leaders in the production of liquid biofuels. The findings represent the peculiarities of state regulation in implementing mandates for creating transport fuels with bioliquids. The current state of investment in the production of liquid biofuels was investigated. The obtained results contribute to the prospects for promoting world production of liquid biofuels to achieve the Paris Agreement’s goals by 2030 under the sustainable development scenario.