• Energy Research
• 11. Sustainability close
• AO close
• Sustainability close

At this time, efforts are being made on a worldwide scale to accomplish sustainable development objectives. It has, thus, now become essential to investigate the part of technology in the accomplishment of these Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as this will enable us to circumvent any potential conflicts that may arise. The importance of wastewater management in the accomplishment of these goals has been highlighted in the study. The research focuses on the role of fourth industrial revolution in meeting the Sustainable Goals for 2030. Given that water is the most important resource on the planet and since 11 of the 17 Sustainable Goals are directly related to having access to clean water, effective water management is the most fundamental need for achieving these goals. The age of Industry 4.0 has ushered in a variety of new solutions in many industrial sectors, including manufacturing, water, energy, healthcare, and electronics. This paper examines the present creative solutions in water treatment from an Industry-4.0 viewpoint, focusing on big data, the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, and several other technologies. The study has correlated the various concepts of Industry 4.0 along with water and wastewater management and also discusses the prior work carried out in this field with help of different technologies. In addition to proposing a way for explaining the operation of I4.0 in water treatment through a systematic diagram, the paper makes suggestions for further research as well.

Currently, sustainability is a vital aspect for every nation and organization to accomplish Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) metrics are used to evaluate the sustainability level of an organization. According to the statistics, 53% of respondents in the BlackRock survey are concerned about the availability of low ESG data, which is critical for determining the organization’s sustainability level. This obstacle can be overcome by implementing Industry 4.0 technologies, which enable real-time data, data authentication, prediction, transparency, authentication, and structured data. Based on the review of previous studies, it was determined that only a few studies discussed the implementation of Industry 4.0 technologies for ESG data and evaluation. The objective of the study is to discuss the significance of ESG data and report, which is used for the evaluation of the sustainability of an organization. In this regard, the assimilation of Industry 4.0 technologies (Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, and big data for obtaining ESG data by an organization is detailed presented to study the progress of advancement of these technologies for ESG. On the basis of analysis, this study concludes that consumers are concerned about the ESG data, as most organizations develop inaccurate ESG data and suggest that these digital technologies have a crucial role in framing an accurate ESG report. After analysis a few vital conclusions are drawn such as ESG investment has benefited from AI capabilities, which previously relied on self-disclosed, annualized company information that was susceptible to inherent data issues and biases. Finally, the article discusses the vital recommendations that can be implemented for future work.

The supply of raw materials is a global challenge to be addressed; themes such as “sustainability”, “responsibility”, and “eco-compatibility” represent the cornerstones for proceeding towards a “wise” management of georesources. According to the United Nations’ SDGs, the economic development of countries must go hand in hand with the improvement of their environmental, health, and social sustainability. From this perspective, the exploitation of georesources needs to be handled with an interdisciplinary approach that tackles not only the technical, economic, and environmental issues, but also the social, legislative, and human health ones. In recent years, Europe has promoted several cooperative projects aimed at boosting sustainability in the extractive industry. To achieve and guarantee concrete and truly sustainable mining, it is necessary to build and strengthen educational and training skills. With these objectives in mind, the first results of the EU–Africa SUGERE Erasmus+ project are presented here. The objects of the project are the implementation of Bachelor, Master, and doctoral curricula in geology and mining engineering and the promotion of socioeconomic development thanks to the training of experts who are able to cooperate and work in an interdisciplinary manner for a sustainable approach to local mine exploitation.