Societal Impacts最新文献

In South Korea, the lack of understanding of financial products has emerged as a significant challenge, contributing to a gap in financial literacy. This research proposes a novel approach to bridge this gap by employing statistical interdependence and explainable AI (xAI) to enhance comprehension of the interconnectedness of economic variables. By translating complex financial information into intuitive visual formats, the methodology empowers individuals to make informed decisions. Collaborations with South Korean financial institutions ensure alignment with local practices and regulations. Preliminary testing indicates promising results in improving financial literacy, mainly related to financial products. The study offers valuable insights for addressing financial literacy challenges in South Korea and potentially beyond, emphasizing the role of technology and collaboration in fostering financial understanding and economic stability. It sets the stage for future research and policy interventions to enhance financial literacy in a technologically advanced society.

This study examines the societal effect of willingness to pay for energy emissions offset by road travellers in the northeastern region of Nigeria. A survey method was employed to collect first-hand information from 601 road travelers and analyzed using an open-ended contingent valuation method. The findings revealed that about 66% of road travellers’ consent to pay for energy emissions offset from road transport, but at relatively low price. Equally, about 43% have a basic knowledge of energy offset, and about 83% of road travellers have less experience in an emissions offset program. The findings further revealed that the average open-ended willingness to pay for energy emissions stands at $0.15 for a trip. Thus, the societal impact of these findings was analyzed and recommendations on the need for increased awareness on emission offset and a clean environment for inclusive development were made.

This article explores the role of community proactivity in advancing sustainable futures and its impact on community development, with a focus on the sustainability planning process in Vytina County, Greece. Drawing on existing research, we emphasize the pivotal role of shared visions in driving community proactivity, creating a positive feedback loop, and the need for proactive approaches to address obstacles and stimulate community engagement for resilient futures. The research aligns with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including Sustainable Cities and Communities, Climate Action, and Partnerships for the Goals. We employ a bottom-up planning process and a mixed-methods approach to assess proactivity and resistance to change, highlighting the significance of proactivity in achieving sustainable development and its role in shaping communities' futures.

Views on how to balance the needs of humans and the environment differ widely. Global citizenship supports the transition to a sustainable society as the substantial and complex challenges facing the world transcend national borders. Global citizenship is a key response in contemporary higher education which aims to prepare students to address present and future challenges. We outline the design, international virtual collaboration, for an undergraduate course to develop students' global citizenship competencies. International virtual collaboration works as an open-source instrument that provides an inclusive, equitable and low environmental impact solution to the internationalization of university students at home. We explain an iterative Participatory Action Research methodology to develop and enhance the present and anticipated positive societal impact of the course. The positive societal impacts include reduced environmental impact (by reduced need to travel), improved partnerships (by better understanding of cultural differences that may make working together across borders difficult), quality education (by improved educational design and approach), equality and diversity (by improved access, lower cost, for education that develops global citizenship competencies).

Very low fertility in Italy is a social problem as it is largely involuntary and represents a threat to the continuity of the society and to welfare state accounts. Rising economic uncertainty is considered in the literature as one of the driving forces behind the postponement of childbearing and the reduction in fertility rates in contemporary Europe. Understanding whether employment instability causally and negatively impacts fertility decisions is of fundamental importance to providing clear recommendations to policymakers. To the best of our knowledge, the only study applying a counterfactual approach to the impact of temporary employment on parenthood is an article by Vignoli et al. [11]. The present study replicates such a paper utilizing more recent data for Italy (2016, instead of 2009), thus covering a period encompassing the Great Recession. We adopt the potential outcome approach to causal inference so as to quantify the net effect of having a first job with a temporary vs. permanent contract on the propensity to first-child conception. Our findings confirm a clear-cut causal effect of temporary employment on first-birth postponement. Largely overlapping previous results, we demonstrate how precarious work has become a structural factor discouraging the transition to parenthood among young Italians.

Many people view Hawaiʻi as a tropical paradise where people can relax on idyllic beaches. However, for many Native Hawaiians, the Indigenous people of Hawaiʻi, the desire to continue to reside in their homelands has become impossible. Native Hawaiians have lower socio-economic status, home ownership, and educational attainment compared to non-Hawaiians. Simultaneously, Native Hawaiians have higher rates of chronic disease, asthma, and mental health issues, which impact their quality of life. Despite efforts to address these stubborn problems, the gap between the Indigenous Native Hawaiian community and those that settled these islands continue to exist. Native Hawaiian scholars have attributed these persistent challenges to the historical trauma that the community has experienced and continues to experience stemming from the mass trauma events of colonization. Although the community acknowledges the heavy impact that historical trauma has had on Native Hawaiians, many policymakers and individuals in position of authority have expressed a need for evidence of this concept. This project seeks to develop a scale to measure Native Hawaiian historical trauma to support evaluation and advocacy efforts. Moreover, healing Native Hawaiian historical trauma would facilitate increased economic mobility, improved environmental policies, and an enriched social advancement.

The paper describes the social impact of the SOCIAL4FOOD project mainly related to the re-connection of people with nature and the fostering of social aggregation after the pandemic events. The project involved the community of the rural village of Arsoli located in Rome’s metropolitan area and known for the cultivation of a typical high-quality bean, named “fagiolina arsolana”. The social impact achieved by the project helped to address important societal challenges, including the support for sustainable agriculture and social well-being. To do so, the project followed a hybrid participatory approach based on learning-by-doing and design thinking. The implemented methodology contributed to re-purposing an abandoned green space through the co-design of a social farm for maintaining and recovering the sustainable practices of the "fagiolina arsolana” production and, simultaneously, stimulating the sense of community and belonging.

Loot boxes are gambling-like products in video games that can be purchased with real-world money to obtain random rewards. Regulations have been imposed in some jurisdictions to attempt to address potential harms. Two recent policy studies assessed companies’ compliance (but more often, non-compliance) with those regulations. The first study found that a supposed ‘ban’ on loot boxes in Belgium was not enforced so the product remained widely accessible. A preprint reporting this was widely publicised by the media. This enhanced awareness led to companies newly complying with the law and helped policymakers to view the practicality of banning loot boxes with more due scepticism. Researchers should consider actively sharing non-peer-reviewed preprint results to protect consumers more promptly. The second study found that, contrary to regulations, many games with loot boxes were not labelled. Subsequent engagement with the media and the industry self-regulators caused remedial actions to be taken: unlabelled games have since been correctly labelled, and non-compliant companies have been punished with (albeit insignificant) fines. The societal impacts of loot box policy studies demonstrate the importance of actively communicating research results to the public through media engagement and challenging companies and regulators when they are not complying with or enforcing regulations.

There is increasing pressure for consumers to adopt sustainable lifestyles; however, there is widespread confusion and lack of clear information relating to appropriate food packaging disposal. This paper explores quizzes as a strategy to test food packaging disposal knowledge and encourage engagement in UK consumers of varying ages. Three hundred and eleven consumers (4–85 years) completed the food packaging symbols and disposal quizzes at various community-based events. In summary, quiz performance was encouraging; however, it was associated with various knowledge gaps such as symbols (tidyman and green dot) and disposal (cleaning and mixed materials). Positively, nearly 90 % of consumers are interested in modulating future food packaging disposal behaviour; hence, capitalising on such findings is key going forwards. Therefore, the use of quizzes was an effective strategy to engage consumers with appropriate disposal in community settings. Future work should focus on ensuring consumers have access to relevant information coupled with improved recycling infrastructure so that households can easily implement everyday sustainable food packaging behaviour.

At the turn of the twentieth century, nanotechnology was regarded as the new innovation potential. However, increased industrial use of nanomaterials raised concerns whether nanomaterial exposure could pose occupational health risks similar to asbestos. In 2012, the National Research Centre for the Working Environment (NFA) established the ‘Danish Centre for Nanosafety’ with the aim to provide evidence-based knowledge for policy advice on occupational handling of nanomaterials. Relevant stakeholders including the Danish Working Environment Authority (WEA), the Danish Environment Protection Agency, and the social partners were engaged. The project achieved societal impact in various ways: NFA produced documentation for health-based occupational exposure limits for three engineered nanomaterials and diesel exhaust nanoparticles at the request of WEA. Denmark adopted a national occupational exposure limit for diesel particles in 2021. WEA made a guidance document on safe handling of nanomaterials. The Working Environment Council published fact sheets based on knowledge from NFA aimed at both nanomaterial providers and enterprises using nanomaterials. A revised law made it compulsory to register the presence of nanomaterials in products in the Danish Product Registry. Finally, the Danish Centre for Nanosafety supported development of a free, web-based control-banding tool for occupational risk assessment and -management of nanomaterials (NanoSafer.org).