text: Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities http://www.mdpi.com/journal/arts-humanity Latest open access articles published in Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities at http://www.mdpi.com/journal/arts-humanity http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/519 Physical, chemical and biological characteristics of seawaters are primary descriptors for understanding environmental patterns and improving maritime spatial planning for potential aquaculture uses. By analyzing these descriptors in spatial and temporal dimensions, it is possible to characterize the potential productivity performances of different locations for specific aquaculture species. We developed a toolbox that, starting from the actual competing uses of the maritime space, aims at: (a) identifying sites with conditions feasible for aquaculture fish growth (feasibility scenario); and (b) assessing their different productivity performances in terms of potential fish harvest (suitability scenario). The toolbox is being designed in the Mediterranean, northern Adriatic Sea, but because of its modularity/multi-stage process, it can be easily adapted to other areas, or scaled to larger areas. The toolbox, representing a pre-operational Copernicus downstreaming service that integrates data and products from different sources (in situ, Earth Observation and modeling), is innovative because it is based more on parameters relevant for fish vitality than on those oriented to farm functioning. Stakeholders and farmers involved in the maritime spatial planning can use resulting scenarios for decision-making and market-trading processes. Sustainability 2016-05-28 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060519 519 2071-1050 2016-05-28 doi: 10.3390/su8060519 Emiliana Valentini Federico Filipponi Alessandra Nguyen Xuan Francesco Passarelli Andrea Taramelli http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/521 The urban population (UP) measure is one of the most direct indicators that reflect the urbanization process and the impacts of human activities. The dynamics of UP is of great importance to studying urban economic, social development, and resource utilization. Currently, China lacks long time series UP data with consistent standards and comparability over time. The nighttime light images from the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program's (DMSP) Operational Linescan System (OLS) allow the acquisition of continuous and highly comparable long time series UP information. However, existing studies mainly focus on simulating the total population or population density level based on the nighttime light data. Few studies have focused on simulating the UP in China. Based on three regression models (i.e., linear, power function, and exponential), the present study discusses the relationship between DMSP/OLS nighttime light data and the UP and establishes optimal regression models for simulating the UPs of 339 major cities in China from 1990 to 2010. In addition, the present study evaluated the accuracy of UP and non-agricultural population (NAP) simulations conducted using the same method. The simulation results show that, at the national level, the power function model is the optimal regression model between DMSP/OLS nighttime light data and UP data for 1990–2010. At the provincial scale, the optimal regression model varies among different provinces. The linear regression model is the optimal regression model for more than 60% of the provinces. In addition, the comparison results show that at the national, provincial, and city levels, the fitting results of the UP based on DMSP/OLS nighttime light data are better than those of the NAP. Therefore, DMSP/OLS nighttime light data can be used to effectively retrieve the UP of a large-scale region. In the context of frequent population flows between urban and rural areas in China and difficulty in obtaining accurate UP data, this study provides a timely and effective method for solving this problem. Sustainability 2016-05-28 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060521 521 2071-1050 2016-05-28 doi: 10.3390/su8060521 Qingxu Huang Yang Yang Yajing Li Bin Gao http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/520 Natural gas hydrate, also known as combustible ice, and mainly composed of methane, is identified as a potential clean energy for the 21st century. Due to its large reserves, gas hydrate can ease problems caused by energy resource shortage and has gained attention around the world. In this paper, we focus on the exploration and development of gas hydrate as well as discussing its status and future development trend in China and abroad. We then analyze its opportunities and challenges in China from four aspects, resource, technology, economy and policy, with five forces model and Politics Economics Society Technology method. The results show China has abundance gas hydrate resource; however, backward technologies and inadequate investment have seriously hindered the future development of gas hydrate; thus, China should establish relevant cooperation framework and intuitional arrangement to attract more investment as well as breaking through technical difficulties to commercialization gas hydrate as soon as possible. Sustainability 2016-05-28 8 6 Review 10.3390/su8060520 520 2071-1050 2016-05-28 doi: 10.3390/su8060520 Zhongfu Tan Ge Pan Pingkuo Liu http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/518 The main purpose of this study is to investigate the development of the performance indicators of sustainable management in the Taiwanese bicycle industry and to perform an importance analysis. Based on the Balanced Scorecard concept, the framework of sustainable management is added. Ten experts evaluated the performance indicators of a sustainable Balanced Scorecard in the Taiwanese bicycle industry using five major categories: (1) Financial, (2) Customer, (3) Internal Business Processes, (4) Learning and Growth, and (5) Sustainable Development, and a total of 21 performance indicators were used. The analytic network process (ANP) was used to perform an importance analysis of the various performance indicators. Most of the experts suggested that for the introduction of a sustainable management strategy into the bicycle industry in Taiwan, it is necessary to include the definition of sustainable management and to improve five performance indicators: innovation process, customer satisfaction, operations process, after-sales service, and market share. According to the analysis results, this study proposed relevant management definitions and suggestions to be used as important references for decision-makers to understand the introduction of sustainable management strategies to the current bicycle industry in Taiwan. Sustainability 2016-05-28 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060518 518 2071-1050 2016-05-28 doi: 10.3390/su8060518 Chih-Chao Chung Li-Chung Chao Chih-Hong Chen Shi-Jer Lou http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/516 This paper estimates China's water utilization efficiency using the directional distance function to take into account the environmental degradation affecting the economy. We further analyze the spatial correlation and the factors influencing the utilization efficiency using spatial panel data models. The results show that water utilization efficiency in China differs between provinces and regions. For example, water utilization efficiency in the eastern coastal provinces is significantly higher than that of inland provinces. The pattern of spatial auto-correlation Moran's I index presents significant spatial auto-correlation and evident cluster tendencies in China's inter-provincial water utilization. Factors that contribute to water utilization efficiency include economic development, technological progress, and economic openness. Negative factors affecting water utilization efficiency arise from industrial structure, government interference, and water resources endowment. In addition, the price of water resources is insignificant. The improvement of water utilization efficiency is essential to sustainable economic development. To raise the utilization efficiency of water resources, China should focus on transforming its industrial restructure, advancing technological development, enhancing economic openness, and encouraging entrepreneurial innovations. Moreover, establishing a mechanism to encourage water conservation and reduce wastewater pollution will further increase water utilization efficiency. Sustainability 2016-05-28 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060516 516 2071-1050 2016-05-28 doi: 10.3390/su8060516 Hailiang Ma Chenling Shi Nan-Ting Chou http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/504 This paper develops an empirical methodology to consistently compare alternative sustainability paradigms (weak sustainability (WS), strong sustainability (SS), a-growth (AG), and de-growth (DG)) and different assessment approaches (LCA, CBA, and MCA) within alternative relationship frameworks (economic general equilibrium (EGE) and ecosystem services (ESS)). The goal is to suggest different environmental interventions (e.g., projects vs. policies) for environmental management at national, regional, or local levels. The top-down methodology is then applied to 30 interdependent industries in Italy for three pollutants and four resources during two periods. The industries were prioritized in terms of interventions to be taken to diminish pollution damage and resource depletion, whereas sustainability paradigms were compared in terms of their likelihood (i.e., WS > AG = DG > SS), robustness (i.e., AG > SS > DG > WS), effectiveness (i.e., SS > AG > DG > WS), and feasibility (i.e., SS > DG > WS > AG). Proper assessment approaches for projects are finally identified for situations when policies are infeasible (e.g., LCA in WS and SS, MCA in DG and SS within ESS, CBA in WS, and AG within EGE), by suggesting MCA in WS within ESS once ecological services are linked to sustainability criteria. Sustainability 2016-05-28 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060504 504 2071-1050 2016-05-28 doi: 10.3390/su8060504 Fabio Zagonari http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/6/63 Since 2005, a number of European films have emerged examining the legacy of Christianity in Western Europe, and the ways in which men, women and children struggle to negotiate questions of religion and secularity, the personal and the institutional, faith and doubt. This article looks at two of these films—Jessica Hausner's Lourdes (2009) and Dietrich Brüggemann's Stations of the Cross (2014)—in relation to questions of religious experience, the female body and film style. In both films the battle between these opposing categories is played out on the bodies of women—a paraplegic MS sufferer in Lourdes, an anorexic teen in Stations of the Cross—and both the films end ambiguously with what may, or may not, be a miracle of sorts: a confirmation of faith or a rebuttal. I wish to connect this ambiguity to the use of a very distinctive mise-en-scene in both films, which relies on a heavily restricted colour palate; highly formalised, painterly-compositions; and crucially what David Bordwell has termed "planimetric photography": a shooting style that eschews depth or diagonals, refusing the spectator entrance into the image and holding her instead at a deliberate distance. My argument, in short, is that these stylistic choices—while gesturing towards a tradition of Christian art—also refuse the spectator either visual or haptic knowledge of the events that the characters undergo. Rather, they are suggestive of the fundamental unknowability that characterises religious experience, leaving us alone, outside of the action, forced to negotiate ourselves between belief and doubt. Religions 2016-05-27 7 6 Article 10.3390/rel7060063 63 2077-1444 2016-05-27 doi: 10.3390/rel7060063 Catherine Wheatley http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/6/62 The relationship between social work field education, religiously affiliated organizations, and local philanthropic organizations is explored in this case study of a grant-funded project called the Congregational Social Work Education Initiative. Religiously affiliated organizations have traditionally been involved in the provision of social welfare services; yet, social work education has not embraced this tradition in ways that are intentional. Additionally, the impact of religion-based traditions on philanthropy is interesting and, here, this relationship is explored through tracing the history of a prominent family in the community of Greensboro, North Carolina. The unlikely collaboration between social work field education, religiously affiliated organizations, and a local philanthropic community health entity yields some interesting considerations for how communities can come together toward a vision of improved health. Religions 2016-05-27 7 6 Article 10.3390/rel7060062 62 2077-1444 2016-05-27 doi: 10.3390/rel7060062 Jay Poole John Rife Wayne Moore Fran Pearson http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/5/2/34 The National Broadcasting Company's (NBC) Grimm uses fairy tales and an altered history to explore modern issues in American society such as environmental concerns, individuality, and social and cultural change through magic and magic-tinged science. Worldwide chaos and strife are easily explained as part of the Grimm universe (Grimmverse) through Wesen (humanoid creatures who share characteristics with animals such as appearance and behavior), leading to a more united view of humanity and equality of human experience. Evil is often more scientifically explained, and what may appear random within our reality becomes part of a pattern in Grimm. Grimm gives its American audience a form of societal unity through historic folklore and a fictional explanation for the struggles Americans perceive to be happening within their own society as well as in other parts of the world. Humanities 2016-05-27 5 2 Article 10.3390/h5020034 34 2076-0787 2016-05-27 doi: 10.3390/h5020034 Julianna Lindsay http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/511 In today's era of information technology, human computer interaction and interface design are critical factors for a successful retail business. In a virtual world, the purpose of store layout is to create an environment that fascinates customers, entices them to spend more time in the store and encourages them to purchase from the store. The accomplishment of a successful retail business relies on a quick response and the adoption of new technologies that simplify the customer's shopping experience. Virtual stores play a vital role in enhancing the success of a retail business. Nowadays, digital signage is widely used to publicize different store contents. The aim of this paper is to select a distinct layout that can be used in digital signage. To enhance Customer Relationship Management (CRM), digital signage can be installed in various contexts, such as metro stations, shopping centers, airplane terminals, and so on. The proposed system scans the Quick Response (QR) code of a product, and the product then arrives at the user end. The tree, pipeline and guiding pathway layouts are employed in the context of digital signage. A questionnaire is used to determine customers' opinions on the most efficient layout. The statistical results show that layout significantly affects customer's behavior. Moreover, human computer interaction can help understand more about the customer's interaction with digital signage. Sustainability 2016-05-27 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060511 511 2071-1050 2016-05-27 doi: 10.3390/su8060511 Muhammad Ijaz Wu Tao Jongtae Rhee Yong-Shin Kang Ganjar Alfian http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/515 The wide-ranging literature on food systems provides multiple perspectives and world views. Various stakeholders define food and food systems in non-equivalent ways. The perception of the performance of food systems is determined by these specific perspectives, and a wide variety of policies responding to different aims are proposed and implemented accordingly. This paper sets out to demonstrate that the pre-analytical adoption of different narratives about the food system leads to non-equivalent assessments of the performance of food supply chains. In order to do so, we (i) identify a set of relevant narratives on food supply chains in Spanish and Catalan contexts; (ii) identify the pertinent attributes needed to describe and represent food supply chains within the different perspectives or narratives; and (iii) carry out an integrated assessment of three organic tomato supply chains from the different perspectives. In doing so, the paper proposes an analysis of narratives to enable the analyst to characterize the performance of food supply chains from different perspectives and to identify the expected trade-offs of integrated assessment, associating them with the legitimate-but-contrasting views found among the social actors involved. Sustainability 2016-05-27 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060515 515 2071-1050 2016-05-27 doi: 10.3390/su8060515 Gonzalo Gamboa Zora Kovacic Marina Di Masso Sara Mingorría Tiziano Gomiero Marta Rivera-Ferré Mario Giampietro http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/514 Currently, strategies to mitigate urban heat island (UHI) effects and reduce building energy consumption are implemented worldwide. In Japan, as an effective means of mitigating UHI effects and saving energy of buildings, highly reflective (HR) roofs have increasingly been used. In this study, in order to evaluate the effect of HR roofs on building energy conservation, we investigated the solar reflectivity of a subject school roof in Osaka, Japan, in which HR roofing sheets were installed on the roof from 2010. Additionally, monthly and annual thermal loads, including the cooling load and heating load of the top floor of the school, were calculated using the thermal load calculation software New HASP/ACLD-β. Comparing the calculated thermal loads of the school after HR roofing sheet installation to before, the annual thermal load decreased about 25 MJ/m2/year, and the cooling load decreased about 112 MJ/m2/year. However, the heating load increased about 87 MJ/m2/year in winter. To minimize the annual thermal load, thermal insulation of the roof was also considered to be used together with HR roofing sheets. Thermal load calculations showed that the combination of HR roofing sheets and thermal insulation can be effective in further reducing the annual thermal load. Sustainability 2016-05-27 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060514 514 2071-1050 2016-05-27 doi: 10.3390/su8060514 Jihui Yuan Kazuo Emura Craig Farnham http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/510 Changing societies' minds about sustainability requires knowledge about the situation, awareness of what needs to be done and actions to change today's unsustainable behaviors. Universities are challenged to develop students' ability to appreciate the complexities of sustainability and translate sustainability knowledge of education into systemic, anticipatory and critical thinking and actions. To meet this challenge, universities provide specific study programs and courses and integrate sustainability in education and activities. There is limited research on the results of such efforts from a student perspective. The study focused on an identical cohort of 108 undergraduate students who answered a survey about their self-perceived knowledge, awareness and actions before and after their studies in a Swedish university. All 108 students had sustainability integrated into their study programs; forty-eight also attended specific sustainability courses. The test model explains variations in students' self-perceived sustainability actions at the end of their studies. There were differences already in students' initial self-perceived knowledge between the groups. The students' female gender, self-perceived initial actions, studying sustainability courses as well as the increase in self-perceived sustainability knowledge contribute significantly to the later sustainability actions. The results show student development, which can encourage those working with education for sustainable development in universities. Sustainability 2016-05-27 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060510 510 2071-1050 2016-05-27 doi: 10.3390/su8060510 Kaisu Sammalisto Agneta Sundström Robin von Haartman Tove Holm Zhilei Yao http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/513 Studying the driving factors and contributions of carbon emissions peak volume and time is essential for reducing the cumulative carbon emissions in developing countries with rapid economic development and increasing carbon emissions. Taking Jilin Province as a case study, four scenarios were set in this paper respectively: Business as Usual Scenario (BAU), Energy-Saving Scenario (ESS), Energy-Saving and Low-Carbon Scenario (ELS), and Low-Carbon Scenario (LCS). Furthermore, the carbon emissions were predicted according to the energy consumption based on the application of LEAP system. The research result showed that the peak time of carbon emissions would appear in 2045, 2040, 2035 and 2025 under the four different scenarios, respectively. The peak volumes would be 489.8 Mt, 395.2 Mt, 305.3 Mt and 233.6 Mt, respectively. The cumulative emissions by 2050 are respectively 15.632 Bt, 13.321 Bt, 10.971 Bt and 8.379 Bt. According to the forecasting, we analyzed the driving factors of and contributions to carbon emissions peak volume and time. On the premise of moderate economic growth, the "structural emission reduction", namely the adjustment of industrial structure and energy structure, and "technology emission reduction", namely the reduction of energy intensity and carbon emission coefficient could make the peak volume reduced by 20%–52% and cumulative carbon emissions (2050) reduced by 15%–46% on the basis of BAU. Meanwhile, controlling the industrial structure, energy structure and energy intensity could make carbon emissions reach the peak 5–20 years ahead of the time on the basis of BAU. Controlling GDP, industrial structure, energy structure, energy intensity and coefficient of carbon emissions is the feasible method to adjust the carbon emissions peak volume and time in order to reduce the cumulative emissions. Sustainability 2016-05-27 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060513 513 2071-1050 2016-05-27 doi: 10.3390/su8060513 Lei Tian Zhe Ding Yongxuan Wang Haiyan Duan Shuo Wang Jie Tang Xian'en Wang http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/509 Increasingly pertinent linkages of cities via knowledge intensive business services (KIBS) in the 21st century have opened a new window for academia to reconsider the approach to achieving urban sustainability. In this study, city network was investigated with an aim of identifying its attributes in the framework of sustainable urban development. Data about China's KIBS, which are compiled in an inter-regional input–output table, were calculated following the procedure of social network analysis. It was found that: (1) the degree of nodes (i.e., out-degree, in-degree and betweenness) in China varies distinctively from city to city; (2) the hierarchy of the city network is very tiny; and (3) that the network structure is subject to both "a small world" and core–periphery effects. Furthermore, city nodes in China fall into four categories, namely high centrality and power, high centrality and low power, low centrality and high power, and low centrality and power. The implication is that governmental efforts should be made to secure a reasonable decentralization of key city nodes to ensure that urban sustainability is built on a city-to-city basis. Sustainability 2016-05-27 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060509 509 2071-1050 2016-05-27 doi: 10.3390/su8060509 Kunhui Ye Guo Liu Yongwei Shan http://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/6/2/14 Reviewed in this article is the potential for Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) to transform higher education delivery, accessibility, and costs. Next, five major value propositions for MOOCs are considered (headhunting, certification, face-to-face learning, personalized learning, integration with services external to the MOOC, marketing). Then, four pricing strategies for MOOCs are examined (cross-subsidy, third-party, "freemium", nonmonetary). Although the MOOC movement has experienced growing pains similar to most innovations, we assert that the unyielding pace of improvements in network technologies combined with the need to tame the costs of higher education will create continuing demand for MOOC offerings. Education Sciences 2016-05-27 6 2 Article 10.3390/educsci6020014 14 2227-7102 2016-05-27 doi: 10.3390/educsci6020014 Rose Baker David Passmore http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/502 This study assessed the environmental effects and cost of the Industrial Waste addictive Blast Furnace Slag (W-BFS) using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and compared it to general BFS. The environmental impacts of W-BFS were as follows: 1.12 × 10−1 kg-CO2 eq/kg, 3.18 × 10−5 kg-Ethylene eq/kg, 4.79 × 10−4 kg-SO2 eq/kg, 7.15 × 10−4 kg-PO43− eq/kg, 7.15 × 10−4 kg-CFC11 eq/kg and 3.94 × 10−3 kg-Antimony eq/kg. Among the environmental impact category, GWP and AP were 9.28 × 10−2 kg-CO2 eq/kg and 3.33 × 10−4 kg-SO2 eq/kg at a raw material stage, accounting for 80% and 70% of total environmental impact respectively. In EP, POCP and ADP, in addition, raw material stage accounted for a great portion in total environmental impact because of "W" among input materials. In ODP, however, compared to the environmental impact of raw materials, oil, which was used in transporting BFS to the W-BFS manufacturing factory, was more influential. In terms of GWP, POCP and ODP, W-BFS was higher than general BFS. In terms of AP, EP and ADP, in contrast, the former was lower than the latter. In terms of cost, W-BFS (41.7 US$/ton) was lower than general BFS by about 17% because of the use of waste additives comprised of industrial wastes instead of natural gypsum ,which has been commonly used in general BFS. In terms of GWP and POCP, the W-BFS mixed (30%) concrete was lower than plain concrete by 25%. In terms of AP and EP, the former was lower than the latter by 30%. In terms of ADP, furthermore, W-BFS mixed (30%) concrete was lower than plain concrete by 11%. In aggregate-related ODP, however, almost no change was found. In terms of cost, when W-BFS was added by 10% and 30%, it was able to reduce cost by 3% and 7% respectively, compared to plain concrete. Compared to BFS-mixed concrete as well, cost could be saved by 1% additionally because W-BFS (US$41.7/ton) is lower than common cement (US$100.3/ton) by about 60% in terms of production costs. Sustainability 2016-05-26 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060502 502 2071-1050 2016-05-26 doi: 10.3390/su8060502 Tae Kim Sung Tae Chang Chae Won Choi http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/508 In the context of "new normal" economy and frequent "haze", the strategy of energy conservation and emission reduction aiming to lower costs and reduce pollution is currently still a major strategic direction in China and the world, and will remain so for some time in the future. This paper uses the annual data of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil price in 1987–2014 as samples. We firstly present the direction and mechanism of the influence of oil price change on total consumption of every kind of energy by path analysis, and then consider establishing a Structural Vector Autoregression model of energy conservation and emission reduction in three statuses. Research shows that if the international oil price increases by 1%, the energy consumption per GDP and carbon dioxide emission increase by 0.092% and 0.053% respectively in the corresponding period. In the status of high energy consumption and high emission, if the international oil price increases by 1%, the energy consumption per GDP and carbon dioxide emission increase by 0.043% and 0.065% respectively in the corresponding period. In the status of low energy consumption and low emission, if the international oil price increases by 1%, the energy consumption per GDP per unit increases by 0.067% and carbon dioxide emission decreases by 0.085% in the corresponding period. Sustainability 2016-05-26 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060508 508 2071-1050 2016-05-26 doi: 10.3390/su8060508 Jian Chai Youhong Zhou Ting Liang Limin Xing Kin Lai http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/512 This paper uses a market potential approach to examine the evolution of the rail transport network of China and its spatial distributional impacts on local accessibility, with a particular focus on high-speed rail improvements. Accessibility is measured by using a "market potential" function that was derived from the general equilibrium model of the economic geography literature, and is empirically calculated based on Geographical Information System (GIS) techniques. A key finding, albeit from a highly stylized model, is that rail improvements may help raise territorial polarizing patterns across counties. The results point to the profound implications of railroad network expansion on the accessibility dynamics in periphery regions relative to core regions. Sustainability 2016-05-26 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060512 512 2071-1050 2016-05-26 doi: 10.3390/su8060512 Wenjie Wu Yutian Liang Di Wu http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/507 With the development of new generation technology and the low-carbon economy, the smart low-carbon city has become one of the academic hotspots. Many studies on it have begun; however, the dynamic mechanism is rarely involved. Therefore, this paper uses the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) method to creatively take a quantitative study on a Chinese smart low-carbon city's dynamic mechanism. The results show that: (1) the three main dynamics of smart low-carbon city development in China are institutional and cultural conditions, facilities and functions conditions and economy and industry conditions, but the overall utility is relatively low; (2) the level of the dynamic operation mechanism of the Chinese smart low-carbon city is distinct between regions, indicating a diminishing spatial law from east to west and differences within regions; (3) the imbalance of the comprehensive dynamic mechanism and the operation status between smart low-carbon cities is prominent, showing a decreasing urban scale law of from big to small and differences within each scale, and a descending administration hierarchy law from high to low and differences within each class; (4) seven basic development patterns can be obtained, and most of the cities belong to the external strong/internal weak mode, which basically matches with its development realities. Finally, general policy recommendations and countermeasures of optimization and improvement are proposed. Sustainability 2016-05-26 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060507 507 2071-1050 2016-05-26 doi: 10.3390/su8060507 Bo Pang Chuanglin Fang Haimeng Liu http://www.mdpi.com/2226-471X/1/1/7 In this paper we address the question of whether it is possible to compare two theoretical approaches to the same phenomenon or whether these should be considered incommensurable. We focus on two contrasting approaches to the identification of code-switching vs. borrowing by Poplack and Meechan [1] and Myers-Scotton [2,3]. For Poplack the distinction is based on linguistic integration and for Myers-Scotton on frequency. We show how what is a definition for one is a hypothesis for the other, and vice versa. Overcoming this apparent incommensurability requires a theory-independent approach in which we define the unit of analysis as "donor-language items" rather than switches or borrowings. Using this unit of analysis in the analysis of English-origin verbs in a Welsh corpus, we examine the assumptions behind the contrasting definitions of CS vs. borrowing. First we consider whether it is possible to identify linguistic integration in an unequivocal, categorical way and secondly whether linguistic integration is related to frequency of usage. We show that the identification of linguistic integration depends on the test used and that both frequency of usage and listedness play roles in the integration of English donor-language items in Welsh. In this way we argue that we achieve a theory-independent approach and go some way towards overcoming incommensurability. Languages 2016-05-25 1 1 Article 10.3390/languages1010007 7 2226-471X 2016-05-25 doi: 10.3390/languages1010007 Margaret Deuchar Jonathan Stammers http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/500 In 2011, the Departments of Architecture, Physics and Engineering began the development of a small Passivhaus standard, renewable energy self-sufficient studio at the University Botanical Gardens in Dundee. The prototype was conceived as an experimental, integrated technical platform to monitor the performance of an ultra-low-energy consumption, energy positive building in the Scottish climate, and understand user behaviour in relation to managing energy in-use and reducing occupant's energy consumption. The building fabric has been constructed using regional sustainable materials, including a low-thermal bridging timber kit relying on Scottish small cross-section timber and a novel foam concrete (air entrained) slab foundation. While further work is required to complete the installation of the renewable energy system, predictive modelling indicates that energy autonomy can be largely achieved. With the recent introduction of the new Passivhaus 2009 criteria in October 2015, this project provides an insight into the practical application of an autarkic energy system in a northern European climate. The following paper describes the research rationale, the processes and decision making in the development of the formal and technical design of the building and discusses our current thinking in the design and quantification of the energy system. Sustainability 2016-05-25 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060500 500 2071-1050 2016-05-25 doi: 10.3390/su8060500 Neil Burford Rod Jones Stephen Reynolds David Rodley http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/506 How to accurately measure the interprovincial CO2 emissions is key to achieving the task of energy saving and emission reduction. Electric power is very important for economy development. At the same time, the amount of interprovincial electric power dispatching is very large in China, so it is obligatory to measure the CO2 emissions from both electricity production and consumption perspectives. We have measured China's interprovincial CO2 emissions from fossil fuel combustion during 2000–2014, in which the revised regional electric power CO2 emissions are used to adjust interprovincial CO2 emissions. The obtained results show that: no matter from which perspective one considers the situation, the overall CO2 emissions of China are almost the same amount. From different perspectives, the interprovincial CO2 emissions are different. In terms of the production perspective, CO2 emissions of Beijing, Hebei, Shandong, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Guangdong are underestimated. However, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Hubei, Sichuan, Guizhou, and Shaanxi are overestimated. If the electric power dispatching is not considered, it is unfairly portrayed as transferring CO2 emissions from the electricity input provinces to the output ones, because the electricity input provinces enjoy clean energy, but the electricity production ones pay for the environmental pollution. Sustainability 2016-05-25 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060506 506 2071-1050 2016-05-25 doi: 10.3390/su8060506 Xueping Tao Ping Wang Bangzhu Zhu http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/505 This paper discusses the assessment of various biofuel crop production alternatives on the island of Fuerteventura using Jatropha crops. It adopts an integrated approach by carrying out a multi-criteria assessment with the support of participatory techniques and geographical information systems. Sixteen production alternatives were analyzed for growing Jatropha, and the results suggest that the best alternative involves using typical torrifluvent soils irrigated with recycled urban wastewater using surface drip irrigation covering 100% evapotranspiration. It was also determined that a potential area of 2546 ha could be used for cultivation within a radius of 10 km from a wastewater treatment plant. This level of production would supply 27.56% of the biofuel needs of Fuerteventura, thereby contributing to the 2020 target of the European Commission regarding biofuels for land transport. Sustainability 2016-05-25 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060505 505 2071-1050 2016-05-25 doi: 10.3390/su8060505 Serafin Corral David Romero Manrique de Lara Marisa Tejedor Salguero Carmen Jimenez Mendoza David Legna-de la Nuez María Dorta Santos Francisco Díaz Peña http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/5/2/33 Though it is now a decade since its release, Guillermo del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth (2006) remains a work of filmic art which plays upon our deep-rooted and mercurial relationship with fairy tales and folklore. By turns beautiful and grotesque, Pan's Labyrinth is a complex portrait of the clash between Ofelia's fairy tale world and that of the brutal adults around her. This article will provide an analysis of the juxtaposition of the film's imagery of closed/open circles, their respective realms, and how Ofelia moves between the two. I will argue that these aspects create an unusual relationship between the fairy tale universe and the physical one, characterized by simultaneous displacement and interdependency. Ofelia acts as a mediatrix of these spheres, conforming to neither the imposed rules of her historical reality nor the expected structural rules of fairy tales, and this refusal ultimately allows her transcendence from the circumscribed realm of the liminal into Victor Turner's "liminoid" space, escaping the trap of binarism. Humanities 2016-05-25 5 2 Article 10.3390/h5020033 33 2076-0787 2016-05-25 doi: 10.3390/h5020033 Savannah Blitch http://www.mdpi.com/2075-471X/5/2/24 The specifically changing climate conditions in the arctic and subarctic tremendously affect the vegetation and the conditions of the snow. This, therefore, influences the possibilities for rangifer tarandus to feed. For many indigenous peoples across the global North, the herding of reindeer, however, is an extremely important source of income. When the increasing temperatures lead to snow melting a bit and then freezing over again, the reindeer loose access to their feed. This has led to the starvation of thousands of reindeer in Russia in 2013/2014. This paper will try to shed light on the background of the historic as well as the legal aspects of indigenous Sámi reindeer herders in the multi-state Sápmi area. While reindeer herding represents a significant livelihood for the indigenous population, the change in climate increasingly threatens the sustainability of this cornerstone of Sámi identity. This text aims to highlight existing rules of international human rights introduced to protect indigenous reindeer herders and the state's duty to refrain from actions endangering indigenous livelihoods and to take positive action aimed at their protection. Laws 2016-05-25 5 2 Article 10.3390/laws5020024 24 2075-471X 2016-05-25 doi: 10.3390/laws5020024 Stefan Kirchner Vanessa Frese http://www.mdpi.com/2304-6775/4/2/13 The characteristics of modern science, i.e., data-intensive, multidisciplinary, open, and heavily dependent on Internet technologies, entail the creation of a linked scholarly record that is online and open. Instrumental in making this vision happen is the development of the next generation of Open Cyber-Scholarly Infrastructures (OCIs), i.e., enablers of an open, evolvable, and extensible scholarly ecosystem. The paper delineates the evolving scenario of the modern scholarly record and describes the functionality of future OCIs as well as the radical changes in scholarly practices including new reading, learning, and information-seeking practices enabled by OCIs. Publications 2016-05-24 4 2 Article 10.3390/publications4020013 13 2304-6775 2016-05-24 doi: 10.3390/publications4020013 Costantino Thanos http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/6/503 This paper explores the cumulative sustainable supply chain (SC) capabilities and their effects on supply chain performance, including economic, environmental, and social performance. Using empirical analyses with data from 198 small- and medium-sized suppliers in Korea, this paper provides evidence about the cumulative sustainable SC capabilities, indicating that economic, social, and environmental capabilities in the supply chain mutually reinforce each other rather than traded off. This study also presents the positive effect of cumulative sustainable SC capabilities on supply chain sustainability performance. This paper identifies four distinctive groups of cumulative capabilities: the laggard, environmental-focused, social-cautious, and all-round. This study provides a better understanding about sustainable capabilities and important guidelines for managers of suppliers and buyers who wish to build strong social/environmental management capabilities without compromising economic capability throughout the entire supply chain. Sustainability 2016-05-24 8 6 Article 10.3390/su8060503 503 2071-1050 2016-05-24 doi: 10.3390/su8060503 Jung Lee Soo Kim Su-Yol Lee http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/6/61 The cultural and religious resources of every community influence the definition of spiritual care. This paper discusses a concept analysis of spiritual care in an Islamic context. The Quran, narrations (Shie'h) and commentarial books were searched, for information data. The data was used to provide a comprehensive definition of the concept of spiritual care from Islamic literature. We identified the attributes, antecedents and consequences of spiritual care according to Roger's concept analysis approach. The review of the Islamic text showed that spiritual care is a series of spiritual skills or competencies that help patients to achieve excellent life. It is grouped into categories and has numerous positive effects on patients and caregivers. This study will be useful to Muslim clinicians and nurse educators as they strive to understand and incorporate spiritual care within their practice for Muslim patients. Religions 2016-05-24 7 6 Concept Paper 10.3390/rel7060061 61 2077-1444 2016-05-24 doi: 10.3390/rel7060061 Rahmatollah Marzband Seyed Hosseini Zeinab Hamzehgardeshi http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/501 The ISI (Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure) Envision rating system is designed to be a comprehensive sustainability assessment that can be applied to a wide range of infrastructure projects, including water supply. With water supply resiliency, a prominent concern in many arid and semi-arid regions, the implementation of a water sustainability metric would be beneficial to both regulators and planners. This review seeks to assess the merit of applying Envision to water infrastructure projects specifically designed to enhance supply resiliency by retroactively rating the San Antonio Water System (SAWS) Twin Oaks Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) project. In this review, we find that the novelty and innovation inherent in ASR is largely overlooked by Envision, which often does not evaluate sector-specific concepts. Furthermore, the project-oriented focus of Envision does not analyze water supply systems, or any infrastructure system, as a whole. This paper proposes that a water specific sustainability index be used in conjunction with Envision, to more specifically address concerns for water supply. Sustainability 2016-05-23 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050501 501 2071-1050 2016-05-23 doi: 10.3390/su8050501 Cody Saville Gretchen Miller Kelly Brumbelow http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/494 A high demand for seafood leads to overfishing, harms the long-term health of seafood stocks, and threatens environmental sustainability in oceans. Sustainability certification is one of the major sustainability movements and is known as eco-labeling. For instance, in the tuna industry, leading tuna brands have committed to protecting sea turtles by allowing the tracing of the source of their tuna "from catch to can." This paper relies on an Internet survey on consumers from Kentucky conducted in July 2010. The survey investigates household-level tuna steak (sashimi grade) consumption and examines consumer preferences for eco-labeling ("Certified Turtle Safe" (CTS) in this study) while mimicking individuals' seafood procurement processes. A random parameter logit model is utilized, and willingness-to-pay measures are calculated based on model estimation results. It was found that respondents on average preferred turtle-safe-labeled tuna steak and were likely to pay more for it; however, they were less likely to purchase wild-caught species, and insignificant results were found for pre-frozen. Moreover, significant heterogeneities were found across individuals regarding tuna steak purchases. The findings indicate evidence of public support for environmental friendliness, particularly with regard to eco-labeling. Sustainability 2016-05-23 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050494 494 2071-1050 2016-05-23 doi: 10.3390/su8050494 Guzhen Zhou Wuyang Hu Wenchao Huang http://www.mdpi.com/2079-8954/4/2/22 Over the last three decades, many educational systems for programming have been developed to support learning/teaching programming. In this paper, feedback types that are supported by existing educational systems for programming are classified. In order to be able to provide feedback, educational systems for programming deployed various approaches to analyzing students' programs. This paper identifies analysis approaches for programs and introduces a classification for adaptive feedback supported by educational systems for programming. The classification of feedback is the contribution of this paper. Systems 2016-05-23 4 2 Article 10.3390/systems4020022 22 2079-8954 2016-05-23 doi: 10.3390/systems4020022 Nguyen-Thinh Le http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/498 Zhejiang Province, China is experiencing rapid urbanization, facing the challenge of coupling socioeconomic development and ecological conservation. This paper establishes a comprehensive index system to assess coordinating development of economic, construction land use (CLU), and ecology subsystems. A Granger test and a coupling coordination model were applied to explore the causal relationship and the coordinated development state among the three subsystems from 2000 to 2012. The results showed that: (1) changes in the integrated value of the economic subsystem were the Granger cause of changes in the ecology and CLU subsystems, and the changes in the integrated values of ecology and CLU was each other's Granger cause; (2) the coupling coordination relationship of the integrated value for economic–CLU–ecology was constrained by the relationship between the economic and the CLU subsystems from 2000 to 2004, and that between the ecology and the economic subsystems was the impediment of the sustainable development of economic–CLU–ecology from 2004 to 2012. This research helps to identify approach to sustainable development through analyzing synergistic effects, interdependencies, and trade-offs among the integrated economic–CLU–ecology values, and to make significant contribution to urban planning policies in rapid urbanization region. Sustainability 2016-05-21 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050498 498 2071-1050 2016-05-21 doi: 10.3390/su8050498 Chuyu Xia Yan Li Yanmei Ye Zhou Shi http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/499 Recurrent haze in Southeast Asian countries including Singapore is largely attributable to rampant forest fires in Indonesia due to, for example, extensive slash-and-burn (S & B) culture. Drawing on the "treadmill of production" and environmental governance approach, we examine causes and consequences of this culture. We found that, despite some perceived benefits, its environmental consequences include deforestation, soil erosion and degradation, global warming, threats to biodiversity, and trans-boundary haze pollution, while the societal consequences comprise regional tension, health risks, economic and productivity losses, as well as food insecurity. We propose sustainability through a plural coexistence framework of governance for targeting S & B that incorporates strategies of incentives, education and community resource management. Sustainability 2016-05-21 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050499 499 2071-1050 2016-05-21 doi: 10.3390/su8050499 Md Islam Yap Hui Pei Shrutika Mangharam http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/5/2/24 This article adds to recent literature in the study of religion and marriage by examining older couples' use of religion as a cultural repertoire in enduring marriages. The study includes qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews with 43 married, Christian couples. Couples reported four predominant social contexts that gave sacred meanings to their marriage: prayer, worship services and sermons, first-rite rituals and communion. These social contexts magnify sacred meanings within religious cultural repertoires by enhancing older couples' perceptions of their marriages as sacred through formal and public recognition of their marriage longevity, lauding their marriage longevity as a blessing from God to be emulated, promoting religious meanings of familism and giving positive marriage outcomes sacred meanings. Negative effects of religion on marriage outcomes occurred among older couples when lived experiences of religion conflicted with their cultural expectations for enduring marriages. Social Sciences 2016-05-21 5 2 Article 10.3390/socsci5020024 24 2076-0760 2016-05-21 doi: 10.3390/socsci5020024 David Mullins http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/5/2/23 This study examines how first-generation ethnic minorities respond to different types of recycling promotion and education campaigns (P&E) used by municipalities in Ontario, Canada. A total of eight focus group sessions were conducted over an eight-week period to gauge participant attitudes and responses towards print (newspaper and signs) and electronic (websites) P&E messaging. Participants were asked to comment on message "recognition", "clarity", "the ability to increase recycling awareness" and "the ability to affect changes in recycling behavior". Results from the focus group sessions suggest that none of the P&E mediums tested were able to increase recycling awareness or change recycling behavior in any meaningful way. First-generation ethnic minorities struggle with recognizing the central theme and purpose of P&E advertisements. Respondents also found existing campaigns excessively complex and confusing, and were not familiar with many of the terms and symbols used in existing P&E messaging. Other findings suggest that ethnic minorities are skeptical and distrustful of the municipalities' intentions with respect to what they do with the waste after it is collected. The findings from this study lead to the recommendation that municipalities rethink and redesign recycling promotion and education initiatives to better engage minority communities. Social Sciences 2016-05-20 5 2 Article 10.3390/socsci5020023 23 2076-0760 2016-05-20 doi: 10.3390/socsci5020023 Calvin Lakhan http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/5/60 This article surveys images depicted on the reverses of papal annual medals in the seventeenth century, beginning in 1605 under Paul V (r. 1605–21) with the first confirmed annual medal, and ending in 1700 at the conclusion of the papacy of Innocent XII (r. 1691–1700), a reign that marked a distinct change in papal politics in advance of the eighteenth century. The article mines a wealth of numismatics images and places it within a narrative of seventeenth-century papal politics. In the ninety-six years under consideration, ten popes issued ninety-four annual medals (sede vacante produced generic annual medals in 1667 and 1691). Annual medals are a unique iteration of papal commemorative medals and they celebrate an important papal achievement from the preceding year. The production of annual medals was an exercise in identity creation, undertaken to advance the image of the pope as an aristocratic prince in three specific roles: as builder, warrior, and impresario. The timeliness of the medals makes them valuable sources to gauge the perceived success of the papacy on an annual basis and to chart the political course plotted by popes through the seventeenth century. Religions 2016-05-20 7 5 Article 10.3390/rel7050060 60 2077-1444 2016-05-20 doi: 10.3390/rel7050060 Matthew Averett http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/5/58 Atheism is the mainstream belief system in contemporary China. In recent years, a growing number of Chinese have converted to different religions, particularly Christianity. In this study, we conducted a survey in the region of Xi'an to investigate the following three questions: How common is Christianity among college students in Xi'an? How many of them have converted to the Christian faith? How do they gain their knowledge of Christianity? It is a popular notion in China that many college students have, in recent times, converted to Christianity. However, our survey results do not provide support for this. While many students encounter Christian faith on university campuses, especially through organizations such as The Fellowship, students in this survey report low religious affiliation. Religions 2016-05-20 7 5 Article 10.3390/rel7050058 58 2077-1444 2016-05-20 doi: 10.3390/rel7050058 Chao Wang http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/495 Genetic engineering (GE) offers an expanding array of strategies for enhancing disease resistance of crop plants in sustainable ways, including the potential for reduced pesticide usage. Certain GE applications involve transgenesis, in some cases creating a metabolic pathway novel to the GE crop. In other cases, only cisgenessis is employed. In yet other cases, engineered genetic changes can be so minimal as to be indistinguishable from natural mutations. Thus, GE crops vary substantially and should be evaluated for risks, benefits, and social considerations on a case-by-case basis. Deployment of GE traits should be with an eye towards long-term sustainability; several options are discussed. Selected risks and concerns of GE are also considered, along with genome editing, a technology that greatly expands the capacity of molecular biologists to make more precise and targeted genetic edits. While GE is merely a suite of tools to supplement other breeding techniques, if wisely used, certain GE tools and applications can contribute to sustainability goals. Sustainability 2016-05-20 8 5 Review 10.3390/su8050495 495 2071-1050 2016-05-20 doi: 10.3390/su8050495 Paul Vincelli http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/5/59 In the last thirty years of his life, Leo Tolstoy wrote numerous books, essays and pamphlets expounding his newly-articulated views on violence, the state, the church, and on how to improve the human condition. Since then, these "Christian anarchist" views have often been dismissed as utopian or naive, and, despite inspiring many activists and intellectuals, often forgotten or ignored. Some of those views and arguments, however, arguably remain apposite today—and can in some cases be applied to broader phenomena than those he identified. This article focuses on one of the aspects of his Christian anarchist thought: his anticlericalism. The first Section recounts the evolution of Tolstoy's views on religion and the church, and briefly describes Tolstoy's peculiar metaphysics. The second outlines his main charges against the church, discusses some common objections to it, and considers the continuing relevance of his anticlericalism. The third seeks to secularise his anticlerical arguments by applying them beyond the church, against secular preachers and institutions, and does so by reflecting on the quality of debate in the contemporary public sphere, on the hypocritical distance between the morality preached by secular "clerics" and their practice, and on the steady process of ossification and betrayal which befalls secular political ideals. The article thus contributes to the literature firstly by summarising, discussing and reflecting upon the anticlericalism of a famous writer who also espoused controversial religious and political views; secondly by succinctly outlining his idiosyncratic metaphysics, including his peculiar reinterpretation of traditional Christian referents; and thirdly by applying the arguments that informed his criticisms of the church to a broader variety of religious and secular secular institutions. Religions 2016-05-20 7 5 Article 10.3390/rel7050059 59 2077-1444 2016-05-20 doi: 10.3390/rel7050059 Alexandre Christoyannopoulos http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/496 In 2010, the Swedish government established the Komet program—a pilot forest protection project that was initially implemented in five land areas. The Komet program was intended to complement existing formal protection measures by establishing partnerships with forest owners and industries to encourage these actors to take a greater interest in contributing to forest conservation efforts and Nature Conservation Agreements. Despite mixed results, the government subsequently chose to implement these partnerships nationwide, thereby institutionalizing the Komet program and making it into a regular component of forest management policy. This study examines how the program developed and became institutionalized. The theoretical role of public–private partnerships and their capacity to deliver collective goods are discussed. The empirical material primarily consists of interviews with key stakeholders from the pilot period and the present reference group. The results highlight the need to carefully consider past collaborative experiences together with existing motives relating to the role of partnerships in forest protection in order to achieve successful institutionalization. This will increase the government's capacity to create the conditions for institutionalization and may facilitate the development of external interactions in partnerships, leading to the incorporation of various protection arrangements. Sustainability 2016-05-20 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050496 496 2071-1050 2016-05-20 doi: 10.3390/su8050496 Ulrika Widman http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/497 Organic farming prohibits the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) inasmuch as their genetic material has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally. In actual fact, there is a conventional identity between GMOs and transgenic organisms, so that genetic modification methods such as somatic hybridization and mutagenesis are equalized to conventional breeding. A loophole in this system is represented by more or less innovative genetic engineering approaches under regulatory discussion, such as cisgenesis, oligonucleotide-directed mutagenesis, and antisense technologies, that are redefining the concept of GMOs and might circumvent the requirements of the GMO legislation and, indirectly, of organic farming. Sustainability 2016-05-20 8 5 Review 10.3390/su8050497 497 2071-1050 2016-05-20 doi: 10.3390/su8050497 Luca Lombardo Samanta Zelasco http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/493 In spite of the increasing importance of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and employee job performance, little is still known about the links between the socially responsible actions of organizations and the job performance of their members. In order to explain how employees' perceptions of CSR influence their job performance, this study first examines the relationships between perceived CSR, organizational identification, job satisfaction, and job performance, and then develops a sequential mediation model by fully integrating these links. The results of structural equation modeling analyses conducted for 250 employees at hotels in South Korea offered strong support for the proposed model. We found that perceived CSR was indirectly and positively associated with job performance sequentially mediated first through organizational identification and then job satisfaction. This study theoretically contributes to the CSR literature by revealing the sequential mechanism through which employees' perceptions of CSR affect their job performance, and offers practical implications by stressing the importance of employees' perceptions of CSR. Limitations of this study and future research directions are discussed. Sustainability 2016-05-20 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050493 493 2071-1050 2016-05-20 doi: 10.3390/su8050493 Inyong Shin Won-Moo Hur Seongho Kang http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/489 A conceptualized impeller called KIA is designed for impact agitation of food waste in a homogenizer. A comparative analysis of the performance of KIA is made with three conventional impeller types, Rushton, Anchor, and Pitched Blade. Solid–liquid mixing of a moisture-rich food waste is simulated under various operational speeds, in order to compare the dispersions and thermal distributions at homogenous slurry conditions. Using SolidWorks, the design of the impellers employs an Application Programming Interface (API) which acts as the canvas for creating a graphical user interface (GUI )for automation of its assembly. A parametric analysis of the homogenizer, at varying operational speeds, enables the estimation of the critical speed of the mixing shaft diameter and the deflection under numerous mixing conditions and impeller configurations. The numerical simulation of the moisture-rich food waste (approximated as a Newtonian carrot–orange soup) is performed with ANSYS CFX v.15.0. The velocity and temperature field distribution of the homogenizer for various impeller rotational speeds are analyzed. It is anticipated that the developed model will help in the selection of a suitable impeller for efficient mixing of food waste in the homogenizer. Sustainability 2016-05-20 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050489 489 2071-1050 2016-05-20 doi: 10.3390/su8050489 Idris Kayode Emmanuel Ogedengbe Marc Rosen http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/5/2/22 The Great Recession weakened U.S. families' abilities to make charitable gifts. Although African Americans are generally especially hard hit by these types of economic crises, they have a long and distinctive history of volunteerism and mutual assistance. Consequently, the purpose of this study is to examine African American volunteering in nonprofit organizations in the aftermath of the 2008–2009 recession. Specifically, we examined race as well as other factors with the potential to influence volunteering in four categories of organizations: poverty organizations, senior service agencies, social action groups, and religious affiliated organizations. Using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) data, this secondary analysis produced significant findings regarding volunteerism among African Americans in these community-based organizations. Social Sciences 2016-05-20 5 2 Article 10.3390/socsci5020022 22 2076-0760 2016-05-20 doi: 10.3390/socsci5020022 Vernon Carter Jerry Marx http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/5/57 Efforts to enlist small faith-related organizations as partners in public service delivery raise many questions. Using community social service networks as the unit of analysis, this paper asks one with broader relevance to nonprofit sector managers: What factors support and constrain effective integration of these organizations into a local service delivery network? The evidence and illustrations come from longitudinal case studies of five faith-related organizations who received their first government contract as part of a California faith-based initiative. By comparing the organizational development and network partnership trajectories of these organizations over more than a decade, the analysis identifies four key variables influencing partnership dynamics and outcomes: organizational niche within the local network; leadership connections and network legitimacy; faith-inspired commitments and persistence; and core organizational competencies and capacities. The evidence supports shifting the focus of faith-based initiatives to emphasize local planning and network development, taking into account how these four variables apply to specific organizations and their community context. Religions 2016-05-20 7 5 Article 10.3390/rel7050057 57 2077-1444 2016-05-20 doi: 10.3390/rel7050057 David Campbell http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/5/56 This study explores the properties of the New Indices of Religious Orientation Revised (NIROR) among a sample of 521 Canadian adolescents attending a Baptist youth mission and service event, ranging in age from 12 to 19 years. This revision simplified the language of the original instrument to increase its accessibility among young people. The data support the internal consistency reliability and construct validity of the three revised nine-item scales designed to operationalise extrinsic religious orientation, intrinsic religious orientation, and quest religious orientation. Religions 2016-05-20 7 5 Article 10.3390/rel7050056 56 2077-1444 2016-05-20 doi: 10.3390/rel7050056 Leslie Francis Bruce Fawcett Mandy Robbins Dale Stairs http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/492 In a time of rapid climate change and environmental degradation, planning and building an ecologically sustainable environment have become imperative. In particular, urban settlements, as a densely populated built environment, are the center of attention. This study aims to build a clear and concise synthesis of sustainable urban development not only to serve as an essential reference for decision and policy makers, but also encourage more strategically organized sustainability efforts. The extensive similarities between environmental planning and a policy-making/decision-making/problem-solving process will be carefully examined to confirm the fundamental need to build a synthesis. Major global urban sustainability rankings/standards will be presented, discussed, and integrated to produce a holistic synthesis with ten themes and three dimensions. The study will assemble disparate information across time, space, and disciplines to guide and to facilitate sustainable urban development in which both environmental concerns and human wellbeing are addressed. Sustainability 2016-05-19 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050492 492 2071-1050 2016-05-19 doi: 10.3390/su8050492 Hui-Ting Tang Yuh-Ming Lee http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/491 Urban landscapes can be transformed by widespread abandonment from population and economic decline. Ecological assembly, sometimes referred to as "greening", following abandonment can yield valuable ecosystem services, but also can pose a risk to public health. Abandonment can elevate zoonotic vector-borne disease risk by favoring the hyperabundance of commensal pests and pathogen vectors. Though greater biodiversity in abandoned areas can potentially dilute vector-borne pathogen transmission, "greening" can elevate transmission risk by increasing movement of pathogen vectors between fragmented areas and by giving rise to novel human-wildlife interfaces. Idled and derelict infrastructure can further elevate disease risk from vector-borne and water-borne pathogens, which can build up in stagnant and unprotected water that maintenance and routine use of delivery or sanitation systems would otherwise eliminate. Thus, framing "greening" as inherently positive could result in policies and actions that unintentionally exacerbate inequalities by elevating risks rather than delivering benefits. As counter-urbanism is neither a minor pattern of urban development, nor a short-term departure from urban growth, homeowner and municipal management of abandoned areas should account for potential hazards to reduce health risks. Further socioecological assessments of public health risks following abandonment could better ensure the resilience and well-being of communities in shrinking cities. Sustainability 2016-05-19 8 5 Review 10.3390/su8050491 491 2071-1050 2016-05-19 doi: 10.3390/su8050491 Alexandra Gulachenski Bruno Ghersi Amy Lesen Michael Blum http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/5/2/32 Bill Willingham's Fables comic book series and its spin-offs have spanned fourteen years and reinforce that fairy-tale characters are culturally meaningful, adaptable, subversive, and pervasive. Willingham uses fairy-tale pastiche and syncreticism based on the ethos of comic book crossovers in his redeployment of previous approaches to fairy-tale characters. Fables characters are richer for every perspective that Willingham deploys, from the Brothers Grimm to Disneyesque aesthetics and more erotic, violent, and horrific incarnations. Willingham's approach to these fairy-tale narratives is synthetic, idiosyncratic, and libertarian. This tension between Willingham's subordination of fairy-tale characters to his overarching libertarian ideological narrative and the traditional folkloric identities drives the storytelling momentum of the Fables universe. Willingham's portrayal of Bigby (the Big Bad Wolf turned private eye), Snow White ("Fairest of Them All", Director of Operations of Fabletown, and avenger against pedophilic dwarves), Rose Red (Snow's divergent, wild, and jealous sister), and Jack (narcissistic trickster) challenges contemporary assumptions about gender, heroism, narrative genres, and the very conception of a fairy tale. Emerging from negotiations with tradition and innovation are fairy-tale characters who defy constraints of folk and storybook narrative, mythology, and metafiction. Humanities 2016-05-19 5 2 Article 10.3390/h5020032 32 2076-0787 2016-05-19 doi: 10.3390/h5020032 Jason Harris http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/5/55 Congregations and other religious organizations are an important part of the social welfare system in the United States. This article uses data from the 2012 National Congregations Study to describe key features of congregational involvement in social service programs and projects. Most congregations (83%), containing 92% of religious service attendees, engage in some social or human service activities intended to help people outside of their congregation. These programs are primarily oriented to food, health, clothing, and housing provision, with less involvement in some of the more intense and long-term interventions such as drug abuse recovery, prison programs, or immigrant services. The median congregation involved in social services spent $1500 per year directly on these programs, and 17% had a staff member who worked on them at least a quarter of the time. Fewer than 2% of congregations received any government financial support of their social service programs and projects within the past year; only 5% had applied for such funding. The typical, and probably most important, way in which congregations pursue social service activity is by providing small groups of volunteers to engage in well-defined and bounded tasks on a periodic basis, most often in collaboration with other congregations and community organizations. Religions 2016-05-19 7 5 Article 10.3390/rel7050055 55 2077-1444 2016-05-19 doi: 10.3390/rel7050055 Mark Chaves Alison Eagle http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/5/2/30 This article focuses on African literature published since 2000 by authors of French expression. While contemporary authors' subjects are varied—ranging from climate change, human rights, to ethnic cleansing—they also imagine new "what ifs" and other utopic spaces and places that extend beyond postcolonial, Africa-as-victim paradigms. Literarily, authors such as Abdelaziz Belkhodja (Tunisia) and Abdourahman A. Waberi (Djibouti) have effectuated a transnational turn. In this literary transnational turn, Africa is open to new interpretations by the African author that are very different from the more essentialist-based, literary-philosophical movements such as Negritude and pan-Africanism; cornerstones of the postcolonial literary frameworks of the past. Belkhodja and Waberi offer original narratives for Africa that, while describing their countries as utopias, also traverse the very dystopic realities of our time. Humanities 2016-05-18 5 2 Article 10.3390/h5020030 30 2076-0787 2016-05-18 doi: 10.3390/h5020030 Valérie Orlando http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/5/2/31 In this essay, I turn to Shakespeare for advice about how to alleviate the crisis in the humanities. University faculty and PhD students develop what I've called a dispositional immobility, a disposition to do what they do only in an academic setting. I think humanities faculty and doctoral students can learn from Shakespeare a good deal about how to mobilize themselves and what they do as well as a lot about how to change the institution of the humanities, especially by following his practice of institution blending. Shakespeare, I will argue, can teach us how to move. Humanities 2016-05-18 5 2 Article 10.3390/h5020031 31 2076-0787 2016-05-18 doi: 10.3390/h5020031 Paul Yachnin http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/488 The Qin-Ba Ecological Functional Zone is a component of China's ecological security pattern designed to protect the regional ecosystem and maintain biodiversity. However, due to the impact of mining and urban encroachment, the plight of a sustainable ecosystem in the Qin-Ba mountainous area is deteriorating. This paper has used a remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) to examine the impacts of mining and urban encroachment on the environment in the Qin-Ba mountainous area. The results indicate that the total mined area in 2013 was 22 km2 and is predicted to escalate. Results also show that the ecosystems in Fengxian County, Shaanxi Province and Baokang County, Hubei Province were most severely affected by mining. Urbanization in the Qin-Ba mountainous area has seen an increase of 85.58 km2 in urban land use from 2010 to 2013. In addition, infrastructure development including airport construction, tourism resorts and real estate development in the Qin-Ba mountainous area has intensified environmental and biodiversity disturbances since large areas of forest have been cleared. Our results should provide insight and assistance to city planners and government officials in making informed decisions. Sustainability 2016-05-18 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050488 488 2071-1050 2016-05-18 doi: 10.3390/su8050488 Xinliang Xu Hongyan Cai Daowei Sun Lan Hu Kwamina Banson http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/490 Absolute decoupling of GDP growth from resource use implies that economic output can be increased without simultaneously increasing input. The essential meaning of this proposition is that the economic values that represent the GDP can be realized by increasing resource efficiency. Given that the GDP is first and foremost a measure of economic activity rather than welfare the possibility of absolute decoupling is theoretically limited. This paper demonstrates theoretically and empirically that economic values at the macroeconomic level are fundamentally determined by the use of production factors, primarily labor and physical capital. Technical innovations or efficiency gains increasing utility without raising the costs of production do not add to the GDP unless they stimulate investments in physical capital. Hence the neoclassical notion of productivity is only found to be relevant as a microeconomic concept. In practice, GDP growth is mostly explained by capital accumulation and a key question is whether or not capital accumulation can be decoupled from the use of materials and energy. This will determine the possibility of decoupling of GDP growth from resource use and environmental impact. Alternative measures of progress focusing on welfare rather than economic activity are more likely to achieve absolute decoupling. Sustainability 2016-05-18 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050490 490 2071-1050 2016-05-18 doi: 10.3390/su8050490 Jan Malmaeus http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/487 The aim of this paper is to identify some changes needed in Spain's innovation policy to fill the gap between its innovation results and those of other European countries in lieu of sustainable leadership. To do this we apply the Delphi methodology to experts from academia, business, and government. To overcome the shortcomings of traditional descriptive methods, we develop an inferential analysis by following a non-parametric bootstrap method which enables us to identify important changes that should be implemented. Particularly interesting is the support found for improving the interconnections among the relevant agents of the innovation system (instead of focusing exclusively in the provision of knowledge and technological inputs through R and D activities), or the support found for "soft" policy instruments aimed at providing a homogeneous framework to assess the innovation capabilities of firms (e.g., for funding purposes). Attention to potential innovators among small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and traditional industries is particularly encouraged by experts. Sustainability 2016-05-18 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050487 487 2071-1050 2016-05-18 doi: 10.3390/su8050487 Juan Salazar-Elena M. Sánchez F. Otamendi http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/481 Urban sustainability discourse promotes the increased use of green infrastructure (GI) because of its contribution of important ecosystem services to city dwellers. Under this vision, all urban green spaces, including those at the household scale, are valued for their potential contributions to a city's social-ecological functioning and associated benefits for human well-being. Understanding how urban residential green spaces have evolved can help improve sustainable urban planning and design, but it requires examining urban processes occurring at multiple scales. The interaction between social structures and ecological structures within the subtropical city of San Juan, the capital and the largest city of Puerto Rico, has been an important focus of study of the San Juan ULTRA (Urban Long-Term Research Area) network, advancing understanding of the city's vulnerabilities and potential adaptive capacity. Here we provide a synthesis of several social-ecological processes driving residential yard dynamics in the city of San Juan, Puerto Rico, through the evaluation of empirical findings related to yard management decisions, yard area, and yard services. We emphasize the role of factors occurring at the household scale. Results are discussed within the context of shrinking cities using an integrated, multi-scalar, social-ecological systems framework, and consider the implications of household green infrastructure for advancing urban sustainability theory. Sustainability 2016-05-18 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050481 481 2071-1050 2016-05-18 doi: 10.3390/su8050481 Elvia Meléndez-Ackerman Christopher Nytch Luis Santiago-Acevedo Julio Verdejo-Ortiz Raúl Santiago-Bartolomei Luis Ramos-Santiago Tischa Muñoz-Erickson http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/5/2/21 One of the many disastrous consequences of the tragic events of 9/11 is the war waged by the neocolonialists in order to "liberate" Muslim women. This gender-based war stands on a series of pillars, such as the presumption that Western civilization offers women a great deal of privileges, while Muslim culture gives none. Therefore, it would be logical to suppose that, because of the many opportunities the West grants to Muslim women who reside there, the latter may have an active role in the local political process. However, Muslim women have scarce visibility in European political life, and their presence is sometimes merely instrumental to some party: in most cases, women are coopted because they are a good sample of "secular Muslims" (i.e., they do not wear the hijab, i.e., the veil and a modest attire); in others, they are appointed because they are veiled and can therefore become a good vehicle in order to win the support both of the Muslim community and of its sympathizers. In this paper, I will analyze some crucial aspects of Muslim women's formal political participation in some European countries; in addition, I will focus on the Italian case with the help of a series of interviews with Muslim women who play an active role in local political councils. The study shows how in European politics, Muslim women can become a commodity even when they stand out as rising political individuals; but also how they fight to gain visibility and public recognition, in spite of the tense situation and of the rampant Islamophobia. Social Sciences 2016-05-18 5 2 Article 10.3390/socsci5020021 21 2076-0760 2016-05-18 doi: 10.3390/socsci5020021 Anna Vanzan http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/484 This study analyzed the direct and indirect CO2 emissions of the energy-intensive basic metals industry, in particular steels, using the distributions of various energy sources, including coal/peat, oil, and electricity, from an input–output table. An analysis of five major steel producing countries indicated that direct CO2 emissions increased 1.4-fold and that indirect CO2 emissions increased by more than two-fold between 1995 and 2010. The elasticity of the CO2 emissions and the total energy costs indicated that Korea, Japan, and Germany are sensitive to energy sources from the electric power industry, whereas China and the US are more sensitive to energy sources pertaining to the coal and oil industry. Using the available forest area and photosynthesis, the potential neutralization ability of CO2 was estimated using the eco-CO2 index. The US yielded the highest CO2 neutralization ability of 66.1%, whereas Korea yielded a CO2 neutralization ability of 15%. Future trends of the 2030 eco-CO2 index revealed China and Korea will rapidly lose their neutralization ability resulting in a net negative neutralization ability if left unabated. The significant decline in the eco-CO2 index for the basic metals industry may be inhibited by utilizing bamboo wood charcoal for pulverized coal injection (PCI) in the steelmaking process. Sustainability 2016-05-17 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050484 484 2071-1050 2016-05-17 doi: 10.3390/su8050484 Kyunsuk Choi Hiroyuki Matsuura Hyunjoung Lee Il Sohn http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/486 This study reviews scholarly papers and case studies on urban vacant land to gain a stronger understanding of its public value in terms of the ecological and social benefits it can bring. This literature review offers a conceptual overview of the potential benefits of vacant land with the goal of addressing gaps in knowledge about vacant land and to provide suggestions to planners and designers on how vacant properties can be integrated with other green infrastructure in cities. There are many opportunities to redevelop vacant land to enhance its ecological and social value, and many design professionals and scholars are becoming interested in finding new ways to exploit this potential, especially with regard to planning and design. A better appreciation of the public value of urban vacant land is vital for any effort to identify alternative strategies to optimize the way these spaces are utilized for both short-term and long-term uses to support urban regeneration and renewal. This study will help planners and designers to understand and plan for urban vacant land, leading to better utilization of these spaces and opening up alternative creative approaches to envisioning space and landscape design in our urban environments. Sustainability 2016-05-17 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050486 486 2071-1050 2016-05-17 doi: 10.3390/su8050486 Gunwoo Kim http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/485 Modern portfolio theory attempts to maximize the expected return of a portfolio for a given level of portfolio risk, or equivalently minimize risk for a given level of expected return. The reality, however, shows that, when selecting projects to a portfolio and allocating resources in the portfolio, an increasing number of organizations take into account other aspects as well. As a result of the sole purpose (risk-return), it offers only a partial solution for a sustainable organization. Existing project portfolio selection and resource allocation methods and models do not consider sustainability. Therefore, the aim of this article is to develop a sustainability-oriented model of financial resource allocation in a project portfolio by integrating a composite sustainability index of a project into Markowitz's classical risk-return scheme (mean-variance model). The model was developed by applying multi-criteria decision-making methods. The practicability of the model was tested by an empirical study in a selected construction company. The proposed sustainability-oriented financial resource allocation model could be used in allocating financial resources in any type of business. The use of the model would not only help organisations to manage risk and achieve higher return but would also allow carrying out sustainable projects, thereby promoting greater environmental responsibility and giving more consideration to the wellbeing of future generations. Moreover, the model allows quantifying the impact of the integration of sustainability into financial resource allocation on the return of a portfolio. Sustainability 2016-05-17 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050485 485 2071-1050 2016-05-17 doi: 10.3390/su8050485 Nomeda Dobrovolskienė Rima Tamošiūnienė http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/5/2/20 The sale of oil and gas is one of the most important components of the Syrian economy. Unfortunately, since the discovery of these resources, the Syrian people have not benefited from the revenues earned. This study deals with the development of oil and gas production and the geographical distribution of fields, as well as production control, deterioration of production, refining and selling mechanisms, and the resulting health and environmental impacts following Islamic State's (IS) control of the majority of oilfields in Syria. Since summer 2015, IS controls 80% of the fields with a production of 65,000 barrels per day (b/d); the Assad regime controls 8% of fields with 10,000 b/d; and Kurdish forces dominate the remaining 12% with 25,000 b/d. IS depends on oil as a major source of financing for its military and civilian activities, and has also managed to set up an extensive network of middlemen in neighbouring territories and countries, with the aim of trading crude oil for cash and other resources. IS produces and exports within its areas of control and sells part of the oil to the Assad regime, and another portion to the liberated areas, as well as to Iraq and Turkey. Social Sciences 2016-05-17 5 2 Article 10.3390/socsci5020020 20 2076-0760 2016-05-17 doi: 10.3390/socsci5020020 Hussein Almohamad Andreas Dittmann http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/478 The objective of the study is to present the modeling and multi-objective optimization of NOx conversion efficiency and NH3 slip in the Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) catalytic converter for a diesel engine. A novel ensemble method based on a support vector machine (SVM) and genetic algorithm (GA) is proposed to establish the models for the prediction of upstream and downstream NOx emissions and NH3 slip. The data for modeling were collected from a steady-state diesel engine bench calibration test. After obtaining the two conflicting objective functions concerned in this study, the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) was implemented to solve the multi-objective optimization problem of maximizing NOx conversion efficiency while minimizing NH3 slip under certain operating points. The optimized SVM models showed great accuracy for the estimation of actual outputs with the Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) of upstream and downstream NOx emissions and NH3 slip being 44.01 × 10−6, 21.87 × 10−6 and 2.22 × 10−6, respectively. The multi-objective optimization and subsequent decisions for optimal performance have also been presented. Sustainability 2016-05-17 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050478 478 2071-1050 2016-05-17 doi: 10.3390/su8050478 Bo Liu Fuwu Yan Jie Hu Richard Turkson Feng Lin http://www.mdpi.com/2075-471X/5/2/23 Article 19 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities requires states to ensure that disabled people can choose where and with whom they live with access to a range of services including personal assistance. Based on qualitative research of the implementation of Article 19 in Nordic countries, this paper focuses on Sweden, which was at the forefront of implementing personal assistance law and policy and has been the inspiration for many European countries. Instead of strengthening access to personal assistance, this study found that since the Swedish government ratified the Convention in 2008, there has been an increase in the numbers of people losing state-funded personal assistance and an increase in rejected applications. This paper examines the reasons for the deterioration of eligibility criteria for accessing personal assistance in Sweden. The findings shed light on how legal and administrative interpretations of "basic needs" are shifting from a social to a medical understanding. They also highlight a shift from collaborative policy making towards conflict, where courts have become the battleground for defining eligibility criteria. Drawing on the findings, we ask if Sweden is violating its obligations under the Convention. Laws 2016-05-16 5 2 Article 10.3390/laws5020023 23 2075-471X 2016-05-16 doi: 10.3390/laws5020023 Ciara Brennan Rannveig Traustadóttir Peter Anderberg James Rice http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/483 Energy poverty, or the inability of households to afford adequate access to energy services, is an issue that can have a significant effect on the quality of life and even the state of health of individuals and even the overall development of a nation. Since it was first brought into focus more than two decades ago in the UK, this topic has gradually gained the attention of academics and policy makers all across the EU and beyond. The current paper addresses the topic by providing not only a renewed discussion, but also an improved energy poverty indicator (with clear and relevant results at the EU level): the Compound Energy Poverty Indicator (CEPI). Moreover, knowing that the risk of poverty and social exclusion, efficiency of heating systems, total consumption of energy per household and rising energy prices tend to increase the severity of this problem in some countries, CEPI is then included into an econometric model so as to determine some possible factors that tend to put pressure on an already existing issue of energy poverty. The results of this research are expected to be relevant not only for academics (as it offers insights into the structure and severity of this topic within the European Union), but also for national and EU policymakers who are confronted in the field with the problem of sustainable development. Sustainability 2016-05-16 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050483 483 2071-1050 2016-05-16 doi: 10.3390/su8050483 Alexandru Maxim Costică Mihai Constantin-Marius Apostoaie Cristian Popescu Costel Istrate Ionel Bostan http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/482 With the rapid depletion of natural resources and undesired environmental changes globally, more interest has been shown in the research of green supply chain practices, including end-of-life vehicle (ELV) recycling. The ELV recycling is mandatory for auto-manufacturers by legislation for the purpose of minimizing potential environmental damages. The purpose of the present research is to determine the best choice of ELV recycling service provider by employing an integrating hybrid multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) method. In this research, economic, environmental and social factors are taken into consideration. The linguistic variables and trapezoidal fuzzy numbers (TFNs) are applied into this evaluation to deal with the vague and qualitative information. With the combined weight calculation of criteria based on fuzzy aggregation and Shannon Entropy techniques, the normative multi-criteria optimization technique (FVIKOR method) is applied to explore the best solution. An application was performed based on the proposed hybrid MCDM method, and sensitivity analysis was conducted on different decision making scenarios. The present study provides a decision-making approach on ELV recycling business selection under sustainability and green philosophy with high robustness and easy implementation. Sustainability 2016-05-16 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050482 482 2071-1050 2016-05-16 doi: 10.3390/su8050482 Fuli Zhou Yun Lin Xu Wang Lin Zhou Yandong He http://www.mdpi.com/2075-4698/6/2/18 The primary goal of occupational therapy is to enable people to participate in the activities of everyday life. The demand for occupational therapists in Canada is expected to grow sharply at an annual growth rate of 3.2%, compared to 0.7% for all occupations. At the same time, it is believed by occupational therapists in Canada that the Canadian public does not understand the role of occupational therapy. Occupational science is an emerging basic science field that supports the practice of occupational therapy. Given that newspapers are one source the public uses to obtain information and that newspapers are seen to shape public opinions, the purpose of this study is to investigate how "occupational therapy" is covered in Canadian newspapers from the term's first appearance in 1917 until 2016 and how "occupational science" is covered from the term's first appearance in 1989 to 2016. We interrogated the findings through the lens of three non-newspaper sources—two academic journals: Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy (CJOT) and Journal of Occupational Science (JOS); and one Canadian magazine: Occupational Therapy Now (OTN). We found that medical terms were prevalent in the newspaper articles covering occupational therapy similar to the presence of medical terms in the CJOT and OTN. However, the newspapers missed contemporary shifts in occupational therapy as evident in the CJOT, OTN and JOS—such as the increased engagement with enablement, occupational justice and other occupational concepts. The newspapers also failed to portray the societal issues that occupational therapy engages with on behalf of and with their clients, and the newspapers did not cover many of the client groups of occupational therapy. Occupational science was only mentioned in n = 26 articles of the nearly 300 Canadian newspapers covered with no concrete content linked to occupational science. The scope of occupational therapy presented in Canadian newspapers may be one contributing factor to a situation where occupational therapists in Canada think that there is lack of public understanding around their role, as readers are not getting the full picture and as such approach occupational therapy with different expectations. Given the lack of coverage of occupational science, readers will likely obtain limited knowledge about occupational science and its focus. Societies 2016-05-16 6 2 Article 10.3390/soc6020018 18 2075-4698 2016-05-16 doi: 10.3390/soc6020018 Tsing-Yee Chai Gregor Wolbring http://www.mdpi.com/2079-8954/4/2/21 In this paper, we present an ontology-based visualization support system which can provide a meaningful learning environment to help e-book learners to effectively construct their knowledge frameworks. In this personalized visualization support system, learners are encouraged to actively locate new knowledge in their own knowledge framework and check the logical consistency of their ideas for clearing up misunderstandings; on the other hand, instructors will be able to decide the group distribution for collaborative learning activities based on the knowledge structure of learners. For facilitating those visualization supports, a method to semi-automatically construct a course-centered ontology to describe the required information in a map structure is presented. To automatically manipulate this course-centered ontology to provide visualization learning supports, a prototype system is designed and developed. Systems 2016-05-16 4 2 Article 10.3390/systems4020021 21 2079-8954 2016-05-16 doi: 10.3390/systems4020021 Jingyun Wang Hiroaki Ogata Atsushi Shimada http://www.mdpi.com/2226-471X/1/1/6 The aim of this paper is to explore a facet of bi/multilingual creativity in language mixing. The first aspect of creativity is driven by the consideration of formal principles, which fall outside monolingual or single language competence, e.g., [1]. The rule-governed mechanism, which allows the integration of the embedded language verbs into the matrix language, is accounted for. This objective is achieved by employing two distinct data sets: (1) grammatical competence (intuitional data) involving the embedded lexical verb mixing in the Light Verb Construction in a variety of languages, particularly in South Asian languages (e.g., Hindi-English); and (2) an experimental data set that exhibits the relationships involved in the generative perspective through consideration of Universal Grammar. The underlying motivation for focusing on India is that language mixing constitutes a grass-roots phenomenon in India since the pre-Christian era; hence it is a stable and time-tested phenomenon which allows us to overcome key methodological issues in the study of language mixing. Languages 2016-05-16 1 1 Article 10.3390/languages1010006 6 2226-471X 2016-05-16 doi: 10.3390/languages1010006 Tej Bhatia William Ritchie http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/480 China's rapid economic growth and social transitions have deteriorated environmental conditions and caused further public health issues in last three decades. This study examines the complex mechanisms of how socioeconomic transitions and physical environmental conditions impact public health, especially with respect to increasing cancer incidences in mainland China from a spatial-temporal perspective. Specifically, (1) spatial variations of seven types of cancer incidences were analyzed in relation to heavy metal emissions from industrial wastewater at the prefecture-level city scale from 2004 to 2009. Additionally; (2) spatial statistical methods were employed to explore the associations between health outcome, heavy metal emissions from industrial wastewater (arsenic, chromium, cadmium, mercury, lead), as well as socioeconomic transitions (industrialization, urbanization, globalization) and physical environmental factors (hydrology and vegetation coverage). Results showed a significant increase of cancer incidences between 2004 and 2009. Consistent with the spatial pattern of heavy metal emissions, cancer patient clusters were identified in both traditional industrial bases and newly industrialized economic zones, especially in major cities located at downstream watersheds, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenyang, and Wuhan. The results also revealed the double-edged effects of industrialization, economic growth, and urbanization on natural environment and human health. The findings provide informative knowledge of heavy metal pollution and cancer outbreaks in China and therefore offer valuable reference for authorities formulating regulations. Sustainability 2016-05-14 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050480 480 2071-1050 2016-05-14 doi: 10.3390/su8050480 Yingru Li Huixuan Li Zhongwei Liu Changhong Miao http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/479 The intellectual property rights (IPR) landscape for plant germplasm has changed dramatically over the past 50 years, moving from the public domain into proprietary structures. Using carrot as a model crop, we explored the freedom to operate for plant breeding and research in relation to the diversity present in 140 commercially available cultivars in the United States. To determine freedom to operate, we characterized the phenotypic and genotypic diversity across cultivars and the IPR that were associated with each cultivar. With 87 of the 95 cultivars that were not restricted by IPR, we developed eight diverse composite populations of carrot through two cycles of breeding that are meant to encompass the available diversity in commercial germplasm. These populations are being released through the Open Source Seed Initiative (OSSI, www.osseeds.org). This is the first example of crop germplasm that has been collected, characterized, and bred specifically for entry into an open source commons. Sustainability 2016-05-14 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050479 479 2071-1050 2016-05-14 doi: 10.3390/su8050479 Claire Luby Irwin Goldman http://www.mdpi.com/2075-471X/5/2/22 On 25 September 2015, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly unanimously voted for the post-2015 UN resolution on the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) agenda. This article argues that although the post-2015 SDG agenda is an advance on its precursor the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)—especially for progressing the human rights of persons with disabilities in development settings, everywhere—it should nonetheless be approached with caution. This article will identify "three steps forward" for persons with disabilities within the broad content of the post-2015 SDGs, while also highlighting four potential "steps back". It concludes persons with disabilities, disability rights advocates and their supporters must remain vigilant as the post-SDG UN resolution is now operationalised and implemented by UN Member States and their many partners. This is particularly so if the content of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is to be effectively integrated into the post-2015 development policy and planning landscape. Laws 2016-05-14 5 2 Opinion 10.3390/laws5020022 22 2075-471X 2016-05-14 doi: 10.3390/laws5020022 Claire Brolan http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/477 Algae were recently considered as a promising third-generation biofuel feedstock due to their superior productivity, high oil content, and environmentally friendly nature. However, the sustainable production became the major constraint facing commercial development of algal biofuels. For this study, firstly, a factorial experimental design was used to analyze the effects of the process parameters including temperatures of 8–25 °C, light intensity of 150–900 μmol·m−2s−1, and light duration of 6–24 h on the biomass yields of local alga Chlamydomonas debaryana in swine wastewater. The results were fitted with a quadratic equation (R2 = 0.9706). The factors of temperature, light duration, the interaction of light intensity-light duration, and the quadratic effect of temperature were statistically significant. When evaluating different scenarios for the sustainable production of algal biomass and biofuels in North Carolina, US, it showed that: (a) Growing C. debaryana in a 10-acre pond on swine wastewater under local weather conditions would yield algal biomass of 113 tonnes/year; (b) If all swine wastewater generated in North Carolina was treated with algae, it will require 137–485 acres of ponds, yielding biomass of 5048–10,468 tonnes/year and algal oil of 1010–2094 tonnes/year. Annually, hundreds of tonnes of nitrogen and phosphorus could be removed from swine wastewater. The required area is mainly dependent on the growth rate of algal species. Sustainability 2016-05-14 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050477 477 2071-1050 2016-05-14 doi: 10.3390/su8050477 Bo Zhang Lijun Wang Bilal Riddicka Rui Li Justin Able Nana Boakye-Boaten Abolghasem Shahbazi http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/475 Two rich knowledge domains have been evolving along parallel pathways in tourism studies: sustainable tourism (ST) and community-based tourism (CBT). Within both lie diverse definitions, principles, criteria, critical success factors and benefits sought or outcomes desired, advocated by different stakeholders ranging from quasi-governmental and non-profit organizations to public-private sector and academic interests. This poses significant challenges to those interested in theory building, research and practice in the sustainable development and management of tourism. The paper builds on a previous article published in Sustainability by presenting an integrated framework based on a comprehensive, in-depth review and analysis of the tourism-related literature. The study reveals not just common ground and differences that might be anticipated, but also important sustainability dimensions that are lagging or require much greater attention, such as equity, justice, ethical and governance issues. A preliminary framework of "sustainable community-based tourism" (SCBT) is forwarded that attempts to bridge the disparate literature on ST and CBT. Critical directions forward are offered to progress research and sustainability-oriented practices towards more effective development and management of tourism in the 21st century. Sustainability 2016-05-13 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050475 475 2071-1050 2016-05-13 doi: 10.3390/su8050475 Tek Dangi Tazim Jamal http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/476 This article explores the role of actors and agency in the literature on sustainability transitions. We reviewed 386 journal articles on transition management and sustainability transitions listed in Scopus from 1995 to 2014. We investigate the thesis that actors have been neglected in this literature in favor of more abstract system concepts. Results show that this thesis cannot be confirmed on a general level. Rather, we find a variety of different approaches, depending on the systemic level, for clustering actors and agency as niche, regime, and landscape actors; the societal realm; different levels of governance; and intermediaries. We also differentiate between supporting and opposing actors. We find that actor roles in transitions are erratic, since their roles can change over the course of time, and that actors can belong to different categories. We conclude by providing recommendations for a comprehensive typology of actors in sustainability transitions. Sustainability 2016-05-13 8 5 Review 10.3390/su8050476 476 2071-1050 2016-05-13 doi: 10.3390/su8050476 Lisa-Britt Fischer Jens Newig http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/5/2/19 This paper aims at clarifying a timely topic of how communication strategy choices are made in evolving, complex crises, such as those caused by terrorism involving chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear (CBRN) agents. This is done by examining data gathered from a table-top discussion among crisis communication experts, focusing on a scenario of an anthrax attack and analysed qualitatively. The communication experts followed the evolving crisis situation by gathering inputs from various actors in the crisis management network, thereby creating situational understanding, and interpreted these inputs for decision-making on communication strategies. The underlying process of coping with complexity in evolving CBRN terrorism crises can be described as a continuous, dynamic process that can best be explained with a combination of traditional and more modern crisis communication approaches. Strategy-making in crisis situations by communication experts is still largely a black box. In this study, a novel approach of decomposing strategy-making by observing a table-top discussion is chosen to clarify the process. By identifying the core elements involved, a more detailed picture of communication strategy-making is created, thus promoting preparedness and professional resilience in the field. Social Sciences 2016-05-13 5 2 Article 10.3390/socsci5020019 19 2076-0760 2016-05-13 doi: 10.3390/socsci5020019 Aino Ruggiero http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/5/2/18 A growth in cultural ideologies concerned with men and masculinities in contemporary American society has recently emerged. Men's rights activist (MRA) groups embody a movement emphasizing the crisis of masculinity. Despite men's privileged societal status, MRAs seek to establish resources for men to utilize in elevating their perceived subordinated position in society in relation to women and social minorities. Little research has systematically investigated MRAs on the Internet, which is rapidly becoming a primary source of information and social connectedness for people. Through a content analysis of the 12 most prominent MRA websites, we explore the various strategies used by contemporary men's groups designed to provide support for men in their pursuit of social legitimacy and power. Two primary categories of MRAs with distinctive ideological strategies emerged from this analysis: Cyber Lads in Search of Masculinity and Virtual Victims in Search of Equality. Though both groups promoted men's entitlement to social power, Cyber Lads utilized themes of explicit aggression towards and devaluation of women, while Virtual Victims adopted political and social movement rhetoric to address men's issues. The implications of these websites are discussed in terms of gender equality and their potential effects on individual men and women. Social Sciences 2016-05-12 5 2 Article 10.3390/socsci5020018 18 2076-0760 2016-05-12 doi: 10.3390/socsci5020018 Rachel Schmitz Emily Kazyak http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/474 A humanoid, which refers to a robot that resembles a human body, imitates a human's intelligence, behavior, sense, and interaction in order to provide various types of services to human beings. Humanoids have been studied and developed constantly in order to improve their performance. Humanoids were previously developed for simple repetitive or hard work that required significant human power. However, intelligent service robots have been developed actively these days to provide necessary information and enjoyment; these include robots manufactured for home, entertainment, and personal use. It has become generally known that artificial intelligence humanoid technology will significantly benefit civilization. On the other hand, Successful Research and Development (R & D) on humanoids is possible only if they are developed in a proper direction in accordance with changes in markets and society. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze changes in technology markets and society for developing sustainable Management of Technology (MOT) strategies. In this study, patent data related to humanoids are analyzed by various data mining techniques, including topic modeling, cross-impact analysis, association rule mining, and social network analysis, to suggest sustainable strategies and methodologies for MOT. Sustainability 2016-05-12 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050474 474 2071-1050 2016-05-12 doi: 10.3390/su8050474 Jongchan Kim Joonhyuck Lee Gabjo Kim Sangsung Park Dongsik Jang http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/471 Understanding wetland changes under urbanization is important for wetland management. In this study, net transition intensity (NTI) and total transition intensity (TTI) are presented to characterize wetland transitions based on spatial data obtained from Landsat satellite images of Pearl River estuary in South China. NTI is commonly used to represent changes in absolute amounts for each class of wetland, while TTI reflects the internal transition activities and amounts. The third index, the urbanization intensity index (UII), is used to investigate the intensity and velocity of urban land expansion at the same time periods. The results show that one-third of the total wetland area was lost from 1979 to 2009 in the study area and seven types of estuarine wetlands were degraded. The basic pattern of wetland transition is from natural wetlands to constructed wetlands and then to urban lands. Intertidal mud and sand and paddy fields were the major natural and constructed wetlands, respectively, transferred to urban lands. The TTI value was generally greater than the NTI value for these wetlands. TTI >> NTI is an important indicator for wetland transitions under rapid urban expansion in the Pearl River estuary. Based on the integration of the two indices (NTI and TTI), a protection and management plan framework for the Pearl River estuary wetlands is proposed. This plan emphasizes the key and important zones and their different features, and includes actions that can be implemented in and around natural and constructed wetlands. Sustainability 2016-05-12 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050471 471 2071-1050 2016-05-12 doi: 10.3390/su8050471 Hui Zhao Xiaodan Wang Yanjiang Cai Weilong Liu http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/472 Eco-industrial development projects are increasingly popular because of their ability to transform the traditional model of industrial parks into more sustainable forms of economic development. Still, few industrial parks worldwide have achieved the high degree of eco-transformation that characterizes eco-industrial parks (EIPs). Assessing the potential for eco-industrial development at the park or regional scale is an important step towards this goal. This study aimed to assess the potential for ecological development of a growing industrial park (Caledonia Industrial Estates (CIE), province of New Brunswick, Canada) following the principles of industrial ecology. A baseline survey of CIE businesses was conducted. The results were compared to results from similar assessments in three other industrial parks across Canada, located in Nova Scotia, Ontario and Saskatchewan. The main categories used for comparison were business variety and size, public transportation, green spaces, energy and material use, and environmental management organization. While showing that CIE has EIP potential, the results revealed similarities and differences between the industrial parks studied, some of which were related to barriers limiting the efficient use and sharing of resources. One way that was identified that could help CIE incorporate eco-industrial activities into their operations would be the appointment of an environmental management organization or a shared environmental manager. Strategies to foster EIP development, in general, are also identified. These findings, based on actual business experiences, can help determine which actions and activities are suitable for CIE and other business communities that consider eco-industrial development as their next phase. They are particularly relevant to industrial parks in a development or redevelopment phase. Sustainability 2016-05-12 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050472 472 2071-1050 2016-05-12 doi: 10.3390/su8050472 Rachelle LeBlanc Carole Tranchant Yves Gagnon Raymond Côté http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/470 Taiwan's government has promoted investment in an offshore wind power farm, and local fishermen have protested. A social impact assessment (SIA) has examined the impact of the proposed offshore wind power farm on all stakeholders. The main objective of the present study was to develop an indicator system for measuring the social sustainability of offshore wind power farms; this study also reports on the particular case of Taiwan's offshore wind power project. This study began by defining 35 social sustainability indicators and selecting 23 representative indicators by using rough set theory. Subsequently, 14 key indicators were constructed using the social construction of technology (SCOT) method. Finally, we developed a social impact index for evaluating the social sustainability of offshore wind power farms by using the analytic network process and Dempster-Shafer theory. Our social impact index yields a total score of 0.149 for Taiwan's pilot offshore wind power project; this result indicates that the pilot project is socially sustainable. A substantial contradiction exists between the fishermen's protest and the results of the social impact assessment. The findings can assist the government in building a coordination platform for the investors and the fishermen. Government regulation is necessary to set boundaries for fishing areas that protect both the fishermen's and investors' rights. Sustainability 2016-05-12 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050470 470 2071-1050 2016-05-12 doi: 10.3390/su8050470 Tzay-An Shiau Ji-Kai Chuen-Yu http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/473 In the published paper [1], Figures 5 and 6 were inadvertently exchanged in the PDF file.[...] Sustainability 2016-05-12 8 5 Erratum 10.3390/su8050473 473 2071-1050 2016-05-12 doi: 10.3390/su8050473 Sustainability Editorial Office http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/469 We study how the information and communications technology (ICT) ecosystem affects the sustainable growth of ICT firms. For our study, we analyze the efficiencies of ICT firms in China, South Korea, the United States, and Japan, which are the current leaders in the global ICT industry, each with different ICT ecosystem structures. We use metafrontier analysis (MFA) to compare the efficiencies among countries with different structures, and then use Tobit regression to identify the causes of the efficiency gaps. Our results reveal that the US has the highest efficiency, followed by Japan, South Korea, and China, in that order, and the countries with more balanced ICT ecosystems across sub-industries—manufacturing, software and IT services, content, and telecommunications—have more efficient ICT industries. This suggests that a more balanced industrial development is important to enhancing the overall competitiveness of the ICT industry. Sustainability 2016-05-12 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050469 469 2071-1050 2016-05-12 doi: 10.3390/su8050469 Kyoungsun Lee Yuri Park Daeho Lee http://www.mdpi.com/2075-471X/5/2/21 The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) is unique among international human rights instruments for including a "civil society mandate". Within the convention, disabled persons organizations (DPOs) are identified as having the responsibility to "be involved and participate fully in the monitoring process" of the CRPD. In response to this mandate, international funders, NGOs (non-governmental organizations), and networks committed to the CPRD have begun to implement capacity-building programs that target grassroots DPOs with the goal of ensuring they become advocates and monitors of the CRPD. While the goals of these capacity-building programs are admirable, they must be critically assessed. The NGO-ization theory within development studies offers a framework for analyzing the potential unintended consequences of donors providing new funding, NGOs providing training, and global networks integrating local partners. NGO-ization studies have identified how grassroots associations are co-opted by outside actors through formalization and professionalization processes that significantly alter local groups and alienate members, thus making those associations less representative and less responsive to local needs and interests. Human rights scholars and international organizations focused on the CRPD should incorporate an NGO-ization perspective into their research and project-implementation to ensure that grassroots voices are heard and local needs addressed. Laws 2016-05-11 5 2 Article 10.3390/laws5020021 21 2075-471X 2016-05-11 doi: 10.3390/laws5020021 Stephen Meyers http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/468 Achieving the decoupling of electric CO2 emissions from total electricity generation is important in ensuring the sustainable socioeconomic development of China. To realize this, China implemented market-oriented reforms to its electric power industry at the beginning of 2003. This study used the Tapio decoupling index, the Laspeyres decomposition algorithm, and decoupling-related data from 1993 to 2012 to evaluate the effect of these reforms. Several conclusions can be drawn based on the empirical analysis. (1) The reforms changed the developmental trend of the decoupling index and facilitated its progress towards strong decoupling. (2) The results forecasted through fitting the curve to the decoupling index indicate that strong decoupling would be realized by 2030. (3) Limiting the manufacturing development and upgrading the generation equipment of the thermal power plants are essential for China to achieve strong decoupling at an early date. (4) China should enhance regulatory pressures and guidance for appropriate investment in thermal power plants to ensure the stable development of the decoupling index. (5) Transactions between multiple participants and electricity price bidding play active roles in the stable development of the decoupling index. Sustainability 2016-05-11 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050468 468 2071-1050 2016-05-11 doi: 10.3390/su8050468 Wei Shang Guifen Pei Conor Walsh Ming Meng Xiangsong Meng http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/466 This paper aims to elicit insights about sustainable wearables by investigating recent advancements in wearable technology and their applications. Wearable technology has advanced considerably from a technical perspective, but it has stagnated due to barriers without penetrating wider society despite early positive expectations. This situation is the motivation behind the focus on studies by many research groups in recent years into wearable applications that can provide the best value from a human-oriented perspective. The expectation is that a new means to resolve the issue can be found from a viewpoint of sustainability; this is the main point of this paper. This paper first focuses on the trend of wearable technology like bodily status monitoring, multi-wearable device control, and smart networking between wearable sensors. Second, the development intention of such technology is investigated. Finally, this paper discusses about the applications of current wearable technology from the sustainable perspective, rather than detailed description of the component technologies employed in wearables. In this paper, the definition of sustainable wearables is discussed in the context of improving the quality of individual life, social impact, and social public interest; those wearable applications include the areas of wellness, healthcare, assistance for the visually impaired, disaster relief, and public safety. In the future, wearables will not be simple data trackers or fun accessories but will gain extended objectives and meanings that play a valuable role for individuals and societies. Successful and sustainable wearables will lead to positive changes for both individuals and societies overall. Sustainability 2016-05-11 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050466 466 2071-1050 2016-05-11 doi: 10.3390/su8050466 Jaewoon Lee Dongho Kim Han-Young Ryoo Byeong-Seok Shin http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/467 In this paper, we examine the influence of environmental regulation on sustainable economic growth from both theoretical and empirical perspectives. Our research is twofold. First, we apply a modified NEG (New Economic Geography) model to analyze how environmental regulation influences firms' location choices and cities' sustainable economic growth. Second, we test a spatial econometric model employing panel data of the three largest urban agglomerations in China from 2003 to 2013 to study the relationship between environmental regulation and sustainable economic growth as well as the spillover channels of economic activities. The results reveal a remarkable negative effect of environmental regulation on economic growth. In addition, we find no sufficient evidence to prove the existence of long-term effects of environmental regulation on economic growth in the three urban agglomerations. Furthermore, using different weight matrices to illustrate the different economic networks of the urban agglomeration, we validate the difference in spillover mechanisms across these three urban agglomerations. Specifically, the disparity in environmental regulation acts as a spillover channel for the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta, while it is not significant for Jing-Jin-Ji. Sustainability 2016-05-11 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050467 467 2071-1050 2016-05-11 doi: 10.3390/su8050467 Zhaohui Chong Chenglin Qin Xinyue Ye http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/5/54 The purpose of this study was to develop a midrange theory, building on Orem's self-care deficit nursing theory (SCDNT) to include constructs of religion, spirituality, and spiritual self‑care practices. This mid-range theory, White's theory of spirituality and spiritual self-care (WTSSSC), was developed and tested as part of a larger study of African American patients with heart failure (HF). The aim of the study was to determine if spiritual self-care practices were mediating the relationship between depression and quality of life for African Americans diagnosed with heart failure. Participants in this study included 142 African Americans diagnosed with HF who were recruited at the clinic where they were being treated. Four instruments were used to measure spiritual self-care practices (White's Spiritual Self-Care Practice Scale (WSPSCPC)), depression symptomology (Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9)), quality of life (World Health Organization QOL (WHOQOL-Bref)), and personal characteristics. Results of the analysis were statistically significant, indicating that spirituality self-care practices were mediating the relationship between depression and quality of life for African American individuals diagnosed with HF. As the population ages and chronic illness becomes more common, nurses need to promote the use of spirituality self-care practices to help patients maintain their well-being. Religions 2016-05-11 7 5 Article 10.3390/rel7050054 54 2077-1444 2016-05-11 doi: 10.3390/rel7050054 Mary White http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/464 Over the last decades, around the world, the concept of competitiveness was long debated by economists (and others), widely used and even sometimes overused. Although at the theoretical level, a number of determinant factors of health care organizations' competitiveness have been proposed, their diversity and the little empirical data available argues for the need to create and validate a model of competitiveness of health organizations. The purpose of this paper is (considering the theoretical approach) to shape a model of sustainable competitiveness of health organizations. In this respect, a 51 item questionnaire was designed and applied on a sample of 291 respondents from 12 Romanian health organizations. The exploratory factor analysis undertaken recovered more than 69% of the common variability of the initial 51 variables and revealed four factors/dimensions of sustainable competitiveness of health organizations (Economic Dimension, Quality Dimension, Social Dimension, and Strategic Dimension). Among the results of the exploratory factor analysis is also the empirical evidence on the contribution of leadership and managerial processes to enhance the influence of all other factors/dimensions in increasing the sustainable competitiveness of health organizations, thus bringing into focus the concept of sustainable management and leadership. Being just in the exploratory phase of our research, the proposed model can, and should, be improved, thus opening up further research directions. Sustainability 2016-05-11 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050464 464 2071-1050 2016-05-11 doi: 10.3390/su8050464 Simona Stefan Ion Popa Cosmin Dobrin http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/463 Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) cycles are absolutely vital in maintaining sustainable food systems. Human activities disturb the natural balance of these cycles by creating enormous additional nutrient fluxes, causing eutrophication of waterways and pollution in land systems. To tackle this problem, sustainable nutrient management is required. This paper addresses sustainable nutrient management in two countries: The Netherlands and Finland. We adopt a critical perspective on resource politics, especially towards opportunistic policy strategies for the pollutant management of N and P. Two research questions are considered. First, what are the key systemic and policy failures that occurred in the N and P systems in the Netherlands and Finland between 1970 and 2015? And second, which lessons can be drawn when addressing the policy responses in the two countries to cope with these failures? The cases are analyzed within Weber and Rohracher's framework that addresses "failures" preventing sustainable transitions. The results show that a number of failures occurred, besides market failures (over-exploitation of the commons, externalization of costs): lack of directionality, policy coordination, institutions, capabilities, infrastructure, demand articulation, and reflexivity. Policy responses in both countries resulted in ponderous policy frameworks that were adequate to tackle nutrient problems from the industrial sector and municipalities. However, both countries provided only a moderate response in terms of system-wide integrated policy frameworks to cope with sectoral-transcending issues. The agricultural use of N and P, in contrast to detergents, has not been subjected to strong regulatory measures. Sustainability 2016-05-11 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050463 463 2071-1050 2016-05-11 doi: 10.3390/su8050463 Thomas Hoppe Anna Kuokkanen Mirja Mikkilä Helena Kahiluoto Miia Kuisma Maarten Arentsen Lassi Linnanen http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/465 NGOs and development agencies have a conspicuous presence in facilitating capacity building, access to production resources and markets. Capacity building by NGOs and development agencies is expected to contribute to farm efficiency and sustainability by promoting and enhancing fertilizer use as well as increasing soil fertilities. However, the influence of these factors on technical efficiency as an important dimension of sustainability has not been further explored in Ghana. This study therefore assesses the influence of NGOs on technical efficiency among smallholder soybean farmers by applying stochastic frontier analysis. The data collected from 349 smallholder soybean producers in the three northern regions of Ghana are employed for the analysis. Results show that the mean technical efficiency of soybean production is 0.885, indicating a growth potential of 11.5%. Land area, agro-chemicals and seeds contribute to production growth while labor is over used. We find that NGO facilitation as well as group membership influences technical efficiency. Furthermore, farmers facilitated by NGOs and development agencies are 4.4 p.p. more efficient than non-facilitated farmers. Our study therefore implies that production and efficiency can be improved by providing more services to farmer group members and sustainable interventions from NGOs and social programs. Sustainability 2016-05-10 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050465 465 2071-1050 2016-05-10 doi: 10.3390/su8050465 Aniah Avea Jing Zhu Xu Tian Tomas Baležentis Tianxiang Li Michael Rickaille William Funsani http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/462 To gain a greater understanding of the spatial spillover effect of greenhouse gas emissions and their influencing factors, this paper provides a spatial analysis of four gas pollutants (CO2 emissions, SO2 emissions, NOx emissions, and dust emissions). Focusing on China, the paper also explores whether the four gas pollutants are influenced by the emissions of neighboring regions and other possible sources. The paper uses a global spatial autocorrelation analysis, local spatial association analysis and spatial lag model for empirical work. The results suggest that CO2, SO2, and NOx emissions show significant positive results for both the spatial correlation and space cluster effect in provincial space distribution.CO2 and NOx emissions have a significant positive spillover effect, while the SO2 emissions' spatial spillover effect is positive but not significant. Economic growth and urbanization are the key determinants of CO2, dust, and NOx emissions, while energy efficiency and industrialization do not appear to play a role. This raises questions about the method of examining the spatial relationship between gas pollution, economic growth and urbanization in the future. Sustainability 2016-05-10 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050462 462 2071-1050 2016-05-10 doi: 10.3390/su8050462 Li Li Xuefei Hong Dengli Tang Ming Na http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/461 Considering the current emerging demographic, urbanization and climatic trends, integrating sustainability and resilience principles into urban development becomes a key priority for decision-makers worldwide. Local and national governments, project developers and other urban stakeholders dealing with the complexities of urban development need projects with clear structure and outcomes in order to inform decision-making and ensure sources of financing. The need for developing an integrated assessment methodology that would capture and quantify multiple urban sustainability and resilience benefits of projects in one common framework and eventually lead to verifiable sustainability and resilience outcomes is immense and challenging at the same time. The main objective of this paper is to present the development of a methodological approach that aims to integrate sustainability and resilience benefits, derived from the implementation of green growth urban projects, into a unified framework of criteria addressing environmental, social, economic and institutional perspectives. The proposed sustainability and resilience benefits assessment (SRBA) methodology is a combination of top down and bottom up approaches, including GIS-based scenario building. The different types of sustainability and resilience benefits of urban green growth projects are also identified at different levels (i.e., individual, neighborhood, city and global). Moreover, the proposed methodology creates scenarios that can be illustrated by a map-based approach to enable a better illustration and visualization of benefits. It demonstrates how a map-based approach can assess not only the extent of sustainability and resilience benefits accrued (how much is benefitted), but also their spatial distribution (who is benefitted). The main methodological challenges and issues on developing an integrated sustainability and resilience benefits assessment are identified and discussed. Sustainability 2016-05-10 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050461 461 2071-1050 2016-05-10 doi: 10.3390/su8050461 Stelios Grafakos Alberto Gianoli Alexandra Tsatsou http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/459 Anthropogenic activity interacts with urban form and inner metabolic processes, ultimately impacting urban sustainability. China's cities have experienced many environmental issues and metabolic disturbances since the nation-wide market-oriented "reform and opening-up" policy was adopted in the 1980s. To analyze urban reform policy impacts and metabolism sustainability at a settlement scale, this study provides an integrated analysis to evaluate settlement metabolism and sustainability using a combination of emergy analysis and sustainability indicators based on scrutiny of two typical settlements (one pre- and one post-reform). The results reveal that housing reform policy stimulated better planning and construction, thereby improving built environmental quality, mixed functional land use, and residential livability. The pre-reform work-unit settlements are comparatively denser in per capita area but have less mixed land use. Housing reform has spatially changed the work–housing balance and increased commuting travel demand. However, short commuting distances in pre-reform settlements will not always decrease overall motor vehicle usage. Integrating non-commuting transport with local mixed land-use functional planning is a necessary foundation for sustainable urban design. Functional planning should provide convenient facilities and infrastructure, green space, and a suitable household density, and allow for short travel distances; these characteristics are all present in the post-reform settlement. Sustainability 2016-05-10 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050459 459 2071-1050 2016-05-10 doi: 10.3390/su8050459 Lijie Gao Shenghui Cui Dewei Yang Lina Tang Jonathan Vause Lishan Xiao Xuanqi Li Longyu Shi http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/5/53 Recent increase in the number of studies on spirituality manifests growing recognition of the importance of spirituality, as well as mounting interest in studying spirituality in healthcare. Most studies on spirituality in end of life care focus on identifying specific features of spirituality and often represent an individualistic understanding of spirituality. They seldom engage in a historical–cultural exploration of the contextual meanings of those features of spirituality. This paper aims to demonstrate the absence of contextual factors in studying spirituality at the end of life and to highlight the growing recognition of the importance of history, culture and traditions as resources to enrich our understanding of spirituality. An exploration of the concept of spirituality, an overview of the trajectory of the study of spirituality and a review of existing methodological stances reveal the silent space in current approaches to understanding spirituality at the end of life. Recognition of the importance of these contextual factors in understanding spirituality is growing, which is yet to influence the conceptualization and the conduct of spirituality research. Contextual understandings of spirituality that incorporate insights from the history, culture and traditions of specific contexts can inform effective means for providing spiritual support in clinical practice. Religions 2016-05-09 7 5 Article 10.3390/rel7050053 53 2077-1444 2016-05-09 doi: 10.3390/rel7050053 Hamilton Inbadas http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/5/52 Recent attention to human spirituality, research on congregationally-related practice, and growth in employment within religiously-based organizations energize the creation of educational initiatives to prepare future professionals for competent social work practice within these settings. Internship experiences with congregations and religiously-affiliated organizations (RAOs) play a pivotal role in delivering the competencies required by the social work accreditation body. Conceptual tools are needed for understanding congregationally-related practice, for navigating potential conflict between faith and professional practice, and for delivering effective internship experiences. This article, written from the faculty's perspective of a Christian, religiously affiliated social work degree program, offers a framework for conceptualizing social work with congregations and RAOs and a beginning discussion for sorting out dilemmas in the integration of faith and practice in these settings. Two models, individual placement and rotational model placement, for congregationally-related internship experiences are presented and evaluated. Recommendations for enriched internship learning and future research are offered. Religions 2016-05-09 7 5 Article 10.3390/rel7050052 52 2077-1444 2016-05-09 doi: 10.3390/rel7050052 Helen Harris Gaynor Yancey Dennis Myers http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/457 Previous research in regional energy efficiency by using macro statistical data has demonstrated that technology development could improve regional energy efficiency. Since the start of reform and opening up in 1978, China has mainly adopted energy import and foreign direct investment to promote economic growth. At the same time, the country has also increased the input of technology and R&D to prompt technological reformation and imported technology absorption. However, there is limited research on the relationship between technology development and energy efficiency. Using the grounded theory method, the authors of this paper study the relationship between technology input-output and energy utilization efficiency in Shanghai over the past 30 years. They conclude that although the tactics of technology import and foreign direct investment can improve energy efficiency in the initial stages of modern industrialization, they cannot improve it continuously. In the more advanced stages of modern industrialization, the improvement of energy efficiency relies not only on increased R&D investment but also on R&D investment structure optimization and independent technological innovation. Sustainability 2016-05-09 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050457 457 2071-1050 2016-05-09 doi: 10.3390/su8050457 William Wei Dezhi Chen Daiping Hu http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/460 Environmental and sustainability assessment tools have an important role in moving towards a better world, bringing knowledge and raising awareness. In the architecture and civil engineering sector, these assessment tools help in moving forward to constructions that have less economic, environmental and social impacts. At present, there are numerous assessment tools and methods with different approaches and scopes that have been analyzed in numerous technical reviews. However, there is no agreement about which method should be used for each evaluation case. This research paper synthetically analyzes the main sustainability assessment methods for the construction sector, comparing their strengths and weaknesses in order to present the challenges of the Spanish Integrated Value Model for Sustainability Assessment (MIVES). MIVES is a Multi-Criteria Decision Making method based on the value function concept and the Seminars of experts. Then, this article analyzes MIVES advantages and weak points by going through its methodology and two representative applications. At the end, the area of application of MIVES is described in detail along with the general application cases of the main types of assessment tools and methods. Sustainability 2016-05-09 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050460 460 2071-1050 2016-05-09 doi: 10.3390/su8050460 Oriol Pons Albert de la Fuente Antonio Aguado http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/456 Enterprise architecture (EA) is one of the most important and effective tools for delivering high-quality e-government services to citizens. In this study, we used organizational performance and change theory to determine factors that contribute to the successful implementation of EA. We classified these factors as one of two types: transformation change (TFC) and transactional change (TSC). To identify these factors, we collected survey data from Korean public sectors that have implemented EA for years. Results show that while EA management systems (EAMS) and EA guidelines directly affect EA performance, laws and regulations, and EA organization exert an indirect effect. Further, top management support had both direct and indirect effect on EA performance. Ultimately, the findings produced by this study have implications for government institutions that plan to implement EA. Sustainability 2016-05-09 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050456 456 2071-1050 2016-05-09 doi: 10.3390/su8050456 Seogjun Lee Seung Oh Kichan Nam http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/5/458 Successful long-term programs for urban residential food waste sorting are very rare, despite the established urgent need for them in cities for waste reduction, pollution reduction and circular resource economy reasons. This study meets recent calls to bridge policy makers and academics, and calls for more thorough analysis of operational work in terms of behavioral determinants, to move the fields on. It takes a key operational element of a recently reported successful food waste sorting program—manning of the new bins by volunteers—and considers the behavioral determinants involved in order to design a more scalable and cheaper alternative—the use of brightly colored covers with flower designs on three sides of the bin. The two interventions were tested in a medium-scale, real-life experimental set-up that showed that they had statistically similar results: high effective capture rates of 32%–34%, with low contamination rates. The success, low cost and simple implementation of the latter suggests it should be considered for large-scale use. Candidate behavioral determinants are prompts, emotion and knowledge for the yellow bin intervention, and for the volunteer intervention they are additionally social influence, modeling, role clarification, and moderators of messenger type and interpersonal or tailored messaging. Sustainability 2016-05-09 8 5 Article 10.3390/su8050458 458 2071-1050 2016-05-09 doi: 10.3390/su8050458 Zi Lin Xiao Wang Chang Li Micheil Gordon Marie Harder