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While climate change is often understood as a collective action and a market problem, we look at it as a problem of planning and coordination. Long-term planning is necessary to promote structural change, which will be required to keep the Paris Agreement's temperature goals. By encouraging states to develop a long-term climate strategy, the Paris Agreement invites countries to turn anticipatory governance into an international governance instrument. In this paper we explore how these strategies describe countries' climate plans and what the perceptions of government officials are about the potential for realization of these strategies. Using mixed methods, we explore both 1) planning dimensions (actions, actors and policies described in the strategies) by applying a topic modeling analysis to 50 documents; and 2) perceptions of the content and challenges to their realization among domestic policy professionals of four major emitters. Our results show that the strategies lack a detailed discussion on how decarbonization pathways could be materialized and who has the responsibility for implementation of long-term targets. Moreover, rather than being a steering instrument, the strategies are dominated by scenario planning and there is also a lack of attention to political issues. Taken together, we contend that strategies are limited in the way they present the future possibilities of low emissions development. To make them more effective in steering long-term decarbonization, greater attention needs to be placed on potential conflicts, barriers and stumbling blocks that may arise along the way. • Long-term climate planning has potential to shift the way we address climate change. • The language used in the strategies are dominated by technical terms and GHG emissions scenarios. • The strategies tend to reduce the political and social complexities of climate change. • As governance instruments, the strategies lack capacity to guide implementation and guidance on how to solve goal conflicts. • The strategies' main value is to provide a platform for alternative discussions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This article introduces a bottom-up global model of the pulp and paper sector (PULPSIM) with a focus on energy consumption and carbon emissions. It is an annual recursive simulation behavioural model with a 2030 time horizon incorporating several technological details of the industry for 47 world regions. The long time horizon and the modular structure allow the model users to assess the effects of different environmental, energy and climate policies in a scenario comparison setup. In addition to the business as usual developments of the sector, a climate commitment scenario has been analysed, in which the impacts of changing forest management practices are also included. The climate scenario results reveal that there is a significant carbon reduction potential in the pulp and paper making, showing a number of specific features: the central role of the fibrous resource inputs and the potential impact of increased waste wood and black liquor based heat generation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The South African government's response to the universal crisis of global warming has resulted in the creation of the National Climate Change Response White Paper, a proposed country-wide course of action that would aid in the stabilization of greenhouse gas emissions and intervene in current harmful environmental practices. The role of communication and the media is crucial to the success of any policy implementation as well as of the establishment of an 'action-inspired' mind-set amongst citizens that will bolster lifestyle change to support the cause. This paper will assess the National Climate Change Response White Paper in conjunction with climate change coverage from the South African daily online news source, News 24. Additionally, films released from the Bjerkness Centre for Climate Research and discussion surrounding youth's use of relatable mediums to invoke lifestyle change from Lindie Buirski, Head of Environmental Capacity Building, Training and Education in the City of Cape Town's Environmental Resource Management (ERM) Department, will aid in analysis. Moreover, they will serve to bolster the argument of communications' critical role in realizing any goals set forth by the government. The paper will close by offering proposed climate-change directed development projects for the South African context and will refer to current international successful examples of media use to carry the message of climate change, while inviting audience input, participation, and most importantly, action. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses philosopher Hans Jonas's concept of environmental ethics. Jonas argues that all ethical relations derive from the basic fact that man is embedded in natural and social relations, and the ethical feature of these relations is not established by the subjectivity of human beings. It is stated that the increasing climatic changes on the earth has resulted in inaccurate predictions about the development of the biosphere in general.

Recently, the developments of ethics and politics in the Arctic region have again become an issue for international discussion. One main issue is the problem of climate change and sustainability of the Arctic region. This problem is linked to the issue of exploitation of natural resources in the Arctic region, not at least in Greenland. Indeed, the general issue is how we should define ethics of the environment and sustainability as a general principle for the Arctic region. It is important to discuss what is at stake and how we define the problem in relation to the different participating stakeholders. This paper deals with these problems as a case for global ethics and it proposes a vision of ethical and political responsibility for sustainable development in order to deal with such problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The climate change policy debate and ensuing discussions about industrial energy use and carbon emissions have highlighted the need to: (a) aggregate engineering information to a level relevant for economic policy analysis while maintaining sufficient detail so that results are meaningful for industry decision makers, (b) properly represent an industry’s capital vintage structure to better understand inertia associated with changes in aggregate industrial emissions profiles, and (c) identify policy instruments that leverage an industry’s potential for technological change such that carbon emissions can be noticeably reduced. This paper presents an econometric analysis of energy use and emissions profiles of the US Pulp and Paper Industry and uses the resulting set of equations to specify a dynamic model for the analysis of select climate change policies. Scenarios of cost of carbon, energy tax, and investment-led policies indicate that a combination of cost of carbon and investment-led policies can achieve the desired result of rapidly improving overall efficiency of the industry and promoting changes in fuel mix, which together can result in drastic reductions of carbon emissions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Global climate change due to increasing CO2 emissions threatens the development and survival of many countries, especially those on the coast. Intentional government spending by sectors can lower CO2 emissions to help these countries in sustainable development. Meanwhile, governance has some importance in enabling governments to achieve their economic development goals. Does governance affect the public spending - CO2 emissions nexus in developing economies? The paper seeks answers by employing the system GMM Arellano-Bond estimators to assess the impact of public spending, governance/institutional quality, and their interaction on CO2 emissions for a sample of 109 developing economies between 2002 and 2021. The results seem counter-intuitive that public spending reduces and governance increases CO2 emissions, while their interaction lowers them. Furthermore, private investment and economic growth promote CO2 emissions, while trade openness decreases them. The findings in this paper provide some policy lessons for governments of developing economies to protect environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renewable energy sources, driven by the global concern for climate change and the urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, are gaining increasing importance. Among them, solar energy stands out as a crucial renewable source and accurate solar irradiance forecasting is vital for its effective utilisation. Deep learning (DL) techniques have emerged as state-of-the-art solar irradiance forecasting methods in past years. However, traditional models that are widely used have inferior accuracy in forecasting. To bridge this gap, this paper presents an improved state-of-the-art model that leverages the convolutional property to forecast the time series data. We got a reduction of 8.32% in MAE compared to the base model. The paper's findings highlight the potential of DL-based approaches to significantly improve the accuracy of solar irradiance forecasts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global policymaking often seeks to create processes for the effective delivery of public goods and services. What happens when individuals critique or dissent such policies? In this paper, we examine the case of two activists—Greta Thunberg and Disha Ravi—who have been mobilizing attention toward climate change since their teenage years, and who have been both celebrated and vilified for it. While climate change policies emphasize the importance of gender mainstreaming and youth participation, reactions garnered by these two activists are instructive in highlighting the narrow notion of "participation" that undergirds climate policy. Specifically, we show that Greta and Disha's tactics do not readily jive with the postfeminist, neoliberal conceptualization of youth participation that emphasizes apolitical exercise of citizenship; valorizes girls' activism only insofar as it enhances national economic growth; and views girls as symbols of hopeful futurities. Greta and Disha are instead what we call, "policy dissidents," whose activism creates "tactical crevices." We theorize tactical crevices as tentative and fleeting interruptions by the powerless that puncture prevailing logics through strikes and protests, and through consumption of discourses and materials in ways that those in power do not intend. The paper contributes to the study of girl activism broadly, and to notions of youth engagement (or disengagement) specifically, within the spheres of local and global politics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent times there have been excess flooding due to climate change, which leads to disaster and destruction. Hence the aim of this paper is to investigate spatial impact of the two flood episodes that occurred in 2012 and 2022 along Lower Niger Basin in Nigeria using remote sensing data in GIS environment. Data used include administrative map of Nigeria, time series 30m resolution Landsat imageries captured before and during the peak of the flood episodes, SRTM DEM of 30m resolution and data generated from ground truthing. The pre-flood image was used as reference to determine the extent of flood in the disaster imageries. SRTM data was used for preparation of digital elevation model so as to investigate the influence of topography on spatial spread. This study revealed that 5622.13square kilometers of the study area (7.92%) was covered by flood in 2012 while 7428.771 square kilometers of land (10.47%) was inundated in 2022. This means that additional 1806.641 square kilometers (2.55%) of land surface has been exposed to flood in the study area within a time space of 10years. Upon field verification it was found that this was partly attributed to anthropogenic activities and urban expansion. It was therefore recommended that strict land use planning be enforced within the study area and public enlightenment programs should be initiated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increased frequency of extreme weather events associated with climate change is a growing concern for road authorities, consultants, contractors and end users. Climate change adaptation is not yet incorporated into South Africa’s transport design and planning. Current design methods for asphalt pavements include recently introduced performance-graded (PG) specifications for bitumen. Although the need exists to use future-projected temperature maps in the road industry, the hindrance to this adoption has been extracting the appropriate rising air temperatures from climate model projections. This study focuses on the integration of biasadjusted historical and projected climate model temperature outputs between 1980 and 2060 to estimate changes in pavement temperatures throughout South Africa to inform a strategy for adaptive material selection. Differences in bitumen selection are observed for the PG 58 and PG 52 maximum temperature grade, and an introduction of PG 70 regions, as derived from climate model data in comparison with the SATS 3208 technical standard. The general trend is a gradual increase in maximum pavement design temperatures, mostly affecting the country’s northern and central regions and corresponding road networks. This paper concludes that adjustments are required regarding climate projections for use in bituminous binder selection based on the current specification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prolonged absence of moisture exacerbates drought and assessment indices such as Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) and Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) are critical tools. Therefore, the objective of this paper was to evaluate the comparative characteristics of drought over West Africa using SPI and SPEI. The data used in this work was established on four monthly time scales of 3, 6, 12, and 24 and covered a period between 1979 and 2021 (42 years) at five regions in Hyper-Arid region, Sahelian region, Sudano region, Dry-Sub-humid region, Moist-Sub-humid region. The data was further analyzed and the characteristics of the drought were assessed. Data obtained revealed that there were some differences between SPI and SPEI in regional drought characteristics. Most of the regions considered experienced extreme drought in 1982. The result also revealed that more droughts were experienced in the eighties than in the nineties. Likewise some regions experienced severe drought in 2021 due to increase in drought intensity in the year 2021 as recorded by SPI and SPEI. Therefore it is vital for frequent assessment of meteorological drought characteristics in West Africa using recent data in order to explore its impact because climate change prediction can cause places that are currently experiencing mild or moderate drought to become more severe in the future, and the total impact of drought in West Africa will increase. This study could also assist water resource planners to better understand the drought events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper will argue for routine, reciprocal and meaningful partnerships between the University and the local community. Participation in both policymaking and the generation of knowledge has traditionally been dominated by over-represented groups, drawing on the limited expertise of professionals and practitioners. However, an increasing body of research indicates that the inclusion of individuals and communities living with disadvantage enhances the effectiveness of policymaking, delivery of services and generation of research. With a particular focus on the social sciences, this paper argues that the business of Universities - teaching, learning and research – must have a greater regard for the local community and the voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise sector (VCFSE) if they are to play a role in bringing about radical social change. This is even more crucial in the face of wicked problems, such as entrenched poverty, the mental health crisis in young people and the climate crisis, that require a multi-disciplinary, multi-organisational and multi-actor approach to generating solutions capable of disrupting the status quo. Drawing on the principles of coproduction, critical pedagogy and social pedagogy, and rejecting the concept of ‘employability’, this paper will argue that Universities need to pay more regard to local knowledge and the lived experience of those communities most affected by the consequences of wicked problems. This would promote a community- centric approach to research and pedagogy – and the nurturing of graduates that do not just ‘fit into’ the capitalist culture of consumerism that is killing us. Otherwise the potential for social change will be limited, the environment will continue to degenerate and social inequalities will persist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coastal erosion as a threat to Ghana's coastline is being exacerbated by natural and anthropogenic processes. Adaptation to coastal erosion helps in managing the impacts and the levels of destruction to livelihoods, properties and investments along the coastline. Government intervention in adaptation to coastal erosion has always focused on the development of coastal sea defences without the integration of Indigenous knowledge and initiatives of coastal dwellers. This paper contributes to this gap by examining the Indigenous adaptation responses to coastal erosion in selected coastal communities of Ghana, factors influencing the choice of adaptation responses and the extent to which these Indigenous adaptation responses are addressing coastal erosion. Findings from the explorative qualitative study revealed that coastal dwellers are engaged in different forms of planned and reactive adaptation responses to coastal erosion. It was also found out that most of the Indigenous adaptation responses to coastal erosion were unsustainable in addressing coastal erosion and the choice of Indigenous adaptation response to coastal erosion was shaped by socio-economic and ecological factors or perception. Maladaptation responses by coastal dwellers were contributing to the phenomenon of coastal erosion. Coastal dwellers have survived the impacts of coastal erosion in the absence of support from central and local governments and their unsustainable adaptation responses have become a cyclical ritual over a period of time. The paper contributes to the debates on adaptation to climate change and the consideration of Indigenous knowledge into climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies in coastal zone planning and management. • Indigenous adaptation responses to coastal erosion are autonomous and reactive. • There is no collective community action towards addressing coastal erosion. • Adaptation responses are shaped by socio-economic and ecological considerations. • Maladaptation responses are counterproductive to addressing coastal erosion. • Hard Indigenous adaptation responses are a physical limitation to coastal resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the changing nature of Russia-Turkey energy trade relations. The main argument of the article is that climate change, as well as EU institutions and environmental protection regulations, have been decisive in the long-term transformation of bilateral natural gas relations. The EU favors competitive market structures to combat climate change, and the EU Green Deal sets ambitious targets for renewable energy consumption. These variables establish grounds for legitimacy among EU members in the face of Russian dominance of the EU energy market. However, as discussed in this paper, the Russian government's main strategy to counter this opposition from the EU side is to circumvent the EU's institutional arrangements through its relations with Turkey. The final point to be discussed in this paper is the impact of the EU energy and environment policies on changes in Russian perceptions of Turkey. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Estudios Políticos is the property of Centro de Estudios Politicos y Constitucionales and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In an era dominated by the intersection of advanced technology and traditional industries, the domain of agriculture is on the verge of a revolutionary transformation. This article introduces a solution for vineyard producers, harnessing satellite imagery, weather data, and deep learning (DL) to identify vineyard diseases robustly. This solution, designed for proactive plant health management, stands as a transformative tool towards digital viticulture. Such tools transition from luxuries to essentials as vineyards confront evolving challenges like climate change and new pathogens. Our research builds on the hypothesis that customising deep learning architectures for specific tasks is crucial in enhancing their effectiveness. We contribute by introducing a tailored convolutional neural network (CNN) architecture, developed specifically for the classification of plant diseases using vineyard imagery. The experimental results demonstrate that our custom CNN architecture exhibits performance on par with established state-of-the-art models like ResNet50 and MobileNetV2, underscoring the value of specialized solutions in addressing the unique challenges of viticulture. This paper introduces an overview of the solution's architecture, presents the implementation of DL modules with their corresponding results, and describes use case scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Life cycle engineering (LCE) was introduced in the early 1990s with a focus on eco-efficiency, hence designing products to reduce the environmental impact over their life cycle while maintaining or increasing the value created. In the meantime, the world has seen the emergence of a climate crisis and a biodiversity crisis despite significant eco-efficiency improvements of individual products and services over the years, highlighting the gap between bottom-up LCE activities and top-down sustainability concepts such as planetary boundaries and net-zero targets for climate change. This paper presents a structured LCE approach for practitioners, supporting life cycle engineering of product life cycles with an absolute sustainability perspective towards achieving net-zero targets. An industrial case is provided to demonstrate the applicability of the methodology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Bitácora Urbano/Territorial is the property of Bitacora Urbano/Territorial and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Morocco's commitment to the Marrakech and Paris Agreements' sustainability goals necessitates the implementation of Net Zero Energy Building (NZEB) initiatives to mitigate climate change and promote sustainable development for the built environment industry. Utilizing Morocco's abundant solar resources, NZEBs aim to minimize energy use and carbon emissions in buildings, aligning with global climate objectives and enhancing economic stability through reduced energy costs. This approach aids Morocco in adapting to climate change and achieving international financial and environmental targets. This paper explores Morocco's energy strategy and the regulatory framework for Nearly Zero Energy Buildings, providing a NZEB definition, assessment metrics, and performance indicators, while addressing the challenges posed by existing laws on energy-efficient buildings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, we are confronted with the presence of two significant transformations. The emergence of technologies like artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, social media, Industry 4.0, and Society 5.0 is significantly impacting the behavior of individuals, societies, and countries in the 21st century. The second transformation pertains to various critical issues such as climate change, desertification, food and water security, and the future of life on our planet. This paper aims to analyze the impact of emerging technologies on mitigating climate change. The central inquiry at hand is whether humanity possesses the ability to transform the ongoing digital revolution into effective climate action. Specifically, we will analyze the fundamental question. Do digital technologies and information management contribute to the problem or offer a solution? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Innovation in agriculture and plant varieties is essential to serve the needs of the increasing population, maintain food security, and adhere to the principles laid down in international conventions. However, innovation in all areas including agriculture should be wary of its impact on the environment. Section 29 of the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Rights Act, 2001 stipulates that a plant variety causing serious harm to the environment is incapable of registration. Nevertheless, the primary criteria for gaining registration is proof of the variety being distinct, uniform and novel. Farmers' plant varieties lack uniformity, which paves the way for commercial breeders to gain registration. Undoubtedly, the varieties developed by commercial breeders generate higher yields. However, the same does not conform to local ecological demands and iseven less nutritious when compared to the varieties developed by the farmers. Thus, there are several consequences of permitting commercial plant varieties to take over the farmers' plant varieties. This paper is an attempt to highlight the need for agricultural innovations to be ecologically friendly thereby, leading to a movement towards safe technology. It will also advocate for an alteration in Section 29 of the Act to make it mandatory for registration of a new plant variety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are increasing pressures on firms to adjust to the major global challenges of climate change and rapid developments in digital technologies. To date, the impacts of these two challenges on firms have largely been examined as separate issues. However there are suggestions of overlap, with the potential of digital technologies to help economies and firms shift to greener production methods. This paper provides a novel contribution to this literature on a "twin transition" by examining for the first time the overlap at a firm level between climate actions and digitalisation. The data are drawn from a large-scale survey of 3,000 firms in Ireland in 2020. The report includes novel questions on energy use, climate adaption priorities and digital strategies along with a wide range of firm characteristics. Our key outcome variables are the degree of digitalisation in the firm, if it has a climate plan and does it implement climate actions such as monitoring emissions. We find considerable overlap between having a climate and a digital plan in place across firms, while controlling for a range of other firm characteristics. At the same time, we find a reasonably large share of firms have positive attitudes to the importance of climate planning but without reporting corresponding concrete actions, suggesting a gap for policy to address. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) is considered as one of Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) controller algorithm developed for PhotoVoltaic system (PV) to guarantee a maximum power extraction under different climatic conditions of temperature and irradiation. Classical MPPT algorithms like Perturbe and Observe (P&O), PSO, Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS) are an effective method for tracking the maximum power point (MPP) for the PV systems, but the problems with these approaches that they are less stable, high oscillation around steady state and slower convergence to the MPP. Based on recent research, the purpose of this paper is to introduces a novel MPPT controller based on a modified version of heterogeneous multi swarm PSO algorithm using an adaptive factor selection strategy (FMSPSO), to overcome the previous shortcomings and compared with conventional PSO, ANFIS and classical P&O controllers. Simulation and experimental results revealed that the new FMSPSO algorithm can overcome the previous shortcomings providing the superior performance to track the MPP efficiently with a shorter convergence time and small oscillations compared to other algorithms. The experimental confirmation of the FMSPSO algorithm has been carried out using NI-myRIO-1900 card and shows that with the proposed MPPT approach efficiency can reach a value greater than 99% even in climatic variation of irradiation and temperature. • A classical MPPT controller cannot track the dynamic the MPP, has obvious oscillations, and converges slowly. • A novel MPPT controller based on a modified version of MSPSO algorithm using an adaptive factor selection strategy (FMSPSO) is proposed. • A FMSPSO based MPPT algorithm is compared with conventional PSO, classical P&O and ANFIS controllers for validation. • The proposed FMSPSO algorithm provides the superior performance by boosting the PV system tracking efficiency more than 99%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flooding in low-lying coastal cities is expected to worsen with climate change, and planning for long-term flood mitigation is challenging due to high uncertainty in projections. Risks are associated with under- or over-investment in expensive grey infrastructure. Implementing green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) on strategically large private properties may be a lower-risk alternative. In our previous studies published in 2022 and 2024, we found that the capability of industrial properties to supplement city flood mitigation was substantial. They could offset climate change impacts in the long term, even under a major climate change scenario, and reduce flood probabilities. In this paper, we restate their potential as a case study of large private properties to draw more attention from practitioners and transfer scientific knowledge into practice. The maximum flood mitigation capabilities of large private properties can be met through networks of GSI facilities and a long-term adaptation plan that considers all possible approaches to implementing GSI over time. However, government regulations and policies are needed to support their implementation to the maximum capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Economia e Sociologia Rural is the property of Sociedade Brasileira de Economia e Sociologia Rural and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Makkah has developed unique architectural vocabularies for centuries. The Roushan, Qalalib, Kharja, and Shwabir responded to topography, climate conditions, and socio-cultural aspects. However, demolishing heritage buildings to expand the Holy Mosque has led to the disappearance of many traditional architectural vocabularies. Then, the imposition of modern architectural elements by modernity increased a feeling of discontinuity with the past. In addition, globalization has branded Makkah as a city of skyscrapers and high-rise buildings. Megaprojects have emerged since Saudi Arabia announced its Vision 2030, necessitating creative architectural solutions. Although the literature on the architecture of Makkah introduced varied approaches to developing traditional architectural vocabularies, the results were far from anticipated. Most studies assumed that traditional elements should shape the future of architecture in Makkah. The field of architecture suggests analyzing physical forms in reality, while the philosophical attempt proposes exploring them in virtuality. Reality and virtuality must be dynamic in space as methods for innovation; this space should be detached from architecture to challenge physical norms and separated from philosophy to promote practicality. This paper maps the literature to evaluate the approaches that examine the architecture of Makkah. It suggests a third space, outside architecture, and philosophy, utilizing AI to generate Makkah's architectural elements. The aim is to employ technology, i.e., AI, not to document but to generate architectural vocabulary based on rising potentials and differentiations, which are the bases of innovation, hence establishing continuity with the past to shape the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vertical greening systems (VGS) are promising green infrastructure (GI) techniques for addressing urban resilience issues, like mitigating high temperatures and air pollution. This research aims to develop a conceptual framework to help designers better understand the VGS' effects on buildings and urban areas, focusing on thermal performance and air quality improvement in hot, humid climates. The framework consists of three steps: (1) Identifying climate problems that hinder the improvement of built environment resilience in hot climates; (2) Selecting VGS as a type of GI that can enhance urban resilience; (3) Identifying the common key factors that impact both thermal performance and air quality while developing VGS at the urban and building scales. The results show that the framework can be customized to suit hot climate conditions. However, when applying VGS in built environment with specified climate conditions, the construction of VGS, greenery coverage ratio, plant species, facade orientation, and VGS formation have the most significant influences on their environmental performance. Additionally, the air gap between VGS and the facade has optimal performance in hot, humid climates. The paper concludes with some recommendations for future research and practice on VGSs in hot and humid climates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change, the primarily human-caused rise in the average temperature of the Earth's climate system, is referred to as global warming. In this paper a non-linar mathematical model is proposed and analysed to study the effect of global warming global warming temperature on the transmission dynamics of vector borne diseases. In modeling the process, the total host population is divided into subclasses of susceptible host and infective host; and the vector population is divided into subclasses of susceptible vector and infective vector. The model is analysed using the stability theory. The analysis of model shows that as the temperature due to global warming increases, the vector population as well as the infective host population is increased. The rise in Infective host population results in the fast spread of vector borne diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the climate crisis disproportionately imperils the health of populations living in poverty and social exclusion in Latin America, realizing the most vulnerable population's right to health as a crucial component for achieving climate justice becomes increasingly urgent. While the region's new constitutionalism has made progress toward protecting this right, a transformative approach is just beginning to take hold in the field of climate change law, as evidenced by the growing number of rights-based climate litigation cases. This paper employs systematic content analysis (SCA) to qualitatively examine the corpus of domestic rights-based climate change lawsuits filed across Latin American jurisdictions through mid-2022 and places a sharper focus on the adjudicated cases. The goal is to scrutinize the relationship between the use of the right to health and climate justice within this body of litigation. Particularly, the study delves into the interplay of the social and ecological factors that compound climate vulnerability. It achieves this by identifying and classifying data based on the motives of the litigants, the objectives of the litigants and courts and their arguments, and the legal bases of their respective complaints and judgments as they relate to the existing and emerging health concerns of vulnerable populations. The findings reveal a constellation of ways in which litigants and courts use the right to health in relation to the socio-ecological spectrum of health vulnerability. This paper proposes a typology of cases (climate justice gradient) to conceptualize this phenomenon as a first step in expanding the strategic and interpretative horizons of the current climate litigation toward a more comprehensive approach to climate justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the politics of epistemological claims which link climate change, conflict, migration and terrorism in causal relationships. The paper contends that attempts to establish such causal relationships in conditions of empirical complexity are characterised by a contested politics of implication. Drawing on a critical discourse analysis of a UN Security Council debate on climate security (December 9, 2021), and the concept of linguistic implicature (referring to the non-explicit, inferential meanings which can follow from language use), the paper traces two logics which could suggest a politics of racial implication in climate security discourses: first, a compulsive climatic determinism which roots risks of terrorist violence in climate-affected populations; and second, a logic of proxy geographies in which dehumanisation could be implicated through natural world metaphors. Overall, this paper seeks to provide an understanding of how the inferential meanings associated with claims linking climate change, migration, conflict and terrorism could constitute potentially unequal outcomes in climate security politics and policymaking. • Causal claims about the links between climate change and terrorism are politically contested. • Such claims could implicate racial logics of climatic determinism and dehumanisation. • It is important to study the pragmatic implicatures which could follow from causal claims in climate security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By putting scale and (re)scaling at the center of its analysis, this paper aims to grasp the scalar process of EU-Turkey relations from historical, political and social perspectives. In doing so, this paper will first overview the existing theories on scale and re-scaling concerning their use in political geography and IR. The second task of this paper will be to examine the relevance of scale in EU relations from historical, political, and social perspectives. In the third part, as a first step, this paper investigates whether the EU and Turkey can redefine and reconstruct a new EU-Turkey space. As a second step, it assesses whether globalizing EU-Turkey relations is possible in new global policy areas such as climate change, sustainable development, and trade & economics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Grey-headed Flying-fox Pteropus poliocephalus was listed as a vulnerable species by both the New South Wales (NSW) and Australian Governments in 2001. The NSW Government has since collaborated with other organisations and stakeholders on projects and initiatives for flying-fox conservation and population monitoring. While contentious issues for horticulturalists and communities are detailed in a companion paper, this paper examines a number of persistent threats and conservation issues, such as habitat destruction and food shortages, anthropogenic injuries and extreme heat events. While there have been several independent efforts to conserve flying-fox habitat leading up to the recent commencement of a state-wide funding program for flying-fox habitat restoration, the continual loss of foraging habitat to urban development occurring at a greater scale is a conundrum. Flying-foxes suffering from injuries with anthropogenic causes are primarily addressed by wildlife carers rescuing and rehabilitating them. Additionally, preventative actions, such as promotion of wildlife-friendly netting, are implemented by different organisations to reduce injuries. There is also work being done by government agencies, land managers, scientists and wildlife carers to improve heat stress management, including moving towards a more coordinated and collaborative approach for responding to extreme heat events and undertaking scientific research. The diversity of threats affecting the Grey-headed Flying-fox means that the species' conservation is beyond the capacity of any one organisation and relies on the collaborative efforts of a broad range of stakeholders across the entire species' range. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to explore participants' willingness to pay (WTP) for offsetting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with their participation in the World Winter Masters Games 2020 (WWMG20) in Innsbruck, Austria. We collected data from an online survey sent to participants at the event and used the contingent valuation approach to determine participants' WTP and a set of alternative regression models to investigate the factors that mainly influence WTP. Our results show that the median WTP for offsetting GHG lies within a range of EUR 10 (lower bound) to EUR 20 (upper bound). Furthermore, WTP is positively influenced by participants' attitudes toward climate change, their perception of the event as environmentally friendly, their level of education, as well as their overall expenses for traveling to the WWMG20. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article puts forward love, care, and reverence for all people and our nonhuman kin as the center of posthumanist education. Opening our spiritual eye and building intimate relationships with nature and with all elements of the universe is envisioned as part of a schooling or postschooling experience; our body, heart and spirit, along with our mind, is an essential part of learning. The article describes the experiences of students taking a graduate level course focusing on global climate change and education at a university in the United States. We use the course as an example to explore what posthumanist education entails. In this qualitative study, students taking the course, along with the faculty designing and teaching the course, describe the course curriculum and pedagogies and reflect on the course's impact on them. Data sources include the syllabus, students' reflection papers, nature contact journals, final projects, art works, and group conversations. Although situated in North America, the article is rich with international perspectives as student authors came from six different countries. The article posits that posthumanist education must be eco-centric and love-based, engaging students' whole being to feel for and love Mother Nature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Czech Republic is among the countries in Europe with a relatively more sceptical view of climate change, especially when it comes to opinions about human responsibility for climate change and the need for individual measures to mitigate its impacts. This article focuses on a relatively less noticed aspect of climate-sceptic opinions in the presentation of this issue in the Czech media, namely doubts about the scientific knowledge on climate change expressed by scientists themselves. It is based on two basic observations. First, scientists and experts play a key role in the presentation of climate change. Second, highlighting the inconsistency of scientific reasoning and the uncertainty of science is one of the basic strategies of the climate-sceptic movement. The aim of this paper is to analyse the media coverage of two important Czech experts on climate change – Václav Cílek and Jan Pretel – and to determine whether they communicate the scientific uncertainty on this subject. The analysis shows a considerable number of doubts of various kinds in the articles of both of the two experts, which may have to do with the Czech public’s circumspect attitude towards climate change and the slow change in their view of it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Livestock production is affected by climate change, but also contributes to climate change through greenhouse gas emissions. This leads to ambiguity in how livestock are framed in climate and development policy processes. We use the Multiple Streams Framework (MSF) to investigate the role of knowledge brokers in Kenyan livestock and climate change policy processes. We analyse how knowledge brokers deal with ambiguity from different problem and response framings within science-policy interfaces using the case of a project that seeks to inform Kenyan policies relevant to livestock and climate change. We identify ambiguity within the problem stream where actors recognise adaptation and mitigation as dual challenges of livestock and climate change. This ambiguity creates tension between actors but can be strategically deployed to help match the problem and policy streams. Actors use the terms 'climate smart' and 'co-benefits' to link the dual adaptation and mitigation needs. In the political stream, nationally defined priorities and external funding possibilities influence the political will and motivation to adopt identified response options. There are opportunities for knowledge brokers to address the ambiguities and translate knowledge during windows of opportunity when the streams are being coupled, but challenges exist, resulting in slow and inadequate development of policies. This paper makes two contributions to the MSF literature. First, we further refine the concept of knowledge brokers and establish their role across all three streams. Second, we apply the MSF in a lower income country and demonstrate that international organizations must be among the actors considered. • Ambiguity surrounds livestock; they are affected by and contribute to climate change. • Knowledge brokers in Kenya frame issues, offer solutions and influence politics. • International actors shape problem framing and solutions around livestock in Kenya. • The MSF needs to be adapted to apply in developing country contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under climate change, many parts of the world are warming with increasing frequencies and intensities of heatwaves, bringing heat-health risks to places including those that have a historically temperate or cool climate. These places may have extensive experience in managing cold-health risks, while experience is lacking in dealing with heat-health risks due to their lack of historical exposure to high temperatures. This paper explores this overlooked area of the challenges and opportunities of heat-health governance in cool places using Scotland as a case study. Various important themes of heat-health governance in cool places were identified by the study, including socio-cultural barriers to intervention, vulnerable population overlaps, temporal and geographical scales, and governance arrangements. The study found challenges in managing heat-health risks including a perceived lack of heat-health risks and policy priority as well as unsuitable building stock. Meanwhile, it also identified opportunities for governing cold and heat risks holistically within existing institutional systems and creating co-benefits of improving communication and information dissemination, reducing inequality and improving indoor thermal comfort of both cold and heat as well as providing good quality greenspace. Our findings contribute to the development or improvement of national/regional strategies to manage heat-health risks not only in Scotland but also in other places with a historically cool or temperate climate. • Temperature increase under climate change poses health risks to cool places as well. • Cool places have distinctive challenges and opportunities in heat-health governance. • Perceived lack of heat risks poses socio-cultural barriers to heat-health governance. • A holistic governance approach of cold and heat-health risks was preferred. • Building design and occupant behaviour are crucial for thermal comfort. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pressure is increasing globally to deliver integrated land use at large spatial scales (10–100 s km2) to address the climate and biodiversity emergencies through delivery of nature-based solutions. There is also pressure to decentralise land use decision-making to sub-national levels of government and multi-stakeholder partnerships, with the aim of improving policy targeting, coordination and participation. Whilst there has been significant research on these issues at smaller spatial and administrative scales, it is limited at larger scales. This paper addresses this gap, investigating whether the introduction of additional regional institutions can help address these challenges. It draws insights from Scotland's decade old Land Use Strategy (LUS) and evolving Regional Land Use Partnerships (RLUPs) that aim to mitigate climate change through encouraging improved and integrated land use and land management. We find that despite considerable stakeholder support, such approaches may not deliver on their ambitions. An overarching finding relates to the importance of political commitment to implementation at these larger scales, which is crucial for establishing clear objectives, giving regions authority to respond to regional priorities, and ensuring adequate resourcing. This affects buy-in from stakeholders and the resolution of policy coordination challenges that the partnerships are meant to address. It has wider implications for the delivery of national climate policies, given the importance of land management in most climate change strategies. The insights, and the analytical framework used, are relevant for any country grappling with the challenge of implementing nature-based solutions at ever larger scales whilst bridging local and national land use priorities. • Regional integrated land use planning in Scotland evaluated and wider lessons drawn. • Clear objectives, transfer of powers, and resourcing key to regional land use planning. • Political commitment is crucial in overcoming delivery challenges at this scale. • Approaches to scaling up integrated land use need to account for politics. • These lessons are important in global efforts to scale up nature-based solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change adaptation is currently an important community concern in developing countries like Bangladesh. The conceptualization of adaptation within the government system matters for the promotion of activities such as employment generation for local communities. The lesser the gap between government policy and the local community's needs for adaptation the more effective outcomes are for ensuring policy success and promoting sustainable community livelihoods or vice versa. This interface between policy and community is important for climate change adaptation which is explored in this paper along with the findings of the research project, DEltas, vulnerability and climate change: Migration and Adaptation (DECCMA) conducted during 2014–2018 in Bangladesh, Ghana, India, and the United Kingdom. The data from Bangladesh was collected from 1384 survey respondents, 19 Focus Group Discussions (FGDs), 3 workshops, and 43 Key Informant Interviews (KIIs). The findings of the paper show that government adaptation activities mainly reflect the Reactive Approach of Limited Action (RALA) perspective rather than the Proactive Approach To Adaptation (PATA). The RALA perspective is characterized by piecemeal and top-down approaches to adaptation which fail to recognize a community conceptualization of climate change, policy perspectives for coping with local concerns, and governance approaches for effective adaptation. In response, the government needs to focus on the PATA in policy, programs, and projects with the governance approach implemented from the bottom-up or, in other words, from the local perspective. Community participation in decision-making processes is characteristic of this bottom-up governance model. Local community participation, consultation, and representation are essential parts of PATA in adaptation policy formulation and execution, providing important lessons for Bangladesh. • Adaptation to climate change is a high policy priority for developing countries such as Bangladesh. • The conceptualization of adaptation in government policy matters for community sustainability. • The top-down, centralised Reactive Approach of Limited Action (RALA) causes further concern for effective adaptation policy. • A Proactive Approach to Adaptation (PATA) is better for community sustainability. • Community participation and representation within governance approaches can expedite a PATA approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coastal resilience strategies are vital for managing the impacts of climatic shocks and stresses that bedevils coastal zones globally. Coastal strategies that reflect indigenous knowledge and practices as well as local adaptation efforts are productive in promoting resilience to coastal erosion at the local level. However, there has been less common research in conventional literature on how national level strategies impact adaptation measures by local governance institutions and coastal dwellers in addressing coastal erosion. Using an explorative qualitative case study of selected coastal communities in Ghana, the paper contributes to this gap by assessing how national level strategies impact adaptation to coastal erosion at the local level. It also examines the institutional and community perception of coastal erosion, its causes and impacts. Findings indicate that all the coastal dwellers in the study communities are aware of coastal erosion with most of the community interviewees attributing the phenomenon to sea-level rise as the main driver of coastal erosion. Also, interviews with local government authorities and state agencies found that the national level coastal erosion adaptation strategies to a large extent do not promote local innovation in addressing climatic shocks and stresses of coastal communities. The paper contributes to contemporary debates in indigenous knowledge in climate change mitigation and adaptation by multilevel governance towards coastal resilience by recommending a collaborative effort between coastal communities and the District Assemblies in promoting indigenous knowledge in climate change adaptation and the preparation of coastal management plans that incorporates indigenous knowledge in adaptation to coastal erosion. • Coastal dwellers perceive coastal erosion through direct observation. • National level coastal resilience strategies promote indigenous knowledge. • Their implementation is at variance with local level adaptation. • State institutions perceive indigenous knowledge and adaptation as unsustainable. • Formal integration of indigenous knowledge affects local level adaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extreme weather alerting systems are one of the central tools utilised in adapting to changing weather patterns resulting from climate change. This paper evaluates the effectiveness of the current alerting systems for hot and cold weather used in England to notify the health and social care sector of upcoming extreme weather events. We consider the views of stakeholders on the current system and explore their perspectives on the proposal to move towards an impact-based system. The paper concludes that while the current system is an effective tool, stakeholders feel they need to draw on additional material to assist with the development of an appropriate response. We also highlight that many stakeholders are concerned about the potential for creating alert fatigue due to a lack of clarity of the geographical area impact of some of the alerts. Consequently, there was a high level of support from stakeholders for the move towards an impact-focused system. • Extreme weather alerting systems are an important tool for protecting public health. • Impact-focused alerting systems can help planners and front-line staff deliver a more effective response to extreme weather. • It is important alerts are not sent out unnecessarily to protect the credibility of the system and avoid alert fatigue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Small island states are the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, despite not contributing much to global greenhouse gas emissions. Crafting effective science-based adaptive strategies to conserve and sustain natural resources in the face of the changing climate has important socio-economic, political, and ecological dimensions. The analysis in the current paper reveals that the island of Mauritius has been warming at a rate of 0.0216 °C/year over the period 1971–2020, with an increase in precipitation averaging 2.29 mm/year over the 1981–2020 period. The changing climate over time has had severe repercussions on the native ecosystems of the island and is threatening the long-term freshwater supply system. Science-based policy measures proposed revolve around the expansion and re-design of protected areas to be strategically located in climate-resilient regions that seek to offer refuge to native fauna and flora. To increase the resilience on freshwater supply on the island, measures proposed include the introduction of a freshwater coordination-based system that operates on water stress level, in addition to increasing the network of freshwater catchment areas in regions where precipitation is increasing over time. The insights in this paper are expected to be valuable for other small islands in adapting to climate change. [Display omitted] • Quantifications of the changes in temperature and rainfall over time have been conducted. • The spatial distribution of the changing climate of a small island state is modelled. • Adaptation measures are proposed to conserve native island fauna and flora. • Science-based policies are proposed to improve sustainability of freshwater supply. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Africa is particularly affected by climate change due to its exposure to climate hazards, high vulnerability, and low adaptive capacity. Yet, Africa is also a continent rich in Indigenous and Local Knowledge (ILK) that has a long history of informing responses to climatic variability and change. This paper explores the extent to which ILK has been used in climate change adaptation in Africa. It deploys a bibliometric analysis to describe the connections between ILK and climatic change adaptation in Africa, complemented by an analysis of ILK literature and case studies. We consider four key dimensions of ILK, 1) type, 2) contexts of application, 3) value for adaptation, and 4) outcomes and effects in responses to climate change in Africa. Examples drawn from 19 countries across Africa highlight ILK systems are closely connected with biocultural relationships associated with observed patterns of climate change and where adaptation can be more effective when informed by ILK. This body of knowledge is critical to the delivery of climate change adaptation in Africa. The paper suggests some measures through which ILK may be more widely leveraged, both for improved adaptation outcomes, as well as enhancing the biocultural heritage value of ILK systems across Africa. The study commends the remarkable value of ILK in Africa for climate change adaptation and its value for supplementing climate services, particularly in areas with limited access to modern climate and weather forecasts as well as the encouragement of Indigenous communities to develop senses of ownership and active contribution to the sustainability of the future interventions. • Role of Indigenous Knowledge in Climate Change Adaptation in Africa. • The study commends the remarkable value of ILK in Africa for climate change adaptation. • its value for supplementing climate services particularly in areas with limited access to modern climate. • the paper concludes outlining measures through which ILK may be more widely leveraged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Addressing climate change and protecting the environment have become the key global challenges and priorities and requires a whole-of-society approach. Many countries are increasing their commitments to meet the Paris Agreement's goals, introducing green budgeting among them. The goal of the paper is to understand how public participation in public budgeting with green objectives is being effectuated in the Russian Federation, and to look at what governments can do to facilitate it. The author explores the relevance of environmental problems for Russians, and analyses public participation in environmental policy-making with a focus on budgeting in Russia. The paper provides examples of green participatory budgeting practices of global interest, highlights the potential of participatory budgeting encouraging pro-environmental behaviour, potentially enriching the repertoire of climate-friendly actions and fostering the growing interest in green budgeting. The author concludes with recommendations on how to improve public participation in relation to greening the budget process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Earth's climate is projected to warm significantly in the 21st century, and this will affect human societies in many ways. Since sleep is a basic human need and part of everyone's life, the question of how temperature affects human sleep naturally arises. This paper examines the effect of daily mean temperature on sleep duration using nationally representative Hungarian time use surveys between 1976 and 2010. Compared to a day with an average temperature of 5–10 °C, colder temperatures do not influence sleep duration. However, as daily mean temperatures rise, sleep duration starts to strongly decline. The effect of a hot (>25 °C) day is −13.3 minutes, but if preceded by a few other hot days, the effect is even stronger, −24.7 minutes. The estimated sleep loss is especially large on weekends and public holidays, for older individuals, and men. Combining the estimated effects with temperature projections of twenty-four climate models shows that the warming climate will substantially decrease sleep duration. The projected impacts are especially large when taking into account the effects of heatwave days. This study also shows that different groups in society are likely to be affected in significantly different ways by a warming climate. • This paper examines the effect of temperature on sleep duration. • Exposure to heat reduces the amount of time spent sleeping. • The effect of heat wave days is much stronger. • The sleep loss is especially large on weekends. • The effects are stronger for older people, people with less education and men. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transformative adaptation (TA) places emphasis on changing the underlying causes of climate risk. Little is known about how TA can be achieved in practice in southern African cities. This paper reports on a set of criteria, derived from the literature and transdisciplinary engagements, for taking TA from theory into practice. These are: fundamental/sustainable changes in thinking and doing; inclusivity; challenging power asymmetries; demonstrability; responsive and flexible; and holistic, complex systems thinking. These criteria were explored through five water-related projects in Durban (South Africa) and Harare (Zimbabwe), which were identified by actors as having transformative potential to reduce urban climate risks. The study suggests that trade-offs might need to be made between several of these criteria, with strong synergies between others. Challenging power asymmetries is important in southern African cities where adaptation should change the structures of society that give rise to highly differential climate vulnerabilities. Challenging power structures largely requires true inclusivity and an equal stake in shaping decisions as opposed to tokenistic participation. While TA is needed in southern African cities, the complexity of these contexts and the scale of TA ambition introduces practical challenges when compared with incremental adaptation, i.e. small changes to existing practices to reduce climate impacts within the current development paradigm. Given such practical limitations, the paper concludes that TA in southern African cities might pragmatically be attempted as part of a process of ongoing learning to identify opportunities for gradual restructuring and expanding, in scale and ambition towards transformation. • Incremental adaptation achieves demonstrable results quickly. • Transformative adaptation needs to expand activities gradually in scope and scale. • Trade-offs exist at points along the incremental-transformative continuum. • Greater inclusivity in transformative adaptation introduces governance challenges. • Going beyond incremental adaptation requires challenging power asymmetries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper identifies which topics of negotiation are providing momentum for climate negotiations after the Paris Agreement and to what extent. To do so, it examines the main requests that developing countries have expressed through different negotiation groups between 2017 and 2023. To measure the progression of climate negotiations, the paper identifies whether those requests have been translated into COP decisions. This is done through discourse analysis contained in numerous daily reports of COPs, summaries, and official decisions. In this research, COP decisions are defined as the expression of collective negotiations in the UNFCCC system, and as decisions with political consequences. The paper identifies advancements on twenty-nine issues in areas like gender, loss and damage, facilitative dialogue, adaptation, and the acceleration of finance flows to small-island developing states. Eighteen issues have been identified as acknowledged in COP decisions, but not fully addressed. These correspond mainly to finance-related items and the commitment to contributing US$100 billion to climate mitigation. Sixteen issues have been identified as ignored in the COP decisions examined. The conclusions suggest that there is agreement on creating new frameworks to allow further discussions on important topics brought to the table by developing states, but there is no real agreement on increasing funding in a significant way. Also, conclusions underline that despite the lack of sufficient funding, commitment to fighting climate change has not declined over time, and states continue to prefer multilateral negotiations to working outside the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change mandate. • States prefer multilateralism to other forms of cooperation to face climate change. • Climate negotiations remain a key forum for countries' coordination despite the slowness in decision-making. • There has been progress in climate negotiations in the areas of loss and damage, gender or adaptation. • Funding remains a key issue in climate negotiations, being critical to increase trust among parties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]