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In the present paper, two case studies are reported regarding the municipal solid waste (MSW) management trend in the last decades in two Italian areas in order to propose some guidelines for replicating the approaches. The first case study has a very good selective collection (SC) rate that is expected to reach 80 % in a few years. SC is made mainly kerbside. There is no thermo-chemical plant in the territory (but a part of the residual MSW is burnt in an external combustion plant). A local plant combines anaerobic digestion with post-composting as a main destination for food waste and green waste. A sanitary landfill receives the main stream of locally pre-treated residual MSW. The adopted tariff helped increasing the SC rate: since 2013, the punctual tariff has been adopted. The second case study concerns an area where SC reached about 75 % in 2019, before the pandemic period that affected the performances of the sector. The punctual tariff has been recently introduced. In the territory, there are an incineration plant and a Solid Recovered Fuel (SRF) plant that sends the final product mainly to a cement factory. No plant for the biodegradable waste exists locally (export is adopted). Looking at the two case-studies, useful waste guidelines for similar areas could be set up starting from these experiences.

One of the major obstacles to the adoption of the circular economy is the lack of consumer interest and awareness. Despite this, the unique role of consumers in the circular economy is an understudied topic, as the literature tends to focus rather on the application of circular practices in the organizational and industrial sectors. This paper aims to examine the individual-level factors that have an influence over circular purchasing behavior. Specifically, this paper elaborates an explicative path model of purchasing circular products that takes into account environmental concern, climate skepticism, and the attitudinal factor towards circular products. The final sample consisted of 566 respondents from Romania. Our findings showed that environmental concern has a positive significant impact on circular purchase behaviour and this relationship is mediated by the attitude towards circular products. Moreover, those with high levels of climate skepticism showed an increased level of perceived greenwashing among organizations.

The report presents the analysis of projects made in Romania, that aimed to reduce food waste in the year 2021 and beyond. Through this study we find out what is the current situation of food waste in Romania, the measures taken and the results on the market. The analysis was performed by the members of working group 2, within the ROCESP platform. The aim was to generate possible scenarios in which the carbon footprint associated with this category of waste could be reduced.

As the world continues to urbanize, it is necessary to identify and implement new urban development models and strategies in order to meet the challenges of sustainable development. As cities continue to face challenges in becoming fully circular, the need to establish a framework to measure the circular economy in urban areas grows. Many definitions for circular cities have been developed and addressed in recent years, as have numerous indicators. To make the transition to a circular city, we must integrate the findings and develop a general definition and measurement framework. This article aims at outlining a framework for circular cities indicators based on their key characteristics, as well providing directions for fostering circularity at the city level. To accomplish this goal, we conducted a systematic review and analyzed key papers published in the field of circular economy to determine how circular cities are measured. Choosing the right indicators to use for developing, monitoring, and evaluating circular cities is a difficult task for urban policymakers, managers, and planners. This highlights the significance of standardized frameworks for urban indicators. As a result, the authors propose a framework and highlight some key points about circular cities and smart urban metabolism.

Fungal exopolysaccharides (EPSs) represent an important group of bioactive compounds secreted by fungi. These biopolymers can be utilized individually or in combination with different bioactive substances for a broad range of pharmaceutical field applications, due to their various biological activities, such as antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, anti-diabetic, and anticoagulant effects. The paper presents an up-to-date review of the main fungal polysaccharides (pullulan, schizophyllan, scleroglucan, botryosphaeran, lentinan, grifolan, and lasiodiplodan), highlighting their structures, producing strains, and useful properties in a double position, as controlled release (rate and selectively targeting) drug carriers, but mostly as active immunomodulating and antitumor compounds in cancer therapy.

Environmental sustainability and its achievement at the national level is one of the key strategic development goals for most countries who are the largest environmental pollutants. Environmental sustainability implies the maximum possible reduction of negative environmental impact through the development of green energy, the increase in energy efficiency, the rational use of natural resources, the introduction of the principles of circular economy and increasing public awareness of environmental protection and climate conservation. There are many administrative tools to encourage enterprises worldwide to switch to a more environmentally friendly direction of its operating and development, among which is the introduction of international standards and subsequent certification of the enterprises. In addition to such obvious advantages as the introduction of effective environmental management systems, compliance with requirements in the field of environmental audit and monitoring, certification allows to increase credibility in the face of consumers and partners that leads to a favorable reputational effect. The objective of this study is to review and analyze the family ISO 14000 standards and assess their role in achieving environmental sustainability of enterprises. The authors determined the degree of influence of groups of standards on the achievement of environmental sustainability and identified their benefits and drawbacks.

Since they are more environmentally acceptable than their chemically synthesized counterparts, biosurfactants are used in a wide range of environmental applications. However, less research has been done on biosurfactants within the context of the circular economy, despite their theoretical potential to fulfill a number of circular economy ambitions, including closing the consumption loop, regenerating natural systems, and maintaining resource value within the system. Hence, the main objective of this review is to identify and analyze the contributions of biosurfactants to the implementation of the circular economy. A final sample of 30 papers from the Web of Science database was examined. We identified five broad categories of contributions: waste stream-derived production, combating food waste, strengthening soil health, and improving the efficiency of water resources. We concluded that, while manufacturing biosurfactants from waste streams can reduce production costs, optimizing yield remains a contentious issue that complicates the adoption of biosurfactants into the circular economy framework.

This analysis of the COLOR CIRCLE project aims to support the development of the circular economy in small urban areas by creating strong partnerships between local authorities and the regional academic environment and by implementing innovative measures to increase the capacity of local authorities to realize their full potential of the circular economy. Thus, the Institute for Research in Circular Economy and Environment „Ernest Lupan” – IRCEM contracting party of the current analysis, will provide the necessary expertise to conduct an analysis of the current situation of the circular economy in the Center Region and develop an action plan to improve policy that contributes to the support and development of the circular economy in the Central Region.

The notion of Corporate Environmental Responsibility has been extensively researched in the literature so far, but less is known about how this concept fits into the circular economy paradigm. We performed a moderated mediation analysis in order to identify the mechanism that links corporate environmental responsibility with readiness for change towards a circular economy business model. The findings from 311 respondents show that there is a positive association between corporate environmental responsibility and the readiness for change to a circular model, mediated by perceived circular economy drivers. In addition, perceived circular economy barriers hinder this positive relationship, acting as a buffer. These findings can further contribute to the elaboration of a conceptual framework for embedding circular economy in the corporate social responsibility strategies of organizations.

The current model of linear economy is causing accelerated consumption and an extensive use of natural resources that accentuates the effects of the current global environmental crisis. In this context, green products are becoming a key element in the transition to a sustainable consumption and production model. The main goal of this paper is to identify the factors predicting youth consumer satisfaction towards green products and to analyze the public perception of green brand products in Romania. Considering these goals, a questionnaire was developed and applied to 268 participants. The results show that a positive attitude towards green products and the level of information held by the consumers about them are significant predictors of green product satisfaction. Moreover, the importance of products being green significantly predicts the purchase of such products. Further implications and research directions are discussed towards the end.

The objective of this paper is to analyze the extent to which the system of indicators that is used in the Monitoring Framework for the transition to the circular economy (CE) is efficient and relevant in their contribution to the sustainable development of European communities. The fundaments of the transition framework and the main characteristics of the circularity indicators are presented. A critical review was performed in order to fulfill the objective of analyzing the current indicators. It is concluded that the indicators in the current framework are (as a selection from a very broad range of indicators theoretically proposed and with estimated practical applicability) limited from the perspective of circularity only to waste generation and recycling processes containing recyclable materials, without including important circularity indicators related to the prolonging and extending the life cycle of products and materials. This paper proposes and defines such an indicator, based on the consideration of the fundamental scalars describing economy, mass, energy, time, and value, respectively. The indicator is described and its applicability in all the phases of the economy is estimated.

This article presents evidence to support the Republic of Moldova’s foreign energy dependence by providing information related to their current energy situation, energy imports and associated costs.The article places a specific emphasis on locating the primary origins and effects of Moldova’s energy dependency and examines the potential of renewable energy sources to diminish this energy dependency. In order to conduct the research for this article, data was collected through semi-structured interviews that were carried out in Moldova. Various energy experts and other officials and practitioners were interviewed. Information was also retrieved from a variety of sources that included the Moldova Country Report on Moldova’s Energy Sector and from the United Nations Development Program’s Moldova Energy and Biomass Project. The article shows that Moldova is in a position of energy dependence but there is potential from renewable energy sources to decrease this dependency.

This article presents the results of a comparative case study that identifies and analyzes the organizational culture differences between a nonprofit organization and a profit-oriented organization. For the analysis of the organizational culture, we used the Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) that approaches: dominant characteristics, organizational leadership, human resource management, organizational glue, strategic objectives, and success criteria of an organization. The participants of the study are executive employees and management members of the targeted organizations which facilitate local socioeconomic development. This case study identifies (1) the type of dominant organizational culture, (2) differences between the existent organizational culture and preferred organizational culture, and (3) differences between characteristics of existent cultural organization and characteristics of organizational culture that facilitates innovation in the targeted nonprofit organization and profit-oriented organization.

With a rapidly growing world population and the need to address the issue of consumption of global resource and its associated environmental impacts and other social and economic issues, the demand for a responsible consumption, production and prevention of waste generation become increasingly crucial. With this broad characterization of Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP), businesses based on circular economy should become the norm. With this goal in mind, an online questionnaire survey was performed on a nationwide scale, to explore consumers’ behaviors and attitudes. It was distributed in all four of Romania’s macro-regions and reached 642 respondents. The purpose of the study has been to better understand consumers’ behavior regarding sustainable consumption and production and examine whether generations play a role in responsible consumer attitudes toward the products. Three generations (X, Y, and Z) have been examined and compared. The results show that what extent those three generation agree with the environment and the benefits of reducing resource consumption, also waste generation, selective collection, recycling and reuse. However, most of them have not adopted and do not intend to adopt consumer patterns based on the circular economy. The findings provide empirical evidence and directions that could help marketers identify their consumer’s characteristics and market segments and develop consumer empowerment strategies on the Romanian market.

Biodegradation is one of the primary mechanisms for the elimination of petroleum and other hydrocarbon pollutants from the environment. This study presents the results obtained with two newly isolated microorganisms and their potential applications in bioremediation, agriculture, and industrial fields. Twenty-five strains of microorganisms were isolated from plant materials and were subject to a selection process on the basis of antimicrobial activity. Two bacterial strains, respectively Bacillus mycoides (Bm) and Pseudomonas putida (B1), were selected for further experiments, based on the largest inhibition zones against the phytopathogens Erwinia carotovora and Xanthomonas campestris. The production of biosurfactants and enzymes was evaluated in specific media. In order to assess the production of biosurfactants, submerged bioprocesses were carried out on Yeast Malt Peptone Glucose (YMPG), M44, Luria-Bertani (LB), and King B media (KB), the supernatants were used to form emulsions with heptane, octane, and sunflower oil, and the emulsifying indices were determined.

This paper aims to approach the diffusion model developed in 1960 by Frank Bass has been utilized to study the distribution of different types of new products and services. The Bass Model helps by describing the process in which new products are adopted in a market. This model is a useful tool for predicting the first purchase of an innovative product for which there are competing alternatives on the market. It also provides the innovator with information regarding the size of customers and the adoption time for the product. The second part of the paper is dedicated to a monographic study of specific conceptual correlations between the diffusion of technology and marketing management that emphasizes technological uncertainty and market uncertainty as major risks to innovative projects. In the final section, the results of empirical research conducted in Baia-Mare, Romania will be presented in a way that uses diffusion Bass model to estimate the adoption period for new mobile technologies.

The aim of this paper is to investigate consumer behavior regarding the environment and the adoption of new patterns of behavior and responsible consumption in the promotion of a Circular Economy (CE) in Romania. With this goal in mind, a questionnaire survey was performed on-line on a nationwide scale to explore consumers’ behaviors and attitudes, which was distributed in all four of Romania’s macro-regions and interviewing 642 respondents. The results indicate that the consumers have a positive attitude towards the importance of the environmental protection, in general and it also measures the frequency of adopting eco-friendly behaviors by the consumers, showing that the consumption behavior is not very consistent with the general attitude regarding environment. As a parallel, consumers are aware of the importance of CE business models, in general, both for the economy and for the environment, but the adoption of consumption patterns specific to CE business models, necessary for the development and the success of the CE business models, has a low probability in the absence of direct or indirect incentives and benefits fostering the adoption of these consumption patterns. In conclusion, the development of CE business models in Romania requires a national strategy, which includes means to sustain the adoption of necessary new consumption behaviors, besides awareness raising and educational campaigns for explaining to consumers the liaison and the impact of their behavior to the environment and to the economy.

The Web is evolving, so the Internet is the cheapest mean of communication, is essential in today’s world, for all these reasons the article discusses its implications, more interesting for Finnish SMEs that still do not use or ignore the Internet. Facing more and more acute challenges, worldwide, such as vulnerability of the internet network, the moral side of knowledge management or the relationship between human and artificial intelligence involves the individual and collective actors, animated features not only from intellectual aspiration to new discoveries, but what we might call “the ethics of the responsible legitimacy.” Therefore, this study has analyzed the availability of these companies’ websites and the manner they communicate their corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities, in order to have a full picture of CSR online communication of SMEs in Finland.