scholarly journals Smart EcoCUVA – Tools for Food Marketing Strategy

2006 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Maarit Pallari
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Action Research ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Complex Problem ◽  
Utility Value ◽  
Value Analysis ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Application Fields

The implementation of the green productivity and marketing concept in agribusiness is a must in the future.Food production is influenced by the environment and society, and vice versa. Today a growing number ofconsumers are aware of the link between environmental and social well-being and fresh, pure, healthy, tastyand safe foodstuffs. Enterprises will have to consider three important aspects of value when doing business:economic, social and environmental value. The foundation of the quality research this study is concernedwith is action research. Action research is a way to analyze sustainable development, the aptness ofagriculture and the marketing opportunities these offer for developing ecoproducts in the SMEs.The study seeks to answer the following questions:- What kind of Classical Utility Value Analyses could be tool of the eco-product?- To what extent can a customer/interest group affect the development and decision-making of ecoproducts?- Is the method a suitable tool for analyzing ecological criterions in the marketing model?Classical Utility Value Analysis is a formal, analytic approach for evaluating and comparing differentalternatives. It is one decision making method of multi-criteria analysis. The roots of utility value analysis,which is one of the mathematical models for analytical decision making, are in the USA and Germany. Themethod is almost 40 years old, of the same age as the manuscript of the values tradeoff. The same historicallanguage is being used to build up new tools, principles and theory. The so-called Smart EcoCUVA hasused both methodologies (Utility value analysis and decision making analysis) when setting the goals andmathematical steps. Research results always give the best available alternative.Making rational decisions for any complex problem requires various analyses of trade-offs (compromises)between conflicting goals (objectives, outcomes) that are used for measuring the results of applying variousdecisions in a wide range of application fields. A typical decision problem has an infinite number ofsolutions, and decision makers are interested in analyzing trade-offs between those that correspond to theirpreferences, which is often called a preferential structure of the decision-maker.Smart EcoCuva analysis helps to assess different alternatives according to a variety of environmentalcriteria associated with enterprises and their products. The analysis methods take account of the monetaryand non-monetary aspects when determining the selection of the best alternative. Smart EcoCuva is themethodological cornerstone for the creation of an innovative concept that will contribute to encouraging theefficient use of natural resources and thereby enhancing sustainability.The Smart EcoCuva tools to be developed aim to be environmentally sound, economically viable, sociallyjust and culturally appropriate. They are a new, science-based reaction of sustainable agriculture to globalatmosphere, as well as constitute an appropriate link between people and nature. New environmentallyfriendly food combines healthy food with people’s lifestyles.

Integrated Spatial Planning

GEOMATICA ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 65 (3) ◽  
pp. 255-265
Author(s):  
Beat Huser
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Spatial Planning ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Spatial Decision Support System ◽  
Practical Application ◽  
Spatial Decision Support ◽  
Cultural Aspects ◽  
Development Scenarios ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Potential Use

More than ever our planet requires new approaches, effective policies and innovative tools to better manage and protect our natural resources and the services they provide. The challenge we face is to create a future where the economy interacts sustainably with the environment and where people's welfare and well being is considered along economic, environmental, social and cultural aspects. Today's complex and interconnected issues greatly benefit from integrating information and knowledge from different disciplines to achieve enduring outcomes. Integrated spatial planning is a concept that makes use of enhanced knowledge and vastly improved technologies to explore development scenarios in a world of finite resources and to visualise trade-offs along the way. This paper discusses three key elements of spatial planning and illustrates their practical application using examples from New Zealand. A recently developed Integrated Spatial Decision Support System (WISE) is described and its potential use for place-based planning and decision-making discussed. The paper concludes with some lessons learnt and ideas for a ‘way forward’.

scholarly journals Perceived facilitators of and barriers to mental health treatment engagement among decision-making competent adolescents in Greece

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Tsamadou ◽  
P. Voultsos ◽  
A. Emmanouilidis ◽  
G. Ampatzoglou
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Mental Disorders ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Drop Out ◽  
Attrition Rate ◽  
Negative Experiences ◽  
Wide Range

Abstract Background A subset of adolescents with mental disorders are likely to have decision-making capacity that facilitates their therapy engagement. However, there are high rates of drop-out in mental health settings. Aim This study aims to identify perceived barriers to or facilitators of mental health care engagement among adolescents with decision-making competence in Greece. Methods A qualitative study was conducted using semi-structured interviews of adolescents with a wide range of mental health problems. In addition, two psychometric assessment measures were used to define who to include or exclude from the study sample. Results Positive attitudes and experiences with therapy were reported as strong (“major”) facilitators of therapy engagement for adolescents with mental disorders, whereas negative experiences with therapy were reported as strong barriers to it. Furthermore, and most importantly, a “good” adolescent-therapist relationship was reported as a strong facilitator, whereas negative experiences of participants with their therapist were reported as strong barriers. Moreover, goals such as getting rid of symptoms, improving personal well-being, and improving social skills and relationships (especially with peers) emerged as strong facilitators of therapy engagement. Importantly, the early remission of symptoms emerged from the study as a strong barrier to therapy engagement for participants. Among the weaker (“minor”) perceived facilitators were goals such as confessing to a trustworthy person, becoming able to achieve personal expectations and life goals, enhancing independence and self-esteem, and developing a positive self-image. The (active or supportive) role of family emerged as a facilitator. The stigma related to mental health emerged as both a (“minor”) facilitator of and barrier to therapy engagement for participants. Friends were reported as having a role ranging from neutral to mildly supportive. Conclusion A number of more or less strong barriers and facilitators were identified that, for the most part, were consistent with prior literature. However, the authors identified some nuances that are of clinical importance. For instance, adolescents are most likely to terminate the treatment prematurely if they experience early symptom remission. Highlighting the role of therapy in achieving their goals or improving their families’ well-being might be used by therapists to reduce the attrition rate.

National Parks in Developed Countries

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leslie Richardson ◽  
Bruce Peacock
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
National Parks ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
The United States ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Economic Values ◽  
Wide Range

Economics plays an important role not only in the management of national parks in developed countries, but also in demonstrating the contribution of these areas to societal well-being. The beneficial effect of park tourism on jobs and economic activity in communities near these protected areas has at times been a factor in their establishment. These economic impacts continue to be highlighted as a way to demonstrate the benefit and return on investment of national parks to local economies. However, the economic values supported by national parks extend far beyond local economic benefits. Parks provide unique recreation opportunities, health benefits, preservation of wildlife and habitat, and a wide range of ecosystem services that the public assigns an economic value to. In addition, value is derived from the existence of national parks and their preservation for future generations. These nonmarket benefits can be difficult to quantify, but they are essential for understanding and communicating the economic importance of parks. Economic methods used to estimate these values have been refined and tested for nearly seven decades, and they have come a long way in helping to elucidate the extent of the nonmarket benefits of protected areas. In many developed countries, national parks have regulations and policies that outline a framework for the consideration of economic values in decision-making contexts. For instance, large oil spills in the United States, such as the Exxon Valdez spill of 1989 and the Deepwater Horizon spill of 2010, highlighted the need to better understand public values for affected park resources, leading to the extensive use of nonmarket values in natural resource damage assessments. Of course, rules and enforcement issues vary widely across countries, and the potential for economics to inform the day-to-day operations of national parks is much broader than what is currently outlined in such policies. While economics is only one piece of the puzzle in managing national parks, it provides a valuable tool for evaluating resource tradeoffs and for incorporating public preferences into the decision-making process, leading to greater transparency and assurance that national parks are managed for the benefit of society. Understanding the full extent of the economic benefits supported by national parks helps to further the mission of these protected areas in developed countries.

scholarly journals Biogas originated from residual biomass in ecosystem services

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gladis Maria Backes Bühring ◽  
Vicente Celestino Pires Silveira
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Small Areas ◽  
Residual Biomass ◽  
Energy Product ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Provisioning Services

Human demand for the provisioning services of the ecosystem has been rising and shows the existence of trade-offs in their generation. Brazil is a great producer of agricultural commodities and animal protein, which generates a large amount of residual biomass throughout the production process, especially animal highly polluting waste concentrated in small areas. Ecosystems provide a wide range of services that are of fundamental importance to the well-being, health, subsistence and survival of human beings. The impacts of the waste generated by confined animals can degrade the ecosystem and reduce the services it can supply. Using waste to generate biogas does not require direct resources from the ecosystems to generate energy. In this context, it is an energy product classified as a provisioning service and, at the same time, an ecosystem regulating service, as it mitigates undesirable effects in the environment. The main goal of the classification of biogas as an ecosystem service is to explore its contributions to the ecosystem and to human well-being.

Where Do Agri-Food Entrepreneurs Learn Their Job and are There Skills They Wished They Had Learned?

2015 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 207-215 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florence Becot ◽  
David Conner ◽  
Jane Kolodinsky
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Informal Learning ◽  
Food System ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Knowledge And Skills ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Entrepreneurial Knowledge

The agri-food system plays a vital role in the socioeconomic well-being of the USA. In rural Vermont, the setting for this study, the contributions are even larger. Agri-food businesses contribute an estimated 12% of the state's gross domestic product and comprise 13% of private sector establishments. The community economic development potential of fostering successful food entrepreneurs suggests a role for higher education in educating the next generation of entrepreneurs. This study explores gaps in entrepreneurial knowledge and skills. Using a survey of agri-food entrepreneurs designed to obtain an understanding of the tools needed for success, the authors found that entrepreneurs valued a wide range of skills, making it difficult to tailor training. The importance of informal learning was also confirmed. The authors conclude that the role of higher education in entrepreneurial education is to educate students to think critically, recognize opportunities, develop networks and identify resources. In addition, it is critical to provide students with exposure to entrepreneurs in the field.

Using information on ecosystem services in Nepal to inform biodiversity conservation and local to national decision-making

Oryx ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 147-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ishana Thapa ◽  
Stuart H. M. Butchart ◽  
Hum Gurung ◽  
Alison J. Stattersfield ◽  
David H. L. Thomas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Land Use ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Biodiversity Conservation ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
National Level ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Local Context ◽  
Convention On Biological Diversity ◽  
Trade Offs

AbstractPolicy-makers are paying increasing attention to ecosystem services, given improved understanding that they underpin human well-being, and following their integration within the Aichi Targets of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Decision-makers need information on trends in biodiversity and ecosystem services but tools for assessing the latter are often expensive, technically demanding and ignore the local context. In this study we used a simple, replicable participatory assessment approach to gather information on ecosystem services at important sites for biodiversity conservation in Nepal, to feed into local and national decision-making. Through engaging knowledgeable stakeholders we assessed the services delivered by Nepal's 27 Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas, the pressures affecting services through impacts on land cover and land use, and the consequences of these for people. We found that these sites provide ecosystem services to beneficiaries at a range of scales but under current pressures the balance of services will change, with local communities incurring the greatest costs. The approach provided valuable information on the trade-offs between ecosystem services and between different people, developed the capacity of civil society to engage in decision-making at the local and national level, and provided digestible information for Nepal's government. We recommend this approach in other countries where there is a lack of information on the likely impacts of land-use change on ecosystem services and people.

scholarly journals The Role of Nature-Based Solutions for Improving Environmental Quality, Health and Well-Being

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (19) ◽  
pp. 10950
Author(s):  
Hai-Ying Liu ◽  
Marion Jay ◽  
Xianwen Chen
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Quality ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Resilience ◽  
Sustainable Solutions ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Quality Health ◽  
Health And Well Being

Nature-based solutions (NbS) have been positioned and implemented in urban areas as solutions for enhancing urban resilience in the face of a wide range of urban challenges. However, there is a lack of recommendations of optimal NbS and appropriate typologies fitting to different contexts and urban design. The analytical frameworks for NbS implementation and impact evaluation, that integrate NbS into local policy frameworks, socio-economic transition pathways, and spatial planning, remain fragmented. In this article, the NbS concept and its related terminologies are first discussed. Second, the types of NbS implemented in Europe are reviewed and their benefits over time are explored, prior to categorizing them and highlighting the key methods, criteria, and indicators to identify and assess the NbS’s impacts, co-benefits, and trade-offs. The latter involved a review of the websites of 52 projects and some relevant publications funded by EU Research and Innovation programs and other relevant publications. The results show that there is a shared understanding that the NbS concept encompasses benefits of restoration and rehabilitation of ecosystems, carbon neutrality, improved environmental quality, health and well-being, and evidence for such benefits. This study also shows that most NbS-related projects and activities in Europe use hybrid approaches, with NbS typically developed, tested, or implemented to target specific types of environmental–social–economic challenges. The results of this study indicate that NbS as a holistic concept would be beneficial in the context of climate action and sustainable solutions to enhance ecosystem resilience and adaptive capacity within cities. As such, this article provides a snapshot of the role of NbS in urban sustainability development, a guide to the state-of-the-art, and key messages and recommendations of this rapidly emerging and evolving field.

scholarly journals Models in animal collective decision-making: information uncertainty and conflicting preferences

2011 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 226-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
Larissa Conradt
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Group Cohesion ◽  
Collective Decision ◽  
Fine Tuning ◽  
Physiological Status ◽  
Collective Decision Making ◽  
Information Uncertainty ◽  
Decision Accuracy ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Wide Range

Collective decision-making plays a central part in the lives of many social animals. Two important factors that influence collective decision-making are information uncertainty and conflicting preferences. Here, I bring together, and briefly review, basic models relating to animal collective decision-making in situations with information uncertainty and in situations with conflicting preferences between group members. The intention is to give an overview about the different types of modelling approaches that have been employed and the questions that they address and raise. Despite the use of a wide range of different modelling techniques, results show a coherent picture, as follows. Relatively simple cognitive mechanisms can lead to effective information pooling. Groups often face a trade-off between decision accuracy and speed, but appropriate fine-tuning of behavioural parameters could achieve high accuracy while maintaining reasonable speed. The right balance of interdependence and independence between animals is crucial for maintaining group cohesion and achieving high decision accuracy. In conflict situations, a high degree of decision-sharing between individuals is predicted, as well as transient leadership and leadership according to needs and physiological status. Animals often face crucial trade-offs between maintaining group cohesion and influencing the decision outcome in their own favour. Despite the great progress that has been made, there remains one big gap in our knowledge: how do animals make collective decisions in situations when information uncertainty and conflict of interest operate simultaneously?

Strategic Project Selection in the Pre-Development of Manufacturing Industry

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephan Oertelt ◽  
Karl-Heinrich Grote
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Manufacturing Industry ◽  
Paired Comparison ◽  
Innovation Management ◽  
Value Analysis ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Process Framework ◽  
Abc Analysis ◽  
Supporting Element ◽  
Strategic Project

This paper focuses on the evaluation of project proposals within the innovation management of manufacturing industries. The goal is to define a strategy-oriented project program within a budgetary framework. This task requires a systematic approach which structures the wide range of information and makes the complexity of decision making controllable. Within the process framework of decision preparation and decision making, a coherent combination of adequate methods, processes and tools is indispensable. For this reason, a set of standardized methods comprised of ABC-analysis, value analysis, portfolio analysis, paired comparison and expert discussion is suggested. Moreover, the central decision-making supporting element is the evaluation of alternative projects with regard to their potential and risk.

scholarly journals A hybrid approach to identifying and assessing interactions between climate action (SDG13) policies and a range of SDGs in a UK context

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel Stevenson ◽  
Alexandra Collins ◽  
Neil Jennings ◽  
Alexandre Koberle ◽  
Felix Laumann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Keyword Search ◽  
Hybrid Approach ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Sustainable Cities ◽  
Expert Survey ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Climate Action

AbstractIn 2015 the United Nations drafted the Paris Agreement and established the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for all nations. A question of increasing relevance is the extent to which the pursuit of climate action (SDG 13) interacts both positively and negatively with other SDGs. We tackle this question through a two-pronged approach: a novel, automated keyword search to identify linkages between SDGs and UK climate-relevant policies; and a detailed expert survey to evaluate these linkages through specific examples. We consider a particular subset of SDGs relating to health, economic growth, affordable and clean energy and sustainable cities and communities. Overall, we find that of the 89 UK climate-relevant policies assessed, most are particularly interlinked with the delivery of SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) and SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) and that certain UK policies, like the Industrial Strategy and 25-Year Environment Plan, interlink with a wide range of SDGs. Focusing on these climate-relevant policies is therefore likely to deliver a wide range of synergies across SDGs 3 (Good Health and Well-being), 7, 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), 11, 14 (Life Below Water) and 15 (Life on Land). The expert survey demonstrates that in addition to the range of mostly synergistic interlinkages identified in the keyword search, there are also important potential trade-offs to consider. Our analysis provides an important new toolkit for the research and policy communities to consider interactions between SDGs, which can be employed across a range of national and international contexts.

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