scholarly journals Viability and Sustainability Assessment of Bioenergy Value Chains on Underutilised Lands in the EU and Ukraine

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 1566
Author(s):  
Cosette Khawaja ◽  
Rainer Janssen ◽  
Rita Mergner ◽  
Dominik Rutz ◽  
Marco Colangeli ◽  
...  

Bioenergy represents the highest share of renewable energies consumed in the European Union and is still expected to grow. This could be possible by exploring bioenergy production on Marginal, Underutilised, and Contaminated lands (MUC) that are not used for agricultural purposes and therefore, present no competition with food/feed production. In this paper, the viability and sustainability of bioenergy value chains on these lands is investigated and measures for market uptake were developed. Using three case study areas in Italy, Ukraine, and Germany, a screening of MUC lands was conducted, then an agronomic assessment was performed to determine the most promising crops. Then, techno-economic assessments followed by sustainability assessments were performed on selected value chains. This concept was then automated and expanded through the development of a webGIS tool. The tool is an online platform that allows users to locate MUC lands in Europe, to define a value chain through the selection of bioenergy crops and pathways, and to conduct sustainability assessments measuring a set of environmental, social, and economic sustainability indicators. The findings showed positive results in terms of profitability and greenhouse gas emissions for bioethanol production from willow in Ukraine, heat and power production from miscanthus, and biogas and chemicals production from grass in Germany. The webGIS tool is considered an important decision-making tool for stakeholders, which gives first insights on the viability and sustainability of bioenergy value chains.

2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (0) ◽  
pp. 93-99
Author(s):  
Abbas Aboumasoudi

Fulfilling needs and organisational resources with the least cost and highest quality is the main reason to achieve the optimal value chain. Application of most of the current techniques has merely been intended to choose the best scenario. However, industrial units need to build an ideal scenario as a value chain which focuses on intangible interstitial and hidden factors: good (good nature), bad (bad nature), fixed (obligatory nature) and free (not identifying their nature) and creates value. Therefore the model presented in this article answers this issue. First of all, we present a model based on the network approach of data envelopment analysis, then assess and rank the stages based on the scenarios for the stages forming the value chain, and finally the ideal decision unit is presented. For this reason, the general efficiency is designed with two natures; 1. input-centered (concentration on the costs) and 2. output-centered (concentration on the incomes).


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theodoros Zachariadis

Abstract The European Union pursues an economic recovery strategy with explicit environmental considerations but less clear alignment with broader sustainable development objectives. Using as a case study one national Recovery and Resilience Plan of an EU country that was published in May 2021, we perform a rapid but detailed sustainability assessment of its measures. This method is embedded in a broader framework that combines ex-post sustainability assessments of international organisations with ex-ante assessments of multi-year public budget plans. At times when policymakers need immediate advice, this framework helps identify weaknesses and guide the inclusion of sustainability-oriented policies in national budgets.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Theresa Sila Wikaningtyas

<p>The concept of ethical value chains emerged as a response to conventional trade that has put a strain on small producers in the resource periphery. The alternative chains are said to allow trade to be carried out in fairer terms and for the benefits to be distributed to all actors in the value chains. This concept however, has not been widely used in the global spice industry.  This research aims to investigate the nature and evolution of ethical value chains of an Indonesian cinnamon commodity. As part of the resource periphery, Indonesia is the leading producer of cinnamon, with 66% of the world’s cinnamon supply coming from this country. The cinnamon industry itself has long been an important source of income for the people of Kerinci, the largest cinnamon producing area in Indonesia. Using a qualitative case study, this research examined TAKTIK, a farmers’ group in Kerinci, which is known to have been implementing some form of ethical practices in their value chains.  The study found that ethical practices occurred as a result of a value chains intervention programme conducted by an International NGO and a local NGO. Ethical value chains were adopted through the establishment of a farmers’ organisation, adoption of organic farming and certification, and Geographical Indications registration. This study finds that the factors that prompted the adoption of the ethical practices varied among value chain actors. However, there was a common goal of improving the livelihood of farmers and realising more equitable commodity trade. This research enriches the global literature on ethical value chains, particularly on spice commodity and the benefits of adoption for value chain actors.</p>


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Theresa Sila Wikaningtyas

<p>The concept of ethical value chains emerged as a response to conventional trade that has put a strain on small producers in the resource periphery. The alternative chains are said to allow trade to be carried out in fairer terms and for the benefits to be distributed to all actors in the value chains. This concept however, has not been widely used in the global spice industry.  This research aims to investigate the nature and evolution of ethical value chains of an Indonesian cinnamon commodity. As part of the resource periphery, Indonesia is the leading producer of cinnamon, with 66% of the world’s cinnamon supply coming from this country. The cinnamon industry itself has long been an important source of income for the people of Kerinci, the largest cinnamon producing area in Indonesia. Using a qualitative case study, this research examined TAKTIK, a farmers’ group in Kerinci, which is known to have been implementing some form of ethical practices in their value chains.  The study found that ethical practices occurred as a result of a value chains intervention programme conducted by an International NGO and a local NGO. Ethical value chains were adopted through the establishment of a farmers’ organisation, adoption of organic farming and certification, and Geographical Indications registration. This study finds that the factors that prompted the adoption of the ethical practices varied among value chain actors. However, there was a common goal of improving the livelihood of farmers and realising more equitable commodity trade. This research enriches the global literature on ethical value chains, particularly on spice commodity and the benefits of adoption for value chain actors.</p>


Author(s):  
Tapas Kumar Biswas ◽  
Željko Stević ◽  
Prasenjit Chatterjee ◽  
Morteza Yazdani

In this chapter, a holistic model based on a newly developed combined compromise solution (CoCoSo) and criteria importance through intercriteria correlation (CRITIC) method for selection of battery-operated electric vehicles (BEVs) has been propounded. A sensitivity analysis has been performed to verify the robustness of the proposed model. Performance of the proposed model has also been compared with some of the popular MCDM methods. It is observed that the model has the competency of precisely ranking the BEV alternatives for the considered case study and can be applied to other sustainability assessment problems.


Author(s):  
Theodoulos Theodoulou ◽  
Savvas Papagiannidis

In this paper, the authors adapt a value chain analysis framework used in the music industry and apply it to the television industry, in order to probe the television value creation and distribution mechanisms and examine how they were affected by technology. More specifically, they examine how viewers can effectively become producers by repositioning themselves in the value chain and the implications of such a shift. Their discussion takes place in the context of a case study, that of Current TV, in order to illustrate in practice the opportunities and implications for the content producers, the broadcasters, and the viewers themselves.


Environments ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (10) ◽  
pp. 108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tryfonas Pieri ◽  
Alexandros Nikitas ◽  
Arturo Castillo-Castillo ◽  
Athanasios Angelis-Dimakis

Carbon capture and utilization (CCU) is recognized by the European Union, along with carbon, capture and storage (CCS), as one of the main tools towards global warming mitigation. It has, thus, been extensively studied by various researchers around the world. The majority of the papers published so far focus on the individual stages of a CCU value chain (carbon capture, separation, purification, transportation, and transformation/utilization). However, a holistic approach, taking into account the matching and the interaction between these stages, is also necessary in order to optimize and develop technically and economically feasible CCU value chains. The objective of this contribution is to present the most important studies that are related to the individual stages of CCU and to perform a critical review of the major existing methods, algorithms and tools that focus on the simulation or optimization of CCU value chains. The key research gaps will be identified and examined in order to lay the foundation for the development of a methodology towards the holistic assessment of CCU value chains.


2009 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 55-67
Author(s):  
Theodoulos Theodoulou ◽  
Savvas Papagiannidis

In this article, the authors adapt a value chain analysis framework used in the music industry and apply it to the television industry, in order to probe the television value creation and distribution mechanisms and examine how they were affected by technology. More specifically, they examine how viewers can effectively become producers by repositioning themselves in the value chain and the implications of such a shift. Their discussion takes place in the context of a case study, that of Current TV, in order to illustrate in practice the opportunities and implications for the content producers, the broadcasters, and the viewers themselves.


2016 ◽  
Vol 118 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Blake E. Angelo ◽  
Becca B.R. Jablonski ◽  
Dawn Thilmany

Purpose A body of literature and case studies has developed as part of the reporting, outreach and evaluation of the local and regional food system projects supported by grants and other funders. Yet, there is concern that food value chains are promoted without adequately evaluating the viability of these businesses, or how these markets affect the performance and welfare of key stakeholders: farm vendors and local communities/economies. Design/methodology/approach This paper reviews and summarizes a comprehensive set of U.S.-based case studies focused on food value chains. We conduct a meta-analysis to systematically capture what available case study evidence tells us about: 1) trends in the viability of food value chain businesses; 2) the impact of these businesses on participating farm vendors; and, 3) the associated community economic development outcomes (framed in terms of ‘wealth creation’). Findings In addition to sharing findings from the meta-analysis, we demonstrate how the lack of standardized protocols for case study development is a barrier to learning about metric comparisons, best practices, and what impacts these food value chain businesses may have. We conclude with some recommendations of how the field can move forward to evaluate and share lessons learned using more uniform, project-driven case study development. Originality/value This is the first study to conduct a systematic meta-analysis of U.S. food value chain businesses.


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