European journal of volunteering and community-based projects

Reduction of Environmental Pollution in Africa: ICT and Greenhouse Emissions

Carmelo Arena, Diego Mazzitelli — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0200

The level of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions is under constant scrutiny by many scholars. This is due to the level of growth of the world population and of the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) sector and consequently to the ever-increasing global economic development, which contribute significantly to the increase in energy consumption and the consequent increase in emissions of CO2. The aim of this study is to examine how CO2 emissions grow with population growth and whether this can be related to industrialization. To achieve this objective, an analysis was conducted on panel data based on Africa over a period of 42 years (1971-2012). The results of the study confirm the relationship between population growth and CO2 emissions, highlighting that pollution in developing countries will increase significantly over 50 years. The study offers theoretical and practical implications. It contributes to expand the scientific literature and debate on the environmental conditions of Africa and provides useful suggestions for policymakers to implement industrial, urban, and social policies to build a global sustainable development that includes the poorest countries.

La mobilità intelligente: miglioramento del well-being e salvaguardia dell’ecosistema

Helena Biancuzzi, Francesca Dal Mas, Maurizio Massaro, Carlo Bagnoli — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Purpose: The article aims to investigate the actors who generate ecosystem value, the stakeholders who capture it, the concept of value generated/captured, focusing on the field of Smart Mobility (SM). This sector represents a critical context for analyzing possible innovative landscapes in terms of sustainability. The paper studies SM in the Italian city of Venice, the world capital of sustainability.

Methodology: The article uses a qualitative methodology based on multiple case studies by interviewing the chiefs of five startup companies from the Venetian, ecosystem involved in the SM field.

Results: Findings confirm what is present in the literature, broadening the field of analysis and suggesting proactive actions. SM increases mobility, offers flexibility, and guarantees greater capillarity and service personalization. At the same time, it allows a reduction in costs for both operators and users, becoming both an economically interesting activity to carry out for entrepreneurs and a positive panorama for Local Authorities, which can provide the necessary service to the resident and non-resident population without the need to provide excessive subsidized contributions. There is an improvement in the quality of life in general and specifically in the user's travel experience. The positive impact on the environment is also indisputable. In fact, there has been a decrease in energy consumption, fuel consumption, and polluting emissions. However, there are some obstacles that have not yet been overcome.

Originality: While there are studies on value creation from an ecosystem point of view in the literature, the dynamics of ecosystem value creation in the SM sector are still a puzzle. This underscores the need for in-depth investigations to fully understand and harness the potential of this sector.

Assessing the Multifacetedness of Greenwashing: Implications for Consumers, Companies and Societies

Marco Valerio Rossi, Francesca Faggioni, Alfredo Sagona, Andrea Sestino — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Purpose. This paper systematically reviews the current literature on Greenwashing, aiming to organize existing knowledge on the phenomenon. The research investigates and categorizes the main sub-topics within the broader realm of greenwashing, providing deeper insights and suggesting areas for future research.

Design/methodology/approach. Employing a qualitative design and Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) analysis, a systematic literature review has been conducted, analyzing a dataset of 1,846 original contributions.

Findings. The analysis identified six sub-topics of greenwashing and three macro-categories: 1) Business-related effects, such as impacts on business credibility and brand; 2) Consumer-related effects, including implications for human rights and consumptions; and 3) Social-related effects, encompassing greenwashing regulation and its relationship with Corporate Social Responsibility. The study concludes by discussing implications for consumers, managers, and policymakers.

Originality/value. Unlike previous systematic reviews of Greenwashing concept, this study focuses on establishing a comprehensive and holistic framework of the main aspects within this field of research, rather than analyzing just specific sub-elements.

The Computational Analysis and Phytochemical Screening Targeting Dihydrolipoamide Dehydrogenase (DLD) for Alzheimer's Disease: A Molecular Dynamics Simulation Study

Muhammad Mazhar Fareed — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0200

The decreasing rate of metabolisms within the mitochondrial is connected to the progressive characterization of Alzheimer's Disease (AD). Dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenase (dld), and DLD1 are specific chemicals comprised of two enzymes/complexes of protein; pyruvate dehydrogenase and α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase physiologically related to AD and have a noteworthy function in energy metabolism. The present computational study was designed to envisage a rational screening of natural phytochemical compounds against DLD1 in AD. The molecular docking and virtual screening approaches were adopted within the best binding active sites of DLD1 in AD to screen 15,282 medicinal phytochemicals’ libraries, which were developed from the literature search, PubChem, Zinc Database, and MPD3 Database. This docking followed by MD-simulation of the best three complexes (1-Caffeoyl-4-deoxyquinic acid, N-Butyryl Coenzyme A, Precatorine) determined through docking scores, RMSD-refine, Pharmacokinetics properties, pharmacological analysis, molinspiration, ADMET-properties, and binding energies. The top complexes with docking-S scores (-13.7117, -12.4565, -11.6440), RMSD-refine values (1.64, 0.86, 0.93), and interactive hits/residues (Arg216, Leu263, Ile125, Met262, Asp256), showed a binding affinity with another catalytic active site domain-chain A (residues 86-293). Although this in-silico work is not experimentally determined, the affinity and interactions of these selected novel compounds might help to design the therapeutics against Alzheimer’s Disease.

La valutazione di impatto per il centro HPL per bambini/e con FIL

Cinzia Canali, Devis Geron, Silvia Sguotti — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0200

Le famiglie con figli/e con diagnosi di FIL – Funzionamento Intellettivo Limite – si trovano di fatto in una “zona grigia” dal punto di vista clinico, con bisogni a fronte dei quali si registra una complessiva carenza di interventi disponibili da parte delle istituzioni e altre realtà territoriali. Nell’a.s. 2021/2022, due realtà torinesi del terzo settore – CPD Consulta per le Persone in Difficoltà e ADN Associazione Diritti Negati – hanno realizzato a Torino un progetto finalizzato a offrire un aiuto ai bambini/e con FIL e alle loro famiglie. Nell’anno scolastico 2022/2023, il progetto è stato riproposto, con la contestuale realizzazione – a cura di Fondazione Zancan – di una valutazione di impatto finalizzata ad approfondire gli esiti per i beneficiari e l’impatto sociale esteso generati dal progetto HPL. La valutazione, adottando un approccio multidimensionale, multi-strumento (quantitativo e qualitativo) e multi-target, ha evidenziato molteplici ricadute positive del progetto, per i diversi attori coinvolti: i bambini/e seguiti con un percorso completo durante l’anno scolastico, le rispettive famiglie, le principali figure professionali (operatori, insegnanti) impegnate e le organizzazioni territoriali coinvolte a vario titolo nel progetto.