Narrow Results

Eco-design practices are still incipient in Brazilian furniture industries, although some improvement can be identified in recent years. This paper describes the performance of an industrial furniture cluster located in Southern Brazil regarding such practices. An embedded case study involving four companies — two manufacturers and two suppliers — was carried out using in-depth interviews. It enabled to depict particularities of how these companies deal with sustainable aspects of design in their respective business. Critical issues identified as obstacles for eco-design implementation in these industries were: control of both, productive process and product durability; product distribution; rational use of space for transportation and storage. Minor difficulties were identified regarding the lack of renewable energy sources and the scarcity of knowledge dissemination. Such hurdles could provide opportunities and support future eco-design strategy implementation, improving the competitiveness and contributing for the eco-efficiency of the Brazilian furniture industry.

Based on the multi-regional input-output framework, this paper analyzed the labor and energy transfer embodied in interregional trade in China. Meanwhile, through estimating the energy intensity per unit of labor embodied in final products in each region, this study examines whether the empirical results are consistent with the theoretical hypothesis and provides relevant explanations and industrial development suggestions. Results show that east coastal region and central region are the two main participants in interregional trade. As for the labor embodied in trade, east coastal region is the largest exporter of embodied labor, though it has the highest wage among eight regions; in contrast, north coastal and southwestern region, with relatively low wage, are the two largest importer of embodied labor. As for the energy embodied in trade, northwestern region is the largest exporter of embodied energy. Further analysis indicates that the energy intensity per unit of labor in region with relatively low GRP (such as northwestern region) is the highest, whereas those in Beijing-Tianjin Region and south coastal region (with relatively high GRP) are the lowest. By analyzing the Revealed Comparative Advantage in each region, the paper finds that the main reason for this inconsistency lies in the industrial structure in northwestern and north coastal region, which are highly dependent in primary industries. Improving the infrastructure and upgrading industrial structure are important steps for these regions to transform the extensive growth mode.

Senegal is located in West Africa with a population close to 16 million inhabitants unequally distributed on a land of 196,722 km² area. In the 2000s, a national energy information system (known as SIE-Sénégal) aiming at monitoring and forecasting the energy demand and the efficient planning of the energy infrastructure was put in place in the Ministry of Oil and Energies. A lot of data were recorded of which some are analyzed and presented here for a better understanding of the energy system of Senegal. In the period 2000–2013, the energy demand has been increasing reaching 3.72 Mtoe in 2013. The demand is covered by imported fossil fuels and traditional biomass. The energy consumption has been increasing in the same period from 1.69 Mtoe in 2000 up to 2.56 Mtoe in 2013. The energy pattern shows a lion’s share for the residential sector followed by the transport and industrial sectors. In the residential sector, firewood is the main fuel, and electricity is deemed marginal. The transport sector is dominated by the road subsector where diesel oil represents 81% of the energy use. In the industrial sector, more than 80% of energy used is from fossil origin and the share of coal is becoming significant.

Sustainable development goals (SDGs) acknowledge the interlinkages between human well-being, economic prosperity, and a healthy environment, and hence, are associated with a wide range of topical issues that include the securities of water, energy, and food (WEF) resources, poverty eradication, economic development, climate change, health, among others. As SDGs are assessed through targets to be achieved by 2030 and monitored through measurable indicators, nexus planning was applied as a transformative approach to monitor and assess progress toward SDG in 2015 and 2018 using South Africa. WEF nexus-related SDGs that were evaluated include Goals 2 (zero hunger), 6 (clean water and sanitation), and 7 (affordable and clean energy). The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was used to integrate indicators for each of the reference years. Resource management and implementation of WEF-related SDGs improved by 31% (from 0.155 to 0.203) between 2015 and 2018 in South Africa but remained marginally sustainable. The assessment provided an evidence-based support framework for improved and effective management strategies to meet set SDG targets. The connections between the WEF nexus and SDGs strengthen cross-sectoral collaboration among stakeholders, unpack measures for cooperative governance and management, and supporting outcomes that arise from different cross-sectoral interventions. As food production, water provision, and energy accessibility are the major socio-economic and environmental issues currently attracting global attention, the method enhances climate change adaptation.

The chapter focuses on the energy transition as a necessary prerequisite for developing a green economy. The features of the new energy transition are based on the introduction and use of clean technologies, such as renewable energy and hydrogen. The urgency of taking drastic measures to transition to green energy is connected with the speedy solution to climate problems on the planet. The countries are actively taking measures to decarbonize economic processes; businesses are adopting business strategies that include reducing the negative impact on the environment and introducing green technologies. The paper analyzes current trends in the energy sector to identify the readiness of a new energy transition to the principles of a green economy.

Arguably, to nourish or take care of the needs of all of humankind — sustainable and affordable access to clean water, safe sanitation, and clean air, together with a sufficiency of energy, food, and shelter — should be universally available. Yet, many humans do not enjoy such access or availability, even though it has been 70 years since the 1948 United Nations (UN) declaration on human rights proclaimed “that all human beings are equal, and have inherent rights.” However, only food and shelter were explicitly mentioned in the initial declaration. Others were recently added to the UN list, but not air and energy. Nevertheless, basic human needs do not have to be declared as a human right before national actions are taken. Today’s key driver is the UN 2030 Agenda, a plan to eradicate all global poverty and set the world onto a “sustainable and resilient path,” through the achievement of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Adopted by all UN members, the 2030 Agenda in essence, is a 21^st century version of the 1948 proclamation. The SDGs explicitly detail, or implicitly in the case of clean air, all the necessary needs for the nourishing of tomorrow. To achieve the plan will likely require, at least, changes in national cultural values, eliminating inequalities and disparities, developing more appropriate governance strategies, and meaningful technical innovation. In this chapter, these requirements are discussed against a backdrop of presently known deficiencies in global nourishment needs.

As a kind of development theory, sustainable development is becoming the world's common development philosophy and principles; energy is an important part of sustainable development. At present, China's energy legislation has been enacted many laws and regulations, but has not yet constitute a sound legal system, supervision mechanism is not reasonable, legal lack of maneuverability. We must be guided by the sustainable development, improve the energy law system, rationalize the management mechanism, enhance the maneuverability of the energy law, energy to accelerate and perfect the legislation, promote the harmony of man and nature.