Unraveling the relationship between entrepreneurial ecosystems and sustainable development: the mediating role of innovation in a macroeconomic panel data study

To Achieve a Sustainable Blue Future, Progress Assessments Must Include Interdependencies between the Sustainable Development Goals

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals Requires Transdisciplinary Innovation at the Local Scale

The <scp>SDGs</scp>: A change agenda shaping the future of business and humanity at large

The success of a city’s entrepreneurial ecosystem (EE) depends on a combination of interconnected factors that foster innovation, collaboration and growth. Urban planning, infrastructure management and an entrepreneurial culture are essential factors for the success of cities’ Entrepreneurial Ecosystems (EEs). Land use and infrastructure management create opportunities for growth and industry expansion. EEs are local, social, business, institutional and cultural stakeholders that encourage and enhance the formation and growth of new businesses, which are supported by enabling infrastructure. The objective of this study was to investigate how urban planning affects EEs in the metropolitan region, Nelson Mandela Bay (NMB), South Africa. NMB is known for poor land use management, which hinders the management of diverse spatial needs, as well as bureaucratic processes for land rezoning for commercial activity. In order to better understand the fundamental issues, a qualitative case study was conducted. The data were collected from fifteen economic development role players from NMB using semi-structured interviews combined with secondary data from the NMB Integrated Development Plan (IDP). The data analysis included thematic analysis using Atlas.ti and Claude 2.0. In order to validate the findings, qualitative data were cross-referenced with secondary sources from the NMB IDP. The key themes that emerged effect the NMB metropole’s management of infrastructure to support the EE. These include, Land use issues, Poor oversight by metropolitan leadership, Lack of infrastructure maintenance and pushing out potential investment and economic growth. The results highlight that the NMB metropole fails to prioritise land use and infrastructure challenges, impacting the NMB metropolitan area’s economic development and worsening inequality among different groups. The findings from this study add to the current research on cities’ EEs and The Right to the City Theory, which supports the UN Sustainable Development Goals 8, 9 and 11.

The latest progress summary of sustainable development goals (SDGs) in 2023 reveals that the ongoing growth pattern of Asian economies is inadequate. Asian countries are facing several challenges in securing the targets of SDGs, and environmental degradation is one of the major issues among them. Hence, urgent actions are required to attain SDG targets. Several studies in the available literature have considered multiple determinants of environmental degradation. However, the impact of green production practices (GPP) and geopolitical risk (GPR) is relatively ignored particularly in the framework of Asian economies. Therefore, it is needed to propose an extensive policy framework for attaining the objectives of SDGs and raising environmental quality. Moreover, this study is a pioneering attempt that scrutinizes the eclectic influence of green production practices and geopolitical risk on carbon emissions. The study follows the model based on the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis for selected Asian countries. The study has utilized the Panel Quantile Regression (PQR) technique to analyze the facts from selected Asian economies from 1990 to 2020. The long-run evaluations reveal the EKC hypothesis proves valid in the preferred Asian economies. Moreover, green production practices play a crucial role in controlling the rising levels of carbon emissions in the selected Asian countries whereas, geopolitical risk and foreign direct investments are proven constructive elements in raising carbon emissions. Lastly, based on the empirical outcomes, this study provides policy implications for achieving the targets of SDG 07, SDG 09, SDG 12, SDG 13, SDG 15, SDG 16, and SDG 17.

Scholars of language believe that where there is no language there is no development, thus language is pivotal in the implementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This study aims to explore a language-based approach to the achievement of SDGs. Studies and reports describe language theories such as Edward Sapir-Benjamin Lee Whorf Linguistic Determinism Theory, Geoffery Leech’s five characteristics of language, Lev Vygotsky Developmental Theory, Jim Cummins Principles of Language – Basic Interpersonal Skills/Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency and other relevant linguistic concepts vis-à-vis sustainability goals and enumerate how the SDGs can be translated into a plan of action through the language-based approach. Specifically, the study focuses on Goal 3- Good health and wellbeing, Goal 4 - Quality education, Goal 16 - Peace, justice, and strong institutions, and Goal 17 - Partnership for the goal. Qualitative meta-analysis was employed using a five-step synthesis approach: 1) Exploring the field and defining research questions 2) search, selection, and appraisal of studies (sampling procedure) 3) data extraction 4) aggregation and 5) synthesis to analyze data from reports, symposiums, and studies as the main sources of data. In the iterative analyses, aggregates of concepts were identified: 1) language 2) language users 3) inclusiveness, equality, and sustainability 4) Sustainable Development Goals and language-based approaches. Other concepts were extracted from data such as diversity of language, language and culture, multilingualism, plurilingualism, multiculturalism, multilingualism, mother tongue-based multilingual education, literacy and reading skills, communication disabilities, minority vs. dominant languages, language loss and language maintenance, rights language to health care, inclusivity, vulnerability, diversity, equality, global citizenship, transparency and integrity, nationalism, national unity and collective identity and their centrality in the development, implementation, and successful completion of the SDGs.ReferencesBaart, J. L.G. (2003). Sustainable development and the maintenance of Pakistan’s indigenous languages. Conference on the state of the social sciences and humanities: Current scenario and emerging trends Islamabad, September 26-27, 2003Balčiūnaitienė Asta (2018). 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European Journal of English Language and Literature Studies. 8(6), pp.53-61Forman, L., Ooms, G &amp; Brolan, C. E. (Dec., 2015). Rights language in the Sustainable Development Agenda: Has right to health discourse and norms shaped health goals? International Journal Health Policy Management. ; 4(12). 799–804. Published online 2015 Sep 29. https://doi.org.10.15171/ijhpm.2015.171Hussain, N., Jagoe, C., Mullen, R., O’Shea, A., Sutherland, D., Williams, C., &amp; Wright, M. (2018). The importance of speech, language and communication to the United Nations sustainable development goals: A summary of evidence. International Communication Project.Language, the sustainable development goals, and vulnerable populations at the church center for the United Nations, 777 United Nations Plaza, New York, on 11 and 12 May 2017 Symposium: Study Group on Language and the United Nations. an independent group of scholars and practitioners on matters related to the international use of language (Final Report)Mweri, J. G. (2020). Sustainable development goals: Reaching people through their mother tongue. Linguistics and Literature Studies. http://doi.org.10.13189/lls.2020.080103Nwanyanwu, A. U. (2017). The place of indigenous languages in sustainable national development in the twenty-first Century: The Nigerian perspective. International Journal of English Language and Communication Studies 3(3), ISSN 2545 - 5702Obiegbu, I. (2015), The English language and sustainable development in Nigeria Open Journal of Political Science, 5(2) Article ID:54264,4 pages DOI: 10.4236/ojps.2015.52009.Ollinger, A. (2012) Communication strategies in ELF. Academia. Communication_strategies_in_ELF-with-cover-page-v2.pdfReyes, C. M., Albert, R.G., Tabuga, A. D., Arboneda, A.A., Vizmanos, V. &amp; Cabaero, C. C. (2019). The Philippines’ voluntary national review on the sustainable development goals. Philippine Institute for Development Studies.Stein-Smith, K. (2016). The role of multilingualism in effectively addressing global issues: The sustainable development goals and beyond. ISSN 1799-2591 Theory and practice in language studies, 6(12), pp. 2254-2259Sustainability | Free Full-Text | Quality education as a sustainable development goal in the context of 2030 agenda: Bibliometric approach | HTML (mdpi.com) International communication project(www.internationalcommunicationproject.com)The Sustainable Development Goals Report (2021). United Nations. 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The impact of geopolitical risks on sustainable energy development globally is critical. This study investigates the synergistic effects of geopolitical risk on energy vulnerability and energy poverty (EVEP) in China to clarify how geopolitical risks influence regional disparities in energy security. By employing a generalized method of moments model and panel data from 30 provinces in 2003–2020, we find that geopolitical risk significantly exacerbates EVEP with notable synergistic effects. Heterogeneity analysis reveals notable synergistic effects of geopolitical risk on EVEP in the northern region and in regions with high levels of green technological innovation. Mechanistic examination suggests that these synergistic effects are mediated primarily by the hindrance of foreign direct investment (FDI) and industrial structure upgrading (ISU). This study contributes to the literature by proposing an improved construction framework for measuring energy vulnerability. It also offers novel insights into the tensions between transition agendas in the Global North and South, highlighting the unique challenges in pursuing a just energy transition. The findings have important implications for shaping policies to reduce the negative effects of geopolitical risk on sustainable development. This study emphasizes the necessity of implementing specific policies to accelerate a just energy transition that considers improving FDI and speeding up ISU to protect against geopolitical risks when addressing energy-related challenges amid geopolitical uncertainties. We discuss the policy implications of these findings in the context of achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and fostering a just energy transition.

In the face of escalating environmental challenges, the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have become crucial benchmarks for sustainability, with SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), and SDG 13 (Climate Action) addressing key issues like energy efficiency, resource management, and climate change. This study explores the impact of the entrepreneurship ecosystem (EE) on these environmental goals, using data from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) and applying advanced machine learning techniques such as bagging, random forest, boosting, Shapley Additive Explanations (SHAP), and Partial Dependence Plots (PDPs). Grounded in sustainability, innovation, Resource‐Based View (RBV), and institutional theories, the study reveals the critical role of the business services sector, entrepreneurial intentions, and entrepreneurial education in driving progress toward environmental sustainability. The findings offer actionable insights for policymakers and contribute to the academic understanding of how entrepreneurship can be leveraged to achieve SDGs, emphasizing the need for a robust and integrated entrepreneurial ecosystem to foster sustainable practices.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agreed by the United Nations are a call to action for policy-makers around the globe to tackle grand societal challenges. Sustainability start-ups can help meet some of the most pressing challenges. Regions of start-up activity are commonly referred to as entrepreneurial ecosystems (EEs), although the share of sustainability start-ups varies markedly from one EE to another. While literature on EEs is abundant, scholarly work on sustainability-oriented EEs, i.e. those with a high share of sustainability start-ups, is still relatively scarce. In particular, there is limited understanding of the reasons why some EEs have a higher share of sustainability start-ups than others. The present paper considers this gap in the literature by contrasting the EEs of Berlin and Lagos, which have very different shares of sustainability start-ups. Forty interviews conducted with founders, investors, hubs and government representatives in both EEs showed that particularly successful start-ups in an EE, so-called lighthouses, play an important role in shaping the cultural, social and material attributes of an EE. This means that the sustainability orientation of these lighthouses is instrumental in creating environments in which sustainability start-ups can flourish. Moreover, lighthouses can attract new talent and resources to a region, which further underlines their role as accelerators of an EE towards sustainability. Overall, the lighthouses are a critical factor in explaining the share of sustainability start-ups. Policy-makers can strengthen this effect by giving access to extra resources and opportunities to promising start-ups and by showcasing their success.

This paper explores the correlation between the Financial Development Index (FDI) and the Geopolitical Risk Index (GPR) in relation to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) within the E3 countries: Germany, France, and the United Kingdom. With limited research available on the interaction between these indices and the SDGs, this study aims to bridge that gap by focusing on SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy). Using data spanning from 2000 to 2021, the analysis employs ARDL and Dynamic Conditional Correlation (DCC) models to assess the impact of geopolitical risks and financial development on these sustainability targets. Findings reveal that in Germany, there are significant long-term relationships between FDI and both SDG 13 and SDG 7, with geopolitical risks negatively impacting both goals. Economic growth was observed to have a stronger influence on SDG 13. In France, FDI positively affected SDG 13 but had no statistically significant impact on SDG 7. Geopolitical risks had adverse effects on both goals, while economic growth?s impact on SDG 7 was found to be insignificant. In the UK, no significant long-term relationships were identified; however, short-term analysis highlighted notable effects of FDI and geopolitical risks on SDG 7. The DCC analysis revealed that the relationship between SDG 13 and SDG 7 was relatively strong around 2000 but weakened over time.

Drawing on four well‐established theoretical perspectives, this paper proposes an intersectional, emotionally grounded framework for understanding how gender and age jointly shape entrepreneurial perceptions across psychological, social, and cultural domains. Using 2024 Italian Global Entrepreneurship Monitor data and ordinal logistic regression, we find that women are approximately 30% more likely to report fear of failure and 20% less likely to feel self‐efficacious, despite perceiving high social respect for entrepreneurs. These emotional constraints persist across age, suggesting that gendered affective barriers are stable over time. We also demonstrate that composite indices, commonly used in entrepreneurial research, partially obscure gendered nuances that are better revealed through disaggregated analysis. This study contributes to entrepreneurship theory by integrating emotional risk into socially embedded models of entrepreneurial cognition. By addressing gendered emotional barriers, we contribute to building more socially sustainable and resilient entrepreneurial ecosystems, in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We further frame these barriers as strategic obstacles to environmentally responsible entrepreneurship, underscoring their relevance to SDGs 5, 8, 9, and 12. Finally, we highlight managerial implications: Incubators, accelerators, and firms should design gender‐sensitive interventions, such as inclusive training, mentorship, and financial instruments, to foster innovation, responsible production, and the resilience of entrepreneurial ecosystems.

This paper emphasizes the critical role of lifelong learning in promoting sustainable development, particularly in developing countries. Sustainable development, while a central concept in global discourse, is often misunderstood by ordinary citizens and technocrats, underlining the need for educational interventions to demystify the concept. The paper argues that lifelong learning is crucial for fostering awareness of resource depletion and the importance of conserving essential resources for future generations. In many developing nations, a knowledge and skills deficit, compounded by the rapid pace of technological advancement, hinders economic and social progress. The lack of understanding in key areas, including economics, politics, and society, contributes to issues such as resource depletion, poverty, and environmental degradation. The paper asserts that lifelong learning can bridge these gaps, enabling individuals to adapt to the evolving global landscape and to embrace sustainable development practices. By empowering citizens with the necessary knowledge, attitudes, and skills, lifelong learning can help tackle challenges such as overconsumption and unsustainable resource use. Educating individuals through heutagogical approaches—learner-centred strategies that emphasize self-directed learning—can drive reform and sustainable practices at the grassroots level. The paper also discusses the alignment of lifelong learning with the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which emphasizes the importance of inclusive education in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Specifically, SDG 4, which advocates for “inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for all,” serves as a key framework for integrating lifelong learning into national development strategies. Lifelong learning also contributes to the attainment of other SDGs, such as gender equality (SDG 5), decent work and economic growth (SDG 8), health and well-being (SDG 3), responsible consumption and production (SDG 12), and climate change mitigation (SDG 13). As such, lifelong learning is presented not only as a critical tool for individual empowerment but also as a strategic means to achieve sustainable, inclusive, and equitable development in the 21st century.

Introduction. The current state of the external environment, which is determined by the challenges of sustainable economic development, has become an objective basis for the statement: ensuring the successful operation of enterprises (increasing competitiveness and strengthening their potential) is not possible without external factors and rapid response to change, adaptive management mechanisms that can ensure the transition of agro-industrial enterprises to the trajectory of sustainable economic development. Changes in the philosophy of management require appropriate changes in the system of institutions. The institutional logic of development presupposes the existence of continuous institutional formation in systems where innovations take place. Innovations as an element of the essential characteristics of sustainable economic development determine, normatively include the need for changes in the institutional system. The purpose of the article is to determine on the basis of modeling tools the nature of the impact of institutions on achieving the goals of sustainable economic development of the agro-industrial complex. Results. The elements of the institutional basis for the implementation of the sustainable economic development paradigm in the agro-industrial sector of Ukraine are identified, with the allocation of blocks and groups of institutions. Based on the use of cognitive and scenario modeling tools, the priority of institutional blocks of the general matrix of institutions to ensure the achievement of the main goals of sustainable economic development in the agro-industrial complex is determined. It is established that the greatest positive impact of all considered and analyzed institutions have on the goal of sustainable economic development of agro-industrial production, as good health and well-being. The lowest indicators relate to the achievement of high parameters of responsible consumption and production, which necessitates adjustments to the institutional matrix in terms of priority institutions aimed at achieving this goal. Key words: institutes, sustainable development, goals of sustainable development, modeling, development of agro-industrial complex.

A novel Sustainable Development Goal 7 composite index as the paradigm for energy sustainability assessment: A case study from Europe

Objective: The aim of the research is to propose a Sustainable Management Plan for Vale dos Dinosaurs Park aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Theoretical Framework: The theoretical findings regarding Sustainability and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are described by (SILVA; LIMA, 2020), (Costa, 2023), and (CESAR et al., 2018), focusing on the approach to the definition and characterization of SWOT Analysis by Ulrich (2002) and Sapiro (2003), underpinning the investigative phenomenon. Manager (2009) bolstered the theme of sustainable development through SWOT analysis. Method: The adopted methodology included the analysis of previous studies by Costa and Martins (2023) on the SWOT tool and Sustainability Indicators in the Dinosaurs Park in Sousa, Paraiba. Based on these sources, a strategic plan aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, focused on environmental conservation, regional socio-economic development, and paleontological preservation of the Dinosaurs Park, was developed. Results and Conclusion: The study emphasizes the relevance of SWOT analysis in sustainable management, identifying key points to boost competitiveness and profitability consciously. It integrates SWOT principles with sustainability indicators, aiming at environmental conservation and socio-economic development. Research Implications: The research identifies opportunities for sustainable management of Vale dos Dinosaurs Park, such as recycling programs, energy conservation, and collaborations with community organizations. It proposes the development of a Sustainable Management Plan aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals, emphasizing effective strategies, adoption of new technologies, and partnerships with other parks to promote sustainability. Originality/Value: The integrated and proactive approach to sustainable management of Vale dos Dinosaurs Park, proposing a Sustainable Management Plan aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), demonstrates a holistic and updated vision regarding the environmental and sustainability challenges faced by park management.