EU Development Research Articles

ECOLOGICAL DOMINANTS IN CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATIONS OF EUROPEAN BUSINESS: THE IMPACT OF THE GREEN DEAL

The subject of the study is the identification of cross-cultural features of European business under the influence of the implementation of the Green Deal as the main EU development strategy until 2025. Methodology. The research used general logical and theoretical methods of cognition. The method of analysis and synthesis was used to evaluate the components of intercultural competence for the successful development of eco-business in the EU. The method of analogy was used to find out what is similar and what is different in traditional and environmentally oriented business, which affects the specifics of cross-cultural communication. The theoretical method of generalisation is used to substantiate the content and essence of intercultural competence of environmental business. The method of system analysis was used to construct the author's conceptual model of the formation of intercultural competence of European environmental business. Purpose. The purpose of the article is to substantiate the peculiarities of environmental cross-cultural management in the activities of European business and the role of cross-cultural competencies in the success of European environmental companies, including Ukrainian business. Results. The article has proved the role of green growth as a dominant concept and concrete policy of the European Union, embodied in the strategy of the EU Green Deal Strategy (GDS). The main sectoral determinants of green growth, reflected in the Green Deal, are defined as forming the field of development of environmental business in the EU. It has been shown that this tendency affects the specifics of cross-cultural communication. The need to build effective cross-cultural communications in the European environmental business under the influence of the Green Deal determinants was analysed and addressed through the strategy of green cross-cultural management. Conclusion. European companies implementing eco-innovative developments are faced with expanding the range of cooperation with various partners, including in the multinational environment of creation, approval, implementation and monitoring of implementation effectiveness. The need to build effective intercultural communication in European eco-business under the influence of the determinants of the Green Deal, taking into account cultural differences in business relations and using the tools of effective intercultural management has been emphasised. The list of criteria for effective communication and structuring of relations in cross-cultural management was determined. The positive relationship between the integration of different cultures in EU enterprises and the growth of their competitiveness is emphasised. The prerequisites for the formation of sustainable cross-cultural competence of a business process participant are proved. Prospects for the development of "green" cross-cultural competences in the European business space are outlined. The cross-cultural competences of the European environmental business are considered from the point of view of ethnorelativism formation. The authors emphasize that intercultural communication in environmental business should take into account the peculiarities of national cultures, which make it understandable for everyone, as well as the values of the Green Planet, which is an objective unifying factor. The basic elements of the green intercultural management strategy for European business are proposed and the main obstacles to the implementation of such management mechanisms in the Ukrainian business environment are identified.

Energy, water and economic savings by changing habits of users in twelve schools in Spain

ABSTRACT Energy saving and the development of renewable energies already form part of the daily discourse in our society. Climate change and the environmental problems arising from it affect all of us on the planet. In view of the recent energy supply crisis in Europe and in line with the EU's Sustainable Development Goals, it is necessary to accelerate the ecological transition. This means, among many other things, encouraging energy efficiency and energy savings. This research is based on the EURONET 50/50 max project, which applied a methodology with no upfront capital outlay, but based on changing user habits to save energy in educational buildings. It was carried out in twelve educational centres of the Spínola Foundation throughout Spain. Significant reductions in energy and water consumption were achieved. The maximum reduction obtained in water consumption was 29%, 24% in electricity consumption and 33% in heating consumption. The average reduction in consumption obtained was 13% compared to 11% achieved in the 50/50 max project. It was concluded that, on the journey to optimising our energy consumption, working on patterns of usage is fundamental, raising awareness and involving users in order to give rise to permanent processes over time, gradually reversing climate change.

EU trade liberalisation, sectoral coalitions and development: insights from Moldova and Georgia

ABSTRACT This paper contributes to the literature on EU trade policy by introducing insights from the political economy literature on development to the study of how EU trade liberalisation affects development in trading partners. Drawing on a comparison of EU trade liberalisation with Moldova and Georgia, we argue that the type of coalition between public and private actors in partner countries’ top export sectors determines which firms benefit from better market access to the EU, as indicated by their ability to increase their exports. We show that liberalised trade with the EU tends to contribute to achieving the EU’s declared objective of inclusive development if the presence of inclusionary development coalitions ensures that a broad range of firms is enabled to increase their export capacities through a mechanism that we call ‘inclusive empowerment’. Otherwise, trade liberalisation contributes to exclusive development, benefitting big, mostly foreign firms, or, at worse, consolidating rent-seeking practices.

Asymmetry and convergence in the development of digital technologies in the EU countries

Research background: Digitalization in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated significantly across Europe, including in regions that are at the stage of catch-up development. However, as innovative technologies are intensively integrated into everyday life, the digital gap between the EU countries is increasing. The widening digital gap is becoming a serious threat to achieving the EU's sustainable development goals and building a sustainable European society. Purpose of the article: The purpose of the article was to empirically substantiate the inclusiveness and convergence of the digital strategy in the EU countries. Methods: Using the method of fuzzy sets, the level of asymmetry in access to transactional (e-commerce), information (cloud computing), operational (artificial intelligence) technologies in the EU countries was assessed. The negative impact of the digital gap within the countries (the gap between small, medium, large companies) and the global digital gap (the gap between EU countries) on the competitiveness of countries was established, for which correlation analysis and the Granger causality test were used. Findings & value added: The findings of this study contribute to the literature of digital transformation and digital gap of European countries. The impact of the digital gap in transactional, information, operational technologies on the competitiveness of countries is differentiated depending on the level of digitalization of the country. Cluster groups of countries are determined by the convergence of digitalization and ways to ensure long-term competitiveness. The directions for reducing the digital gap in the EU countries are substantiated by changing the priorities of spending on innovation and increasing productivity, diversifying the digital technologies used. The empirical results obtained can serve as a basis for improving the effectiveness of the digitalization policy in the EU countries in accordance with individual convergence goals. The main added value of the paper is related to the presented research procedure, which can be used in analyses of digital technologies development also for other countries. The results provide valuable insights into evaluating the digital technologies in European countries.

Carbon emissions from international trade and consumption: Assessing the role of cumulative risk for EU and Chinese economic development

The study examines the relationship between trade openness and carbon dioxide emissions in the cumulative risks context for China's economic development and the European Union. Hypotheses derived from a review of the literature substantiate the following key findings: (1) A reduction in CO2 emissions in developed countries due to restrictions on international trade may lead to an increase in CO2 emissions in developing and transitional economies. (2) Trade restrictions can reduce CO2 emissions in developed countries by shifting production to less developed nations. (3) The existing trade restriction policies do not effectively curb global CO2 emissions and may exacerbate social inequality between “wealthy” and “poor” countries. The study findings hold relevance for policymakers, academic researchers, experts in climate change mitigation.

DALIA FAIR Open Educational Federation

As a funding measure of the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research and from the EU's Development and Resilience Facility, the project “DALIA - Knowledge-Base for FAIR data usage and supply" not only creates technical bridges between NFDI consortia but also an evolving approach that contributes to transdisciplinary community building in the long term. By harmonising, networking and making visible teaching and learning materials for the development and promotion of data literacy, the project makes an important contribution to education, training and cultural change.

Participation of Bulgarian Furniture Manufacturing in Global and Local Value Chains as a Factor Supporting Their Innovation Activities

Innovations can offer key advantages to companies, but in some EU regions, the design and development of innovation measures are still relatively novel concepts. The aim of this study was to analyze the collaborations of innovative Bulgarian furniture manufacturers with external stakeholders and the used information channels as factors for the development and implementation of innovation and participation in global value chains over their innovation activities. Out of 3890 Bulgarian companies, the number of companies included in the target group was further reduced to 85 firms due to missing information on some variables. The data for the present study were collected using a large-scale questionnaire distributed on the spot during the months of March and April 2022. Logistic regression was used to reveal the real contribution of the collaborations and the information sources to the ability of companies to innovate. The research results indicated that in Bulgaria, the furniture sector is not considered very innovative, and Bulgarian furniture manufacturing companies do not rely on collaboration with the IT and mechatronics sectors. These companies do not want to participate in GVCs, as they refer to them in relation to supply chains. Therefore, they are less dependent on chain shocks. Companies prefer to hide their innovations for further protection, which might be the reason for the lack of cooperation between the furniture manufacturing companies and academia, NGOs, and other relevant institutions. The findings of the study contribute to new insights into the literature on the participation in GVCs as a factor for collaboration with different stakeholders and hence for product and process innovation development within the furniture industry companies.

Emotion Understanding in Polish Children: A Cross-Cultural Comparison between Polish, British, and Italian Children

Abstract Emotion understanding (EU) is the capacity to understand the nature, causes, and consequences of the emotional experience of the self and others. The cultural differences and similarities in the development of EU are still not well recognized, especially within Slavic culture and language. We tested 180 Polish children aged 5–11 years using the Test of Emotion Comprehension and compared their results with data from British and Italian children. We revealed a similar pattern of EU development between the three groups, showing a growing number of the core EU components with age. In all samples, the three difficulty-differentiated clusters of EU components were distinguishable. Some cultural differences were observed only in a few EU components – especially, British and Italian children recognized the cognitively-based individualistic aspect of emotions to a higher degree than Polish children. These results supplement the current knowledge about EU development in children within European cultures.

Decentralized Energy Generation for Sustainable Energy Development in EU

Human history has been the story of the constant search for energy, e.g., in terms of food conversion to energy. Early on in its origins, humankind has had to satisfy its energy demand through available energy resources. Although the use of non-renewable energy sources has been perpetuated over time, there are currently many strategies implemented by states to develop energy transition for sustainable development. An example of this is the emergence of decentralization initiatives such as prosumers and energy communities. Within the European Union, the Directives 2018/2001 and 2019/944 open a broad regulatory framework for this type of practice. In the face of the challenges imposed by the so-called energy transition towards more environmentally friendly forms of energy (= ‘green energy’) and climate change, energy democracy plays a key role. These initiatives have currently yielded important results where individuals and communities have become increasingly empowered and have become important actors in energy generation from renewable energy sources. The general objective of this research is to substantiate the need for decentralized energy generation transitions. The main results of the research are the assessment of the legal framework for initiatives in decentralized energy generation in the European Union and the identification of good practices in the European context. energy decentralization initiatives, sustainable energy development, European Union, Energy Law, Energy Policy, energy prosumerism, energy communities, EU Law, energy market, energy consumer empowerment

Hydrogen: Fueling EU‐Morocco Energy Cooperation?

AbstractThe war in Ukraine and the looming threat of climate change are driving the strategic need to diversify sources of energy, including renewables. Therefore, the European Union aims to develop energy relations with non‐EU member states, and Morocco has become a key priority. Both Brussels and Rabat are pursuing ambitious green policies and cooperation initiatives, including on hydrogen. Drawing on theories of international institutions and political economy, this article analyzes hydrogen‐related relationship patterns and explains demand and supply factors as drivers of institutionalized energy cooperation. We examine the EU's hydrogen approach and development, its relations with Morocco, and the political interests of both sides. Our analysis shows that the complex interdependencies in the evolving EU‐Morocco hydrogen relations indicate that demand can be met by supply. However, challenges remain, including the need to deepen the partnership and prepare the market for commercial hydrogen production.

Contribution of V4 countries to mineral sustainable development in EU

Contribution of V4 countries to mineral sustainable development in EU

Digitisation and sustainable development of the European Union Member States. Actions supporting "sustainable digitisation"

Digital technologies redefine the shape of the modern economy and social relations, bring many benefits, but also challenges in the social, economic, environmental and climate context. The aim of the article in theoretical aspect is to broaden the knowledge about the dimensions of digitisation of economies, which must correspond to the goals of sustainable development. In empirical aspect, the aim of the presented research is to identify the level of digitisation of EU Member States’ economies and changes in the digital gap. The research methods include: institutional and legal analysis, descriptive and comparative methods. The main part of the article contains the review of the available studies, in which the authors analysed the relationships between digitisation and sustainable development, looking for the answer to the question of how digital transformation can contribute to economic, social and environmental sustainability. In the final part of the article, EU activities supporting "sustainable digitisation" will be analysed, which would facilitate and accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. The study made it possible to draw conclusions about the most important aspects of the EU development strategy in the context of "sustainable digitisation" and to understand the importance of digitisation for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in the Member States. The results of the conducted research indicate the growing importance of the digitisation of EU countries in the context of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, especially in the face of contemporary crisis situations.

Slow strengthening of Latvia’s resilience in preventing and combating corruption: an analysis of causes

The aim of the article is to present the authors’ assessment of the effectiveness of the anti-corruption policy in Latvia, to establish the compliance of national anti-corruption strategies with the EU goals in terms of preventing and combating corruption. The research methods aim at confirming a hypothesis that in order to deepen anti-corruption reforms and strengthen resilience in the fight against corruption, it is not enough for Latvia to conduct only institutional reforms, but it is important to promote anti-corruption values. The study is based on the methodology of new institutionalism and axiological analysis. The authors argue that if the role of non-democratic values is significant, it will slow down the progressive institutional reforms needed to bring Latvia’s anti-corruption policies fully in line with EU development strategies.

Ordoliberalism goes China? A comparison of recent developments in EU and chinese competition law considering the digital economy

AbstractThe rapidly advancing digitalisation of the global economy, particularly the emergence of quasi-monopolists with the ability to define the rules of the game, poses numerous challenges to competition law as it is now practised worldwide. The European Union and China, in particular, have recently taken up these challenges with far-reaching reforms of their respective competition law regimes. This paper analyses these reforms and trends from a critical perspective informed by ordoliberalism, one of the arguably most influential schools of competition thought. First, the core ideas of the early Freiburg School on competition are distilled. The subsequent sections compare this ideal type with current developments in EU and Chinese competition law. The discussion of similarities and differences shows that both reform agendas suffer from similar problems connected to the rule of law and suggests that a modernised ordoliberal competition law approach must be guided not only by substantive but also by procedural aspects.

Exploring paths and innovation in Norwegian carbon capture and storage policy

AbstractNorway, a significant petroleum producer and exporter, has been a frontrunner within policies for carbon capture and storage (CCS). As CCS is recognized as a key technology for achieving the Paris climate policy targets, there is a clear need for more knowledge about how to design successful projects. Norway's first CCS policy initiative, the ambitious Mongstad project, was the result of a political compromise that was imposed from above, basically with one single company in control. The project was largely seen as a failure and was terminated in 2013. However, instead of dropping ambitions for developing CCS projects, the authorities launched a new policy soon afterwards. This policy evolved with the differently organized Longship CCS project as its core. Using a path‐dependency perspective, we find that established institutional structures from the Mongstad project, combined with national interests and expertise, help to explain the fundamental continuity of CCS policies in Norway. This explanation is supplemented by a policy‐learning perspective, which helps to explain policy changes and differences between the two flagship CCS projects. The Longship project developed gradually ‘from below’; linked project responsibilities close to competences and interests; dealt with key risks separately to reduce the inherent complexity; and organized clear requirements up front. We hold that this way of designing CCS projects is of relevance to other countries considering CCS projects. Furthermore, by placing the Norwegian case in context of the development of EU and international climate policy we contribute a theoretical framework relevant also for subsequent research.

The Impact of the Energy Supply Retrench Caused by the Russia-Ukraine Conflict on EU Countries and Developments

Energy is the primary basis and driving force for the development of the economy of modern countries, and it is a matter of national and geopolitical patterns. Due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Western governments have strengthened political and economic sanctions against Russia, and several EU countries have been unable to decouple Russia's short-term energy resources, which has led to a significant increase in the energy resources of EU countries. This change in the energy landscape of the EU will have a bearing on the long-term economic development of the EU and the geopolitical changes in the world. Under the background of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, this paper analyzes the important influence of new energy development on the energy pattern of the European Union. It is found that the energy supply of Russia and Ukraine to Europe will become a bigger problem, especially the further contraction of energy under the war and conflict, which will seriously affect the primary energy supply of the EU and make the EU form a more tense energy pattern under the existing energy pattern. In addition, the surge in energy prices in Europe will have a substantial negative impact on Europe's future energy landscape.

The Impact of the Energy Supply Retrench Caused by the Russia-Ukraine Conflict on EU Countries and Developments

The Impact of the Energy Supply Retrench Caused by the Russia-Ukraine Conflict on EU Countries and Developments

Abstract 5589: The effect of morphine-based perioperative analgesia on circulating tumor cells dissemination in colorectal cancer patients

Abstract Purpose: Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are primary or metastatic tumor cells shed into the bloodstream and are considered precursors of distant metastatic spread and can act as an independent prognostic and predictive biomarker. Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide and metastasis is the major cause of death. Previous studies showed poorer survival in CRC patients treated perioperatively with morphine in comparison to piritramide. Patients and Methods: In total, 150 CRC stage I-III patients undergoing either radical or laparoscopic surgery were enrolled in this prospective multicentric randomized study (NCT03700411). Patients were randomized into three arms using different perioperative analgesia - morphine, piritramide, and epidural analgesia. Three peripheral blood samples were collected preoperatively, one day and one month after surgery respectively. To preserve the cellular content of specimens, Cell-Free DNA BCT® (Streck, Inc.) blood collection tubes were used. The CTCs were identified using CytoTrack CT11TM (2/C, Denmark), a semi-automated immunofluorescence microscopy detecting the pan-cytokeratin and EpCAM signals. The method recovery rate was analyzed using SW-480 cancer cell line by flow cytometry. Results: The CTCs recovery rate of the method was 72% and the method was certified by ISO 15189. The analyses of CTC presence revealed the highest positivity rate in the samples collected from patients treated with morphine on the first day after surgery (51.4 %). Also, a significant increase in positivity (from 23.5 % for the perioperatively collected samples) compared to samples from patients treated with epidural analgesia (31.1 % to 33.3 %) and piritramide (44.2% to 41.0%) was observed. The CTC presence was lower in control samples collected after one month irrespective of the analgesia type. The highest positivity among the control samples was in those associated with morphine analgesia (32.1 % versus 25.7% for epidural and 25.0% for piritramide analgesia). Conclusion: A significant increase in CTC levels was found in postoperative blood samples of CRC patients treated with morphine compared to piritramide and epidural analgesia. Enrollment in the study is ongoing. Acknowledgments: This study was supported by the Ministry of Health of the Czech Republic (NV18-03-00470), Palacky University Olomouc (LF 2022_012), European Union - Next Generation EU (LX22NPO5102) and European Regional Development Fund (ENOCH CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/16_019/0000868). Citation Format: Pavel Stejskal, Josef Srovnal, Emil Berta, Alona Rehulkova, Lubomír Večeřa, Tomas Gabrhelik, Filip Haiduk, Jan Maca, Jan Bruthans, Pavel Michalek, Pavla Kourilova, Marian Hajduch. The effect of morphine-based perioperative analgesia on circulating tumor cells dissemination in colorectal cancer patients. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2023; Part 1 (Regular and Invited Abstracts); 2023 Apr 14-19; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(7_Suppl):Abstract nr 5589.

"Integration of the Financial Market in the EU Economic System: The Role of Artificial Intelligence"

"Financial integration as a new vector of EU development has already made tangible progress. However, to analyze ongoing integration processes, it is necessary to have a clear understanding of the essence of “financial integration”, the availability of a certain coordinate system that will allow the researcher to answer a number of important questions: what is considered completed financial integration, at what stage of financial integration is the EU, how quickly integration processes are progressing in EU financial markets, what apparatus should be used and with what indicators when analyzing the financial integration of the EU. The article considers the processes, problems, and prospects for the integration of the financial market within the economic system of the EU. The expediency of using artificial intelligence to forecast and regulate the EU financial market in order to facilitate the successful completion of its integration is substantiated. An analysis of the potential functions of artificial intelligence in this context has been carried out."

Migration Crises as Challenges to EU Security: History of Development and Current Condition

Problem setting. In countries with democratic regimes at the constitutional level (and Ukraine is no exception), a person, his life and health, honor and dignity, inviolability and security are recognized as the highest social value (including in Ukraine), because it forms the physical and intellectual potential of the country, ensures the existence of the system of state bodies through the taxation system, and the competitiveness of the nation in the international arena. In such regimes, the people themselves, as a collection of individuals, are recognized as the source of political power. Statements similar in content are also reflected in the Founding Treaties of the European Union, which enshrine the key goals and values of the EU, the basic principles of the European Union. Thus, Article 2 of the Treaty on the European Union defines the basic values of the EU as human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law, human rights, in particular of persons belonging to minorities. In addition, there is no objection to the fact that the European Union (beginning with its history from the time of the Communities) has today developed to the level of a unique integration association that has a large number of attractive characteristics for migration, primarily of an organizational and economic nature (4 freedom of movement within the EU, a single customs area, a common border, etc.). Therefore, the issue of demographic security is one of the main goals of regulating the migration policy of the EU member states to ensure the stable development of the countries. Otherwise, demographic problems can easily destabilize the normal functioning of the state in various spheres of its life (economic, political, cultural, religious, social). The subject matter of our research acquires special importance considering the fact that migration policy is assigned to the exclusive competence of the EU, not the member states. Analysis of recent researches and publications. The study of such a phenomenon as migration, its factors and consequences, historical analysis, assessment of its positive and negative sides are devoted to the work of such scientists as M. Weiner, B. Yuskiv, O. Oleksiv, R. Rachynskyi, O. Zastavna. Target of the research is to investigate the causes and consequences of migration flows, their historical origins, to analyze the migration crisis of 2015-2016 in the European Union, to consider the draft Pact on Migration and Asylum, which is intended to be a significant step towards the creation of a reliable and effective migration management system. Article’s main body. The main factors of migration flows are established: “classical (natural) factors” and those caused by “governmental-determined” governments. The historical and legal development of EU visa policy is analyzed. Normative legal acts regulating the sphere of legal status of refugees, citizens of third countries who are long-term residents, migrants and asylum seekers have been studied. The evaluation of the EU migration policy is given and its significant shortcomings are emphasized, namely its inefficiency, high cost and short-sightedness. The EU “migration crisis” of 2015-2016, the unbalanced distribution of migrants between EU member states, which is a violation of the quota-based refugee admission plan, is considered. The positive and negative sides of migration, which influence the internal policy of the member states, are weighed. An analysis of the new EU Migration and Asylum Pact, which opens up the possibility for more effective migration management in Europe, based on commitment to human rights and respect for the dignity of migrants, setting rules on how member states can show solidarity. Conclusions and prospects for the development. The authors claim that the policy of multiculturalism of the EU was effective precisely in the relatively calm second half of the 20th century, and before the beginning of armed conflicts in the East (Iraq, Syria, etc.) in the 21st century. In article proposed approaches to solving migration crisis issues, its occurrence, typification and ways to overcome it. The new Pact on Migration and Asylum was given a positive assessment and its principles were defined.