Platform For Sustainable Development Research Articles

Enhancing religious education teaching and learning for sustainable development in Lesotho

This article utilises Gadamerian hermeneutics method and Freirean theory of the purpose of Religious Education to explore how Religious Education can contribute to achieving United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4, emphasising education for sustainable development. The study contends that Religious Education in Lesotho occupies a distinctive position in the education system, surpassing other countries in its extensive integration. Due to historical factors, Religious Education is taught in nearly all religiously affiliated schools, comprising about 90% of all educational institutions in Lesotho, and even in certain public schools. The curriculum of Religious Education in Lesotho aligns directly with the educational objectives of SDG 4. Additionally, Lesotho’s Religious Education corresponds to three levels of school education for sustainable development: whole school approach, classroom approach, and community approach. Nevertheless, the study asserts that for Religious Education in Lesotho to better align with education for sustainable development, various enhancements are required. Firstly, inclusivity across all religious traditions is essential, moving beyond a sole focus on Christianity. Secondly, there is a need for wider dissemination and implementation of Religious Education in all schools, irrespective of their affiliation. Lastly, a shift from traditional pedagogies to transformative approaches is recommended to boost the effectiveness of Religious Education in advancing sustainable development.Contribution: This article contributes by analysing Lesotho’s case and its implications for enhancing Religious Education teaching to effectively address SDGs. It broadens existing knowledge on Religious Education’s potential as a platform for sustainable development and provides recommendations for its improved implementation in a specific context.

Modelling Utilization of the Internet and Social Media Platforms for Sustainable Development of Women Entrepreneurs of Small Businesses

Sustaining technologies and innovations are important driving forces behind the modern day business and the working space. Sustaining technology and innovation enables businesses to improve their products and services in a way that makes them compete with competitors in the same market space. The Internet and social media platforms are sustaining technologies and innovations that are currently altering the economic, social and political landscapes by changing the way people live, do business and work. Proper and informed usage of these technologies in business can have the potentials of empowering entrepreneurs economically, socially as well as contributing to environmental conservation and protection. This research sought to develop a model that would encourage utilization of the Internet and social media platforms by women entrepreneurs of small businesses in rural areas. This was achieved by analyzing Internet usage, evaluating social media platforms usage by women entrepreneurs in rural parts of Siaya County in Kenya and developing a model of utilization of the Internet and social media platforms for sustainable development. The six social media platforms that were evaluated are Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube. The target population was women entrepreneurs of small businesses in Siaya County. Cochran formula was used to calculate the ideal sample size and sample size of 272 was used. A response rate of 91.91% was achieved. Simple random sampling was used to select one county out of 45 counties and snowball sampling technique was used to select the respondents. Questionnaires were used to collect data. The reliability of the research tool was arrived at using composite reliability test and Cronbach’s Alpha test whereas the validity of the research instrument was assessed using content and construct validity. Ethical issues arising from the research such as informed voluntary consent, no harm to participants, confidentiality of information and data integrity were accounted for. Data analysis was done using PLS-SEM statistical model and descriptive, inferential and predictive statistics that encompassed regression and correlation were used to analyze the data and develop and validate the model. The validity of the model was assessed and approved by ten SME experts and its applicability in business for sustainable development of entrepreneurs of small businesses was ascertained through simulation. The purpose of the study was achieved.

Open access information as a platform for sustainable development

Open Access (OA) literature is digital, online, free of charge, and free of most copyright and licensing restrictions, what makes it possible are the internet and the consent of the author or copyright holder. In most fields, scholarly journals do not pay authors, who can, therefore, consent to OA without losing revenue. In this respect, scholars and scientists are very differently situated from most musicians and movie-makers, and controversies about open access to music and movies do not carry over to research literature. Open access is entirely compatible with peer review, and all the major open access initiatives for scientific and scholarly literature insist on its importance, just as authors of journal articles donate their labor, journal editors, and referees participating in peer review. The study shows that out of 456 respondents considered for the study 203 [44.5%] belongs to Arts, 169 [37.1%] belong to Science, 33 [7.2%] Education and 51 [11.2%] belongs to Management. The findings of the study also show that out of 456 respondents considered for the study among which 81 [17.8%] belong to the M. Phil program, 102 [22.4%] belong to Ph.D. Program and 273 [59.9%] are faculty members.

Digital India: A Platform for Sustainable Development of India

Digital technology is rapidly expanding in India. With the help of this knowledge the citizens of India are being transformed into digital technology empowered citizens. And when it comes to digital technology services, the day is not far off when the digital gap between cities, towns and villages will narrow. Digital technology has given impetus to business and commercial activities. Education and medical services will be made available to the public. The desired information comes within seconds. Business activities are booming through these commerce activities. Digital technology services contribute to the economic growth of the country. Employment opportunities will increase. People's living standards will improve. The country is stepping into the knowledge community. The growth rate will increase as economic activity picks up. Everyone in the community vows to own their skills.

Failure to comply with the law of freedom of right turn at intersections by drivers and its impact on the equation of Cost -benefit and the behavioral architecture of a Healthy City

Background: The Present age , Known as the age of Nano science and fundamental particles in the world of science and technology, and developing countries are enchanted by the forms of modernity of the advanced world, is necessary to benefit from the Patterns of movement, including the ideas of humanity and the integration of the components of a community, the work it is a systematic, coordinated and beautiful way to institutionalize a culture of safety and health in the context of the goals of a healthy city that can be a platform for sustainable development. In this regard, it is necessary to look at the cultures of the ruling community and consider the impact of each of the indicators of Life style, including norms, values, beliefs, habits, traditions and customs .With the global thinking and regional thinking, it is possible to act smoothly through the hard way of architecture of a society and a healthy city, with the cost-benefit equation for increasing GDP and reaching a sustainable development. Therefore, failure to observe the right of right turn right at the intersections by drivers and its impact on the behavioral architecture of a healthy city as one of the forgotten indicators in sustainable development and its impact on community health in this research. Methods: The Present study was descriptive and analytical. The sample of 380 sample drivers required by systematic method during six months and between 17 and 20 nights in cooperation with Raw Police Personnel was used by drivers who had committed violations of right-turn right in two. The main intersection was collected and then analyzed by SPSS software version 16/5 using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Normal filter and Chi – square. Results: Relationship was observed between .occupation type and attitude (P=0.013) ‚ occupational history and attitude (P=0.03) ‚ as well as residential area and attitude (P=0.011)‚ however‚ no significant relationship was found between age and attitude (P=0.0149)‚ education and attitude (P=0.0118) ‚ at a confidence interval of 95%. Total wasted time per year at a crossroad with three outlets was 1/123/260 hours per year. Given a 4 – cross road typical city in Iran with 340 cities ‚ an estimated 175/219 Dollar per year will be wasted. As far as the cost is concerned ‚ the total amount of gas wasted (10 Cent/liter) will amount to 175/219 Dollar per year in one single cross road in Sabzevar ‚Iran .The same equation applies here to produce a cost estimation of 240/000/000 Dollar /year nationwide. Conclusion: Immediate action for geometric correction of crossroads is required for preventing wastage of national resources and imposing economic costs on community members and the wasted time due to abnormal traffic behavior‚ increased GNP and moving toward Sustainable development will follow as a Consequence. Key words: Cost Benefit‚ GNP‚ Sustainable Development‚ Occupational Health Engineering.

Utilising biological geotextiles: Introduction to the BORASSUS project and global perspectives

AbstractField and laboratory studies indicate that utilisation of biological geotextiles constructed from palm‐leaves and other selected organic materials are an effective, sustainable and economically viable soil conservation technique. The three‐year plus (1 July 2005–28 February 2009) EU‐funded BORASSUS Project (contract no. INCO‐CT‐2005‐510745) evaluated the long‐term effectiveness of biological geotextiles in controlling soil erosion and assessing their sustainability and economic viability. These studies progressed in ten countries, both in the ‘industrial north’ (in Europe) and in the ‘developing south’ (Africa, South America and South East Asia). The studied countries in the ‘developing south’ included Brazil, China, The Gambia, South Africa, Thailand and Vietnam. The ‘industrial north’ countries included Belgium, Hungary, Lithuania and the UK. The main findings of these studies are summarised in this paper and thematic information is presented in the other four papers in this Special Issue.Biological geotextiles offer potentially novel bioengineering solutions to environmental problems, including technologies for soil conservation, sustainable plant production and use of indigenous plants, improved ecosystem management by decreasing deforestation, improving agroforestry and cost‐effective biogeotextile applications in diverse environments. Biogeotextiles may provide socio‐economic platforms for sustainable development and the benefits for developing countries may include poverty alleviation, engagement of local people as stakeholders, employment for disadvantaged groups, small and medium enterprise (SME) development, earning hard currency, environmental education and local community involvement in land reclamation and environmental education programmes. These benefits are achieved through: (i) promotion of sustainable and environmentally friendly palm‐agriculture to discourage deforestation, promoting both reforestation and agroforestry; (ii) construction of biogeotextiles enabling development of a rural labour‐intensive industry, particularly encouraging employment of socially disadvantaged groups and (iii) export of biogeotextiles to industrialised countries could earn hard currency for developing economies, based on the principles of fair trade. Research and development activities of the BORASSUS Project have improved our knowledge on the effect of biogeotextile mats on the micro‐ and macro‐soil environments and at larger scales through controlled laboratory and field experiments in diverse environments. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.