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The purpose of the present study was to measure the economic contribution of copyright-based industries to the Finnish economy in 2013, 2014 and 2015 using the World Intellectual Property Organization’s (WIPO) revised methodology in this measurement and to compare the Finnish findings to the results of similar studies completed in other countries. The key findings of the study include the following: • The combined value added of copyright-based industries represented 5.38 percent of the Finnish GDP in 2015 and amounted to €11.27 billion and the combined number of employees in the copyright-based industries amounted to 136 617 and represented 5.61 percent of the total employment in Finland in 2015. • From the year 2000 to the year 2015 the economic contribution of core copyright industries has shown a moderate growth. The combined value added of core copyright industries represented 4.14 percent of the Finnish GDP in 2015 (3.28 percent in 2000) amounting to €8.67 billion. • Compared to the Finnish GDP growth of 3.04 percent between 2013 and 2015, the value added of core copyright industries in absolute terms grew by 12.73 percent. • In 2015, the two largest core copyright industries, software and databases and press and literature, accounted for approximately 85 percent of the cumulative value added of the core copyright industries in Finland. • From 2013 to 2015, in the core copyright industries the most prominent growth, in terms of value added, took place in the software industry, whereas the relative contribution of the press and literature and radio and television industry decreased. • The revised WIPO Guide on Surveying the Economic Contribution of the Copyright-Based Industries has enabled a very useful increase in the comparability of studies made in different countries. Finland ranks high when it comes to the contribution of the core copyright industries but lower in terms of overall copyright contribution.
The European Council approved an economic and employment strategy in 2010. The vision of the Europe 2020 Strategy, which extends to 2020, is smart, sustainable and inclusive economic growth. The strategy sets EU-wide targets for employment, research and development expenditure, climate policy, education and reducing poverty. Every Member State sets its own corresponding national targets.
The Finnish economy is predicted to post year-on-year growth of 1.1% in 2016. Over the next two years growth will hover around 1%, and cumulative growth for the whole outlook period will reach no more than some 3%. Despite the slight rebound, the outlook for Finland’s immediate future is one of continued economic weakness. The 2018 forecast is that GDP will still be some 3% lower than in 2008, and that industrial output will be around one-fifth lower than 10 years ago. The performance of exports will remain weaker than global trade, and therefore Finland will continue to lose market shares in world trade. In the next few years ahead private consumption and investment will be the main drivers of economic activity. In the medium term potential output growth, which reflects the level of output possible given the resources on hand, will be less than 1%
The purpose of the present study was to measure the economic contribution of copyright industries to the Finnish economy in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020 using the World Intellectual Property Organization’s (WIPO) revised methodology in this measurement and to compare the Finnish findings to the results of similar studies completed in other countries. The key findings of the study include the following: - The combined value added of copyright industries represented 5.69 percent of the Finnish GDP in 2020 and amounted to €13.54 billion and the combined number of employees in the copyright industries amounted to 146 380 and represented 5.87 percent of the total employment in Finland in 2015. - From the year 2000 to the year 2020 the economic contribution of core copyright industries has shown a moderate growth. The combined value added of core copyright industries represented 4.47 percent of the Finnish GDP in 2020 (3.28 percent in 2000) amounting to €10.6 billion. - Compared to the Finnish GDP growth of 9.4 percent between 2016 and 2020, the value added of core copyright industries in absolute terms grew by 19.4 percent. - In 2020, the largest core copyright industries, software and databases, accounted for approximately 74 percent of the cumulative value added of the core copyright industries in Finland. - From 2016 to 2020, the most prominent growth in core copyright industries took place in the software industry whereas the relative contribution of the press and literature decreased. - The revised WIPO Guide on Surveying the Economic Contribution of the Copyright-Based Industries has enabled a very useful increase in the comparability of studies made in different countries. Finland ranks high when it comes to the contribution of the core copyright industries but lower in terms of overall copyright contribution.
The circular economy model aims to reduce the consumption of virgin materials by increasing the time materials remain in use while transitioning economic activities to sectors with lower material intensities. Circular economy concepts have largely been focussed on the role of businesses and institutions, yet consumer changes can have a large impact. In a more circular economy consumers often become users—they purchase access to goods and services rather than physical products. Other consumer engagement includes purchasing renewable energy, recycling and using repair and maintenance services etc. However, there are few studies on whether consumers actually make these sorts of consumption choices at large scale, and what impacts arise from these choices on life-cycle material consumption. Here we examine what types of households exhibit circular consumption habits, and whether such habits are reflected in their material footprints. We link the Eurostat Household Budget Survey 2010 with a global input-output model and assess the material footprints of 189 800 households across 24 European countries, making the results highly generalizable in the European context. Our results reveal that different types of households (young, seniors, families etc) adopt different circular features in their consumption behaviour. Furthermore, we show that due to rebound effects, the circular consumption habits investigated have a weak connection to total material footprint. Our findings highlight the limitations of circular consumption in today’s economic systems, and the need for stronger policy incentives, such as shifting taxation from renewable resources and labour to non-renewable resources.
Tämän pro gradu -tutkielman tavoitteena on tunnistaa tilausalustojen menestystekijät henkilöstönvuokrausalustojen kontekstissa tutkimalla kahta case-organisaatiota, jotka toimivat tilauksesta tapahtuvan työn mahdollistajina. Tilausalustat mahdollistavat palveluiden tilaamisen tarvittaessa nopealla aikataululla, kun asiakas kokee tarvetta. Nämä palvelut voivat vaihdella taksipalveluista henkilöstönvuokrauspalveluihin. Tilausalustat ovat mullistaneet perinteiset alat kuten edellä mainitut taksi- ja henkilöstövuokrauspalvelut ylivoimaisella nopeudellaan ja tehokkuudellaan. Yksi tunnetuimpia tällaisia alustapalveluita on Uber, joka mahdollistaa taksipalveluiden tarjoamisen tilausalustaa hyödyntämällä. Vaikka palveluiden tilaaminen sovellusten kautta on yleistynyt, valtaosa alustojen tarjoajista kohtaa haasteita yrittäessään menestyä. Tästä syystä menestystekijöiden tunnistaminen on toteuttamiskelpoinen aihe tutkia. Tämä tutkimus tarjoaa koottua informaatiota tilausalustojen palveluntarjoajille siitä, kuinka menestyä. Tutkimus tehtiin muodostamalla ensin kirjallisuuskatsaus. Tämän jälkeen toteutettiin empiirinen kvalitatiivinen monitapaustutkimus keräämällä case-organisaatioista tietoa verkkolähteistä. Case-organisaatioita olivat Coople ja Jobandtalent, jotka ovat menestyviä eurooppalaisia verkkotyöalustoja. Organisaatioilla on samalainen kasvupolku samalla toimialalla ja niitä voidaan luonnehtia tarkemmin tilaushenkilöstöalustoiksi, jotka fasilitoivat tilauksesta tapahtuvaa työtä. Tutkimuksessa tunnistettiin kahdeksan erilaista menestystekijäkategoriaa, joista jokainen koostuu vaiheista menestyksen saavuttamiseksi kategorian sisällä. Tilausalustan yleinen menestys johtuu onnistumisesta useassa näistä kategorioista ja hyvästä teknisestä pohjasta, joka tukee kasvua muilla osa-alueilla. Tutkimus ehdottaa kattavaa viitekehystä tilausalustojen menestykselle.
Lineaariselle muovitaloudelle vaaditaan muutosta siitä johtuvien ympäristövaikutusten vuoksi. Tässä tutkielmassa tutkitaan muovitalouden diskursiivisia ilmentymiä suomalaisessa uutismediassa, tarkoituksena tunnistaa kestävämpää muovitaloutta muotoilevat diskurssit peilaten niitä sosiotekniseen transitioteoriaan. Uutiset kehystivät muovit ongelmalliseksi niiden kulutuksesta johtuvan jätetuotannon ja niiden fossiilisesta raaka-aineesta johtuvien ilmastopäästöjen vuoksi. Näihin ongelmiin vastaamaan tunnistettiin aineistosta hallitseva kiertotalousdiskurssi, joka koostui kierrätys-, jätehuollon parantaminen-, korvaaminen-, kulutuksen ja tuotannon vähentäminen- ja uudelleenkäyttö -aladiskursseista. Tunnistetut aladiskurssit olivat keskenään epäjohdonmukaisia sekä ristiriidassa kiertotalousperiaatteiden kanssa, viestien kiertotalouskäsitteen vakiintumattomuudesta. Sen lisäksi, hallitseva ja lähes haastamaton kiertotalousdiskurssi edustaa lähinnä vähittäisiä muutoksia vakiintuneeseen muovitalouteen, keskittyen järjestelmän jäte- ja päästöoireisiin pohjimmaisen kulutusongelman sijaan. Siten kiertotalousdiskurssi toisintaa regiimin lukkiutuneita tehokkuuden ja talouskasvun oletusarvoja. Tulosten ja muoviongelman monimutkaisuuden perusteella on syytä korostaa kokonaisvaltaisempaa lähestymistapaa muovitaloudelle kestävämpää järjestelmää kehittäessä.
Kieli: | eng |
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Julkaisija: | [Berlin, Germany] : DSRPT UG 2023- |
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2752-163X |
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With the raise in concern for the environment and its rapid decline, this research focuses on the actions that firms may take to become more environmentally friendly. The research topic specifically focuses on circular economy and the reasons that Finnish publicly listed companies have adapted circular economy related practices in their business operations. The purpose of this research is to identify the underlying motivations that push companies towards circular economy. Extant literature for circular economy and motivation theories was reviewed in this research, which helped to shape a framework of company motivation for circular economy. The empirical research takes a qualitative approach with the use of case studies. Content analysis was firstly used to analyze secondary data derived from Finnish publicly listed firms’ annual reports, CSR and sustainability reports, which formed the basis for case selection. Five case companies were selected for the research and data was collected in the form of semi-structured in-depth interviews. Within-case and cross-case analysis was conducted for the analysis of the interview data. The research identified eight major factors of motivation and developed further the framework of company motivation to adapt circular economy practices. These eight factors include: cultural context, service logic, ease of transition to other countries, profitability of waste management, symbiotic partnerships, legislative impact, marketing related issues, and a call to researchers to simplify the sustainability field. This research contributes to the literature streams of circular economy and motivation theories by applying motivation theories in the circular economy context.
The European Council adopted a Strategy for Growth and Employment in 2010. The vision of the Europe 2020 Strategy, which extends to 2020, is smart, sustainable and inclusive economic growth. The strategy sets EU-wide targets for employment, research and development expenditure, climate measures, education and reducing poverty. Every Member State sets its own corresponding national targets
As the sharing economy has become more popular, its problems are discussed increasingly. However, these discussions are often confusing because there are multiple definitions for the sharing economy, and the discourse does not usually specify which definition it is based on. Therefore, the actors may be wrongfully accused of problems that do not concern them, only because they are perceived as belonging to the sharing economy. We aim to clarify this discussion by creating a framework that maps specific problem discourses to specific actors and stakeholder groups. We create a framework based on a review of the academic literature in which the sharing economy is delineated into smaller markets. The framework is further utilized to map empirically identified problems based on data collected from 180 web pages that discuss problems in the sharing economy. The findings indicate that the key problems in the sharing economy, such as labor rights, concern a very narrow segment of the sharing economy. We conclude that issues concerning safety are neglected in the academic research.
The circular economy has become a popular concept, suggesting economic growth with fewer emissions and reduced ownership as one of its key parameters. Based on the literature, however, it appears that the concept has not been sufficiently contested empirically. This study evaluates the carbon and material footprint implications of reduced ownership in the context of household consumption. We found that the reduced ownership does not automatically reduce the environmental impact of the production-consumption system in the context of households. Reduced ownership in the study did not have any noticeable influence on material footprint, and in the case of carbon footprint, it only had a mild positive influence in low-income households. The result is surprising, since both intuitively as well as based on the literature, moving from ownership to services should increase resource efficiency and reduce environmental impact. In the context of households, actual consumption and investment behavior seem to override thetheoretical benefits of reduced ownership. In our study, the circular economy rebound and the willingness to invest in green products seems to explain quite well why the environmental impact of consumption is not reduced when households move from ownership to services. Households appear to spend the money saved from reduced ownership on carbon-intensive services; when they own the products themselves, they invest a more-than-average amount in the life cycle performance of the products. The paper's implications for the circular economy as a concept for decoupling economic growth from environmental pressure is that one of its primary qualities, sharing and renting services instead of owning things, seems to offer only a partial solution for the dilemma. In order to fully benefit from reduced ownership, the circular economy should emphasize simultaneous change in both the production and consumption of services, as it seems that simply offering products for rent does not automatically reduce the environmental impact of the final demand.
The theme of this publication is sustainability, which is one of the four focus areas at LAB University of Applied Sciences (LAB). This publication contains eleven articles written by experts and students from LAB and its partners. This review presents the latest interesting research, development and innovation activities in the context of sustainable circular economy. The LAB Sustainability Annual Review 2020 continues the Lahti Circular Economy Annual Review series. This publication supports communication with LAB’s partner universities, companies and other stakeholders, and it is a part of sustainability and circular economy related actions in the R&D, educational and company partnership operations of LAB. LAB Sustainability Annual Review 2020 is published as a part of the project BIOSYKLI - Circular Bioeconomy in Päijät-Häme Region (2019-2022), which is funded by the European Regional Development Fund.
The present paper is an abridged version of the research report published on 30 June 2004 as an outcome of the research agreement between the Finnish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and the Institute of International Economic Law of Helsinki University (KATTI). Researchers based at the Pellervo Economic Research Institute (PTT) and at the Faculty of Forestry in the University of Joensuu (in Eastern Finland) have also contributed to this project. This Report concerns forestry-related regulation within the European Union. It was prompted by a proposal, presented in the spring of 2004, advocating the inclusion of a legal basis for forests and forestry in the Draft Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe. The Report therefore first discusses the relevant provisions of the existing Treaties before analysing future developments in the light of the new Draft Constitutional Treaty (the version of 18 July 2003). Finally it offers several scenarios outlining the potential effects of new forms of Union-level regulation on Finnish forestry policy. In devising the most likely scenarios, the focus has been on the contents of the “Forestry proposal” and on the impact of its possible adoption. EU competences in forestry policy are, however, also discussed in a much broader context. Focusing on an analysis of the EC/EU Treaties, the Report draws on the expertise of the researchers from the relevant policy sectors. The bulk of the work consisted of meetings of the research team. The final Report has been compiled by Kai Kokko, LL.D., a researcher at the Institute of International Economic Law (KATTI) of the University of Helsinki.
In recent years, conventional business model of ownership has been changed towards accessibility in variety of markets. Two trends can be observed in evolution of this rental-like business model. Firstly, technological development that enables emergence of new business models. These new business models increasingly become agile and flexible. For example “Spotify and SoundCloud”, online music stream companies, provides consumers access to over millions of music tracks, conveniently through the smartphone, tablet or computer. Similarly, “Car2Go, Zipcar, and Getaround” car sharing companies give flexible access to nearby cars for its members. Second trend is the increasing communication and connections via social networks. This trend enables a shift to peer-to-peer accessibility based business models. Conventionally, companies provide access for their customers to own companies’ products or services. In peer-to-peer model, nonetheless, companies facilitate access and connection across their customers to use other customers owned property or skills, competencies or services .The so-called the sharing economy business model which is referred as “the platform economy” as well. The promising start-ups that are active in this very specific and rather new market signify the potential of the so-called “the platform economy” business model. In this paper, we investigate into a new and emerging type of the platform economy business model in which role of customers and service providers may dramatically change. This new mechanism is called “Collaborative Service Networks”. We probe this mechanism from different aspects. Uber and Airbnb, two successful growing companies, have been selected for our case studies. There are similar companies that are competing in the same market like Lyft and Homeaway. However, the case study companies are significantly more successful and larger. We propose the way this mechanism can capture value in five-steps, which creates a virtuous cycle and reinforces the viability of the mechanism.
Despite their evidently different assumptions and operationalization strategies, the concepts of Circular Economy, Green Economy and Bioeconomy are joined by the common ideal to reconcile economic, environmental and social goals. The three concepts are currently mainstreamed in academia and policy making as key sustainability avenues, but a comparative analysis of such concepts is missing. The aim of this article is thus to comprehensively analyse the diversity within and between such concepts. The results are drawn from a bibliometric review of almost two thousand scientific articles published within the last three decades, coupled with a conceptual analysis. We find that, for what concerns environmental sustainability, Green Economy acts as an ‘umbrella’ concept, including elements from Circular Economy and Bioeconomy concepts (e.g. eco-efficiency; renewables), as well as additional ideas, e.g. nature-based solutions. In particular, Circular Economy and Bioeconomy are resource-focused, whereas in principle Green Economy acknowledges the underpinning role of all ecological processes. Regarding the social dimension, Green Economy is more inclusive of some aspects at local level (e.g. eco-tourism, education), while there is an emerging discussion in Bioeconomy literature around local processes in terms of biosecurity and rural policies. When considering weak/strong sustainability visions, all concepts remain limited in questioning economic growth. By comparing the different sustainability strategies promoted by these concepts we do not advocate for their substitutability, but for their clarification and reciprocal integration. The findings are discussed in light of the concepts' synergies and limits, with the purpose to inform research and policy implementation.
Circular and bio-economy represents a political and industrial initiative to ensure that our society can rely on renewable biological sources while achieving economic growth. However, there is a need to critical review how realistic and feasible such initiatives are towards fulfilling the promised benefits of this economy. The literature on bio-economy often discusses the importance of innovative business models and their role in a successful shift to a bio-economy. Still, much of the discussion that is related to circular business models is fragmented and immature. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to conduct a systematic literature review of circular business model activities and the barriers to a bio-economy. Further, this review provides future research directions for a shift to a bio-economy. This study is based on a systematic review of 42 scientific journal articles and book chapters on a forest-based bio-economy. The business model canvas is used to provide a structured aggregation of the existing circular business models activities being used by the forestry sector. In addition, we develop a framework that describes the barriers to bio-economy-based circular business models and suggest new directions for future research. The study highlights the need for alignment among the elements of a business model as a key condition for its successful implementation in a bio-economy.
Tämän tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on selvittää miten kiertotalouden käsitettä käsitellään suomalaisessa mediassa, mitä määritelmiä sille annetaan ja miten määritelmät eroavat akateemisissa lähteissä annetuista määritelmistä. Tutkin teorialähtöisesti, miten kiertotalous on määritelty aineistossa, joka koostuu Helsingin Sanomien artikkeleista vuosina 2015-2017. Tämä tutkimus käyttää sekä määrällisiä- että laadullisia tutkimusmenetelmiä; yhdistän laadulliseen sisällönanalyysiin aineiston määrällistämistä. Käytän sisällönanalyysitaulukkoa analysoidakseni kuinka akateemisesta aineistosta identifioidut seitsemän kiertotalouden ominaisuutta esiintyvät media-aineistossa. Tutkimustulokset viittaavat siihen, että kiertotalouden käsitteelle on annettu hyvin samankaltaisia määritelmiä niin akateemisessa- kuin media-aineistossakin. Akateemisessa aineistossa kuvaillaan kiertotalouden ominaisuuksia kuitenkin enemmän. Myös ominaisuuksien painotukset ovat erilaiset. Kiertotalouden mukaisen suunnittelun, uudelleenkäytön, kiertotalouden liiketoimintamallien ja teollisuuksien toimintamallien esiintyvyydessä oli merkittävämmät erot aineistojen välillä. Analyysin perusteella voi päätellä, että mielipiteelliset sisällöt olivat suosittuja alustoja kiertotalous keskustelulle. Esittelen tutkimuskysymykset ja tutkimuksen tavoitteet tutkielman johdannossa. Tämän jälkeen kuvaan teoreettisen viitekehyksen, johon sisältyy yleiskatsaus kiertotalouteen ja sille akateemisissa aineistossa annettuihin ominaisuuksiin. Yhdistän samankaltaisia ominaisuuksia ja muodostan seitsemän pääominaisuutta kiertotaloudelle. Näitä seitsemää ominaisuutta käytän analyysin pohjana. Teoreettisessa viitekehyksessä esitän myös tietoa median roolista yhteiskunnassa ja yleisenä määritelmien muodostajana. Seuraavaksi kuvaan aineistonkeruu- ja analyysi menetelmät, jonka jälkeen avaan tutkimustulokset. Viimeisessä kappaleessa vastaan tutkimuskysymyksiin ja pohdin jatkotutkimusehdotuksia tulevaisuutta varten.
The different institutional environments of developed and emerging economies may dictate the business practices of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). With national institutions’ current focus on better integrating SMEs into both international trade and sustainability goals, it is worth investigating the role socially and environmentally responsible business practices (RBPs) plays in SMEs’ international business relationships. The qualitative approach employed in this study reveals that environmental responsibility is not prominent in cross-border business relationships between Finnish and Russian SMEs, while social responsibility in part of ethics, transparency and partner responsibility is crucial for these relationships. The study thus contributes to the literature on responsibility in international business (IB) and international entrepreneurship (IE) by (1) suggesting that international business relationships can help raise the ethical behaviour of SMEs from emerging economies; (2) extending the research on sustainability-related issues in IB/IE towards emerging economies and the SME context; and (3) applying the institutional lens to explain RBP in international business relationships.
With the development of the internet, media and its formats have started changing. New online media formats have enabled more audience participation in the production of media content, and this has given space for innovation and more co-operative media content production. Oma Olivia is a concept from Olivia magazine that actively seeks to activate its audiences in content production. This thesis examines the production patterns and audience participation in Oma Olivia and two Oma Olivia magazine editions. Through the use of content analysis the thesis examines challenges posted on the Oma Olivia website for the audiences, and the magazine content produced from these challenges. The thesis aims to see where in the production processes are the audiences of Oma Olivia placed and what do they produce. The thesis also uses political economy as its theoretical framework and concentrates on examining how the audience produced content can be seen in relation to commodification and the labor theory of value. Other valuable insights to political economy in this thesis are provided through the examination of the blindspot debate, and its later digital media considerations. The thesis findings from this thesis show that the audiences of the Oma Olivia concept add their own personal opinions and experiences to the topics provided on the Oma Olivia website, and through simple means of interaction add a valuable personal layer to the content of the magazine. The thesis also shows that the Oma Olivia format adds a new pattern to the traditional production patters in the labour theory of value, and produces content within the traditional production cycle. Additionally from the findings it is concluded that the value produced in the audience production may not be measured in economic terms as the process itself does not add direct economical value. This conclusion raises the need for further research into the value production in these concepts as well as the production patterns suggested in this thesis.
As the electrification sector expands rapidly, the demand for metals used in batteries is increasing significantly. New approaches for lithium-ion battery (LIB) recycling have to be investigated and new technologies developed in order to secure the future supply of battery metals (i.e., lithium, cobalt, nickel). In this work, the possibility of integrating LIB recycling with secondary copper smelting was further investigated. The time-dependent behavior of battery metals (Li, Co, Ni, Mn) in simulated secondary copper smelting conditions was investigated for the first time. In the study, copper alloy was used as a medium for collecting valuable metals and the distribution coefficients of these metals between copper alloy and slag were used for evaluating the recycling efficiencies. The determined distribution coefficients follow the order Ni >> Co >> Mn > Li throughout the time range investigated. In our study, the evolution of phases and their chemical composition were investigated in laboratory-scale experiments under reducing conditions of oxygen partial pressure p(O2) = 10−10 atm, at 1300 °C. The results showed that already after 1 h holding time, the major elements were in equilibrium. However, based on the microstructural observations and trace elements distributions, the required full equilibration time for the system was determined to be 16 h.
Vedia Taxi on mobiilisovellus, joka mahdollistaa taksikyytien jakamisen samaan suuntaan matkustavien ihmisten kesken. Jakamisen mahdollistaa algoritmi, joka yhdistelee eri ihmisten reittejä. Algoritmi pystyy kuitenkin yhdistämään vain reittejä, joissa kaikki ihmiset lähtevät samasta lähtöpisteestä. Ihmiset eivät myöskään voi liittyä kyytiin matkan varrelta. Työn tarkoituksena on jatkokehittää algoritmia niin, että kyytiin olisi mahdollista liittyä mistä tahansa. Uutta algoritmia varten vertailtiin neljää reitityspalvelua keskenään. Nämä reitityspalvelut tuottavat reittiohjeet ja aika-arviot reiteille. Google Maps valittiin parhaaksi reitityspalveluksi, koska sen aika-arviot reiteille olivat tarkimmat. Reittiohjeissa oli joitakin eroja eri reitityspalveluiden välillä, mutta kaikki niistä olivat tarpeeksi hyviä. Google Maps ei muodostanut reittejä kaikista nopeimmin, mutta algoritmin kannalta oli välttämätöntä, että aika-arviot olisivat mahdollisimman tarkkoja. Algoritmia testattiin käyttämällä kyytejä ja hakuja, jotka vastasivat todellisia taksikyytejä. Tämä lähestymistapa otettiin sen takia, että Vedia Taxi ei ollut tuottanut tarpeeksi oikeaa testimateriaalia. Algoritmin tehokkuutta mitattiin samoilla testikyydeillä ja -hauilla. Testihaut näyttivät, että uusi algoritmi pystyy yhdistämään reittejä niin, että ihmiset lähtevät eri aloituspisteistä. Uusi algoritmi mahdollisti myös sen, että ihmiset pystyvät liittymään kyytiin matkan varrelta. Algoritmin tehokkuus oli suuresti riippuvainen siitä, kuinka pitkä aika kului reittiohjeiden laskemiseen. Reittiohjeiden laskeminen kulutti 92%-98% algoritmin kokonaissuoritusajasta. Reittiohjeiden haku kesti keskimäärin 275ms ja yhden kyydin arviointi hakua vastaan kesti 275-300ms.
The efforts on energy system decarbonization and improved sustainable energy efficiency in developed countries led energy enthusiasts to explore alternative highly effective pathways in accomplishing these goals. Specifically, the transition from hydrocarbon to H2 economy using fuel cells and H2 technologies is a sustainable and favorable approach forward in meeting stationary, transportation, industrial, residential, and commercial sectors. This review in three Parts brings out the capability of H2 for enabling an energy revolution through much-needed flexibility in renewable energy resources. The review identifies the developments and challenges within the H2 generation, storage, transportation, distribution, and usage - as well as applications along with national and international initiatives in the field, all of which suggest a pathway for a greener H2 society. The review also highlights the opportunities and challenges in major energy sectors for H2 technologies. Part I of the series highlights the importance of H2 economy and initiatives from various agencies, and presents several H2 generation methods.
The idea of decoupling “environmental bads” from “economic goods” has been proposed as a path towards sustainability by organizations such as the OECD and UN. Scientific consensus reports on environmental impacts (e.g., greenhouse gas emissions) and resource use give an indication of the kind of decoupling needed for ecological sustainability: global, absolute, fast-enough and long-enough. This goal gives grounds for a categorisation of the different kinds of decoupling, with regard to their relevance. We conducted a survey of recent (1990–2019) research on decoupling on Web of Science and reviewed the results in the research according to the categorisation. The reviewed 179 articles contain evidence of absolute impact decoupling, especially between CO2 (and SOX) emissions and evidence on geographically limited (national level) cases of absolute decoupling of land and blue water use from GDP, but not of economy-wide resource decoupling, neither on national nor international scales. Evidence of the needed absolute global fast-enough decoupling is missing.
Creating shared value (CSV) refers to strategies that improve the competitiveness of a company while simultaneously advancing the welfare of the society. This research adopts the three ways to achieve CSV in the context of the circular economy and aims to understand whether and how the government, including cities and municipalities, university, hybrid organizations, industry and the society, which are the key actors in the quadruple helix model, are involved in CSV initiatives in Finland’s transition to the circular economy. Results suggest that circular economy demands a systematic approach, and not only companies, as stipulated in the original version of the CSV concept, but all actors in the quadruple helix model can contribute to realize CSV directly or indirectly. This finding contributes to theory by expanding the borders of CSV from a narrow focus on companies to a broader focus including also the government, university, and society. A second contribution is the identification of a fourth type of CSV by the society that is specific to the circular economy. The contribution to practice lies in the presentation of exemplary CSV practices from one of the world’s leading countries in the circular economy.
The goal of this thesis is to look at the history, emergence and the future of the sharing economy sometimes also labeled as collaborative consumption. In the modern days, technology has made it possible for people and corporations to share their services, offer job opportunities and disrupt the old-fashioned way of offering services through peer-to-peer enabled form of sharing their services with the help of the Internet. In everyday life it can be noticed that instead of using central booking services or big commercialized chains to reserve services, many tend to look at the other alternatives such as Airbnb for housing, and Uber for taxi rides. These two serve as intermediaries, with a purpose to handle the paperwork for billing, and connecting the two parties and enable them to engage in so called P2P economy. The focus of this report will be on peer-to-peer sharing economy, with a look at two of the biggest brands to push it forward, Airbnb and Uber. These two brands have become staples in the industry, as they have paved the way for many other through customer acquisitions.
Gross domestic product (GDP) in Finland is projected to grow by 1.7% in 2022. Economic output developed favourably in the first half of the year, and employment has continued to grow rapidly. Economic growth is projected to slow more during the second half of the year than previously forecast in the summer. GDP growth will slow to 0.5% in 2023. The prices of goods and services, as well as energy, have also continued to rise faster than previously projected in the summer. GDP growth in 2024–2026 is projected to be faster than the potential economic growth rate at approximately 1.4% per year. The general government deficit will contract in 2022 due to brisk economic growth and employment growth as well as the end of COVID-19 measures. The deficit will begin to increase again in 2023, and public finances will remain in a deep deficit in the coming years. The ratio of general government debt to GDP will decrease this year but turn to growth next year. Debt servicing costs are projected to grow during the outlook period. Continuously rising debt servicing costs come out of the rest of public spending and reduce the already tight buffers of general government finances.
Tämän kandidaatintyön tavoitteena on antaa lukijalle katsaus kiertotalouden liiketoimintamalleihin ja kiertotalouteen Euroopan unionissa ja Kiinassa sekä osoittaa kiertotalouden käyttöönoton haasteita sekä niiden ratkaisuja näillä alueilla. Euroopan unioni on ollut pitkään kiertotalouden edelläkävijä, ja unionissa on säädetty useita kiertotaloutta edistäviä toimintaohjeita. Kiina lähti kiertotalouden kehittämiseen vasta 2000-luvulla, mutta kehitys oli nopeaa ja Kiina nousi kärkimaaksi kiertotalouden käyttöönotossa. Kiinan ja Euroopan unionin poliittiset, taloudelliset ja kulttuuriset lähtökohdat luovat erilaisia kiertotalouden käyttöönoton haasteita alueille. Suurimpia ongelmia Euroopan unionissa kiertotaloudelle luovat järjestelmän jäykkyys ja hitaus samoin kuin jäsenvaltioiden eriarvoisuus. Kiinassa puolestaan ihmisten tottumattomuus ympäristöajatteluun sekä kattavan jätteenkeräysjärjestelmän puuttuminen luovat merkittävän haasteen. Epätehokas materiaalinkäyttö on ongelma, joka koskettaa molempia alueita. Kyseisiä haasteita voi ratkaista esimerkiksi tukemalla köyhempiä alueita, opettamalla kuluttajia sekä kannustamalla uusiin innovaatioihin.
Kestävyyteen liittyvistä haasteista on keskusteltu jo pitkään ja on selvää, että maapallon kantokyky ei kestä kasvavaa kulutustahtia. Viime aikoina kiertotalous on nostettu esiin yhtenä mahdollisena ratkaisuna kestävyysongelmiin. Vaikka kiertotalouden ajatus ei ole uusi, on se saanut huomiota juuri nyt ja eri maissa on ehdotettu tavoitteita, ohjeita ja linjauksia kiertotalouden mallien toimeenpanoa varten. Kiertotalouden saavuttamiseksi tarvitaan huomattavia muutoksia tämänhetkisiin käytäntöihin ja talousmalliin. Yritysten on muutettava prosessejaan ja liiketoiminnan ajattelutapaansa. Silti kiertotalouteen motivoivia tekijöitä on tutkittu vain rajallisesti. Tämä tutkimus keskittyy Suomen konepajateollisuuden yritysten motivaatioihin kiertotalouden mallien käyttöönottoon. Konepajateollisuus valittiin tutkimuksen kohteeksi, koska arvion mukaan kiertotalouden mallien käyttöönotto tuo tälle sektorille suurimman kasvupotentiaalimahdollisuuden. Tässä tutkimuksessa käytettiin tutkimusmenetelmänä laadullista tutkimusta. Kymmentä edustajaa yhdeksästä eri konepajateollisuuden yrityksestä haastateltiin pääasiassa sähköpostihaastattelun avulla. Haastattelut analysoitiin teema-analyysia käyttäen. Haastatteluissa tunnistettuja ajavia tekijöitä verrattiin yleisesti kirjallisuudessa tunnistettuihin yritysvastuuseen ajaviin tekijöihin. Tämän tutkimuksen perusteella Suomen konepajateollisuuden yrityksiä motivoi kiertotalouteen liiketoimintamahdollisuudet, asiakkaiden vaatimukset, liikearvon ja myynnin kasvatus, imagohyödyt, yrityksen arvot ja periaatteet sekä kestävyys. Näillä ajavilla tekijöillä on yhtäläisyyksiä kestävyyteen ajavien tekijöiden kanssa, vaikka kiertotalouden ajavat tekijät vaikuttavat keskittyvän enemmän liiketoimintamahdollisuuksiin. Silti lisätutkimus on välttämätöntä ennen kuin näitä tekijöitä voidaan yleistää tai luotettavasti arvioida kiertotalouteen ja kestävyyteen ajavien tekijöiden samankaltaisuuksia ja eroavaisuuksia.
This article explores how disruptive technologies increase the intelligence of goods and revitalize business models in the circular economy. Applying the industrial ecology perspective, we discuss how intelligent goods can boost the sustainability of industrial ecosystems. North American and European cases highlight how business model innovators utilize goods-related information to develop more competitive closed-loop systems. We identify three archetypes of closed-loop systems – inner circles, decentralized systems, and open systems – and delineate how they leverage information resources for collaboration. This study advances the understanding of closed-loop systems in the circular economy, which is more dependent than ever on digital platforms.
Whistle blowing is a topic that has taken center stage in philosophical discussions on business ethics in recent years. It continues to provoke debate among academics because of its continued relevance to the present prevailing situations the world over. The recent upsurge in cases of corporate wrongdoings in Zimbabwe has seriously reactivated a concerted debate on the moral justification of whistle blowing. The whistle blower is, however, faced with competing and conflicting moral values and imperatives that make his decision to blow the whistle a morally excruciating endeavour. It is the contention of this article that, despite employees’ obligations of loyalty and obedience to their employers, whistle blowing can still be morally justified on the grounds that it aims at righting wrongs that have a potential to pose harm to the public. In view of this, therefore, the paper argues that whistle blowing ought to be encouraged rather than discouraged in the context of Zimbabwe’s economic crisis.
Với nhận thức ngày càng tăng về phát triển kinh tế bền vững, nhiều công ty đang tham gia vào việc thúc đẩy nền kinh tế tuần hoàn. Lựa chọn nhà cung cấp cũng là một chiến lược quan trọng trong việc chuyển đổi từ nền kinh tế tuyến tính truyền thống sang nền kinh tế tuần hoàn. Mục đích của nghiên cứu này là để phân tích hoạt động lựa chọn nhà cung cấp trong các công ty đang thúc đẩy nền kinh tế tuần hoàn. Lý thuyết về bối cảnh nền kinh tế tuần hoàn, quy trình mua sắm và các tiêu chí lựa chọn nhà cung cấp được xem xét. Dựa vào đó, tác giả xây dựng một mô hình ban đầu về hoạt động lựa chọn nhà cung cấp trong một công ty hướng tới nền kinh tế tuần hoàn. Nghiên cứu sử dụng phương pháp định tính với ba case study là các công ty tiên phong trong việc thúc đẩy nền kinh tế tuần hoàn ở Phần Lan. Dữ liệu được thu thập thông qua các cuộc phỏng vấn bán cấu trúc, kết hợp với những thông tin có sẵn trên trang web của các công ty. Khi phân tích dữ liệu, đầu tiên tác giả phân tích dữ liệu theo từng công ty, và sau đó tác giả phân tích dữ liệu chéo giữa các công ty thông qua hệ thống Nvivo để nhận ra những điểm tương đồng và khác biệt. Kết quả nghiên cứu cho thấy các công ty thường hợp tác với nhiều bên liên quan trong quá trình mua sắm để thúc đẩy nền kinh tế tuần hoàn. Sự tin tưởng và minh bạch là những yếu tố quan trọng trong việc xây dựng sự hợp tác lâu dài giữa người mua và nhà cung cấp. Hơn nữa, khi bắt đầu quá trình mua sắm, người mua nên suy nghĩ kỹ về nhu cầu thực tế để giảm thiểu chất thải sau này. Cuối cùng nhưng không kém phần quan trọng, khi lựa chọn nhà cung cấp, các tiêu chí truyền thống và các tiêu chí “xanh” liên quan đến khía cạnh môi trường, xã hội và đạo đức đều được xem xét rộng rãi. Quyết định lựa chọn nhà cung cấp sẽ phụ thuộc vào giá của dịch vụ mà nhà cung cấp có thể mang lại cho người mua. Nghiên cứu này đóng góp cho lý thuyết hiện hành thông qua phân tích sâu về hoạt động lựa chọn nhà cung cấp kinh tế tuần hoàn và thêm các tiêu chí lựa chọn liên quan đến vấn đề đạo đức. Nghiên cứu này hữu ích cho các công ty đang xây dựng và hoàn thiện chiến lược mua sắm để phát triển nền kinh tế tuần hoàn, cũng như các công ty cung cấp nguyên liệu hoặc dịch vụ cho thị trường bền vững.
The global textile industry is dominated by the fast fashion paradigm, which causes diverse negative environmental and social impacts. A more circular textile economy is advocated as an answer to unsustainable practices. A transition to a circular economy, based on slowing and closing textile loops, will have social consequences all over the world. This chapter explores the implications for social justice in transitioning to a circular textile economy. It finds that the transition is likely to produce negative and positive outcomes for different regions and people. Circularity in itself might not affect some of the root causes of social harm in global supply chains, but might enable some better practices, for example, through relieving time and prize pressures. Circularity will not likely address power relations that cause oppression, nor improve ill-functioning institutions. Livelihoods in vulnerable regions might be lost, but also gained all over the world. The circular economy transition is necessary but will fail to answer to multiple social justice challenges, unless a strong focus on social justice is explicitly integrated in design, conceptualization, and application.