Biodiversity loss poses profound strategic and operational challenges for firms, yet management research offers limited evidence on which organisational mechanisms effectively reduce corporate biodiversity impacts. This study introduces the Biodiversity Strategy Configuration Framework (BSCF) to enhance the understanding of firm-level biodiversity strategy. Drawing on dynamic capabilities, institutional theory, and collaborative governance, this study examines how biodiversity strategy (hereinafter, biodiversity impact reduction) depends on the alignment between nature-based governance initiative portfolios and external collaborative resources. Using S&P 1500 firms from 2005 to 2024, this study tests the predictions through logit and probit models, interaction effects across four governance portfolios, latent class analysis, marginal effects, and a difference-in-differences design. Results show that nature-based initiatives significantly increase the likelihood that firms will adopt a biodiversity strategy. The study documents that firms with more substantial capability portfolios (both in CSR sustainability and environmental restoration initiatives) implement more proactive and impactful biodiversity strategies. Overall, the results suggest that they support broader sustainability objectives, particularly those outlined in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 13: Climate Action, SDG 14: Life Below Water, and SDG 15: Life on Land).
To effectively mitigate disturbances from human activities on vulnerable dolphin populations, it is crucial to understand fine-scale variation in habitat use. This study investigated the habitat utilisation of a small subpopulation of Hector's dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori) in Porpoise Bay, New Zealand. Passive acoustic monitoring was conducted from January to August 2020 using two T-PODs deployed in the inner and middle of the bay. Generalised additive models were used to investigate the influence of time of day, tidal state, season, and site on Hector's dolphin acoustic occurrence (measured as detection-positive minutes per hour) and foraging activity (measured as foraging click trains per hour) in the bay. Dolphin acoustic occurrence was greatest during daylight hours and around high tide, particularly in the sheltered inner bay. Foraging activity mirrored these patterns and, like acoustic occurrence, showed no significant seasonal difference. Peak foraging activity occurred in the inner bay during the morning and early afternoon, shifting toward the middle of the bay later in the day. These findings expand our understanding of the drivers of Hector's dolphin habitat use and provide new insights for managing stressors to the subpopulation that uses Porpoise Bay.
When initial testing of complexes as CO2RR catalysts under homogeneous photocatalytic conditions leads to modest formation of CO, H2 and even formate, as is the case herein, one can be tempted to conclude that the complexes are somewhat active catalysts. But ultimately the activity observed may instead have arisen from some of the many other components that are present in these tests: these many potential sources of apparent catalytic activity, which can dominate results in the case of low catalyst activity, are summarised herein, as they are seldom highlighted, yet great care must be taken with the choice and preparation of all the components to ensure that high quality test data is acquired, including on blanks and controls, so that incorrect interpretation of the results is avoided. We conclude that, despite initial appearances, the 5 copper(ii) complexes tested herein have similar activity to the controls, so are not active CO2RR catalysts under the conditions studied.
Previous research indicates interval stair climbing can provide an easily accessible time-efficient means to boost cognitive performance and mood, effects that could in theory be underpinned by exercise-induced hemodynamic changes in the brain. To test this, we ran a randomized controlled crossover trial investigating cognitive, mood, and hemodynamic effects of interval stair climbing (measured 20 min post-exercise, after applying the brain recording equipment), and probed for evidence that neuropsychological benefits might be mediated by hemodynamic effects. Forty-eight undergraduates (M = 20.63 years, SD = 3.45, range = 18–36) attended two sessions separated by 7 days, with session order randomized and counterbalanced across participants. For the stair-climbing session, participants completed an interval-exercise protocol that required < 17 min and included six fairly intensive 1-min stair-climbing intervals, before completing a neuropsychological battery, which included three cognitive tests and six visual analogue mood scales, while we recorded hemodynamic changes using near-infrared spectroscopy positioned on the forehead. The control session differed only by the omission of the stair climbing protocol. Relative to the control session, following the stair climbing participants exhibited better cognitive performance (indicated by faster correct response latencies in all three tests); however, no significant hemodynamic effects emerged and we found no evidence of relationships between the hemodynamic and cognitive measures. In addition, we found virtually no evidence of mood benefits 25 min post-exercise, which contrasts with the mood benefits reported when assessed more immediately. These findings suggest that the cognitive benefits following interval stair-climbing are more enduring than mood and hemodynamic benefits and reflect other mechanisms, at least when assessed after a delay. TRN: ACTRN12622000434796, Date of registration: 17/03/2022.
The Equator Principles (EP) score is a performance code for financial institutions (FIs) based on their commitment to managing environmental issues in project financing. This study examines the impact of environmental initiatives on the adoption of the EP by 204 US financial firms (including banks, insurance companies, investment banks, asset managers, private equity firms, and other FIs) from 2005 to 2024. The study findings show that FIs engaging in various eco-initiatives, such as biodiversity impact reduction, ecological restoration, supply chain management, and environmental partnerships, exhibit higher EP, suggesting that proactive environmental engagement facilitates a formal commitment to sustainability standards. Using environmental project financing and peer FIs' environmental and ecological initiatives as instrumental variables, the study provides robust evidence that specific initiatives, particularly those focused on reducing biodiversity impact and improving supply chain management practices, have a more substantial influence on environmental project adoption than others. The study further documents that the positive relationship between eco-initiatives and EP adoption is more pronounced in larger FIs and with higher ESG performance. This study's findings highlight the strategic and risk-management benefits of environmental initiatives, showing that they serve as an effective mechanism for FIs to align with internationally recognised social and ecological standards.
