This paper focuses particularly on the pillars of business models for smart cities. The paper is based on the project Smart Sustainable District, and outlines the opportunities and limits of the application of certain guidelines in an extra-EU country, Serbia, through the Horizon Europe project UR-DATA. The Smart Sustainable District project started in 2021 and one of its outcomes was the publication of a ‘white paper’ that aims to describe principles, solutions, tools for the realisation of the SSD model in urban areas, constituting a methodological and operational support to public and private actors involved, for urban transformations in the SSD key. In the paper, objectives, trends, solutions, tools and some good practices are presented for the following three pillars of business models for smart cities: Collaborative models and symbiosis, promoting outcome based PPPP (public-private and people partnership), and sustainable co-production and co-management of both material and immaterial resources and goods. Innovative consumption patterns, including, for instance, attention to sustainability and local needs, sharing practices, collaborative consumption of goods and services, new “prosumption” practices. Modular systems for circular economy, an economy based on the maximization of resources over time through the re-design of both the property concept and products and services through their whole life-cycle, including processes and consumption models. Then, their application in Serbia, specifically/ with a specific analysis of the city of Nis, also comparing, as a benchmark, Italian and Serbian reference strategies and policies.
Abstract The gender gap problem reflects persistent inequalities between men and women across economic participation, education, health, and political representation, driven by social, cultural, and institutional biases that restrict equal opportunities and outcomes. This paper explores the state of gender equality in Europe by constructing composite variables for each area through principal component analysis and applying cluster analysis to classify countries into four distinct groups. The first cluster includes Nordic countries with nearly complete gender equality; the second cluster consists of developed Western European countries with high educational and health outcomes, but lower political and economic opportunities for women. The third cluster comprises former socialist bloc countries with moderate educational and health indicators, but low economic and political inclusion of women, and finally the fourth cluster includes countries with significant challenges in achieving equality due to traditional norms and weak policies. The results indicate the need for tailored policies that would enhance economic opportunities and political participation for women, depending on the specific characteristics of each group of countries.
Waste management remains one of the most pressing global challenges of the 21st century, particularly in rapidly urbanizing areas. Improper handling and disposal of waste, especially hazardous materials, pose serious risks to public health and the environment, exacerbating problems in already inadequately planned urban settings. Despite the development of waste management strategies such as recycling and composting, the effectiveness of these approaches is limited without the inclusion of all key stakeholders. Informal waste pickers, especially in low- and middle-income countries, play a crucial yet underrecognized role in urban waste management by contributing significantly to waste collection, sorting, and recycling. In the Republic of Serbia, where the formal waste management system remains underdeveloped and lacks comprehensive legal and institutional frameworks, the informal sector is responsible for a substantial portion of secondary raw material recovery. However, this sector operates without legal status or systemic support. This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of the socio-economic position of secondary waste collectors in Serbia, drawing on empirical research conducted in 2024. Special attention is given to the perceptions of informal waste collectors regarding the opportunities and constraints related to their integration into the formal waste management system. The findings highlight the potential for enhancing efficiency and sustainability in urban waste management through the formal recognition and support of informal actors.
Although the Modified Areal Unit Problem (MAUP) is well-documented in spatial analysis, its effects on urban policy development and decision-making are yet unknown. So, we decided to do this work to critically investigate how MAUP influences urban planning at different levels, impacting analytical results, governance, and spatial policy. The arbitrary division of geographical units still introduces bias and uncertainty in decision-making procedures, even with growing computer capacity and extensive application of urban analytics. By using a semi-structured literature review, we studied current studies on MAUP in urban analytics and planning, therefore highlighting the importance of methodological techniques, difficulties, and mitigating methods. Our results show a fragmented corpus of research where methodological developments usually have no direct relevance for policy-making. We also underline the need for ex-ante and ex-post assessments to evaluate MAUP’s influence on urban administration. Additionally, we emphasize the necessity of interdisciplinary collaboration to ensure a more holistic approach. We aim to raise awareness among urban designers, legislators, and researchers by bridging this research gap, thereby supporting more open, strong, and context-sensitive spatial decision-making systems.
This paper examines the impact of trade subsidies on global growth and national welfare through the cross-border movement of firms in an endogenous growth model. In particular, our model focuses on two key aspects: the cross-border movement of firms and the reallocation of labor resources between the production and innovation sectors. In this paper, we show that, in the presence of local knowledge spillovers, an increase in the trade subsidy by the country where firms are agglomerated leads to an increase in the global growth rate under certain parameter conditions, while an increase in the trade subsidy by the country that is not agglomerated results in a decrease in the global growth rate. Moreover, the results of the welfare analysis show that trade subsidies in the agglomeration country enhance the welfare of both the agglomeration and the non-agglomeration countries, whereas trade subsidies in non-agglomeration country diminish the welfare of both countries.
