Gamification is an active methodology of great value that, in a quality educational environment, provides students with the necessary motivation to participate in their teaching-learning process. An emerging active methodology, which is based on the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) and requires an educational space that guarantees greater flexibility in the pedagogical dynamics in favor of academic achievement. This increase in interest in active methodologies, and specifically in gamification, has raised doubts about whether current educational spaces are prepared to host a renewal in methodology or if, on the contrary, they could undermine the attitude of change. For this reason, this research seeks to analyze whether current educational spaces are facilitating elements for the incorporation of gamification in the classroom. The methodological cut of the research is quantitative, specifically in two phases. On the one hand, a descriptive analysis of the results is carried out, obtaining information on the trend of each item. On the other hand, an inferential analysis is carried out around different variables to verify their possible influence on the evaluations of the participants. The results obtained, in the sample made up of 210 teachers distributed in the different centers and who carry out their educational activity from 3rd to 6th grade of primary school, indicate that teachers believe it is relevant to take into account the educational space when incorporating active methodologies in class.

Sustainable development is a foundational element in European Union (EU) policies, yet there remains a lack of coherence among member states regarding the perception and response to environmental challenges, resulting in regional inequalities. The “Fit for 55” initiative by the EU is an ambitious strategy aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030, as part of its broader goal of achieving climate neutrality by 2050. This study investigates the economic impact and intergovernmental dynamics of the “Fit for 55” plan, analyzing its potential to not only meet environmental targets but also to foster economic resilience and social equity across the EU. The purpose of this study is to assess the effectiveness of the “Fit for 55” initiative in harmonizing environmental goals with economic and social policies among diverse EU member states. The study reveals that while the initiative offers significant potential benefits, such as stimulating innovation and creating jobs in green industries, it also faces considerable challenges, including economic disparities among member states and the social impacts of rapid decarbonization. These findings highlight the need for integrated approaches that address both environmental sustainability and socio-economic equity.

MXenes are one of the most important classes of materials discussed worldwide by many researchers of diverse fields for diverse applications in recent years. It is a nanomaterial with a wide range of applications due to its multiple forms and structures with fascinating properties, for example, high surface area and porosity, biocompatibility, ease of fictionalizing with various active chemical moieties, benefit of high metallic conductivity, activated metallic hydroxide sites, and sensitivity to moisture. MXenes have great chances for potential applications in environmental issues, water purification, biological applications, and energy storage devices and sensors. MXenes show great selectivity towards the absorption of heavy metals and a good capability to reduce chemical and biological pollutants present in the water. The present review article critically analyzed advancements in water purification using the adsorption and reduction abilities of MXenes and their composites. The mechanism of various procedures, important challenges, and associated problems using MXene and their composites are discussed in detail. The future research directions can be extracted from this article efficiently and comprehensively. The energy storage issues of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, batteries other than lithium-ion batteries, and electrochemical capacitors are also discussed in detail.

This paper provides a unique empirical analysis of the effects of political factors on the adoption of PPP contracts in Brazil. As such, it innovates along two different lines: first, political factors behind the adoption of PPPs have been largely ignored in the vast body of empirical literature, and second, there is scant work done on the motives of any kind behind the adoption of PPPs in Brazil. Various economic and financial reasons have been evoked to justify the use of PPPs in general. These include the goal of promoting socio-economic development in a tight public budgetary framework or of improving the quality of public services through the use of economically efficient and cost-effective mechanisms. Any possible underlying political motives, however, have been overlooked in the PPP research. And yet, there is abundant literature suggesting a link between the adoption of PPPs and the ideology of the governing body or the political cycles associated with elections. This study examines the impact of ideological commitment and opportunistic political behavior on the process of PPP contracting in Brazil, including the stages of public consultation, the publication of tender, and the signature of the contract, using federative-level data for the period between 2005 and 2022. Consistent with the outstanding literature, the two hypotheses are tested: first, conservative parties tend to celebrate more PPP contracts than left-leaning parties, and second, the electoral calendar has a significant effect in the process, allowing for opportunistic behaviors. Empirical results suggest that there is little evidence for the relevance of ideological leanings in the process of adopting PPPs in Brazil. Additionally, regardless of ideology, parties significantly choose to enter PPPs at specific points in the electoral cycle, suggesting decisions are influenced by political considerations and electoral strategy rather than by purely financial or ideological considerations. This may pose severe constraints on the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the contracts, negatively impacting public governance and leading to protracted costs for taxpayers.

Conspiracy theories during Covid-19 pandemic spread worldwide, including in Indonesia. What political and religious factors explain their spread in Indonesia with particular reference to the DKI Jakarta province, its surrounding municipalities, and West Sumatera province? This study aimed to answer the questions. It employed a qualitative approach with multi-data collection methods, including those from media, documents, and interviews. The spread of Conspiracy theories benefited from the democratic system that promotes the freedom of information in using social media. First, the government officials initially spread conspiracy theories to satisfy people’s anxiety about the obscured Pandemic. However, they resulted in the government’s ambiguous, controversial, and reckless policies leading to people’s distrust of the government. Jokowi-Makruf Amien, political opponents capitalized on the government’s poor policies to spread conspiracy theories which partly discredited the Jokowi-Amien administration. Both government officials and the opposition capitalized on politics and religious teaching or supra-natural pretexts to posit their conspiracy theories.