It is important for society to know the actions implemented by companies in the construction sector to reduce the environmental pollution generated by this industry and to contribute to the solution of economic and social problems in their environment; however, the variables that allow identifying their contributions and impacts are not known. Based on this problem, the study focuses on identifying the factors that influence sustainability management within the construction sector in Colombia. The research presents a predictive approach and uses a quantitative methodology, applying statistical modeling techniques. The sample corresponds to 84 Colombian companies. As a result, a system of equations of the form y=mx+b is presented to describe the deviation of the environmental, economic, social, compensation measures, management, indicators and sustainability reports. The analysis of the intersections constitutes a projective tool to evaluate the relationships and balance points between the dimensions analyzed, helping to identify strengths and opportunities for improvement.

This study analyzes the role of innovation in the development of smart cities in Latin America. It focuses on how emerging technologies and sustainable strategies are being integrated into urban planning and urban development. In this sense, this study seeks to contribute to the smart city literature by answering the following research questions: (i) To what extent smart city innovative initiatives have been addressed in Latin America? and (ii) To what extent scholars have addressed sustainable innovation strategies in the smart city literature? To this end, this is the first comprehensive bibliometric analysis of smart city research in Latin America, with a structured and systematized review of the available literature. This methodological approach allows cluster visualization and detailed analysis of inter-node relationships using the VOSViewer software. The research comprises 4 stages: (a) search criteria; (b) selection of documents; (c) software and data extraction; and (d) analysis of results and trends. Results indicate that studies on the Latin America region began to develop in 2012, with Brazil as a leader in this field and the tourism sector as the most relevant. Nevertheless, strong international collaboration was identified in co-authoring studies, underscoring a cooperative approach to solving common urban problems. The most active research area is technological innovation and sustainability, with focus on solutions for urban mobility, quality of life and smart governance. Finally, this work underlines the need to continue exploring the integration of technology in urban development, suggesting an agenda to guide future research to evaluate the sustainability and long-term impacts of smart city initiatives in Latin America. From the policy perspective, smart city initiatives need to be human-centered to boost smart solutions adoption and to guarantee long term local impacts.

In wealthy nations, biofuel usage has grown in importance as a means of addressing climate change concerns, ensuring energy security, and promoting agricultural development. Because they understand the potential advantages of biofuel for rural development and job creation, governments have created policies and legislation to encourage the production of biofuel. However, the province of Limpopo hasn’t fully taken advantage of the potential to use biofuel production as a vehicle for job development, despite a higher demand for the fuel. There is currently a lack of understanding of the role of biofuel in promoting local development in developing regions. For this reason, this study made use of semi-structured interviews to explore how biofuel production can be used as an instrument for Local Economic Development (LED) in the Limpopo province of South Africa. The research investigated the determinants of empowerment that could impact the commercial feasibility of biofuel production in the province. It also identified the need for human resource development to get workers ready for jobs in Limpopo’s biofuel sector. The results showed that, provided certain conditions were met, the production of biofuel in Limpopo may be a useful instrument for creating local jobs. By highlighting the potential for job creation and the importance of human resource development, this research aims to facilitate evidence-based decision-making that can harness biofuel production for sustainable rural development in the region. The value of this study lies in its contribution to the understanding of biofuel’s role in LED, offering actionable insights for policymakers and stakeholders in Limpopo. 

How can social enterprises implement Total Quality Management (TQM) to tackle urgent social issues within their organizational framework while also ensuring their continued viability? To address this question, this study aims to explore the organizational approach to the adoption and implementation of TQM practices and their efficacy in mitigating pressing social challenges and maintaining financial sustainability. It adopts a qualitative multiple-case research design involving 3 social enterprises to explore the research phenomenon. Following qualitative research analysis process using NVivo, our findings highlight a prevalent, short-term outlook in managing TQM, hindering the full potential of TQM to achieve both social impact and organizational sustainability. More specifically, they expose a significant dissonance within the case organizations’ TQM implementations: the contrast between the current state, indicative of what it is, and the ideal state, indicative of what it should be. Altogether, the study advocates leveraging TQM for long-term excellence and alignment in social enterprises (as opposed to short-term mediocrity and disarray), thereby facilitating the achievement of both social impact and financial sustainability.

This study investigates the impact of corporate carbon performance on financing costs, focusing on S&P 500 companies from 2015 to 2022. Utilizing a fixed-effects regression model, the research reveals a complex U-shaped nonlinear relationship between carbon intensity (CI) and cost of debt (COD). The sample comprises 2896 firm-year observations, with CI measured by the ratio of Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to annual sales. The findings indicate that companies with higher CI initially face increased COD due to heightened regulatory and operational risks. However, as CI falls below a certain threshold, further reductions in emissions can paradoxically lead to increased COD, likely due to the substantial investments required for advanced technologies. Additionally, a positive relationship between CI and cost of equity (COE) is observed, suggesting that shareholders demand higher returns from companies with greater environmental risks. These results underscore the importance of balancing short-term and long-term environmental strategies. The study highlights the need for corporate managers to communicate the long-term benefits of environmental efforts effectively to creditors and investors. Policymakers should consider these dynamics when designing regulations that incentivize lower carbon emissions.