In the modern economy, non-financial reporting has become an essential tool for evaluating the social performance of companies. This article explores the importance of non-financial reporting as a central element in assessing sustainable performance, focusing on analyzing sustainability reports published by 20 companies listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB). The study examines how these companies approach environmental, social, and governance (ESG) aspects in their reports and what is the relationship between these aspects and financial reporting indicators. Through the statistical analysis of the non-financial reports published by companies participating in the study with the help of the Pearson coefficient and the regression equations, the correlation between the financial and non-financial indicators is determined in order to validate the research hypotheses. The results indicate increased attention to transparency and social responsibility, highlighting the correlation between sound reporting practices and cooperative performance by combining social and environmental aspects with financial information. The research also highlights the challenges encountered in the reporting process and the level of compliance with international sustainability standards.

This study aims to determine the effects of monosodium glutamate (MSG) dosage on the yield of long beans (Vigna sinensis L.) of the Peleton variety. The use of MSG as a food ingredient has been a topic of debate, but research on its impact on plant growth is still limited, especially regarding long beans. Therefore, this research is important for providing further understanding of the influence of MSG on long beans plants. The study was conducted from July to October 2023 in Mata Air Village, Central Kupang District, Kupang Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province. The research method used was a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with 9 treatments and 3 replications. The treatments included: No MSG, MSG at doses of 2.5 g/plant, 5 g/plant, 7.5 g/plant, 10 g/plant, 12.5 g/plant, 15 g/plant, 17.5 g/plant, and 20 g/plant. Parameters observed included flowering age (days), number of pods (pieces), pod length (cm), and pod weight (g). Based on the results and discussion, it can be concluded that MSG application had a significant effect on the number, length, and weight of pods, but had a non-significant effect on flowering age. The treatment of 15 g/plant was identified as the optimal MSG dosage for the plants, resulting in the highest number of pods (16.2), longest pod length (60.4 cm), and highest pod weight (256.4 g/plant). This research is innovative in exploring the potential use of monosodium glutamate (MSG) on long beans plants, particularly the Peleton variety. The focus on MSG application as a growth stimulant is an innovative step that has been less studied previously. The discovery of the optimal MSG dosage (15 g/plant) for achieving the best results provides valuable information for farmers to enhance productivity efficiently, sustainably, and environmentally friendly. Information about MSG’s potential as a plant stimulant can serve as a starting point for more sustainable agricultural strategies aimed at optimizing available resources.

With its inherent characteristics of decentralization, immutability, and transparency, blockchain technology presents a promising opportunity to revolutionize the South African food supply chains. Blockchain technology, with its decentralized, immutable, and secure nature, offers solutions to these challenges by improving traceability and accountability across the supply chain. This study investigates the role of blockchain technology in enhancing transparency in the food supply chain among small and medium enterprises in South Africa. SMEs form a critical part of the country's agri-food sector but face challenges such as food fraud, inefficient inventory management, and lack of transparency, which impact food safety and trust. The research adopts a mixed-method approach, utilizing the Technology-Organization-Environment framework and Institutional Theory to explain blockchain adoption among SMEs. The results demonstrate that blockchain-enabled practices, such as smart contracts, records traceability, production tracking, and distribution monitoring, significantly enhance supply chain transparency. The findings highlight blockchain's potential to increase operational efficiency, regulatory compliance, and stakeholder trust. This research provides valuable insights for policymakers and practitioners, emphasizing the need for regulatory support and strategic investment in blockchain solutions to promote sustainability and competitiveness in the agri-food sector.

Knowledge transfer, assimilation, transformation and exploitation significantly impact performing business activities, developing innovations and moving forward to new business models such as transferring to a circular economy. However, organizations’ decisions or willingness to transition to a circular economy are very often also influenced by the external environment. The study aims to determine the influence of the external environment on the transfer from a linear to a circular economy while mediating knowledge assimilation. The quantitative research involved 159 Nordic capital companies operating in Estonia and Lithuania. The survey has been performed by means of the CATI method. The analysis has been done also by applying structural equation modelling (SEM). In order to perform mediation analysis, IBM SPSS and a special PROCESS macro have been used. The study showed that knowledge assimilation partially mediates the relationship between the external environment and the transfer to the circular economy. Hence, the external environment’s direct effect is much more significant than the indirect. The added value of the study also consists in extending the concept of circular economy by including some aspects of absorptive capacity and the external environment.

Rural sub-Saharan Africa faces limited medical access, healthcare worker shortages, and inadequate health information systems. Mobile health (mHealth) technologies offer potential solutions but remain underdeveloped in these settings. This review aims to explore the sociocultural context of mHealth adoption in rural sub-Saharan Africa to support sustainable implementation. A comprehensive Enhancing Transparency in Reporting the Synthesis of Qualitative Research (ENTREQ) search was conducted in databases like PubMed, MEDLINE, and African Journals Online, covering peer-reviewed literature from 2010 to 2024. Qualitative studies of mHealth interventions were included, with quality assessed via the Critical Appraisal Skills Program (CASP) checklist and data synthesized using a meta-ethnographic approach. Out of 892 studies, 38 met the inclusion criteria. Key findings include sociocultural factors like community trust influencing technology acceptance, local implementation strategies, user empowerment in health decisions, and innovative solutions for infrastructure issues. Challenges include privacy concerns, increased healthcare worker workload, and intervention sustainability. While mHealth can reduce healthcare barriers, success depends on sociocultural alignment and adaptability. Future interventions should prioritize community co-design, privacy protection, and sustainable, infrastructure-aware models.

The tourism sector is exponentially expanding across the globe. Despite different forms of tourism, community-based tourism has evolved with new dimensions of development. Assessing the sustainable development of the sector is a top priority in order to adopt the new forms. Therefore, in this study, the association between community-based tourism and its sustainable development was measured under the lens of collaborative theory and social exchange perspective. Non-probabilistic judgmental sampling techniques were applied, and 201 respondents were assessed. Data analysis was conducted using structural equation modeling (SEM). The study grounded with residents’ perspectives and attested that community-based tourism directly enhanced residents’ economic conditions with a better environment, and the relationship between residents and tourists enhanced the tourism industry’s sustainable development. Stakeholders like government and local administrations play a significant role in exploring community-based tourism. This outcome of the research will be a substantial resource for local administrations, governments, researchers, policymakers and practitioners.