A significant percentage of any nation’s economy comes from the building industry, and its performance can impact overall economic growth and development. This paper aims to identify the similarities and differences between the construction sector (CS) of developed and developing economies in terms of size, growth, and contribution to the Gross domestic product (GDP) to understand the similarities and variances in the CS dynamics, trends, and challenges, and to inform policy decisions and investments through the literature review. The study also explores the factors that affect the CS’s performance in both types of economies, such as government policies, market conditions, and technological advancements. This paper concludes that the CS in developed economies is more established and technologically advanced, but there is still significant room for growth in developing economies. Moreover, a framework is proposed that could assist developing nations in opting for the construction economy. Further, the review emphasizes the significance of government policies and investments in infrastructure development to stimulate the CS’s growth and support overall economic development. The results of the study will assist in enhancing understanding of the CS’s potential in both developed and developing economies and support decision-making for policymakers, industry practitioners, and academicians.

The COVID-19 pandemic occasioned significant changes in many aspects of human life. The education system is one of the most impacted sectors during the pandemic. With the contagious nature of the disease, governments around the world encouraged social distancing between individuals to prevent the spread of the virus. This led to the shutdown of many academic institutions, to avoid mass gatherings and overcrowded places. Developed and developing countries either postponed their academic activities or used digital technologies to reach learners remotely. The study examined the benefits of online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. The participants for the study consist of 5 lecturers and 30 students from the ML Sultan Campus of the Durban University of Technology, South Africa. Data was collected using open-ended interviews. Content analysis was applied to analyze the data collected. Data was collected until it was saturated. Different ways were implemented to make online learning and teaching successful. The findings identified that the benefits of online learning were that it promotes independent learning, flexible learning adaptability and others.

Interest in the impact of environmental innovations on firms’ financial performance has surged over the past two decades, but studies show inconsistent results. This paper addresses these divergences by analyzing 74 studies from 1996 to 2022, encompassing 4,390,754 firm-year observations. We developed a probability-based meta-analysis approach to synthesize existing knowledge and found a generally positive impact of environmental innovations on financial performance, with a probability range of 0.85 to 0.97. Manufacturing firms benefit more from environmental innovations than firms in other industries, and survey-based studies report a more favorable relationship than those using secondary data. This study contributes to existing knowledge by providing a comprehensive aggregation of data, supporting the resource-based view (RBV) and the Porter hypothesis. The findings suggest significant policy implications, highlighting the need for tailored incentives and information-sharing mechanisms, and underscore the importance of diverse data sources in research to ensure robust results.

This study investigates the changing nature of the psychological contract in the digital era, particularly how fluid work arrangements alter traditional employment dynamics. Utilizing a conceptual approach informed by a narrative review, this study examines the historical development of the psychological contract through foundational studies, while also integrating recent research that highlights the transformative influence of digital platforms in fluid work environments. The key contribution of this study is the innovative model it proposes, which captures the complexities of the psychological contract in modern digital and fluid work settings. This model provides a comprehensive theoretical framework to understand evolving employer-employee relationships and practical insights for organizations navigating these changes. It represents a significant advancement in both theory and practical application, connecting traditional employment principles with the dynamism of digital-era work.

The purpose of this study is to examine how financial slack and board gender diversity affect carbon emission disclosure and how that disclosure affects firm value in energy sector companies that are listed on the Indonesian stock exchange between 2017 and 2021. Annual reports and sustainability sources provide secondary data for this quantitative study. Purposive sampling was employed in this investigation, including nine companies and a five-year observation period. Thus, 45 samples altogether were employed in the present study. The partial least squares approach is the data analysis strategy used in this investigation. The study’s findings indicate that the Gender Diversity Board does not significantly affect carbon emission disclosure and significantly influences firm value. Financial slack significantly affects carbon emission disclosure but does not directly affect firm value. Financial slack and board gender diversity through carbon emission disclosure have no significant effect on firm value.

The paper examines the motivations, financing, expansion and challenges of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The BRI was initially designed to address China’s overcapacity and promote economic growth in both China and in countries along the “Belt” and “Road” through infrastructure investment and industrial capacity cooperation. It took into account China’s strategic transition in its opening-up policy and foreign policy to pay more attention to the neighboring countries in Southeast Asia and Central and West Asia when facing greater strategic pressure from the United States in East Asia and the Pacific region. More themes have been added to the initiative’s original framework since its inception in 2013, including the vision of the BRI as China’s major solution to improve international economic cooperation and practice to build a “community of shared future for mankind”, and the idea of the Green Silk Road and the Digital Silk Road. Chinese state-owned enterprises and policy and commercial banks have dominated investment and financing for BRI projects, which explains the root of the problems and risks facing the initiative, such as unsustainable debt, non-transparency, corruption and low economic efficiency. Measures taken by China to tackle these problems, for example, mitigating the debt distress and improving debt sustainability, are unlikely to make a big difference anytime soon due to the tenacity of China’s long-held state-driven investment model.