The reduction of biodiversity and the decline in wildlife populations are urgent environmental issues with devasting consequences for ecosystems and human health. As a result, the protection of wildlife and biodiversity has emerged as one of humanity's greatest goals, not only for protecting and maintaining human health but also for environmental, economic, and social well-being. In recent years, people have become increasingly aware of the importance and effectiveness of wildlife conservation efforts alongside environmental protection measures, sustainable agricultural practices and non-harmful production procedures and services. This study describes the development and implementation of a labeling scheme for wildlife and biodiversity protection for products or services. The label is designed to encourage the adoption of sustainable and environmentally friendly production methods and services that will contribute to biodiversity conservation and the harmonic coexistence of human-wildlife. Moreover, using a case study approach, the research presents an innovative information system designed to streamline the label-awarding process, ensuring transparency and efficiency. The established system evaluates the sustainability practices and measures implemented by businesses, with a focus on honey production in this case. Additionally, the study explores the broader social implications of the label, particularly its potential to engage consumers and promote awareness of biodiversity conservation.

Technological advancements in genetic research are crucial for nations aiming to uplift their population’s quality of life and ensure a sustainable economy. Genomic information and biotechnology can enhance healthcare quality, outcomes, and affordability. The “P4 medicine approach”—predictive, preventive, personalized, and participatory—aligns with objectives like promoting long-term well-being, optimizing resources, and reducing environmental impacts, all vital for sustainable healthcare. This paper highlights the importance of adopting the P4 approach extensively. It emphasizes the need to enhance healthcare operations in real-time and integrate cutting-edge genomic technologies. Eco-friendly designs can significantly reduce the environmental impact of healthcare. Additionally, addressing health disparities is crucial for successful healthcare reforms.

The South African government has undertaken to expand universal access to Early Childhood Development (ECD) with a particular focus on children from socially disadvantaged communities and with disabilities. This requires training and support of ECD practitioners, such that they are equipped 399with the necessary knowledge and competencies to implement effective teaching and learning approaches at ECD level. This research explored an innovative, inclusive approach to ECD practitioner development in which both Deaf and hearing students were enrolled in an ECD practitioner training program facilitated jointly by New Beginnings (an ECD non-profit training organization) and the Deaf Federation of South Africa (DeafSA). The research scrutinized key aspects of the training program, including how it extended students content knowledge on ECD, their pedagogical knowledge; as well as epistemological access for Deaf students. The findings and conclusions have important implications not only for equipping ECD practitioners with knowledge and skills, but also demonstrates how practitioner training itself can be effectively structured to cater for diversity among trainees.

Adult obesity is a significant health problem, with nearly a quarter of Hungarian citizens aged 15 years and older being obese in 2019 (KSH, 2019a). The use of mobile devices for health purposes is increasing, and many m-health apps target weight-related behaviours. This study uniquely examines the effectiveness and user satisfaction of health-oriented apps among Hungarian adults, with a focus on health improvement. Using a mixed-methods approach, the study identifies six key determinants of health improvement and refines measurement tools by modifying existing parameters and introducing new constructs. The principal objective was to develop a measurement instrument for the usability of nutrition, relaxation and health promotion applications. The research comprised three phases: (1) qualitative content analysis of 13 app reviews conducted in June 2022; (2) focus group interviews involving 32 students from the fields of business, economics and health management; and (3) an online survey (n = 348 users) conducted in December 2023 that included Strava (105 users), Yazio (109 users) and Calm (134 users). Six factors were identified as determinants of health improvement: physical activity, diet, weight loss, general well-being, progress, and body knowledge. The LAUQ (Lifestyle Application Usability Questionnaire) scale was validated, including 'ease of use' (5 items), 'interface and satisfaction' (7 items) and 'modified usefulness and effectiveness' (9 items), with modifications based on qualitative findings. This research offers valuable insights into the factors influencing health improvement and user satisfaction with healthy lifestyle-oriented applications. It also contributes to the refinement of measurement tools such as the LAUQ, which will inform future studies in health psychology, digital health, and behavioural economics.

Some platforms in the collaborative economy offer a combination of sectoral and information society services, which characterises them as a hybrid entity. The concurrent provision of disparate types of services necessitates the determination of the predominant activity of a given platform on a case-by-case basis. This, in turn, gives rise to legal uncertainty and inconsistent case law at the national level. This paper examines the impact of the choice of institutional alternatives in the context of multilevel governance in the EU on the legal status of collaborative economy business models such as Uber and Airbnb in the EU single market. The paper employs a mixed-methods research approach to analyse pivotal jurisprudential decisions of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) and national courts. It reaches the conclusion that the Airbnb platform, in its capacity as an information society service provider, is subject to the provisions of the Electronic Commerce Directive (2000/31/EC). Conversely, Uber, by virtue of its definition as a transport undertaking, is subject to shared jurisdiction between EU institutions and Member States in the field of transport services. This paper initiates a discussion on the suitability of the extant regulatory apparatus and underscores the necessity for the establishment of an appropriate institutional framework, either centralised at the EU level or decentralised at the level of Member States, that would provide substantive rules aimed at comprehensively regulating the legal status of hybrid business models, thus allowing for more uniform conditions for their operation in the EU single market.

The target date for achieving the 2030 UN Agenda [Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)] is fast approaching. The construction sector is critical to achieving many SDGs, including Goal 5. Studies regarding achieving Goal 5 (Gender Equality) in the construction industry, especially women’s consultancy participation in developing countries, are scarce and complexly interrelated. Societal problems and divergence may have contributed to this. Therefore, this study explores issues hindering gender equality and suggests measures to promote more women construction consultants through policy to improve achieving Goal 5 in Nigeria. The research employed face-to-face data collection via a qualitative mechanism to achieve this. The study covered Abuja and Lagos. It accomplished saturation at the 20th participant. The research utilised a thematic method to analyse the collected data from knowledgeable participants. The perceived hindrances facing Nigerian construction consultants’ gender equality were clustered into culture/religion-related, profession-related, and government-related encumbrances. Achieving Goal 5 will be a mirage if these issues are not addressed. Thus, the study recommended measures to motivate women to study construction-related programmes and employment opportunities, including consultancy services slots through programmes and policy mechanisms to achieve Goal 5. As part of the implications, the study suggests that Nigerian construction consultants and other stakeholders need to make feasible improvements to achieve gender equality (Goal 5).

This paper presents an effective method for performing audio steganography, which would help in improving the security of information transmission. Audio steganography is one of the techniques for hiding secret messages within an audio file to maintain communication secrecy from unwanted listeners. Most of these conventional methods have several drawbacks related to distortion, detectability, and inefficiency. To mitigate these issues, a new scheme is presented which combines the techniques of image interpolation with LSB encoding. It selects non-seed pixels to allow reversibility and diminish distortion in medical images. Our technique also embeds a fragile watermarking scheme to identify any breach during transmission to recover data securely and reliably. A magic rectangle has also been used for encryption to enhance data security. This paper proposes a robust, low-distortion audio steganography technique that provides high data integrity with undetectability and will have wide applications in sectors like e-healthcare, corporate data security, and forensic applications. In the future, this approach will be refined for broader audio formats and overall system robustness.

This study aims to identify and the implementation of ASN Management policies on career development aspects based on the merit system in the West Java Provincial Government and 6 Regency/City Governments in West Java Province. The failure of the institutionalization of the meritocratic system in ASN career development is partly triggered by the symptoms of the appointment or selection of officials in the central and regional levels not based on their professionalism or competence except for subjective considerations, political ties, close relationships and even bribery. This study uses a qualitative method with a descriptive approach. The operationalization concept in this study uses Merilee S. Grindle's Policy Implementation theory which consists of dimensions of policy content and its implementation context. The factors that cause the implementation of the policy to be less than optimal include: 1. Uneven understanding of meritocracy; 2. Slowness/unpreparedness in synchronizing central and regional rules/policies; 3. The information integration system between the center and regions has not yet been implemented; 4. Limited supporting infrastructure; 5. Limited permits for related officials; 6. Transparency; 7. Collaboration across units/agencies; 8. External intervention; 9. Use of information systems/technology. To optimize these factors, an Accelerator of Governmental Unit's Success (AGUS) model was created, which is a development of the Grindle policy implementation model with the novelty of adding things that influence implementation, including top leader's commitment and wisdom, effectiveness of talent placement, on-point human development, technology savvy, cross-unit/agency collaboration, and monitoring and evaluation processes.