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Publications

Publications by CITE

2025

Institutional challenges in water reuse and circularity: insights from co-creation processes in Southern Europe and Middle East

Authors
Matos, MV; Fidélis, T; Sousa, MC; Riazi, F; Miranda, AC; Teles, F;

Publication
WATER POLICY

Abstract
The transition to the water circular economy (WCE) requires several stakeholders' awareness, articulation, and action involving complex governance concerns. As a participatory approach to identifying problems, designing solutions, and implementing strategic actions, the co-creation process should support stakeholder involvement to adjust existing institutional arrangements to foster the WCE. This article designs and applies a co-creation process to analyse the perception of key stakeholders about institutional challenges for water reuse and explore their contributions to innovate policy, planning, and governance for the implementation of new water reuse technology in Almendralejo (Spain), Lecce (Italy), Omis (Croatia), and Eilat (Israel). The findings indicate that implementing a new water loop encounters complex institutional and production-related obstacles, which different stakeholders address in varying ways. Moreover, the proposed solutions to the on-site issues identified emphasise the need for actions that foster engagement and collaboration, particularly to enhance awareness, training, and regulation. Addressing these challenges associated with adopting new water loops, even when technical, may depend on non-technical solutions regarding the institutional framework. The co-creation processes highlight the importance of focusing on institutional arrangements and stakeholder awareness while implementing new water loops to ensure and promote symbiotic territories that consider the policy, producers', and users' strategies.

2024

Responsible Consumption and Production in the Context of Sustainable Cities: The Contributions of French Municipalities

Authors
Almeida, F;

Publication
Sustainable Smart Cities and the Future of Urban Development

Abstract
Municipalities are key players in their role as sustainable development planners and have a responsibility to change behavior at the local level. This study uses a panel of French municipalities to explore their role in promoting responsible consumption and production practices. A questionnaire was set up to obtain data from 186 citizens, of which 77 come from rural areas and 109 from urban zones. The findings reveal that French municipalities have a wide influence on the consumption and more responsible production of individuals through their actions. They encourage inhabitants to reduce energy and water consumption, waste management, and local and organic consumption. French citizens are mainly influenced by social and economic factors, while political and marketing factors are of little relevance. Furthermore, there are no differences in the importance and involvement of citizens in responsible consumption and production actions between rural and urban municipalities. © 2025 by IGI Global Scientific Publishing. All rights reserved.

2024

Editorial: Performing a structural equation modeling (SEM) in innovation science studies

Authors
Almeida, F;

Publication
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INNOVATION SCIENCE

Abstract
[No abstract available]

2024

Contributions of Municipal Initiatives to Digital Health Equity

Authors
Almeida, F;

Publication
WORLD

Abstract
Sustainable initiatives play a crucial role in promoting digital health equity by addressing barriers to access and ensuring equitable use of digital health technologies and services. These initiatives may arise in various contexts, including local collaborative networks that emerge in the municipal context. This study aims to identify and characterize the municipal initiatives that have been developed in Portugal to promote digital health equity. It adopts a mixed methods approach to initially quantify the distribution of these projects in the Portuguese territory and, at a later stage, to understand the level of influence of these projects, considering their impact on individual, interpersonal, community, and societal levels. The findings identified 22 municipal sustainable initiatives and concluded that there is a strong relationship between the areas of community and individual influence. The results of this study are relevant to deepening the knowledge of bottom-up innovation in the digital health field and establishing public policies to increase the impact of these projects at the territorial level, the communities involved, and the social objectives addressed, contributing to greater social cohesion.

2024

Exploring the Differences and Similarities between Smart Cities and Sustainable Cities through an Integrative Review

Authors
Almeida, F; Guimaraes, CM; Amorim, V;

Publication
SUSTAINABILITY

Abstract
This study adopts an integrative review approach to explore the differences and similarities between smart cities and sustainable cities. The research starts by performing two systematic literature reviews about both paradigms and, after that, employs a thematic analysis to identify key themes, definitions, and characteristics that differentiate and connect these two urban development concepts. The findings reveal more similarities than differences between the two paradigms. Despite this, some key differences are identified. Smart cities are characterized by their use of advanced information and communication technologies to enhance urban infrastructure, improve public services, and optimize resource management. In contrast, sustainable cities focus on environmental conservation, social equity, and economic viability to ensure long-term urban resilience and quality of life. This study is important because it clarifies both concepts and highlights the potential for integrating smart and sustainable city strategies to address contemporary urban challenges more holistically. The findings also suggest a convergence towards the concept of 'smart sustainable cities', which leverage technology to achieve sustainability goals. Finally, this study concludes by identifying research gaps and proposing a future research agenda to further understand and optimize the synergy between smart and sustainable urban development paradigms.

2024

Entrepreneurs’ decision-making in sustainable open innovation practices

Authors
Almeida, F;

Publication
The International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation

Abstract
Entrepreneurs’ decision-making in sustainable open innovation practices holds significant relevance in fostering environmentally conscious and socially responsible business strategies. Sustainable decision-making not only aligns with ethical principles but also addresses pressing global challenges such as climate change and resource depletion. This study aims to characterize the decision-making role played by entrepreneurs in the context of the open innovation paradigm and to understand the factors that influence entrepreneurial performance. A quantitative methodology supported by Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling was adopted, considering a sample of 407 startups incubated in science and technology parks. After that, a mixed-methods approach was employed to explore the differences between sectors of activity, in which 4 ventures were involved. The results confirm that of the 9 hypotheses formulated in the relationship between the constructs, only innovation novelty is not significant for sustainable open innovation management processes, unlike innovation openness. This study offers theoretical and practical implications for startups that intend to use open innovation networks to integrate environmental and social considerations into the core of business strategies.

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