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This study aims to explore how civil society contributes to the promotion, governance, and sustainability of urban forests, particularly through its interactions with local governments and the private sector. Drawing on a qualitative analysis of 118 urban forest projects in Portugal, the research identifies the key civil society actors involved and examines mechanisms of collaboration in urban forest governance. Findings highlight that sustainable urban forests are most effective when managed as socioecological systems co-governed by multiple stakeholders. Practices such as knowledge co-production, participatory policy design, and community-driven action emerged as central elements. NGOs, associations, and universities play a crucial role as intermediaries, forming “green social infrastructures” that connect technical expertise with local aspirations. The study also reveals innovative forms of adaptive governance, including living labs and regenerative multi-actor networks. However, it identifies a critical weakness: the lack of formal integration of these collaborative practices into urban planning instruments. Theoretically, the study reinforces hybrid and experimental governance frameworks. Practically, it calls for public policies that institutionalise collaborative networks, ensuring continuity and systemic impact. The role of government as a strategic facilitator is emphasised to link grassroots innovation with long-term urban planning. © 2025 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.

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The main aim of this chapter is to study the digital touchpoints influencing customers' decisions in the five-star hospitality industry. This chapter adopted a qualitative methodology in the form of semi-structured interviews. The findings suggest the preeminent role of online travel agencies and hotel websites as the two most powerful touchpoints influencing the decision-making of the customer and serving as the principal means of making the reservation at the hotel. It also stresses the growing influence of customer-owned touchpoints, particularly user-generated content, in influencing customer perception. This research emphasizes the significance of personalized engagement in influencing customer satisfaction and loyalty. Overall, the study presents practical managerial implications for hoteliers, offering insights on how to effectively interact with customers at each stage of their journey, thereby enhancing both service delivery and overall guest experience. © 2025, IGI Global Scientific Publishing. All rights reserved.

Abstract
Spatio-temporal prediction tasks play a crucial role in facilitating informed decision-making through anticipatory insights. By accurately predicting future outcomes, the ability to strategize, preemptively address risks, and minimize their potential impact is enhanced. The precision in forecasting spatial and temporal patterns holds significant potential for optimizing resource allocation, land utilization, and infrastructure development. While existing review and survey papers predominantly focus on specific forecasting domains such as intelligent transportation, urban planning, pandemics, disease prediction, climate and weather forecasting, environmental data prediction, and agricultural yield projection, limited attention has been devoted to comprehensive surveys encompassing multiple objects concurrently. This article addresses this gap by comprehensively analyzing techniques employed in traffic, pandemics, disease forecasting, climate and weather prediction, agricultural yield estimation, and environmental data prediction. Furthermore, it elucidates challenges inherent in spatio-temporal forecasting and outlines potential avenues for future research exploration.

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