• Title/Summary/Keyword: University Sustainability Practices

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The Comparative Analysis of the Internal Control According to Economic Changes in Korean Companies

  • Park, Cheol-Soo
    • Journal of Information Technology Applications and Management
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    • v.21 no.3
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    • pp.119-133
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    • 2014
  • Prior to the 2000s, internal control had not been among the high priority issues in the management's agenda. Since then, however, it has become one of the hottest issues, and has received a significant attention as the means of improving the transparency, sustainability, and competitiveness of a company. The objectives of this paper are to examine if there has been any noticeable changes in the level of internal controls of Korean companies before and after the 2010, and to analyze the underlying drivers and issues thereto. Accounting manipulation and moral hazard were among the factors to cause the Korean financial crisis in 1997 and 2008. Since then, the capital market has had a strong pressure on Korean companies to enhance the transparency of management and accounting while the government has made the laws, requirements, and recommendations to alleviate the moral hazard problems of management and enhance the accounting transparency. Both market and government have driven companies to put more priority on the reliability of financial reporting and the compliance of applicable laws and regulations. Thereby, the market and governmental forces has led companies to enhance the level of internal controls which contribute to the reliability of financial reporting and the compliance The pressure on companies to enhance the level of internal controls may be different across industries. The capital market and government experiencing the severe financial crisis in 1997 and 2008 put even more pressure on financial companies such as banks to upgrade the reliability of financial reporting and the compliance of regulations to the global level than on non-financial companies. A survey is performed on the changes in the level of internal controls of 54 major companies consisting of 10 financial and 44 non-financial companies in Korea. The survey results show that the average level of internal controls of Korean companies has noticeably improved and that the change in the level of control environment factor is higher than that of IT control factor. The analysis on the industry differences shows that financial companies increased the level of control environment factor more than non-financial companies did while non-financial companies upgraded the level of IT control factor more than financial companies did relatively. Among internal control categories, the most improved area since the economic crisis is "Risk Assessment." The global best practices for risk management have been developed primarily in the financial industry and then spread to other industries. The general level of control practices of Korean companies has been improving significantly, but still appears below the global advanced practices.

Effect of Government Guidelines and Corporate Governance on Telework Adoption and Occupational Health Measures in Taiwanese-Listed Companies

  • Chia-Jung Li;Louise E. Anthony;Tomohisa Nagata;Yawen Cheng;Ro-Ting Lin
    • Safety and Health at Work
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    • v.15 no.2
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    • pp.164-171
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    • 2024
  • Background: Telework adoption in Taiwan has surged because of government guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study examined the disclosure practices of Taiwanese-listed companies, assessing their adherence to government telework guidelines and their correlation with corporate governance, focusing on occupational health measures. Methods: We conducted a guideline-adherent cohort analysis of the 2020 and 2021 sustainability reports of 295 Taiwanese-listed companies. We assessed their disclosure of corporate measures for teleworking in alignment with two government guidelines, specifically occupational health measures. Using the McNemar test and general estimating equation analysis, we compared the 2020 and 2021 responses and examined their associations with corporate governance rankings. Results: Telework adoption increased significantly from 2020 to 2021, with 68% of companies reporting new work modes. The mentioning of government guidelines also increased to 67% by 2021. Companies with higher governance rankings were more likely to adopt online occupational health measures, including occupational health services (RR = 2.03; 95% CI = 1.41-2.94; p < 0.001) and mental health promotion activities (RR = 2.01; 95% CI = 1.06-3.82; p = 0.032), than those with low rankings. Although on-site and online occupational health services increased, home workspace assessments did not. Conclusion: Our findings highlight significant upward trends in the disclosure of telework measures following the issuance of government guidelines. Corporate governance is significantly associated with the implementation of occupational health measures. Amid the evolution of teleworking, both government guidelines and corporate governance have become essential for shaping work arrangements and ensuring workforce well-being.

Nature-based Tourism in Small Islands Adjacent to Jakarta City, Indonesia: A case study from Seribu Islands

  • Hakim, Luchman;Hong, Sun-Kee;Kim, Jae-Eun;Nakagoshi, Nobukazu
    • Journal of Wetlands Research
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    • v.9 no.1
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    • pp.31-46
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    • 2007
  • In this paper, the nature-based tourism is described as one of the tools to achieve sustainable development in small islands. The study was carried out at Ayer, Bidadari and Onrust Islands of Kepulauan Seribu chains at Jakarta Bay, Indonesia. While the historical records show that previous uses of such islands have started at sixteen century, tourism uses was started at the beginning of 1970s. Among nature-based tourism destination in Kepulauan Seribu chains, these islands are the famous destinations and received a lot of tourists. Tourism growth at these islands has stimulated development of numerous tourism facilities and infrastructure to meet visitor satisfaction. It is observed in this study that island's site-plan destination design has contributed to the successful and sustainability of tourism in small island. The key success lies on the successful integration and implementation of three substantial perspectives into practices, namely economic, ecosystem and social perspectives. First, in order to enhance economic benefits, a site-plan design allowing floating cottages establishment to extent room availability, to build strong images as tropical paradise islands, and to enhance tourist satisfaction with the objectives of improving income and sustaining tourist loyalty to the destination. This design is also reducing land risk from tourism impact and it becomes the significant key of second perspective, the ecosystem perspective. Moreover, the ecosystem perspective has been implemented through native vegetation preservation that led island's wildlife conservation and became potential tourism attraction. The design also develops effective mechanism to manage and regulate visitor flows by establishing visitor track corridors. In implementation, such corridor plays an important role to reduce tourist density in single places and therefore become instrument to reduce severe visitor impact to wildlife, vegetation and heritages of islands. Third, the social aspect of development allowing heritages to conserve and furthermore serve numerous benefits for education, socio-political, culture, and historical studies. Through this study, it is clear that the success of these islands to continuous tourism growth lies on the island's vision to integrate economic, ecosystem and social perspectives on tourism development.

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Business Strategies of Successful Rural Retailers in Competition with Large Discount Retailers in the U.S. (대규모 할인점과 경쟁에서 성공한 미국 농촌 소매업자들 경영전략)

  • Lee, Sea-Hee;Kim, Johnson K.P.;Gahring, Sherri;Lee, Seung-Eun
    • Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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    • v.32 no.6
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    • pp.968-979
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    • 2008
  • Since community growth and vitality frequently depend on local businesses and community inhabitants depend on local retailers for their daily necessities, studying small businesses in rural areas is important to community sustainability. The purpose of our research was to investigate what marketing, merchandising, customer service, or business operation strategies were being implemented by successful independent rural retailers(i.e., clothing, jewelry, floral, hardware etc.), in competition with large discount stores in the U.S.. In addition, social capital as indicated by community involvement was examined for its use as a business strategy that contributes to the success of small retailers. In-depth interviews were conducted with 27 rural retailers representing three communities within a Midwestern state. Data were content analyzed. Participants were following several of the recommended business strategies but opportunities existed to implement changes. Results are discussed in terms of key practices followed by these successful small business owners.

Dimensions of Smart Tourism and Its Levels: An Integrative Literature Review

  • Otowicz, Marcelo Henrique;Macedo, Marcelo;Biz, Alexandre Augusto
    • Journal of Smart Tourism
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    • v.2 no.1
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    • pp.5-19
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    • 2022
  • Smart tourism is seen as a revolution in the tourism industry, involving innovative and transformative theoretical-practical approaches for the sector. As a result of its application in the tourist context, benefits can be seen such as more sustainable practices, greater mobility and better accessibility in destinations, evolution of processes and experiences of tourists. Much of this is achieved through the support of technological solutions. However, despite the immense expectations, and the many researches carried out on it, a literature summary regarding the dimensions that can be observed in each application of this smart tourism has not yet been proposed. Therefore, supported by the PRISMA recommendation, this research proposed to carry out an integrative review of the literature on smart tourism (in its different levels of application, such as the city, the destination and the smart tourism region), with the objective of mapping the dimensions that underlie it. Thus, from an initial scope of 833 intellectual productions obtained, inputs were found for the dimensions in 363 of them after a thorough analysis. The compilation of data obtained from these productions supported the proposition of 14 operational dimensions of smart tourism, namely: collaboration, technology, sustainability, experience, accessibility, knowledge management, innovation management, human capital, marketing, customized services, transparency, safety, governance and mobility. With this set of dimensions, it is envisaged that the implementation of smart tourism projects can present more comprehensive and assertive results. In addition, shortcomings and opportunities for new research that support the evolution of the theory and practice of smart tourism are highlighted.

Prospect of Sustainable Organic Tea Farming in Lwang, Kaski, Nepa (네팔 르왕지역의 지속적 유기농차 재배 방향)

  • Chang, K.J.;Huang, D.S.;Park, C.H.;Jeon, U.S.;Jeon, S.H.;Binod, Basnet.
    • Journal of Practical Agriculture & Fisheries Research
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    • v.12 no.1
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    • pp.137-150
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    • 2010
  • Traditionally, like many people in mountain region of the Himalaya, the Lwang communities depend on mix of subsistence agriculture, animal husbandry, and seasonal migrant labor for their livelihoods. These traditional systems are characterized by low productivity, diverse use of available natural resources (largely for home consumption), limited markets, and some aversion for innovation. The potential to generate wealth through commerce has largely been untapped by these mountain residents and thus is undervalued in local and national economies. Introduction of organic tea farming is a part of Lwang community's several initiatives to break the vicious poverty cycle Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) played facilitating roles in all their efforts since beginning. In five years, the tea plantation emerged as a new means for secured a livelihood. This study aims to analyze the current practices in tea farming both in terms of farm management and soil nutrient status(technical) and the prosperity of the tea farmers (social). The technical aspect covers the soil and tea leaf analysis of various nutrients contents in the soil and tea leaf. Originally, the technical aspect of the study was not planned but later during the consultation with the advisor it was taken into consideration which added value to the research study. The sample were collected from different locations and analyzed on the field itself. The other part of the study i.e. the social aspect was done through questionnaire survey and focus group discussion. the tea farming provided them not only a new opportunity but also earned an identity in the region. This initiative was undertaken as a piloting measure. Now that the tea is in production with processing unit established locally, more serious consideration has to be given for better yield and economic prosperity. This research finding will help the community to analyze their efforts and make correction measures in tea garden management and application of fertilizer. It is also expected to fill up the gaps of knowledge and information required to reduce economic stresses and enhance capacity of farmers to make the tea farming a sustainable and beneficial business. The findings are expected to Sustainability of organic tea farming has direct impacts on biodiversity conservation compared to the other traditional farming practices that are more resource intensive. The study will also contribute to identify key action points required for reducing poverty while conserving environment and enhancing livelihoods

O.P.E.N Triad: The Future Success for Individuals, Institutes, and Industries

  • Kim, Hae-Jung;Forney, Judith;Crowley, Ruth
    • Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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    • v.34 no.12
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    • pp.1980-1991
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    • 2010
  • This study proposes the O P E N Triad framework as a future set of tools and perspectives for individual members and institutes to further their professional and academic potential as well as prospect and vitalize the future of the Korean Clothing and Textiles discipline through a global perspective. The millennial generation desires On-demand, Personal, Engaging, and Networked (O P E N) experiences effecting cultural change for creative and influential interaction in transactions, communication, and education. O P E N Individuals offers a WebSphere model as a holistic learning system that has a synergizing value of education across academic courses, industries, and cultures. Through a digitalized and virtualized class, it complements relevant technologies already familiar to the student population. By employing environmental scanning approaches, the most influential and viable future global issues related to the clothing and textiles discipline are identified and dialogued within O P E N Institutes. For future clothing and textiles institutes, this scanning allows them to be open to new ideas, to focus on inter-engagements, to collaborate among individuals, to associate as a part of web of people, organizations, and ideas, to personalize an institutes curricula, and to dialogue generative knowledge. O P E N Industries reveals three dominant future issues that cross academia and industry, sustainability, supply chain management, and social networking. In-depth interviews with U.S. industry experts identified interdependent gaps in global consumer experience practices and suggested the following gaps as future research areas: a standardized business model to the entrepreneurial model, strategic management to a sustainable competitive advantage, standardized to differentiated products, services and operations, market segmentation to global consumer clusters, business-driven marketplaces to consumer-engaged marketspaces, and excellent services to optimal experience. This O P E N Triad framework empowers millennial students, universities, and industries to anticipate and prepare for a radically changing world.

Use of Recycled Brick Masonry Aggregate (RBMA) and Recycled Brick Masonry Aggregate Concrete (RBMAC) in Sustainable Construction

  • Tara L. Cavalline;David C. Weggel;Dallas E. Schwerin
    • International conference on construction engineering and project management
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    • 2013.01a
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    • pp.390-390
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    • 2013
  • Use of recycled aggregates in portland cement concrete construction can offer benefits associated with both economy and sustainability. Testing performed to date indicates that RBMA can be used as a 100% replacement for conventional coarse aggregate in concrete that exhibits acceptable mechanical properties for use in structural and pavement elements, including satisfactory performance in some durability tests. RBMAC is currently not used in any type of construction in the United States. However, use of RBMAC could become a viable construction strategy as sustainable building practices become the norm. Rating systems such as LEED offer points for reuse of building materials (particularly on-site) and use of recycled materials. If renovations at an existing facility call for the demolition of existing brick masonry constructions, the rubble could be included as RBMA in new concrete pavement, sidewalks, or curb and gutter. Other potential uses for RBMAC could include those in the precast concrete industry, particularly in architectural precast concrete applications. In addition to providing acceptable strength and economy, the color of RBMA could be an attractive component of architectural precast concrete panels or other façade components. This paper explores the feasibility of use of RBMAC in several types of sustainable construction initiatives, based upon the findings of previous work with RBMAC produced from construction and demolition waste from a case study site. Guidance for obtaining and using RBMA is presented, along with a summary of material properties of RBMAC that will be useful to construction professionals.

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Exercising The Traditional Four-Step Transportation Model Using Simplified Transport Network of Mandalay City in Myanmar (미얀마 만달레이시의 단순화된 교통망을 이용한 전통적인 4단계 교통 모델에 관한 연구)

  • Wut Yee Lwin;Byoung-Jo Yoon;Sun-Min Lee
    • Journal of the Society of Disaster Information
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    • v.20 no.2
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    • pp.257-269
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    • 2024
  • Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explain the pivotal role of the travel forecasting process in urban transportation planning. This study emphasizes the use of travel forecasting models to anticipate future traffic. Method: This study examines the methodology used in urban travel demand modeling within transportation planning, specifically focusing on the Urban Transportation Modeling System (UTMS). UTMS is designed to predict various aspects of urban transportation, including quantities, temporal patterns, origin-destination pairs, modal preferences, and optimal routes in metropolitan areas. By analyzing UTMS and its operational framework, this research aims to enhance an understanding of contemporary urban travel demand modeling practices and their implications for transportation planning and urban mobility management. Result: The result of this study provides a nuanced understanding of travel dynamics, emphasizing the influence of variables such as average income, household size, and vehicle ownership on travel patterns. Furthermore, the attraction model highlights specific areas of significance, elucidating the role of retail locations, non-retail areas, and other locales in shaping the observed dynamics of transportation. Conclusion: The study methodically addressed urban travel dynamics in a four-ward area, employing a comprehensive modeling approach involving trip generation, attraction, distribution, modal split, and assignment. The findings, such as the prevalence of motorbikes as the primary mode of transportation and the impact of adjusted traffic patterns on reduced travel times, offer valuable insights for urban planners and policymakers in optimizing transportation networks. These insights can inform strategic decisions to enhance efficiency and sustainability in urban mobility planning.

Effect of Planting Patterns on the Cultivation of Eggplant (Solanum melongena) and Marigold (Tagetes erecta) for the Activation of Eco-Friendly Rooftop Urban Agriculture (친환경 옥상 도시농업 활성화를 위한 배식모형에 따른 가지(Solanum melongena)와 메리골드(Tagetes erecta) 식재효과)

  • Jae-Hyun Park;Sang-Il Seo;Deuk-Kyun Oh;Yong-Han Yoon;Jin-Hee Ju
    • Journal of Environmental Science International
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    • v.33 no.6
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    • pp.417-425
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    • 2024
  • This study investigated the effects of various planting models on the joint cultivation of eggplant (Solanum melongena) and marigold (Tagetes erecta)to enhance sustainable rooftop urban farming. Rooftop agriculture is increasingly valued to boost the food supply and benefit the environment. Integrating such practices into urban planning is viewed as a way to sustainably manage resources and improve the food-energy-water cycle in cities. The experiment was conducted on a rooftop in Chungju, South Korea from May to August. Four different planting setups were used: central eggplant with peripheral marigold (SET), eggplant with a protective net (SIC), central marigold with peripheral eggplant (TES), and control with only eggplant (CON S). These models tested the effects of companion planting versus monoculture using a lightweight soil mix ideal for rooftops made from cocopeat and perlite and enriched with organic fertilizer. Measurements focused on soil conditions and plant health and assessed soil temperature, moisture, conductivity, plant height, width, and leaf size. The results indicated that the SET modelyielded the best growth. This setup benefited from marigold pest control properties and its ability to improve soil conditions by enhancing moisture and nutrient levels and aiding eggplant growth. These findings underscore the potential of mixed planting on rooftops and suggest that such approaches can be effectively incorporated into urban agriculture to boost yield and environmental sustainability. This study supports the idea that diverse planting methods can significantly affect plant growth and promote urban greening and food security.