• Rural Digital Europe
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Since the turn of the century, rubber plantations have been expanding their footprint across Southeast Asia in response to an increasing global demand for rubber products. Between 2000 and 2014, the area cultivated with rubber more than doubled. It is not clear how this major change in the agricultural landscape of Southeast Asia, the main area of rubber production in the world, is affecting land‐use patterns and water resources in the region. Here we use maps of rubber plantations and other croplands in conjunction with a hydrological model and remote sensing analyses to assess land‐use patterns and water resources affected by natural rubber plantations. Results show water requirements of rubber trees are comparable to those of forests but by far exceed those of the other predominant crops and shrubland vegetation with the effect of potentially increasing water scarcity when rubber plantations replace these crops. The expansion of rubber plantations accounts for a 38 km³/yr increase in green water consumption, thereby exacerbating the monthly water scarcity, with an additional 2.4 million people and more than 0.6 Mha facing water scarcity in the driest months as a result of the increase in rubber production. Monthly runoff substantially decreases (by up to 25%) in 14% of the basins where rubber was planted. These results highlight the existence of major land use and hydrological impacts of agricultural development in Southeast Asia that affect the local environment and rural communities, calling for a more sustainable management of the limited land and water resources.

Abstract Estimation of crop water needs plays a key role in the water resource management in arid and semi-arid regions. Actual evapotranspiration (ETa) becomes the key term in both water and energy balances at this point. In this work we focus on vineyard due to the significance of this crop for La Mancha region, Spain, with the greatest concentration of vineyards in the world. Eddy-covariance (EC) technique has been traditionally used for ground observations of ETa. One of the aims of this work is to assess the feasibility of an EC system under the challenging conditions of a small drip-irrigated vineyard in a semi-arid environment. Two-source energy balance modelling allows for ETa estimation, as well as soil evaporation (E) and canopy transpiration (T) partitioning, using radiometric temperatures as a basis. A Simplified version of this Two-Source Energy Balance approach (STSEB) has been previously tested in a variety of crops and environments. The second goal of this paper is to explore now the performance of the STSEB model in a vineyard structure. Two experiments were carried out during the growing season of 2014 and 2015 in a ˜4 ha row-crop drip-irrigated Tempranillo vineyard, in a semi-arid location in Castilla-La Mancha, Spain. As a novelty in this work, a 9-m2 monolithic large weighting lysimeter was available. An eddy-covariance flux tower was deployed together with net radiation and soil heat flux instrumentation. The residual technique was selected to force the closure after an analysis of the energy imbalance based on the comparison EC-Lysimeter. Good agreement between adjusted EC measurements and lysimeter data (RMSE of ±0.09 mm h−1 and ±0.5 mm d−1 at hourly and daily scales, respectively) supports the validity of eddy-covariance technique to monitor turbulent fluxes and accurate ETa in vineyards. A set of 5 thermal-infrared radiometers were assembled to guaranty an appropriate thermal characterization of the vineyard structure required in the STSEB approach. Surface energy fluxes were modeled every hour with average estimation errors lower than ±30 W m−2 for net radiation and soil heat flux, and around ±50 W m−2 for sensible and latent heat fluxes, with systematic deviations lower than 25 W m−2 in all fluxes. Comparison with lysimeter data showed an average underestimation of 0.04 mm d-1 with a RMSE value of ±0.6 mm d-1 in modeled daily ETa. In terms of accumulated ETa for the full experiments, an underestimation of 12% in 2014 and an overestimation of 7% in 2015 were observed. These results reinforce the feasibility of the STSEB approach to monitor hourly, daily and accumulated ETa in row-crops such as vineyards. Although no ground measurements were available to assess the partitioning, separated E–T values were obtained for the full campaigns, showing a significant ratio E/ETa of 0.35−0.40 for soil evaporation.

Abstract Firm agility today is not a factor of competitiveness or success but a survival instrument on the market. Disruptive innovations and technological advancement, together with digitalization, change the role of firm agility. We show that the link between the national/industry level of digitalization and firm agility is statistically robust and essential. We study the link on data from 2009 to 2018 in fifteen EU advanced economies using dynamic panel data modeling. The digitalization impact level differs across firms by ownership type (family to non-family firms). Agility in family firms is strongly influenced by the national/industry level of digitization and investments in intangible assets (particularly the creation of own-organizational capital). Non-family firms' agility depends on investment in human capital, design, and creation of new products and minorly on national/industry digitalization level. Digitalization and gross investments in intangible assets can increase family firm agility exponentially (elasticity coefficient of 85 for-profit margins). Policymakers using policy supporting national/industry digitalization can boost economic growth significantly. Managers and practitioners targeting specific investments in intangible assets can improve and increase firm agility to large extents.

This study attempts to measure the capacity of the EU geographical certification scheme to positively influence the price of certified products and the incomes of their producers. A comparison of the economic results of two cheese-producing dairy farm enterprises with different business strategies and locations within the Sicilian hinterlands is performed in order to determine the transformation value of each dairy’s sheep milk into pecorino cheese (with and without the Protected Designation of Origin, or PDO, certification) and the related joint products (ricotta). The economic convenience of the total transformation of sheep milk into Pecorino Siciliano PDO and ricotta is also appraised. The results suggest that producing and commercializing Pecorino Siciliano PDO is a promising strategy for differentiating and promoting dairy farm products and improving the financial performance of producers, with foreseeable positive repercussions in the socioeconomically less favored rural areas where they are located.

Abstract The purpose of this article is to explore and conceptualize how Nordic principles of employee participation combined with enterprise social media/web 2.0 could enable co-creation as an input to digital transformation of healthcare services. The question of how to enable effective co-creation is both under-researched and stated as an important enabler of digitalization and service improvements. The article starts by introducing The Nordic Model for employee participation that is proven successful for enhancing working life effectiveness and innovation. We then discuss how these principles of participation can be further enhanced by state-of-the-art web 2.0 technologies for Enterprise Social Networks. Stretching this further, we exemplify with a practical template for codesign of a treatment pathway strategy.

AbstractThe interplay between internationalization and digitalization (IDI) is a relatively young research domain that is finding its way into numerous academic journals, which motivates us to systematically portray the proceedings and evolutions of this interplay over time, analyze its methodological and theoretical background and, more importantly, provide insights to guide future research on these phenomena. Combining qualitative and quantitative approaches, we analyze 68 peer-reviewed international business and management papers to explore the structure of knowledge production and identify the emerging trends. Our research reveals four key stages of the debate: (a) how IDI influencesinterorganizational aspects (1996–2004), (b) how digitalization influences the balance between perceived risk and returns in internationalization (2005–2009), (c) how digital advances and available internationalization channel alternatives influence IDI (2010–2014), and (d) how IDI influencesintraorganizational aspects (2015–2019). Moreover, our analysis reveals heterogeneity across theoretical perspectives, methods, and research themes over the years. Finally, we identify theoretical and methodological challenges related to IDI research.

espanolMonteagudo del Castillo (Teruel) esta cerca del polo de maxima tormentosidad violenta de la Peninsula Iberica. El aporte pluviometrico de estas tormentas es capaz de invertir el regimen estacional habitual del clima mediterraneo, con el verano como estacion mas lluviosa. Aqui se estudia la gestion tradicional de la arroyada en dos cuencas del termino municipal, desde la doble perspectiva riesgo/recurso: control de la erosion y aprovechamiento de la arroyada para regar prados. Para gestionar la arroyada concentrada de las tormentas se ha modificado la red de drenaje mediante acequias recolectoras y/o evacuadoras y la rectificacion de la red hidrografica natural. Las acequias de derivacion permiten la existencia de prados para ganado bovino con precipitaciones alrededor de 430 mm/ano. Se reconstruye la red de drenaje mediante trabajo de campo, fotointerpretacion y datos LIDAR, para conceptualizar los tipos de cauce, interpretar la red antropica y poder determinar las estrategias de gestion. EnglishMonteagudo del Castillo (Teruel) is near the pole of maximum violent storms of the Iberian Peninsula. The pluviometric contribution of these storms is capable of reversing the usual seasonal regime of the Mediterranean climate, with summer as the rainiest season. Here the traditional management of the stream in two basins of the municipal area is studied, from the double perspective risk/resource: control of erosion and use of the stream to irrigate meadows. To manage the concentrated stream of the storms, the drainage network has been modified through collecting and/or evacuating channels and the rectification of the natural hydrographic network. The derivation channels allow the existence of meadows for cattle with rainfall of around 430 mm/year. The drainage network is reconstructed through field work, photointerpretation and LIDAR data, to conceptualize the channel types, interpret the anthropic network and determine management strategies.

Abstract Ambient radiation and temperature are global drivers of grapevine growth, grape yield and composition, and wine quality. Knowledge of the implications of vineyard row orientation/microclimate is required for decision-making in current and future macro- and mesoclimates. Temporal and cumulative microclimatic changes, induced by vine row orientation (NS; EW; NE-SW; NW-SE) of vertically trellised Shiraz grapevines, on berry pulp temperature and composition at different ripeness levels were investigated. Berries dynamically gained heat energy relative to: ambient climate/weather; direct canopy wall/bunch irradiance; and berry skin colour development. Berries exposed to direct solar radiation during the morning, leading to higher pulp temperatures than ambient, but having a cooling profile after that, resulted in slightly advanced sugar ripening and generally higher skin total anthocyanins and phenols, without significant effects on pH and titratable acidity, at the respective ripeness levels. In contrast, excessive exposure of bunches and those that built up heat, reaching highest temperatures during late afternoon, seemed not conducive to grape composition associated with higher quality. The S, SE, E and NE canopy sides showed consistently higher skin total anthocyanin and phenol contents than their counter sides. Except for acylated forms of peonidin-glucoside, anthocyanin (mono-, acetyl- and coumaroyl-glucosides) accumulation was mostly favoured in berries exposed to exterior canopy sides, but differences in acylated anthocyanins between exterior-facing and interior-facing berries were less than for mono-glucoside anthocyanins. Over-exposure and heat peaking during late afternoon seemed detrimental. Novel information on berry pulp temperature variation in a developing composite grape bunch, exposed to weather and microclimate fluctuation, is provided. An ostensibly homogeneous bunch in reality represents a dynamic berry pulp thermal range at any point in time. Cumulative thermal and radiation impact was evident. This is the first comprehensive attestation on the role of grapevine row orientation (or any viticulture practice) in the management of seasonal nocturnal- and diurnal berry temperature and concomitant composition.

Field investigation carried out by the Sicilian botanists in the last 20 years enabled them to identify eight habitat types of high biogeographic and conservation interest, neglected by the Directive 92/43, which deservead hocconservation measures. For each of these habitats, a syntaxonomic interpretation of the corresponding plant communities, their main ecological, physiognomic and syndynamic traits and a list of diagnostic species are provided. Their classification into the macrotypes listed in the Annex I of the Directive 92/43 and the respective correspondence in EUNIS habitat classification are proposed. The habitats here described integrate those already proposed by the Italian Botanical Society, with the hope of an adequate recognition at national at supranational level.