The Potential Contribution of Wood in Green Building Certifications

The building sector has a significant impact on the environment, accounting for 36% of CO2 emissions and about half of material consumption in Europe. Residential buildings dominate the European building stock. In Finland, residential buildings account for up to 80% of the existing buildings and the rate of construction is higher compared to other building types. Therefore, residential buildings play an important role in the transition to a sustainable built environment. A number of studies show that increasing the use of wood can lower the life cycle environmental impacts of buildings. In Scandinavia, the use of wood in small houses is well established, used in 90% of cases. Furthermore, the increasing number of high-rise wooden buildings suggests a growing interest in the potential of wood in large-scale buildings. Green building certification provides criteria to assess the sustainability level of buildings and is expected to influence the building sector in the near future, by promoting the use of sustainable technologies. The aim of this study was to investigate how green building certification schemes assess wood materials and how wood materials can help fulfil sustainability criteria for green buildings. We analyse the sustainability criteria adopted by the most common certification schemes in Finland, BREEAM, LEED and the Nordic Swan Ecolabel, as well as the upcoming Level(s) certification promoted by the European Commission. The analysis shows that the contribution of wood materials to the overall score of green building certifications accounts for between 10 and 36%. Wood is advantageous as a renewable and low-carbon material. Furthermore, wood can offer indirect benefits due to its recycling potential and to water saving in the construction stage. However, wood materials have to comply with some requirements, such as sustainable forest management and low volatile organic compound content. The new European certification suggests a comprehensive assessment including circular material life cycles.

APLICACIÓN DE LA CELULOSA BACTERIANA EN EL DISEÑO DE PRODUCTOS: UN CAMINO A LA SUSTENTABILIDAD

Los niveles de contaminación ambiental provocados por la industria han sobrepasado la capacidad del planeta, en este resultado tiene una responsabilidad importante el diseñador de productos, por ello juega un papel sustancial la ética del diseñador en lo que respecta a la sustentabilidad. Las innovaciones de los biomateriales brindan una oportunidad en esa reivindicación, es así que, la investigación pretende a través de la aplicación de la celulosa bacteriana obtener nuevas posibilidades para la industria del diseño y cuidado del medio ambiente reduciendo los niveles de basura que generan los materiales comunes, debido a que este material celulósico es considerado como sustentable y de carácter renovable. Se planteó el desarrollo de los productos a través de la ruta metodológica ARZ, que coloca los criterios de sustentabilidad como eje de inicio y final al momento de plasmar la necesidad, ideación, venta, uso y desuso del nuevo producto. Como resultado se obtuvo un biomaterial con características fisicoquímicas y mecánicas que permitieron la aplicación en tres series de productos: calzado, carteras y bisutería. La sustentabilidad es la opción del nuevo pensamiento productivo del diseño y de los diseñadores, es decir, crear con responsabilidad social y ambiental. Palabras clave: Celulosa bacteriana, biomateriales, diseño ético, diseño sustentable, diseño de producto. AbstractThe levels of environmental pollution caused by the industry have exceeded the capacity of the planet. The product designer has an important responsibility for this result, therefore, the ethic of the designer takes a substantial role related to sustainability. The innovations of biomaterials provide an opportunity in this claim, and so, this research aims to obtain new possibilities for the design industry and care for the environment through the application of bacterial cellulose in order to reduce the levels of waste that is generated by the common materials because this cellulosic material is considered sustainable and renewable. The development of the products was proposed through the ARZ methodological route that places the sustainability criteria as the starting and ending axis at the moment of reflecting the need, ideation, sale, use, and obsolescence of the new product. Consequently, a biomaterial is obtained with physicochemical and mechanical characteristics that allowed its application in three series of products: footwear, handbags, and costume jewelry. Sustainability is the option of the new productive thought of the design, as well as the designers; that means, creating with social and environmental responsibility.Keywords: Bacterial cellulose, biomaterials, ethical design, product design, sustainable design.

Ranking the Performance of Universities: The Role of Sustainability

University rankings assess the performance of universities in various fields and aggregate that performance into a single value. In this way, the aggregate performance of universities can be easily compared. The importance of rankings is evident, as they often guide the policy of Higher Education Institutions. The most prestigious multi-criteria rankings use indicators related to teaching and research. However, many stakeholders are now demanding a greater commitment to sustainable development from universities, and it is therefore necessary to include sustainability criteria in university rankings. The development of multi-criteria rankings is subject to numerous criticisms, including the subjectivity of the decision makers when assigning weights to the criteria. In this paper we propose a methodology based on goal programming that allows objective, transparent and reproducible weighting of the criteria. Moreover, it avoids the problems associated with the existence of correlated criteria. The methodology is applied to a sample of 718 universities, using 11 criteria obtained from two prestigious university rankings covering sustainability, teaching and research. A sensitivity analysis is carried out to assess the robustness of the results obtained. This analysis shows how the weights of the criteria and the universities’ rank change depending on the λ parameter of the goal programming model, which is the only parameter set by the decision maker.

SUSTAINABILITY FACTORS INFLUENCING TOURISTS’ DESTINATION CHOICE DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

As recent studies show, tourists increasingly favour hotels and other tourism businesses that adopt more sustainable practices. This trend has arguably been intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic. Indeed, due to the restrictions regarding crowded places and closed spaces, a lot of tourists have (re)discovered nature. In this context, the present study aims to analyse tourists’ evaluation of sustainability criteria and willingness to pay for items when choosing a destination during the COVID-19 pandemic. To this end, previously validated scales for sustainability criteria and willingness to pay (for a sustainable destination) were tested, through a confirmatory approach, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this context, data was collected through a survey questionnaire (n=567) with Portuguese tourists and subjected to a Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). The findings show that the factors hold their dimensionality, convergent validity, and reliability in the context of Portuguese tourists travelling during the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, a newly proposed item, related to the importance given to the inclusion of local producers in the tourism industry’s supply chain, was validated. The findings also show that, especially when it comes to willingness to pay, factors with a direct effect on tourists’ experience are significantly more valued. Additionally, the results point to a slightly different outlook on sustainability criteria by Portuguese tourists, which is likely related to the context of the pandemic. Finally, the findings provide useful insights for destination managers aiming to attract tourists with a more sustainable behaviour.

Adaptation of the Lean 6S Methodology in an Industrial Environment under Sustainability and Industry 4.0 Criteria

Industry 4.0 paradigms have a positive influence on standard operating procedures, methodologies used in Lean Manufacturing techniques and management models with sustainability criteria. Interdependencies and correlations have been found between Lean systems and Industry 4.0. The Lean principles of avoiding waste and zero defects are related to the cloud and big data paradigms. In a current workplace, there has been an exponential increase in digital information and the need to generate direct commitments to environmental management. This situation forces us to innovate and improve the management methodologies and models used in the industrial environment. The Lean 6S methodology must adapt and respond to new demands. In this work, an update of the Lean 6S methodology is carried out to guarantee increased productivity in the workplace through the organization of industrial resources, both physical and digital. A revision of the implementation procedure is proposed, which includes activities that generate a direct commitment to sustainability and the organization of digital information, through a proposal for an organizational architecture of Industry 4.0 technologies.