Systems Thinking Approach to Sustainable Performance in RAMSAR Sites

Sustainable performance in tourism SMEs: a soft modeling approach

Purpose

This paper aims to present a model to incentivize sustainable performance (SUP) in small- and medium-sized tourism by strengthening inner relations to adapt to a complex environment.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors adopted the systemic approach complementing analytic, tourism, partial least squares path modeling (PLS-PM), social network analysis (SNA) and systemic approach tools as follows: frame the problem through the soft systems methodology and SNA and identify the conflicting relationships; apply PLS-PM to validate the model; and propose new interactions for small- and medium-sized enterprises conducive to SUP based on the viable system model.

Findings

Considering the results, the authors pinpointed factors and relationships managers can address to foster SUP, highlighting the need to reinforce feedback loops and reduce inconsistencies between primary operations with coordination and management mechanisms.

Research limitations/implications

This work is limited to the organizational domain. Although the results apply to the Mexican context, this could be overcome using methodological complementarity to extend the ideas to other organizations.

Practical implications

This study invites discussing methods and viewpoints for rethinking SUP because of multiple factors. This requires adopting methodological complementarity to generate alternatives and reconfiguring inner organizational interactions.

Originality/value

The model captures minimum but sufficient components advising leaders about SUP. This proposal differs from previous studies because it suggests exploiting methodological complementarity to capture the insights of key operative actors to conceive the model. Hence, the authors suggest new relations among organizational factors so managers can develop strategies for adaptability.

Decrease in the Water Level of Lake Prespa (North Macedonia) Studied by Remote Sensing Methodology: Relation with Hydrology and Agriculture

The Ohrid-Prespa lake system is the oldest and most diverse permanent lake system in Europe, dating from the Pliocene era and aged at over 4Ma. Its smaller component is Lake Macro Prespa (thereafter called Prespa), shared by North Macedonia, Albania, and Greece. Lake Prespa’s depth was reported as 14 m mean and 48 m maximum before its major water level decline. The lake is highly sensitive to external impacts, including climate change, and has been suffering major water loss for decades. A lake-level decline of almost 10 m was documented between 1950 and 2009 due to restricted precipitation and increased water abstraction for irrigation. This study describes the changes in the surface size of Prespa Lake and the vegetation/land use in the surrounding area in the period 1984–2020 using satellite images (remote sensing, Landsat 5 & 8 images by United States Geological Survey). The lake lost 18.87 km2 of surface in this period (6.9% of its size, dropping from 273.38 km2 to 254.51 km2). Water loss was greater in the period 1987–1993 and 1998–2004. The Analysis of Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) in the area (app. 4950 km2) surrounding Lake Prespa revealed an increase in the mean NDVI values over the period studied (1984–2020), pointing to a general increase in vegetation. Areas with NDVI > 0.13 increased from 78% in 1984 to 86% in 2020, while those with the highest vegetation intensity (NDVI > 0.45) increased by 40%. These changes in vegetation may be related to the water loss of the lake.

Port logistic issues and challenges in the Industry 4.0 era for emerging economies: an India perspective

Purpose

In Industry 4.0 era, many existing port logistics systems are inconsistent, old and ineffective and it restricts the effective operations of port logistics. The study aims to understand the issues faced by the players/actors of port logistics in the Industry 4.0 era for emerging economies and to develop a conceptual framework for managing the port logistics issues associated with it and by providing their possible solutions.

Design/methodology/approach

The study is divided into two parts, first part deals with identifying the major port logistics issues in Industry 4.0 era for emerging economies. It is achieved by conducting a semi-structured interview during the field visit to one of the major container handling ports in India. Second, the study adopts Soft System Methodology (SSM) to understand the issues and challenges faced by various actors of port logistics in the Industry 4.0 era and uses CATWOE analysis to identify the root causes.

Findings

Issues related to loading/unloading, transit, storage (warehouse), customs clearance, regulatory authorities, port management unit and inland transport connection providers are considered in the study and using SSM a final implementable model has been developed. This study focuses on analyzing and understanding the complete communication and organization structure of the port logistics system. The study identifies the major issues, various inefficiencies and root causes faced by various actors of port logistics during information sharing, cargo movement, the arrangement of the cargo shipments, etc. Further, the study develops a final implementable model by combining the delivery system, criteria system and Industry 4.0-enabled system.

Research limitations/implications

The study enables concerned authorities like state government, central government and policymakers to have a profound understanding of the issues faced by the actors of the port logistics system. The study brings out valuable insights that help managers and stakeholders to make informed decisions for managing the port logistics issues and develop necessary policies aimed to deliver the cargoes in right place at right time. The current study also has some limitations because of sensitivity associated with concerned areas, due to its confidentiality, lack of availability of complete data and the nonsharing attitude of respondents. Further, the study was conducted only for private container shipping terminals and public container terminals were not included.

Originality/value

This research analyzes the port logistics sector as a whole system through SSM to identify issues and challenges faced by various actors of port logistics for emerging economies in the Industry 4.0 era. The study develops a comprehensive and integrated framework for reducing the unpredictability of costs and time for key processes. Further, the framework creates a transparent platform and helps in bringing standardization to ports.

Factors to Foster Organizational Sustainability in Tourism SMEs

Small and medium-sized tourism companies (SMEs) strongly depend on their collaborators to achieve competitiveness and sustainability. In this sense, these organizations need to identify those factors that help them to use their resources and efforts to achieve the aforementioned goals. This article proposes a model oriented to organizational sustainability in the tourism sector. A systemic approach was adopted to articulate this research; therefore, the soft systems methodology was applied to structure the problem and express a conceptual model that suggests relationships as an alternative solution to the expressed problem. Partial least squares path modeling was applied to statistically validate the relationships expressed in the construct. Results suggest that the relationships proposed in the construct are valid and may promote organizational sustainability. The ideas developed are restricted to the organizational domain and although the results apply in a Mexican context, this potential limitation can be offset by the multi-methodological approach proposed, extending the model’s application to other types of organizations. This study may enable scholars and managers to improve communication and inter-organizational relationships, allowing organizations to focus their strategies and efforts using systems thinking to increase responsiveness and adaptation.

Systemic Design for Food Self-Sufficiency in Urban Areas

This article adopts a systemic approach to address the problem of the operationalization of relationships between actors conducive to food self-sufficiency in urban areas. Through the use of Social Network Analysis (SNA), the literature on urban agriculture was analyzed, detecting eight key trends and topic areas. This information was used to design a generic recursive organizational structure with the identification of the key roles and functions for management and governance in the multi-level and multi-stakeholder relationships of a sustainable urban self-sufficient food production system, inspired by the principles of complexity management and organizational cybernetics. Methodologically, this is the first application that combines the exploratory capability of SNA and the recursive structure of the Viable System Model (VSM) to propose applicable organizational structures in any urban area, suggesting a new route for the study and application of systemic thinking in the development of urban agriculture schemes. However, due to the conceptual nature of this work, this study opens a discussion on how we can rethink interactions to seek continuous adaptation in food self-sufficiency, provide tools that foster inclusion, and adapt to every context to support the relevant actors and academics in urban agriculture.