Impact of research on maize production challenges in Hungary

Maize (Zea mays L), as a major cereal crop produced in Hungary in addition to wheat, attracts enormous research from both educational and non-educational institutions. Research is aimed at addressing the key abiotic, biotic and social economic constraints. The stakeholders and institutions involved in research are spread all over Hungary. Currently, no review has been done to comprehensively reveal the trend of maize research in Hungary, as well as key players such as institutions, universities, industry and researchers. Hence, this bibliographic review was conducted to: i) identify the major research institutions and their contribution towards maize research in Hungary; ii) evaluate the major maize research areas in Hungary between 1975 and 2022. Literature search was conducted in Web of Science (WoS) database using keywords; 'maize' OR 'maize' + 'Research' + 'Hungary'. Bibliometric analyses were performed using the VOSviewer software. Changes in the publication trend of documents was tested using Mann Kendall Test. A total of 947 publications related to the topic were published by 441 institutions between 1975 and 2022. There was a significant (p = 0.001) positive increase in the number of published documents. Hungarian Academy of Science (210 documents) and University of Debrecen (132 documents) recorded the highest number of publications contributing 58.7% of the maize research literature in Hungary. The major research areas included: increasing maize yield, hybrid development, pests and diseases, irrigation, fertilization (nitrogen), drought, temperature, gene expression and climate change. The increasing number of published documents signifies an improved response to addressing maize production challenges through research in order to boost its productivity.

Assessment of the environmental kuznets curve within EU-27: Steps toward environmental sustainability (1990-2019)

Reducing environmental pollution is a critical goal in global environmental economics and economic development. The European Union (EU) faces environmental challenges due to its development activities. Here we present a comprehensive approach to assess the impact of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, energy consumption (EC), population structure (POP), economy (GDP), and policies on the environment within the EU using the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC). Our research reveals that between 1990 and 2019, the EU-27 experienced an increase of +1.18 million tonnes of oil equivalent (Mtoe) per year in energy consumption (p < 0.05), while CO2 emissions decreased by 24.25 million tonnes (Mt) per year (p < 0.05). The highest reduction in CO2 emissions occurred in Germany (-7.52 Mt CO2 annually), and the lowest in Latvia (-0.087 Mt CO2 annually). The empirical EKC analysis shows an inverted-U shaped relationship between GDP and CO2 emissions in the EU-27. Specifically, a 1% increase in GDP results in a 0.705% increase in carbon emission, while a 1% increase in GDP2 leads to a 0.062% reduction in environmental pollution in the long run (p < 0.01). These findings indicate that economic development within the EU has reached a stage where economic growth positively impacts the environment. Overall, this study provides insights into the effectiveness of environmental policies in mitigating degradation and promoting green growth in the EU 27 countries.