Category
climate-and-environment
694 entries tagged climate-and-environment.
Articles — 664
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The Path to Smart Farming: Innovations and Opportunities in Precision Agriculture
Precision agriculture uses advanced technologies like IoT, drones, sensors, and machine learning to boost crop yields while reducing environmental damage. This review examines recent innovations in smart farming and identifies key challenges: managing large datasets, getting farmers to adopt new technologies, and controlling costs. The approach addresses critical agricultural problems including feeding growing populations sustainably.
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Nanotechnology in Agriculture: Which Innovation Potential Does It Have?
Nanotechnology offers significant potential to improve agriculture by enhancing productivity and food security while reducing environmental harm. Nanomaterial-based systems—including controlled-release nutrient delivery, pesticide application, and nanosensors for monitoring soil and food quality—can support sustainable intensification and waste management. These innovations address agricultural challenges while promoting economic and social equity.
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Beyond agricultural innovation systems? Exploring an agricultural innovation ecosystems approach for niche design and development in sustainability transitions
This paper argues that agricultural innovation systems need to adopt an ecosystems approach to better support sustainability transitions. The authors show that innovation ecosystems thinking enhances traditional approaches by emphasizing power dynamics, including diverse actors and ecological factors, and enabling cross-sector collaboration. This framework enables design of transboundary innovation niches that support sustainable agriculture across multiple scales and paradigms.
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Technological Innovations, Downside Risk, and the Modernization of Agriculture
A randomized experiment in India demonstrates that a flood-tolerant rice variety increases agricultural productivity by encouraging farmers to adopt complementary modern practices. The technology reduces downside risk, prompting greater use of labor-intensive planting methods, expanded cultivation area, increased fertilizer application, and higher credit utilization. Most productivity gains stem from these crowding-in effects, showing that risk-reducing technologies unlock broader agricultural modernization.
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Digital innovations for sustainable and resilient agricultural systems
Digital innovations are transforming agriculture by enabling farms to increase productivity, reduce environmental impact, and build resilience. However, realizing these benefits requires addressing economic, social, and ethical challenges. The paper recommends specific policies to maximize opportunities while mitigating risks, and identifies priorities for future agricultural economics research.
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Social innovation and sustainability; how to disentangle the buzzword and its application in the field of agriculture and rural development
Social innovation is widely cited as crucial to agricultural and rural development, yet its meaning remains unclear. This paper identifies three main interpretations: innovation's social mechanisms, innovation's social responsibility, and society's need for innovation. The concept appears more relevant to rural development than agriculture alone, particularly regarding sustainable production, collaboration, and social renewal. However, social innovation is often presented as a vague bundle of processes and outcomes, which weakens its critical potential. The paper argues for clearer definition to better support and monitor social innovation's actual contribution to social change.
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Edible Mushroom Cultivation for Food Security and Rural Development in China: Bio-Innovation, Technological Dissemination and Marketing
China's mushroom cultivation sector has grown rapidly over 30 years, now employing over 25 million farmers and generating 24 billion USD annually. The industry has shifted from forest collection to farming using diverse materials including agricultural waste. The paper examines how bio-innovation, technology dissemination, and marketing drive this growth, demonstrating mushroom cultivation's contribution to food security and rural development while supporting sustainable agriculture and forestry.
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SUPPORTING AGRICULTURAL INNOVATION IN UGANDA TO RESPOND TO CLIMATE RISK: LINKING CLIMATE CHANGE AND VARIABILITY WITH FARMER PERCEPTIONS
Farmers in southwest Uganda perceived significant climate change over 20 years, reporting increased temperatures and greater rainfall variability, particularly in the March-May season. Climate data confirmed rising temperatures but showed less dramatic rainfall changes than farmers reported. The study reveals gaps between farmer perceptions and meteorological measurements stem from different definitions of risk—farmers focus on rainfall distribution for crop production while scientists measure long-term statistical means. Understanding these differences improves communication about climate risk to support agricultural innovation.
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Learning and Innovation Networks for Sustainable Agriculture: Processes of Co-evolution, Joint Reflection and Facilitation
Agricultural innovation requires moving beyond top-down knowledge transfer from researchers to farmers. This editorial introduces research on Learning and Innovation Networks for Sustainable Agriculture (LINSA), where farmers actively participate as innovators rather than passive technology adopters. The papers examine how joint learning and reflection among diverse actors—researchers, advisors, and producers—can support sustainable agricultural transitions and strengthen institutional support for collaborative innovation in rural Europe.
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Shaping agricultural innovation systems responsive to food insecurity and climate change
Agricultural innovation systems must adapt to climate change and food insecurity by learning from smallholder farmers' strategies in developing countries. The paper examines three regional cases and identifies four key features that strengthen food security: recognizing agriculture's multiple functions, ensuring access to diversity for resilience, building decision-maker capacity at all levels, and maintaining sustained commitment to farmer well-being. These insights guide policymakers in reshaping innovation systems.
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Organic agriculture in Africa: a source of innovation for agricultural development
Organic agriculture in Africa generates innovations that advance agricultural development across the continent. The paper examines how organic farming practices create new solutions for farming systems, resource management, and food production. These innovations emerge from African farmers' adaptation to local conditions and constraints, offering pathways for sustainable agricultural improvement that benefit rural communities and food security.
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Local institutions and indigenous knowledge in adoption and scaling of climate-smart agricultural innovations among sub-Saharan smallholder farmers
Local institutions and indigenous knowledge systems significantly improve how smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa adopt and scale climate-smart agricultural innovations. Development programs succeed when they build on existing indigenous practices rather than replace them, enhance information sharing, mobilize local resources, strengthen stakeholder networks, and develop farmer capacity. Participatory approaches that treat rural communities as active partners in designing adaptation programs produce better scaling outcomes.
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Environmental regulation, agricultural green technology innovation, and agricultural green total factor productivity
Environmental regulations in Chinese provinces drive agricultural green technology innovation and productivity gains, but the effect depends on regional economic development levels. In poorer regions, regulations have minimal impact. As regions develop economically, environmental regulations increasingly spur green innovation and boost agricultural productivity. Regulations affect overall productivity more than technology adoption alone.
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Climate‐Smart Innovations and Rural Poverty in Ethiopia: Exploring Impacts and Pathways
Conservation agriculture practices reduce rural poverty in Ethiopia, particularly in rainfall-stressed areas. Minimum tillage and cereal-legume intercropping effectively lower poverty incidence and depth by mitigating climate risks. However, crop residue retention alone provides limited economic benefit. The study cautions against overstating conservation agriculture's universal benefits and recommends tailored, portfolio-based approaches rather than rigid prescriptions.
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Innovation, Cooperation, and the Perceived Benefits and Costs of Sustainable Agriculture Practices
Farmers' adoption of sustainable agriculture practices depends on their perceptions of benefits and costs, shaped by social networks and cooperation. The study shows that innovation spreads through farmer networks, and perceived advantages—environmental, economic, or social—drive adoption decisions. Cooperation among farmers strengthens commitment to sustainable methods, while perceived costs and risks create barriers to change.
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Innovations in Climate Risk Management: Protecting and Building Rural Livelihoods in a Variable and Changing Climate
Rural farmers face climate risks from both extreme weather and missed opportunities in favorable years. The paper argues that effective climate risk management combines three innovations: rural climate information services that help farmers make production decisions, decision support systems that translate climate data into actionable institutional guidance, and index-based insurance and credit products that protect livelihoods and enable technology adoption. These approaches together address immediate poverty while building long-term climate resilience.
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Transitions in water harvesting practices in Jordan’s rainfed agricultural systems: Systemic problems and blocking mechanisms in an emerging technological innovation system
Water harvesting innovation in Jordan's rainfed agriculture faces three major barriers: insufficient funding, fragmented government vision, and institutional problems that prevent technology legitimization. The study reveals that donor interventions, informal land tenure laws, and cultural institutions significantly shape innovation outcomes. Effective policy requires integrated approaches, better donor coordination, and recognition that informal institutions hold equal weight to formal ones in developing countries.
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Multiple adoption of climate-smart agriculture innovation for agricultural sustainability: Empirical evidence from the Upper Blue Nile Highlands of Ethiopia
Smallholder farmers in Ethiopia's Upper Blue Nile Highlands adopt multiple climate-smart agriculture innovations when they have larger farms, access to credit, frequent extension contact, market access, secure land tenure, climate awareness, and formal education. Farm size, financial services, extension visits, information access, and perceived benefits of reducing climate risks drive adoption of practices like crop rotation, agroforestry, and soil conservation. Policymakers should scale portfolios of location-specific innovations through strengthened extension systems.
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Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation, Spatial Spillover and Agricultural Green Development—Taking 30 Provinces in China as the Research Object
Agricultural science and technology innovation significantly promotes green agricultural development in China through spatial spillover effects. Using panel data from 30 Chinese provinces (2006–2019), the study finds that innovation improvements benefit both individual provinces and neighboring regions. Eastern provinces show declining green development while southwestern provinces improve. The research demonstrates that increased agricultural science and technology investment generates positive spillover effects across provincial boundaries, supporting evidence-based regional policy design.
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Rural tourism entrepreneurship success factors for sustainable tourism village: Evidence from Indonesia
This study identifies ten success factors for sustainable rural tourism villages in Indonesia through interviews with key actors in six award-winning tourism villages. The factors—including income management, business development, collaboration, innovation, and environmental awareness—cluster into economic, social, and environmental sustainability dimensions. The research produces a framework for rural tourism entrepreneurship that can guide strategy and decision-making in other villages.
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Social Innovation for Sustainability Transformation and its Diverging Development Paths in Marginalised Rural Areas
Social innovation—collaborative responses from civic society to societal challenges—drives sustainable development in marginalised rural areas facing biophysical limits and funding shortages. Analysis of 211 social innovation examples and 11 in-depth cases identified four distinct development paths for social innovation. The research shows that social innovation requires both local and external actors, but depends critically on internal local activity and knowledge to succeed in transforming marginalised rural communities.
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Re-designing irrigated intensive cereal systems through bundling precision agronomic innovations for transitioning towards agricultural sustainability in North-West India
Researchers tested bundled precision farming innovations in irrigated cereal systems across North-West India, combining subsurface drip irrigation with conservation agriculture. Systems with drip irrigation achieved 13% higher profitability in rice-wheat rotations and 5% in maize-wheat rotations compared to flood-irrigated alternatives, even without subsidies, while improving agricultural sustainability.
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Agricultural innovation and resilience in a long-lived early farming community: the 1,500-year sequence at Neolithic to early Chalcolithic Çatalhöyük, central Anatolia
Archaeobotanical evidence from Çatalhöyük reveals how an early farming community sustained itself for 1,500 years through continuous agricultural innovation. The community's resilience came from three factors: a diverse initial crop spectrum that provided options for later adoption, household-level experimentation enabled by modular social structure, and an agglomerated settlement that allowed successful innovations to spread community-wide. Minor crops and contaminants were recruited as major staples over time, demonstrating flexible cropping strategies that sustained long-term productivity.
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Does Directed Innovation Mitigate Climate Damage? Evidence from U.S. Agriculture
Innovation in U.S. agriculture has shifted toward crops increasingly exposed to extreme temperatures since the mid-twentieth century, driven by adaptation-focused technologies. This directed innovation significantly reduces economic damage from temperature extremes at the county level. The authors estimate that innovation has offset 20% of potential agricultural land value losses from climate trends since 1960 and could offset 13% of projected damage by 2100, demonstrating that technological adaptation provides meaningful but incomplete protection against climate change.
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Innovation, cooperation, and the structure of three regional sustainable agriculture networks in California
Wine grape growers in three California regions form networks that support sustainability through multiple mechanisms: central actors diffuse innovations, closed triangles solve cooperation problems, and boundary-spanning ties connect specialized system components. Network structures vary by region based on geography and institutional history, affecting capacity to respond to environmental change.
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How digitalisation interacts with ecologisation? Perspectives from actors of the French Agricultural Innovation System
French agricultural actors—conventional farmers, organic farmers, and digital technology promoters—all engage with agricultural digitalization, but they perceive different benefits and risks. Organic and conventional actors implement distinct innovation processes despite apparent convergence. Digital actors fail to recognize these differences in perception, which risks excluding organic farming and agroecology from digital development benefits.
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Learning and Innovation in Agriculture and Rural Development: The Use of the Concepts of Boundary Work and Boundary Objects
Boundary work and boundary objects—tools that bridge different groups and perspectives—drive learning and innovation in multi-actor agricultural networks. Analysis of six case studies shows these mechanisms take diverse forms depending on context and goals, helping align conflicting viewpoints, secure external support, and advance sustainable agriculture. Skilled facilitation of boundary work strengthens both internal network cohesion and external communication.
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Progress and Innovations in Hydrogels for Sustainable Agriculture
Hydrogels—water-absorbing polymer networks—offer a sustainable solution to agriculture's major challenges: water scarcity, pesticide overuse, and soil degradation. These materials improve crop resilience and yields by retaining soil moisture, enabling controlled nutrient delivery, and enhancing seed germination. Hydrogels reduce irrigation needs while increasing productivity, though regulatory frameworks must address safety, biodegradability, and long-term environmental impacts.
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Innovation for sustainability through co-creation by small and medium-sized tourism enterprises (SMEs): Socio-cultural sustainability benefits to rural destinations
Tourism SMEs in rural Norwegian destinations co-create sustainable innovations with local stakeholders, generating socio-cultural benefits for their communities. Through practices like local sourcing, education, and resource sharing, these businesses strengthen rural sustainability. The study shows that rurality's defining features—local embeddedness, personal relationships, and trust—enable SMEs to collaborate effectively and improve quality of life in their destinations.
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Developing a Conceptual Partner Matching Framework for Digital Green Innovation of Agricultural High-End Equipment Manufacturing System Toward Agriculture 5.0: A Novel Niche Field Model Combined With Fuzzy VIKOR
This paper develops a partner matching framework for agricultural equipment manufacturers pursuing digital green innovation. Using niche theory and fuzzy VIKOR analysis, the authors identify three core elements—technology superposition, mutual benefit, and mutual trust—that enable knowledge transfer from research institutes to industry. The framework helps manufacturers select innovation partners and implement digital green strategies in high-end equipment development.
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Revealing power dynamics and staging conflicts in agricultural system transitions: Case studies of innovation platforms in New Zealand
Innovation platforms in New Zealand's agricultural sector reveal how power dynamics shape agricultural transitions toward sustainability. When actors strategically stage conflicts of interest, they can shift power relations from one-sided to mutual dependency, enabling actors to acknowledge and solve disagreements. Platforms that fail to stage conflicts maintain antagonistic power relations and block progress. The research shows that power relations are dynamic, context-specific forces that fundamentally shape transition outcomes, not merely tools wielded by incumbent actors.
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Climate change stimulated agricultural innovation and exchange across Asia
Climate cooling events across Eurasia between 3750 and 2000 years ago reduced crop yields and forced ancient farmers to innovate. Farmers on the Tibetan Plateau and Central Asia diversified their crops in response. Chinese farmers developed new cropping systems and grain transport networks connecting north and south. In areas with worse conditions, communities shifted toward pastoralism and long-distance trade networks. These innovations emerged directly from farmers adapting to climate-driven productivity losses.
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Business models for maximising the diffusion of technological innovations for climate-smart agriculture
Current business models for delivering climate-smart agricultural technologies fail to optimize diffusion because they misalign with farmer needs. The study identifies critical gaps in value propositions, distribution channels, customer relationships, resources, partnerships, and cost structures. Innovation providers and potential users hold conflicting views about what works. The authors recommend redesigning business models to better match farmer adoption requirements and accelerate climate-smart agriculture uptake.
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Digital Economy, Agricultural Technology Innovation, and Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity
The digital economy significantly boosts agricultural green total factor productivity in China by driving agricultural technology innovation. Western China experiences stronger positive effects than Central and Eastern regions. The study uses quantitative methods to measure productivity and technology variables, finding that digital economy development directly increases agricultural efficiency while reducing environmental impact, supporting China's climate goals.
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Understanding Farmers’ Adoption of Sustainable Agriculture Innovations: A Systematic Literature Review
Farmers adopt sustainable agriculture innovations at low rates globally, especially in the Global South. This systematic review examines sociopsychological factors driving adoption decisions. Researchers find that existing models rely on constructs borrowed from other sectors and repeat variables like attitude and subjective norms while neglecting agriculture-specific factors like knowledge. The review concludes that better-tailored determinants and context-specific measurements are needed to explain farmer adoption behavior.
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Why we should rethink ‘adoption’ in agricultural innovation: Empirical insights from Malawi
This study challenges the standard adoption framework for measuring agricultural innovation in Malawi. Using participatory research, the authors show that farmer decision-making around conservation agriculture is dynamic, multidimensional, and contextual—not the linear process assumed by typical technology transfer models. They identify four key factors shaping adoption: social dynamics, contextual costs and benefits, risk aversion, and practice adaptation. Effective scaling requires building on existing farming systems and knowledge.
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Responsible Agricultural Mechanization Innovation for the Sustainable Development of Nepal’s Hillside Farming System
Nepal's 2014 Agricultural Mechanization Promotion Policy attempted to shift from industrial mechanization favoring flat farmland toward small-scale mechanization for hillside farming. The policy addressed smallholder production challenges, gender inequality, and farmer exclusion that prior mechanization efforts had ignored. However, the study finds it remains unclear whether the policy actually delivers sustainable agricultural development in Nepal's hills and mountains.
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Effects of local institutions on the adoption of agroforestry innovations: evidence of farmer managed natural regeneration and its implications for rural livelihoods in the Sahel
Farmer-managed natural regeneration (FMNR)—where farmers actively control tree growth on their farms—significantly improves rural livelihoods across the Sahel by increasing cash income, cereal production, and caloric intake. Local institutions shape FMNR adoption unevenly: strong, independent formal and informal institutions encourage collaboration and resource management, while institutions perceived as government extensions discourage participation. FMNR works as both a productive practice and safety net across all dryland regions studied.
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The Evolutionary Game Analysis of Multiple Stakeholders in the Low-Carbon Agricultural Innovation Diffusion
This paper uses evolutionary game theory to model interactions between agricultural enterprises, government, and farmers in adopting low-carbon farming technologies. The analysis shows that government subsidies and carbon taxes effectively incentivize enterprises and farmers to participate in low-carbon agriculture. The findings provide evidence for designing targeted policies that accelerate the diffusion of sustainable agricultural innovations.
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Place-based landscape services and potential of participatory spatial planning in multifunctional rural landscapes in Southern highlands, Tanzania
Rural communities in Tanzania's southern highlands benefit most from landscape services related to social gathering sites and cultivation. Participatory mapping methods effectively engaged 313 local residents in identifying and spatializing these services, revealing that cultural services cluster in small areas while provisioning services reflect biophysical patterns. Workshops demonstrated that maps and satellite imagery empower communities to express spatial opinions and participate in landscape planning, offering practical value for data-scarce regions.
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Big Data and Climate Smart Agriculture-Status and Implications for Agricultural Research and Innovation in India
Big data analytics can accelerate agricultural research and innovation for climate-smart agriculture in India. Climate-smart agriculture integrates technologies and practices that boost farm productivity and incomes while building resilience to climate change and reducing emissions. The paper argues that combining big data analytics with climate science enables farmers and scientists to make data-driven decisions at the farm level, transforming agriculture toward sustainability and climate resilience.
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Cash crops and food security : contributions to income, livelihood risk and agricultural innovation
Cash crops drive food security and rural development in developing countries by generating income, employment, and agricultural investment. They stimulate innovation and institutional growth that enable commercialization. However, farmers must manage significant risks including price volatility, pests, and drought. Successful cash crop strategies require balancing production with food crops and implementing risk management approaches. Cash crops remain central to sustainable agricultural intensification that increases productivity while preserving soil and ecosystems.
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Reconnecting Farmers with Nature through Agroecological Transitions: Interacting Niches and Experimentation and the Role of Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems
Farmers in Almeria's greenhouse sector reconnect with nature through agroecological practices like biological control, soil health management, and ecological restoration. The study shows that experimental niches within conventional agricultural systems help farmers develop deeper ecosystem understanding and transition toward sustainability. By engaging with nature-based practices, farmers gain ecosystem services and move away from industrial agriculture's disconnection from natural systems.
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Sustainability in Vietnam: Examining economic growth, energy, innovation, agriculture, and forests' impact on CO2 emissions
Vietnam's rising energy consumption and economic growth directly increase CO2 emissions, but technological innovation, improved agricultural practices, and forest expansion can reduce them. The study analyzed 30 years of data and found that renewable energy adoption, technology innovation, sustainable agriculture, and forest management policies can help Vietnam achieve environmental sustainability while balancing economic development.
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The transformative innovation potential of cellular agriculture: Political and policy stakeholders’ perceptions of cultured meat in Germany
German political and policy stakeholders recognize that conventional animal agriculture faces serious environmental and economic problems, but they doubt cultured meat will transform the food system soon. The study identifies drivers and barriers to cellular agriculture adoption, finding that while stakeholders understand change is necessary, they view large-scale transition to cell-based farming as unlikely in the near term.
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How Can Innovation in Urban Agriculture Contribute to Sustainability? A Characterization and Evaluation Study from Five Western European Cities
Urban agriculture in five Western European cities generates innovations driven by specific problems farmers aim to solve. The study identified 147 novelties across environmental, social, and economic dimensions, with more innovations in environmental and social areas than economic ones. External stakeholders significantly supported these projects. The research demonstrates that greater innovativeness directly enhances overall sustainability outcomes in urban agriculture.
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Innovations in Sustainable Agriculture: Case Study of Lis Valley Irrigation District, Portugal
Portuguese agricultural innovation in the Lis Valley Irrigation District reveals a gap between policy frameworks and practical outcomes. The Rural Development Program's narrow definition of innovation fails to capture social innovation and process improvements essential to agriculture. The study shows that implementing water management innovations for sustainability requires policy reform to align agricultural priorities with environmental protection and rural development goals.
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Modeling the Effects of Agricultural Innovation and Biocapacity on Carbon Dioxide Emissions in an Agrarian-Based Economy: Evidence From the Dynamic ARDL Simulations
This study examines how agricultural innovation, energy use, income, and biocapacity affect carbon dioxide emissions in Nigeria from 1981 to 2014. Agricultural innovation and energy use increase emissions, while higher income and biocapacity reduce them long-term. The research confirms the environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis and shows agricultural innovation accounts for nearly half of CO2 emission changes. The authors recommend prioritizing energy efficiency, clean energy adoption, and ecosystem management to address climate change.
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Inter-regional innovation in Brazilian agriculture and deforestation in the Amazon: income and environment in the balance
Agricultural innovation in Brazil between 1985 and 1995 had mixed effects on deforestation and farm income. Innovation outside the Amazon reduced deforestation while innovation inside the Amazon increased it, resulting in no net change to overall deforestation rates. Livestock productivity improvements proved most influential for deforestation outcomes. Technological advances outside the Amazon, particularly for small farms in the Northeast, boosted agricultural income, improved income distribution, and limited forest loss.
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Agricultural Innovation and Sustainable Development
Global agriculture faces existential challenges that require innovation to achieve sustainable development. The paper examines how agricultural innovation can address these challenges and contribute to sustainability goals. It analyzes the relationship between technological advancement in farming and broader sustainable development objectives.
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A research agenda for evaluating living labs as an open innovation model for environmental and agricultural sustainability
Living labs—collaborative spaces where stakeholders co-create and test innovations in real-world settings—show promise for addressing environmental and agricultural challenges. This paper presents a research agenda developed through expert consultation to identify gaps in how living labs are evaluated and made effective. The authors find that living labs remain underutilized in environmental and agricultural sectors and call for better understanding of stakeholder diversity, evaluation methods, and conditions that enable their success.
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Innovations in Modern Nanotechnology for the Sustainable Production of Agriculture
Nanotechnology offers sustainable solutions for agriculture by enabling targeted delivery of nutrients, pesticides, and fungicides through nanomaterials. These innovations address crop losses from pests, disease, and poor soil quality while reducing environmental damage from conventional farming. Nanoparticles improve plant growth, crop quality and yield, and disease management to meet growing global food demand.
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Place-Based Stewardship Education: Nurturing Aspirations to Protect the Rural Commons
Place-based stewardship education in rural Michigan schools significantly increased middle school students' environmental sensitivity, responsible behaviors, community attachment, and civic confidence. Students developed stronger identification with their communities and commitment to protecting local natural resources. The program successfully linked classroom learning to collective environmental action, expanding students' aspirations to contribute meaningfully to their communities' futures.
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Applicability of diffusion of innovation theory in organic agriculture
The authors argue that diffusion of innovation theory can effectively explain how organic farming spreads and is adopted by agricultural communities. Organic farming emerged as an innovation addressing environmental problems and rural development challenges. The theory helps analyze organic farming systems by accounting for their unique characteristics and how knowledge about these practices transfers among farmers. The authors conclude the framework is applicable to studying organic farming adoption.
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The Impact of Technological Innovations on Agricultural Productivity and Environmental Sustainability in China
Technological innovations significantly boost agricultural productivity in China, especially in more developed provinces. The study analyzed data from 2012 to 2022 and found that rural education, technological capability, and environmental conservation initiatives all matter. Sustainable farming practices and targeted policies are essential for balancing productivity gains with environmental protection and reducing regional disparities.
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Eco-efficiency and agricultural innovation systems in developing countries: Evidence from macro-level analysis
This study examines how agricultural innovation systems contribute to eco-efficiency across 79 developing countries. The researchers found that public research spending significantly boosts eco-efficiency in emerging economies, while foreign aid for extension services matters most in less developed countries. Foreign aid for research showed no significant effect. The findings demonstrate that effective agricultural innovation requires context-specific policy interventions tailored to each country's development level, rather than uniform global approaches.
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Climate, insurance and innovation: the case of drought and innovations in drought-tolerant traits in US agriculture
Crop insurance in US agriculture reduces innovation in drought-tolerant traits by approximately 23 percent, despite farmers increasing innovation activities in response to climate variation. Subsidized insurance weakens this adaptive response, potentially undermining long-term agricultural resilience to climate change by discouraging the development of climate-adapted crops.
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Agricultural Innovations for Sustainable Crop Production Intensification
Sustainable crop production intensification requires linking farmers' local knowledge with science-based innovations through institutional arrangements. The paper reviews agronomic practices supporting sustainable systems, including crop selection, ecosystem-based farming, pest management, nutrient management, and irrigation technologies. It proposes seven contextual changes that demand examination of how agricultural innovation occurs and spreads to farm level.
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Path mechanism and spatial spillover effect of green technology innovation on agricultural CO2 emission intensity: A case study in Jiangsu Province, China
Green technology innovation directly reduces agricultural carbon emissions and creates positive spillover effects in neighboring regions. Energy structure optimization and agricultural industry agglomeration both strengthen this effect, though using both mechanisms simultaneously may reduce agglomeration's benefits. The study uses Jiangsu Province data to demonstrate that managing technology transfer between regions while accounting for spatial spillover effects can effectively reduce agricultural emissions.
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Stimulating small-scale farmer innovation and adaptation with Participatory Integrated Climate Services for Agriculture (PICSA): Lessons from successful implementation in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean and South Asia
PICSA is a participatory approach that trains smallholder farmers to use climate and weather information for agricultural decision-making. Evaluations across seven countries show 87% of trained farmers made beneficial changes to crops, livestock, or livelihoods. The approach succeeds by treating farmers as decision-makers, tailoring information to local contexts, and strengthening extension and meteorological services. Over 200,000 farmers in 23 countries have been trained, and the method is now integrated into policy and training programs.
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Impact of agricultural technological innovation on total-factor agricultural water usage efficiency: Evidence from 31 Chinese Provinces
Agricultural technological innovation significantly improves water usage efficiency across Chinese provinces from 2000 to 2020. The study finds that Chinese provinces achieved 13.56% growth in total-factor agricultural water usage efficiency, driven primarily by technological change rather than efficiency improvements. Sprinkler technology and water conservation practices boost efficiency, while larger farm scales reduce it. These findings guide policymakers toward sustainable water management through agricultural technology adoption.
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The Digital Economy, Green Technology Innovation, and Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity
The digital economy significantly increases agricultural productivity in China, with green technology innovation strengthening this effect. Using provincial data from 2011 to 2020, the study finds that digital economy development boosts overall agricultural total factor productivity and that green technology adoption amplifies this benefit. The impact varies by region, with eastern China experiencing greater gains than western areas.
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Global investment gap in agricultural research and innovation to meet Sustainable Development Goals for hunger and Paris Agreement climate change mitigation
Agricultural research and development investments must increase by $4 billion annually, plus $6.5 billion yearly for climate-smart farming technologies, to end global hunger by 2030 and meet Paris Agreement climate targets. The analysis models how conservation tillage, improved nitrogen use, better livestock management, and other sustainable practices reduce greenhouse gas emissions while cutting hunger to 5% worldwide.
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Barriers to Sustainable Business Model Innovation in Swedish Agriculture
Swedish agriculture faces declining farm numbers and employment while regulatory demands and sustainability expectations increase. This qualitative study of six family farms identifies barriers preventing farmers from adopting sustainable business model innovation. The research finds that barriers are external, internal, and contextual in nature, explaining why Swedish farmers rarely pursue sustainable business model innovation despite its proven benefits for creating sustainable businesses and societies.
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Transforming Agricultural Productivity with AI-Driven Forecasting: Innovations in Food Security and Supply Chain Optimization
AI-driven forecasting models, including machine learning and deep learning, transform agricultural productivity and food supply chains by enabling real-time crop monitoring and resource optimization. Integration of IoT, remote sensing, and blockchain technologies improves decision-making across European hydroponic systems and Southeast Asian aquaponics. AI also enhances food preservation through advanced processing techniques. However, data quality, model scalability, and prediction accuracy remain significant barriers, especially in data-poor regions. Success requires context-specific implementations and public-private collaboration.
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Barriers to the Adoption of Innovations for Sustainable Development in the Agricultural Sector—Systematic Literature Review (SLR)
This systematic review of 48 scientific articles identifies 51 barriers preventing agricultural innovation for sustainability. The most common obstacles are lack of supportive policies, epistemic closure, unfavorable regulations, and unskilled labor. External barriers (28) outnumber internal ones (23), with organic agriculture, genetic engineering, and precision agriculture emerging as leading innovations. The authors argue that policymakers can address 17 of the 28 external barriers through targeted regulations, incentives, and guidelines.
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The green side of social innovation: Using sustainable development goals to classify environmental impacts of rural grassroots initiatives
Rural grassroots social innovations across Europe and the Mediterranean region deliver measurable environmental benefits. Analyzing 238 initiatives, the researchers found that 68% directly address sustainable development goals, with the strongest impacts in natural resource management, sustainable food production, and land access. The study demonstrates that SDG classification effectively categorizes and communicates the environmental value of community-led rural innovations.
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Effectiveness of Climate-Smart Agriculture Innovations in Smallholder Agriculture System in Ethiopia
This study evaluated how climate-smart agriculture innovations affect smallholder farmers in Ethiopia's highlands. Using data from 424 farmers, researchers found that improved crop varieties, compost, row planting, and agroforestry simultaneously boost food security, climate adaptation, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Crop rotation and soil conservation each delivered two of these three benefits. Crop residue management failed to meet the targets. The authors recommend farmers adopt a portfolio combining improved varieties, crop rotation, compost, row planting, soil conservation, and agroforestry.
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Systemic Innovation Areas for Heritage-Led Rural Regeneration: A Multilevel Repository of Best Practices
This paper analyzes 20 case studies of heritage-led rural regeneration projects across multiple countries. Using the Community Capitals Framework, researchers identified six systemic innovation areas that enable successful capital transfer in these projects. The study created a repository of best practices showing how cultural and natural heritage drives economic growth, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability in rural communities, positioning culture as essential to sustainable rural development.
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Firms’ eco-innovation and Industry 4.0 technologies in urban and rural areas
Rural firms eco-innovate more than urban firms despite lower digital adoption, but urban location amplifies the eco-innovative impact of Industry 4.0 technologies. The study analyzed European firms and found that rural areas show unexpected strength in environmental innovation, though urban firms better leverage digital tools for eco-innovation purposes.
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Making technological innovations accessible to agricultural water management: Design of a low-cost wireless sensor network for drip irrigation monitoring in Tunisia
Researchers developed an affordable, open-source wireless soil moisture sensor for drip irrigation monitoring in Tunisia. The device addresses barriers to water management technology adoption by eliminating high costs and technical complexity that prevent farmers from using commercial sensors. Field testing over a growing season showed the low-cost sensor performs comparably to commercial alternatives and enables real-time irrigation monitoring and water management decisions.
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Addressing the paradox – the divergence between smallholders’ preference and actual adoption of agricultural innovations
Smallholder farmers in Rwanda prefer certain tree species for agroforestry but don't adopt them without enabling conditions. The study identifies five critical requirements for adoption: available quality inputs, compatibility with existing farming systems, climate resilience, simple management, and market access. National one-size-fits-all strategies fail; instead, tailored approaches addressing specific constraints for priority species in different agroecological zones drive sustainable adoption.
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“Communities in the middle”: Interactions between drivers of change and place-based characteristics in rural forest-based communities
Rural forest-based communities in the middle of the United States—neither wilderness nor urban edges—face common shocks including industrial decline, demographic change, climate change, and new energy demands. The paper shows that communities respond differently based on interactions between local conditions and larger drivers of change. Three development trajectories emerge, shaped by the resource base, connectivity to other places, and social adaptability. The framework identifies vulnerabilities, opportunities, and novel recombinations as key to understanding how these communities adapt.
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An agent-based model of agricultural innovation, land-cover change and household inequality: the transition from swidden cultivation to rubber plantations in Laos PDR
This paper models how smallholder farmers in northern Laos transitioned from shifting cultivation to rubber plantations. Using agent-based modeling fitted to historical land-cover data and household interviews, the researchers found that rubber adoption increased household inequality over time. The model explains both the timing of adoption decisions and the widening wealth gaps that resulted from unequal uptake of the new crop.
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Rural entrepreneurs behaviors towards green innovation: Empirical evidence from Bangladesh
Rural entrepreneurs in Bangladesh adopt green innovation when they have environmental concern and perceive the technology as easy to use. The intention to use green energy technology, particularly solar energy, mediates the relationship between environmental concern and adoption, and between attitude and adoption. However, perceived ease of use directly influences adoption without requiring intention as a mediator. The study identifies environmental concern and usability as key drivers for sustainable green SMEs in rural Bangladesh.
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Addressing soil salinity for sustainable agriculture and food security: Innovations and challenges in coastal regions of Bangladesh
Soil salinity threatens Bangladesh's coastal agriculture and food security, affecting 30% of arable land. Traditional mitigation methods fail to address the problem effectively. The paper proposes climate-smart agriculture and microbial-assisted phytoremediation using endophytic bacteria as innovative solutions that enhance plant growth and nutrient absorption under salinity stress, supporting sustainable food production and poverty alleviation.
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Toward Sustainability: Novelties, Areas of Learning and Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Urban agriculture in U.S. cities generates innovations across four key areas: financing, production technology, market development, and social acceptance. Researchers interviewed practitioners in New York, Philadelphia, and Chicago to identify how they overcome obstacles and drive change. The study finds that urban agriculture novelties can enhance positive impacts on cities and create opportunities for social learning and broader societal transformation.
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Automation and AI in Precision Agriculture: Innovations for Enhanced Crop Management and Sustainability
AI and automation technologies in precision agriculture significantly improve crop monitoring, resource efficiency, and yields. Drones, autonomous tractors, AI-driven irrigation, and predictive analytics increase crop health assessment accuracy by 30–50 percent, boost yields by 5–15 percent while reducing water and fertilizer use by 25–40 percent, and cut labor costs by 20–40 percent. However, scalability, affordability for small farms, and data privacy remain barriers. Future integration of 5G, blockchain, and edge computing could enhance decision-making and transparency.
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Using nature-based water storage for smallholder irrigated agriculture in African drylands: Lessons from frugal innovation pilots in Mozambique and Zimbabwe
Smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe and Mozambique can access water for irrigation from shallow sand river aquifers using low-cost well-points and solar pumps, costing under $1,000 per 0.2 hectares. Pilots show water availability is not the constraint; instead, success depends on farmers' prior experience, market access, and willingness to adopt individual commercial farming rather than traditional communal irrigation schemes. The approach scales gradually as farmers expand operations.
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Effects of perceptions on adoption of climate-smart agriculture innovations: empirical evidence from the upper Blue Nile Highlands of Ethiopia
Smallholder farmers in Ethiopia's Upper Blue Nile Highlands adopt climate-smart agriculture innovations like improved crop varieties, soil conservation, and agroforestry when they perceive these practices increase productivity, enhance soil fertility, and reduce climate vulnerability. Positive perceptions about benefits for food security and climate adaptation drive adoption. The study recommends strengthening farmer awareness through extension services and local institutions to boost CSA uptake.
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Exploring potential climate-related entrepreneurship opportunities and challenges for rural Nigerian women
Rural women in southwest Nigeria recognize climate change impacts on their livelihoods and show strong interest in entrepreneurship as adaptation. Crop farmers demonstrate the highest climate awareness. Women report soil fertility loss, unpredictable rainfall, and extended dry seasons severely affecting their activities. The study identifies technological, institutional, and infrastructural innovations as opportunities to build adaptive capacity and entrepreneurship, emphasizing the need for government support and collaboration between local authorities, community organizations, and public-private actors.
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Modelling and optimization of an off-grid hybrid renewable energy system for electrification in a rural areas
This paper designs and optimizes an off-grid hybrid renewable energy system to electrify three villages in Karnataka, India. Using genetic algorithms and HOMER Pro software, the authors compared four hybrid configurations combining biogas, biomass, solar, wind, and fuel cells with battery storage. The optimal system achieved zero unmet load at $0.163 per kilowatt-hour, reducing total system costs and emissions while outperforming conventional optimization methods.
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Design and environmental sustainability assessment of small-scale off-grid energy systems for remote rural communities
This study designs and evaluates 21 off-grid renewable energy systems for a rural Philippine community using life cycle assessment. Hybrid solar-wind systems with storage reduce environmental impacts 17–40% compared to stand-alone installations. Batteries create major environmental burdens, accounting for up to 88% of impacts. Community micro-grids with wind turbines and household solar panels combined with shared lithium-ion batteries emerge as the most environmentally sustainable configuration for remote rural electrification.
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Economic feasibility analysis and optimization of hybrid renewable energy systems for rural electrification in Peru
Hybrid solar-wind-diesel systems provide the most economically viable option for electrifying remote Peruvian villages without grid access. Analysis of three communities in different climatic zones shows hybrid configurations achieve the lowest net present costs while generating 94-97% renewable energy and reducing CO2 emissions to 2.7-9.9% of diesel-only systems. These optimal designs serve as templates for similar rural electrification projects.
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Feasibility Study and Comparative Analysis of Hybrid Renewable Power System for off-Grid Rural Electrification in a Typical Remote Village Located in Nigeria
This study designs and evaluates a hybrid renewable energy system combining hydro, solar, wind, diesel, and battery storage to electrify a remote village in Nigeria without grid connection. Using simulation modeling, researchers compared multiple energy combinations and found that a hybrid hydro/PV/wind/diesel/battery system delivered the lowest cost and highest environmental performance, achieving 77% renewable energy with minimal emissions while meeting electricity demand affordably.
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Innovation in Management Plans for Community Conserved Areas: Experiences from Australian Indigenous Protected Areas
Australian Indigenous Protected Areas demonstrate innovative management approaches that integrate traditional ecological knowledge with contemporary conservation practices. These community-conserved areas develop adaptive management plans that balance environmental protection with Indigenous land rights and economic development. The study documents how Indigenous communities innovate in governance structures and planning processes to achieve conservation outcomes while maintaining cultural and livelihood benefits.
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Community-owned renewable energy (CRE): Opportunities for rural Australia
Community-owned renewable energy projects offer rural Australia opportunities to address climate change, support community development, and strengthen rural economies. A STEEP analysis of case studies reveals significant potential, but realizing these benefits at scale requires supportive government policy at both state and federal levels.
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Grassroots Innovation Using Drones for Indigenous Mapping and Monitoring
Indigenous communities in Peru, Guyana, and Panama are adopting drone technology for territorial mapping and monitoring to defend their lands against illegal resource extraction and environmental degradation. Five implemented projects demonstrate that drones enable indigenous peoples to document environmental damage, strengthen territorial claims, and pursue environmental justice. The technology shows promise as a grassroots innovation tool that supports both indigenous rights protection and sustainable land management.
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Driving rural energy access: a second-life application for electric-vehicle batteries
Retired electric vehicle batteries can power rural energy grids in developing countries more cheaply and sustainably than current lead-acid systems. The authors model how batteries from EVs sold through 2020 will generate 120–549 GWh of storage capacity by 2028, sufficient to support community-scale microgrids. Four economic scenarios across different battery chemistries show feasible deployment pathways that could significantly expand electrification in remote areas.
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Caring for country and sustainable Indigenous development: Opportunities, constraints and innovation
Indigenous community-based natural resource management in northern Australia generates both conservation and economic benefits. When Indigenous people actively manage their land, they achieve favorable fire regimes, control weeds, and harvest wildlife while producing income through arts, crafts, and commercial enterprises. The paper argues that removing barriers to Indigenous participation in these activities and providing equitable public support creates sustainable economic development that reduces Indigenous disadvantage while protecting biodiversity.
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Climate change and small-scale agriculture in Africa: Does indigenous knowledge matter? Insights from Kenya and South Africa
Small-scale farmers in Kenya and South Africa use indigenous knowledge to predict weather, manage rainfall, preserve seeds, and adapt farming practices to climate change impacts. The study of 115 respondents shows local communities deploy traditional methods effectively to cope with adverse environmental conditions. The authors argue that combining indigenous knowledge with modern science creates stronger agricultural strategies for African farmers facing climate change.
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Economic Viability and Socio-Environmental Impacts of Solar Home Systems for Off-Grid Rural Electrification in Bangladesh
Solar home systems in rural Bangladesh prove economically viable and environmentally beneficial. Systems above 30 watts capacity generate positive returns with payback periods and internal rates of return between 16% and 131%. These systems work best for micro-enterprises and low-income households, not just lighting use. Over 20 years, they avoid 6–7 tonnes of CO2 emissions while delivering lighting, health, information, and economic benefits.
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Indigenous agricultural knowledge: A neglected human based resource for sustainable crop protection and production
Indigenous agricultural practices in Ethiopia significantly improve crop production and reduce reliance on expensive chemical inputs. Farmers use traditional seed selection, pest management, and soil conservation methods adapted to local rainfall, soil, and crop conditions. Education level, marital status, and farming experience influence adoption of these practices. Documenting and scientifically validating indigenous knowledge could promote sustainable, organic farming and lower agriculture's environmental impact.
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Design, Simulation, and Economic Optimization of an Off-Grid Photovoltaic System for Rural Electrification
This paper designs and optimizes an off-grid solar photovoltaic system for a rural house in Morocco. The system combines 1080 Wp of solar panels with battery storage and a diesel generator backup, achieving 79% solar coverage and electricity costs of $0.57/kWh. Further optimization reduces costs to $0.356/kWh by lowering solar capacity, demonstrating how renewable energy systems can provide affordable, clean power to rural African communities.
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Economic evaluation of a hybrid renewable energy system (HRES) using hybrid optimization model for electric renewable (HOMER) software—a case study of rural India
This paper designs a hybrid renewable energy system for a rural Indian village of 450 households using solar, biogas, and agricultural waste. The researchers modeled the system with HOMER software to optimize energy generation and costs. The analysis shows the system can deliver electricity at $0.032/KWh with a net present cost of $76,837, providing a practical blueprint for rural electrification through coordinated solar pumps, biogas plants, and street lighting.
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Scoping exercise to determine load profile archetype reference shapes for solar co-generation models in isolated off-grid rural African villages
This paper develops realistic hourly energy consumption profiles for isolated rural villages in Southern Africa to support solar micro-CHP system design. The researchers created time-series load profiles for thermal and power demand in typical off-grid villages, accounting for current reliance on firewood, biomass, candles, and kerosene. These profiles enable accurate computer modeling and testing of hybrid solar systems as viable electrification solutions for remote communities.
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Integrating meteorological and indigenous knowledge-based seasonal climate forecasts for the agricultural sector : lessons from participatory action research in sub-Saharan Africa
This paper examines how combining meteorological data with indigenous climate knowledge improves seasonal forecasts for agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa. Through participatory action research, the authors demonstrate that integrating local knowledge systems with scientific forecasting creates more effective and culturally relevant climate predictions that farmers can use to make better agricultural decisions.
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Voluntary Simplicity, Involuntary Complexities, and the Pull of Remove: The Radical Ruralities of off-Grid Lifestyles
Off-grid residents in Canada's Yukon pursue voluntary simplicity by disconnecting from electricity, water, gas, and other infrastructure networks. However, the paper argues this lifestyle is not freely chosen but shaped by biographical and geographical constraints. The daily complexities of off-grid living create paradoxical, marginal spaces that reveal how residents navigate contradictions between their simplicity values and the demanding realities of their chosen isolation.
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Reducing vulnerability of rain‐fed agriculture to drought through indigenous knowledge systems in north‐eastern Ghana
Farmers in north-eastern Ghana reduce drought vulnerability in rain-fed agriculture by using indigenous knowledge systems. They plant multiple drought-resistant crop varieties, stagger planting across farms, apply organic manure, control soil erosion with grass strips and stone terracing, and adopt paddy farming for water conservation. The paper recommends integrating these indigenous practices into district development and climate adaptation planning.
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Enhancing Sustainable Production and Genetic Resource Conservation of Bambara Groundnut: A Survey of Indigenous Agricultural Knowledge Systems
Bambara groundnut is underutilized in Africa despite high market value and potential for commercial production. Researchers surveyed indigenous farming practices in Ghana's Upper West region to document traditional knowledge about crop production and genetic resource conservation. The study found that local farmers possess valuable knowledge about variety selection, pest management, and germplasm conservation. The findings identify research and extension priorities for improving production while preserving locally adapted varieties.
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Feasibility study of hybrid energy system for off-grid rural electrification in southern Pakistan
A hybrid renewable energy system combining photovoltaic, wind, and diesel power with battery storage can reliably electrify remote villages in southern Pakistan. For a 100-household village, this configuration delivers 205 kWh daily at 0.45 $/kWh, reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 69%, and achieves 84% renewable energy penetration. The system remains feasible across varying environmental and economic conditions.
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Techno-economic assessment of a hybrid renewable energy storage system for rural community towards achieving sustainable development goals
This paper evaluates a hybrid renewable energy system combining solar, battery storage, hydrogen, and fuel cells for a rural community in Bangladesh without grid access. The optimized system costs $25,099 and produces energy at $0.34/kWh, delivering clean electricity while supporting sustainable development. The authors conclude that scaling such systems requires government support and investment in rural developing regions.
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Renewable Energy Sources microgrid design for rural area in South Africa
A photovoltaic battery microgrid system provides cheaper and cleaner electricity access than grid extension for rural South Africa. Researchers analyzed the Umhlabuyalingana municipality, where only 20% of residents have electricity. The PV-battery microgrid costs $0.378/kWh with zero emissions and 100% renewable energy, compared to grid extension at $0.328/kWh with significant carbon emissions. The microgrid becomes economically viable within 34 km, making it ideal for dispersed rural communities far from existing power lines.
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Techno-economic optimization and sensitivity analysis of off-grid hybrid renewable energy systems: A case study for sustainable energy solutions in rural India
This study designs and evaluates a hybrid renewable energy system for off-grid rural electrification in India, combining solar, wind, and biomass with hydrogen storage and batteries. Using HOMER Pro software, researchers optimized a system achieving 100% renewable energy fraction with a net present cost of $26.8 million and levelized cost of $4.32/kWh. Sensitivity analysis shows the system remains viable across varying economic conditions, providing reliable power to meet 94% of daily demand for rural communities.
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Exploring the coupling coordination relationship between eco-environment and renewable energy development in rural areas: A case of China
China's rural areas must transition to renewable energy to achieve carbon neutrality, but this development affects rural ecosystems. The study models the coupling relationship between renewable energy development and environmental quality across Chinese provinces from 2005 to 2019. Results show coordination improved over time, with projections indicating further gains by 2025. Regional variation is significant, requiring tailored approaches based on local resources and economic conditions.
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Impact of Population Aging and Renewable Energy Consumption on Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity in Rural China: Evidence from Panel VAR Approach
Using panel data from 30 Chinese provinces (2000–2019), this study finds that population aging and renewable energy consumption both positively impact agricultural green total factor productivity in the long run. Population aging contributes 2.23% and renewable energy use contributes 0.56% to productivity gains over a 15-year lag period. The authors recommend improving agricultural infrastructure, increasing technology investment, building human capital, and strengthening international cooperation.
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Renewable Energy for Rural Sustainability in Developing Countries
Renewable energy technologies offer significant benefits for rural sustainability in developing countries, but their actual performance falls short of expectations. This paper identifies technological, economic, and institutional barriers to success, but argues that previous analyses have overlooked household perspectives and stakeholder needs. Survey findings reveal gaps between installed renewable energy technology capabilities and user satisfaction in remote communities.
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Sustainable Rural Development: Solar/Biomass Hybrid Renewable Energy System
Researchers developed a hybrid renewable energy system combining solar panels, battery storage, and a biomass gasifier to provide affordable electricity and clean water to rural communities lacking reliable energy and potable water access. The system uses waste heat from the biomass generator to purify saltwater through membrane distillation. Analysis shows the combined approach produces electricity and water at costs rural populations can afford, offering a viable solution for sustainable rural development.
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Synergizing hybrid renewable energy systems and sustainable agriculture for rural development in Nigeria
Hybrid renewable energy systems combining solar, biogas, and wind can reliably power Nigerian farms while reducing costs and emissions. A case study shows solar dominates energy production, with a payback period of 7.22 years and negligible carbon emissions. The research demonstrates HRES is economically viable and environmentally sound for rural agriculture, though policy inconsistencies and infrastructure gaps remain barriers to widespread adoption.
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Indigenous and local knowledge on social-ecological changes is positively associated with livelihood resilience in a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System
Small-scale farmers in Chile's Chiloé Archipelago who possess greater knowledge about environmental and social changes show stronger livelihood resilience. The study surveyed 100 farmers using agrosilvopastoral systems and found a significant positive relationship between farmers' awareness of atmospheric, physical, biological, and human system changes and their ability to maintain resilient livelihoods across financial, human, social, physical, and natural capital assets.
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Performance characterization of low-cost air quality sensors for off-grid deployment in rural Malawi
Low-cost air quality sensors deployed in rural Malawi can effectively monitor air pollution when calibrated using data from regulatory sites in wealthier regions. Machine learning models, particularly k-nearest neighbors hybrid approaches, successfully calibrate electrochemical gas sensors and transfer well to deployment conditions. Optical particle counters performed poorly in high humidity and near biomass burning. Data recovery was limited by power constraints, but sensors showed no decay over one year. The study demonstrates feasibility while identifying needs for improved power systems and regional monitoring infrastructure.
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Rural household preferences in transition from traditional to renewable energy sources: the applicability of the energy ladder hypothesis in North Gondar Zone
Rural households in North Gondar Zone, Ethiopia show strong willingness to transition from traditional to renewable energy sources. Hydropower emerges as the most preferred option, followed by solar energy. Socioeconomic factors—age, family size, income, education, and access to credit—significantly influence household energy choices. The study demonstrates that rural households are willing to pay substantial amounts for cleaner energy services, suggesting viable cost-sharing models for renewable energy implementation.
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Techno-economic investigation of an environmentally friendly small-scale solar tracker-based PV/wind/Battery hybrid system for off-grid rural electrification in the mount bamboutos, Cameroon
This study analyzes a hybrid solar-wind-battery system for off-grid rural electrification in Cameroon's Mount Bamboutos region. Researchers tested six solar tracking methods and three wind turbine heights using HOMER Pro optimization software. Dual-axis solar trackers produced 7–31% more power than fixed panels and achieved the lowest energy costs. Higher wind turbine heights significantly increased wind generation. The system successfully powered 152 households, hospitals, schools, and businesses with zero greenhouse gas emissions.
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Advancing biodegradation of petroleum contaminants by indigenous microbial consortia through assembly strategy innovations
Researchers developed a novel strategy for assembling stable microbial consortia that degrade petroleum contaminants more effectively than single strains. Using ecological coexistence theory and trait-based methods, they created a five-strain consortium that achieved 31.54% higher degradation rates than single strains. Soil experiments confirmed the consortium successfully removed hydrocarbon contaminants from oil-contaminated soil, offering a practical approach for environmental remediation.
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A renewable energy-centred research agenda for planning and financing Nexus development objectives in rural sub-Saharan Africa
Rural sub-Saharan Africa faces overlapping development gaps: most cropland relies on rainfall alone, smallholder farmers lack electricity for irrigation and storage, and two-thirds of rural residents have no power access. This paper proposes a research agenda integrating renewable energy, water, climate, and agriculture to develop sustainable business models that help smallholder farmers increase yields and escape poverty while accounting for population growth and climate extremes.
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Policy Pathways for Mapping Clean Energy Access for Cooking in the Global South—A Case for Rural Communities
Rural communities in the Global South lack access to modern cooking energy, affecting 1.5 billion people. This study maps clean cooking technologies and policies for three countries—Fiji, Ghana, and Nigeria—by surveying end-users, energy suppliers, and interest groups. The research proposes policy pathways that coordinate governments, NGOs, energy developers, and businesses, with a business model progressing from government-driven to incentive-driven to private-sector-driven as technology adoption increases.
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100% Renewable Energy Grid for Rural Electrification of Remote Areas: A Case Study in Jordan
A hybrid renewable energy system combining wind, solar, and hydropower with battery storage can reliably electrify the rural Jordanian city of Al-Tafilah while meeting 100% of demand. The optimized system achieves 99% renewable energy fraction, reduces electricity costs to match current tariffs, and avoids nearly 47,000 metric tons of CO2 annually. This decentralized approach addresses rural electrification gaps in developing countries and is replicable across Jordan's other rural areas.
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Renewable Energy Project as a Source of Innovation in Rural Communities: Lessons from the Periphery
Renewable energy projects in northwest Romania failed to boost employment or local revenue, contrary to expectations. However, community-owned projects sparked policy innovation and interest in technological change, while privately-owned projects merely prompted consideration of similar ventures. The study shows that who controls renewable energy infrastructure—not the technology itself—determines whether rural communities experience genuine innovation and development.
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Applying Lithium-Ion Second Life Batteries for Off-Grid Solar Powered System—A Socio-Economic Case Study for Rural Development
A hybrid solar and second-life lithium-ion battery system successfully powered an island community in Lake Victoria, Tanzania, supplying 42 kWh daily to hospitals, schools, and fishing operations. The system paid for itself within four years and outperformed diesel generators economically and environmentally. This demonstrates how repurposed electric vehicle batteries can electrify remote African regions while addressing rural development needs.
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Decentralized renewable energies and the water-energy-food nexus in rural Morocco
A pilot project in Morocco's Youssoufia Province demonstrates how decentralized renewable energy initiatives benefit rural communities by addressing interconnected water, energy, and food challenges. The approach builds partnerships across sectors, reduces trade-offs between competing resource demands, and improves coordination for sustainable development and community well-being in the face of climate change and pandemic disruptions.
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MicroFEWs: A Food–Energy–Water Systems Approach to Renewable Energy Decisions in Islanded Microgrid Communities in Rural Alaska
Remote Alaskan communities face interconnected challenges across food, energy, and water systems. This paper introduces the MicroFEWs approach, which helps these isolated communities make renewable energy decisions while protecting food security. Using Cordova, Alaska as a case study, the authors show how increased renewable energy generation affects the local fish processing industry and overall community resilience. The framework offers a replicable model for other remote regions.
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Rural Solar Cookers, an Alternative to Reduce the Timber Resource Extraction through the Use of Renewable Energy Sources: Technology Transfer and Monitoring Project
Researchers designed and distributed 70 solar cookers to an indigenous community in Michoacán, Mexico, to replace wood-burning cooking methods. The parabolic concentrator cookers use polished aluminum reflectors and manual tracking. The project aims to cut timber consumption by 30%, reduce respiratory disease from smoke inhalation, improve household economics, and promote renewable energy adoption. Monitoring is underway to measure actual consumption reductions.
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Energy justice, renewable energy, and the rural-urban divide: Insights from the Southwest U.S.
This study examines energy justice in rural and urban Arizona communities near a large-scale solar-wind park. Researchers found that small-scale renewable energy projects better served low-income populations than large-scale installations. Urban areas received more government and nonprofit support for renewable initiatives than rural areas. Large-scale projects created adverse community and wildlife impacts without adequate benefit-sharing. The authors recommend expanding small-scale solar capacity, increasing funding for local energy efficiency programs, and supporting low-income housing and community facilities.
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A Comprehensive Approach to the Design of a Renewable Energy Microgrid for Rural Ethiopia: The Technical and Social Perspectives
This study designs a renewable energy microgrid for rural Ethiopia combining solar and small-scale hydropower to power irrigation while providing electricity for community needs. Researchers conducted fieldwork interviews to understand local energy demands and social preferences, then modeled four scenarios with different reliability levels. The microgrid proved technically feasible and socially acceptable to the community, with costs sensitive to equipment choices. The authors recommend educational programs and clear policies before implementation.
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THE RURAL SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT THROUGH RENEWABLE ENERGY. THE CASE OF ROMANIA
Romania possesses substantial renewable energy resources—solar, wind, and water—that remain underutilized in rural areas. The study finds a strong correlation between renewable energy adoption and reduced import dependency from 2004–2014. Developing rural renewable energy projects would create jobs, decrease energy imports, lower emissions, and boost rural economies. The authors argue Romania must adopt supportive policies to unlock this potential.
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Electrification of Rural Remote Areas Using Renewable Energy Sources: Literature Review
Renewable energy sources effectively electrify remote rural settlements worldwide, with systems ranging from kilowatts to megawatts. The paper reviews global practices for designing isolated energy systems, focusing on optimizing equipment composition and structure. Key challenges include balancing multiple objectives—minimizing energy costs and fossil fuel use while maximizing reliability and living standards—and implementing support mechanisms for environmentally friendly generation in remote areas.
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Indigenous versus foreign innovation and ecological footprint: Dynamic threshold effect of corruption
Indigenous and foreign innovation affect ecological footprint differently across developed and developing countries. In developed nations, both types of innovation reduce environmental impact, but this benefit reverses when corruption rises above a threshold. In developing countries, innovation increases ecological footprint, with corruption further worsening this effect. Economic growth and urbanization drive higher footprints globally.
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Building on the strengths of African indigenous knowledge and innovation (AIK&I) for sustainable development in Africa
African indigenous knowledge and innovation practices offer proven solutions for sustainable development across the continent, yet remain underutilized in policy frameworks like the SDGs. This paper documents successful AIK&I applications in resource management and conservation across African economies, demonstrating their capacity to address development challenges. The authors argue for integrating indigenous perspectives into sustainability agendas and call for research on making these practices more scientific and widely adopted.
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Renewable Energy Options for a Rural Village in North Korea
This study designs renewable energy systems for a rural village in North Korea, where electrification rates are critically low. Using optimization modeling, the researchers compared off-grid hybrid systems (combining solar, wind, batteries, and diesel) against grid extension. The hybrid system proved most cost-effective, with grid extension becoming competitive only beyond 9.7–20.6 kilometers depending on discount rates. The findings support hybrid renewable systems as a practical solution to expand rural electrification in remote North Korean areas.
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Methodology for strengthening energy resilience with SMART solution approach of rural areas: Local production of alternative biomass fuel within renewable energy community
This paper presents a methodology for rural energy resilience through local biomass fuel production. The approach involves cultivating short rotation coppice on degraded or erosion-prone land, then processing the woody plants into pellet biofuel within community-based energy systems. The method delivers environmental benefits, reduces energy costs, and modernizes heating infrastructure in rural areas.
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Selection of Renewable Energy in Rural Area Via Life Cycle Assessment-Analytical Hierarchy Process (LCA-AHP): A Case Study of Tatau, Sarawak
This study evaluated four renewable energy sources—solar, wind, biomass, and mini-hydro—for a rural area in Sarawak using life cycle assessment and analytical hierarchy process methods. Solar energy ranked highest when considering environmental, engineering, and economic criteria, followed by mini-hydro, biomass, and wind. The findings provide a systematic framework for selecting appropriate renewable energy technologies in rural developing regions.
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Techno-Economic Feasibility Analysis of an Off-Grid Hybrid Energy System for Rural Electrification in Nigeria
This study evaluates the feasibility of a hybrid solar-wind-battery-diesel system for rural electrification in Nigeria, specifically for a secondary school in Moriki. Using HOMER simulation software, researchers found that a solar-battery configuration is optimal, with a net present cost of $18,161 and energy cost of $0.233/kWh. The system eliminates greenhouse gas emissions entirely through 100% renewable energy generation, offering a cost-effective alternative to diesel generators and biomass currently used in off-grid rural areas.
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Performance analysis of hybrid off-grid renewable energy systems for sustainable rural electrification
This study evaluates hybrid renewable energy systems for rural electrification in Somalia. A configuration combining solar panels, wind turbines, diesel generators, and battery storage achieved the lowest costs ($96,899 net present cost, $0.090/kWh levelized cost) while meeting all electricity demand with 91.8% renewable penetration and 53% lower emissions than alternatives. The system proves technically and economically viable for powering remote communities without grid access.
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Off grid rural electrification using integrated renewable energy system
This paper designs an off-grid renewable energy system for a rural village in India using solar, wind, and biomass resources. The authors assessed electricity demand for 101 households and available renewable resources in Khatisitara village, then used HOMER software to optimize system design. The integrated system achieves an energy cost of $0.084 per kilowatt-hour, demonstrating how locally available renewable resources can electrify remote communities and improve their socioeconomic conditions.
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Research on the Optimal Operation of a Novel Renewable Multi-Energy Complementary System in Rural Areas
This paper designs a distributed multi-energy system combining wind, solar, biomass, and battery storage for rural areas. The authors develop an optimization model to maximize daily economic benefits and test it using a genetic algorithm across different weather scenarios. Results show the system operates stably and achieves economic targets, offering a practical solution for rural electrification in China and other developing countries with large rural populations.
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Researches on application of the renewable energy technologies in the development of low-carbon rural tourism
Rural tourism development causes environmental pollution and resource degradation. This paper demonstrates how renewable energy technologies—biomass, solar, and wind—can support low-carbon rural tourism. Using Changsha as a case study, the authors propose practical methods for integrating these renewable energy sources into rural tourism operations.
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Indigenous knowledge and sustainable agricultural resources management under rainfed agro-ecosystem
Tribal farmers in Madhya Pradesh's rainfed regions have developed sophisticated agricultural systems adapted to harsh, risk-prone environments. These traditional practices—including crop diversity conservation, water management, and pest control—prove productive and sustainable without costly external inputs. The study documents Gond, Baiga, and Pradhan farming wisdom and urges agricultural researchers to systematically learn from and integrate these practices before they disappear.
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Techo-Economic Analysis of Off-grid Renewable Energy Systems for Rural Electrification in North-eastern Nigeria
This study evaluates five electricity generation systems for a remote village in northeastern Nigeria using techno-economic analysis. Solar radiation and wind speed data show the area has strong renewable potential. A hybrid photovoltaic-diesel system with battery storage proved most cost-effective, reducing expenses by 38% and emissions by 36% compared to diesel-only generation, making it the best option for rural electrification.
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Study of a hybrid renewable energy system for a rural school in Tagzirt, Morocco
Researchers designed a hybrid renewable energy system for a rural school in Morocco combining solar panels, wind turbines, diesel backup, and battery storage. Using HOMER Pro software, they optimized the system to meet the school's daily energy demand of 23 kWh. The final configuration included a 5 kW solar array, 2 kW wind turbine, and 7.8 kW diesel generator, achieving an energy cost of $1.12 per kilowatt-hour.
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Off-grid photovoltaic systems as a solution for the ambient pollution avoidance and Iraq’s rural areas electrification
Off-grid photovoltaic systems can electrify rural households in Iraq's Diyala State while reducing pollution. The study analyzed a solar system for a single household and found electricity costs of $0.51 per kilowatt-hour, competitive with conventional Iraqi grid rates. The system avoids approximately 1,840 kilograms of CO2 emissions annually compared to conventional fuel-based electricity generation, making solar viable for remote rural electrification.
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Technical, economic and environmental assessment and optimization of four hybrid renewable energy models for rural electrification
Researchers evaluated four hybrid renewable energy systems for rural electrification in Nigeria, comparing solar-wind-battery, solar-wind-battery-generator, solar-wind-fuel-cell, and solar-wind-battery-fuel-cell configurations. The solar-wind-battery system proved most cost-effective at $0.158 per kilowatt-hour while minimizing emissions. Adding fuel cells or diesel generators increased costs significantly. The study recommends a 166 kW solar, 3 wind turbine, 29 battery system as optimal for balancing affordability with environmental sustainability in rural communities.
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Building a Sustainable Energy Community: Design and Integrate Variable Renewable Energy Systems for Rural Communities
Researchers designed a hybrid renewable energy system combining solar and wind power for a rural community in Saudi Arabia. The system serves residential buildings and irrigation needs, optimized using HOMER software and artificial neural networks. Results show the system achieves 65% renewable energy penetration at $0.1053 per kilowatt-hour while reducing annual greenhouse gas emissions by 233 tons.
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THEORETICAL IMPLICATIONS OF RENEWABLE ENERGY USING IMPROVED COOKING STOVES FOR RURAL HOUSEHOLDS
Improved cooking stoves using solar energy and biomass reduce rural households' vulnerability to climate change in developing countries. The study shows that efficient renewable energy use decreases dependence on traditional biomass, improves health outcomes, and strengthens socio-economic status and education. Environmental benefits include reduced emissions and better adaptive capacity for agricultural communities facing climate risks.
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Renewable Energy Utilization in Rural Residential Housing: Economic and Environmental Facets
Rural Polish homeowners can dramatically reduce energy costs and carbon emissions by retrofitting houses with renewable energy systems like solar panels and heat pumps. The study compares construction costs and operating expenses across scenarios, finding that energy-neutral homes cost more upfront but cut energy bills substantially and reduce annual CO2 emissions by roughly 90 percent compared to coal-heated homes. Retrofitting existing rural houses offers greater environmental and economic benefits than new construction alone.
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An integrated ecosystem incorporating renewable energy leading to pollution reduction for sustainable development of craft villages in rural area: a case study at sedge mats village in Mekong Delta, Vietnam
Researchers developed VICRAIZES, an integrated renewable energy system for sedge mat craft villages in Vietnam's Mekong Delta that combines biogas production from waste, wastewater treatment, and composting. The system reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 93%, BOD5 in wastewater by 97%, and generated compost worth 115 million VND annually while requiring low investment and simple operation. The approach proves viable for low-income craft villages across developing countries.
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Renewable Energy: The Key to Achieving Sustainable Development of Rural Bangladesh
Renewable energy technologies can address rural Bangladesh's energy shortage, poverty, and environmental degradation caused by over-reliance on biomass. The country possesses sufficient renewable resources to solve its energy crisis. The paper examines Bangladesh's renewable energy policies, implementation, research, and market development, noting that modern technologies remain in demonstration phases with emerging private sector and NGO involvement.
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Use of Renewable Energy Sources for Energy Generation in Rural Areas in the Island of Crete, Greece
Crete's rural areas harness diverse renewable energy sources—solar, wind, hydro, biomass, and geothermal—which currently supply 30% of installed capacity and generate over 20% of annual electricity. The island possesses sufficient renewable resources to meet nearly all energy needs, enabling transition to a low-carbon economy. Future grid interconnection and emerging technologies will expand renewable applications, creating local jobs while reducing fossil fuel imports and meeting EU climate targets.
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Optimal Design of Standalone Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems with Biochar Production in Remote Rural Areas: A Case Study
Remote rural areas can efficiently generate power using local renewable resources instead of long-distance electricity transmission. This paper develops an optimization model for hybrid renewable energy systems combining solar, wind, and biomass. A case study in the Philippines shows an optimal configuration producing $940 daily profit while sequestering 3,339 kg CO2 equivalent per day, demonstrating both economic and environmental benefits for agriculture-based rural communities.
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Recognizing Indigenous Knowledge on Agricultural Landscape in Bali for Micro Climate and Environment Control
Indigenous agricultural practices in Bali's terraced rice landscapes demonstrate sophisticated climate and environmental control mechanisms. The study reveals how traditional knowledge—particularly the Tri Hita Karana concept—integrates forest, temples, paddies, irrigation systems, and settlements to create sustainable landscapes on steep mountain slopes. The controlled irrigation system distributes water efficiently across impossible terrain, while the vertical landscape pattern protects against environmental degradation and strengthens adaptive capacity to climate change.
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Assessment and selection of a micro-hybrid renewable energy system for sustainable energy generation in rural areas of Zambia
Researchers evaluated micro-hybrid renewable energy systems for rural Zambia using multi-criterion decision analysis across 14 scenarios. A biogas-solar photovoltaic system with battery storage emerged as optimal, outperforming diesel-solar alternatives. The system leverages local biomass and solar resources to replace wood and fossil fuel dependence, meeting rural energy needs while supporting sustainable development in resource-limited regions.
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Integrating Solar Photovoltaic Power Source and Biogas Energy-Based System for Increasing Access to Electricity in Rural Areas of Tanzania
This paper designs and analyzes a hybrid renewable energy system combining solar photovoltaic panels and biogas from livestock manure to provide electricity to a rural village in Tanzania. Using optimization software and artificial intelligence techniques, the researchers demonstrate that this integrated system can meet local energy demand cost-effectively while reducing environmental waste. The hybrid approach proves economically viable and environmentally beneficial for rural electrification.
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Potential of microfinanced solar water pumping systems for irrigation in rural areas of Burkina Faso
Solar water pumping systems can replace diesel pumps for irrigation in rural Burkina Faso, reducing costs and climate vulnerability. A profitability analysis in Korsimoro village shows that microfinanced solar systems work best for medium and large-scale farmers and pump service providers, particularly when paired with storage tanks for cloudy days. At typical microfinance interest rates, only larger operations achieve acceptable payback periods.
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Modeling, Simulation, and Experimental Analysis of a Photovoltaic and Biogas Hybrid Renewable Energy System for Electrification of Rural Community
Researchers designed and tested a hybrid renewable energy system combining photovoltaic panels and biogas from animal manure to electrify rural communities. Simulations and 30-day experiments showed the system produced 61.06 kWh daily, exceeding the 46.9 kWh maximum demand. The photovoltaic component achieved 84.3% performance ratio with 1556.5 kWh annual specific production. The biogas digester produced methane-rich gas suitable for energy generation. The hybrid system recovers its investment in 4.47 years and costs $0.0186 per kilowatt-hour while mitigating 20.45 tons of CO2 annually.
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Digital transition and the clean renewable energy adoption in rural family: evidence from Broadband China
China's Broadband China Policy increased clean renewable energy adoption in rural households by 5.8% in central regions, but decreased adoption by 12.6–13.5% in eastern and western regions. The policy's effects operate through population size, economic scale, and income levels. Digital infrastructure expansion drives renewable energy adoption differently across regions, with implications for developing countries pursuing decarbonization through digital development.
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Optimal location selection for a distributed hybrid renewable energy system in rural Western Australia: A data mining approach
This paper uses data mining techniques to identify optimal locations for hybrid renewable energy systems in rural Western Australia. Researchers applied K-Means and K-Medoids clustering algorithms to 69 locations, then evaluated potential wind and solar output using HOMER software. K-Means performed better at clustering, while K-Medoids identified locations with higher average renewable energy generation, though both approaches had limitations in accounting for local energy requirements.
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Mainstreaming Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Practices in Climate-Sensitive Policies for Resilient Agricultural Systems in Ghana
Ghana's climate and agricultural policies inadequately incorporate indigenous and local knowledge systems, despite their proven effectiveness in adaptation. The study found that while climate adaptation is mentioned in national policies, indigenous knowledge receives minimal priority and faces barriers including lack of dedicated policy, weak government commitment, under-resourced institutions, and poor coordination. Mainstreaming indigenous knowledge into climate policy could strengthen agricultural resilience and rural development.
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Intersecting Knowledge With Landscape: Indigenous Agriculture, Sustainable Food Production and Response to Climate Change – A Case Study of Chuktia Bhunjia Tribe of Odisha, India
The Chuktia Bhunjia tribe in Odisha, India practices sustainable agriculture rooted in local ecology, beliefs, and rituals. Their methods—intercropping, agroforestry, crop rotation, and rainwater harvesting—maintain soil fertility, reduce greenhouse gases, and adapt to climate change while remaining cost-effective. The tribe's knowledge, culturally transmitted through ritual practice, supports both food security and ecosystem conservation. Displacement from a tiger conservation project threatens this integrated system.
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Status and Benefits of Renewable Energy Technologies in the Rural Areas of Ethiopia: A Case Study on Improved Cooking Stoves and Biogas Technologies
Ethiopia's rural population relies heavily on biomass for energy, causing deforestation and health problems. The government has distributed 3.7 million improved cooking stoves and installed over 860 biogas digesters to replace traditional fuels. These technologies conserve forests and provide environmental benefits, but current programs fail to reach the rural households they target. Greater focus on rural distribution is needed to address fuel scarcity, environmental degradation, and health issues.
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Framings in Indigenous futures thinking: barriers, opportunities, and innovations
Indigenous peoples bring distinctive perspectives to futures thinking—shaped by colonisation, unique knowledge systems, and commitment to biodiversity—that enable innovative solutions to climate change and social injustice. This paper identifies four framings of Indigenous futures thinking (Adaptation oriented, Participatory, Culturally grounded, and Indigenising) and finds that innovation increases when Indigenous people lead research teams, co-design projects, use Indigenous methodologies, and apply decolonisation approaches. The authors create a glossary to standardise terminology across this emerging field.
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An Overview of Renewable Energy Technologies in the Eastern Cape Province in South Africa and the Rural Households’ Energy Poverty Coping Strategies
Rural households in South Africa's Eastern Cape Province face energy poverty despite available renewable energy technologies. This paper reviews renewable energy sources and technologies in the region, then examines how rural households cope with energy poverty. The authors identify which renewable technologies best match rural household needs and propose strategies to address energy poverty through appropriate technology selection.
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Analysis of a Hybrid Nuclear Renewable Energy Resource in a Distributed Energy System for a Rural Area in Nigeria
This paper analyzes hybrid energy systems combining nuclear microreactors with renewable sources for rural Nigeria. Using simulation software, the authors tested distributed energy configurations and found that a photovoltaic-nuclear-battery system performed best, followed by photovoltaic-nuclear-wind-battery systems. Nuclear microreactors address renewable energy's intermittency problems while providing stable, clean electricity in decentralized rural settings.
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A systematic PLS-SEM approach on assessment of indigenous knowledge in adapting to floods; A way forward to sustainable agriculture
Indigenous knowledge significantly influences how farmers adapt to floods and practice sustainable agriculture. The study identifies key factors affecting farmers' flood knowledge through statistical analysis, with age showing no relationship to this knowledge. The findings support policy recommendations for governments to develop integrated flood management strategies that protect farmers, ecosystems, and food systems while promoting sustainable agricultural development.
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Performance Analysis of Renewable Energy Resources in Rural Areas: A Case Study of Solar Energy
This paper analyzes solar photovoltaic and concentrated solar power systems in rural Tanzania, comparing their costs and energy storage capabilities. The authors examine how ambient temperature affects solar module performance and model how cell surface temperature and module orientation influence power generation. They also evaluate solar axis tracking as a method to increase output. The study focuses on Tanzania's coastal region as a case study for harnessing solar irradiance in rural areas.
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Renewable energy for rural development in Turkey
Turkey has significantly improved rural energy access over three decades, with cooking efficiency rising from 25% to 60% and nearly universal electrification achieved. The paper argues that Turkey should prioritize domestic renewable energy sources—biomass, hydropower, and others—to reduce costly fossil fuel imports and meet rural energy demand. Renewable energy offers job creation and climate benefits while providing sufficient technical potential to supply the country's electricity needs.
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Systematic Assessment of Carbon Emissions from Renewable Energy Access to Improve Rural Livelihoods
Renewable energy technologies can expand electricity access in rural areas while reducing CO2 emissions. However, decision-makers often ignore the embedded energy and carbon costs of manufacturing solar panels and equipment. This study applies a multi-criteria decision-making tool to compare silicon, thin-film, and organic solar cells in a rural Cuban community. The analysis shows all three technologies meet local electricity needs and improve livelihoods, but their global environmental impacts differ significantly.
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Else, an Eventual Return to Conventional Energy: Impacts and Fate of an Off-Grid Rural Electrification Project in an Island in the Philippines
An off-grid solar photovoltaic system installed on Pangan-an Island in the Philippines faced technical, economic, and social challenges as it approached end-of-life. The study examined performance data and investigated options for extending the system's service life, revealing barriers to sustainability including technical complexity, high costs, and social compatibility issues that rural renewable energy projects must overcome.
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Global urbanization and ruralization lessons of clean energy access gap
This study examines clean energy access inequality between urban and rural areas across high, low, lower-middle, and upper-middle income economies from 2010 to 2021. Economic growth and gender literacy parity worsen the urban-rural clean energy gap, while innovation significantly reduces it. The findings offer policy guidance for achieving sustainable development goals related to energy access and inequality reduction.
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SPEAR (Solar Pyrolysis Energy Access Reactor): Theoretical Design and Evaluation of a Small-Scale Low-Cost Pyrolysis Unit for Implementation in Rural Communities
This paper presents SPEAR, a low-cost solar-powered pyrolysis reactor designed for rural Sub-Saharan Africa. The system converts agricultural waste into biochar for soil improvement and generates electricity for energy access. The design achieves 72% optical efficiency and produces at least 5 kg of biochar daily. Financial analysis shows positive returns in most scenarios, making it competitive with small-scale solar systems while delivering environmental and social benefits.
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Electric Two-Wheeler Vehicle Integration into Rural Off-Grid Photovoltaic System in Kenya
This paper models the integration of electric two-wheeler vehicles into an off-grid solar photovoltaic system serving rural Kenya. Using energy optimization modeling, researchers analyzed a Water-Energy Hub in Western Kenya and found that solar generation exceeds annual demand. They developed a load optimization method that reduces electricity deficits and enables the system to charge four additional e-bike batteries daily, demonstrating how renewable energy can support electric vehicle adoption while reducing emissions in rural areas.
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Renewable Energy and Rural Autonomy: A Case Study with Generalizations
A Polish rural municipality currently uses no renewable energy but could meet 7.6% of electricity demand and 10.3% of thermal demand from solar, wind, water, and biogas sources. With development of thermal energy and biomass from set-aside land, the municipality could eventually supply 76.1% of resident energy needs by 2025. The study demonstrates how renewable energy can increase rural autonomy and support sustainable development.
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Integrating Local and Indigenous Ecological Knowledge (IEK) Systems into Climate Adaptation Policy for Resilience Building, and Sustainability in Agriculture
Local and indigenous ecological knowledge systems help rural communities in southern Bangladesh adapt to climate change impacts on agriculture. The paper documents how these traditional adaptation strategies strengthen resilience and sustainability among poor farmers facing environmental pressures. The author argues policymakers must integrate indigenous knowledge into climate adaptation and development policies, especially in resource-scarce regions where communities depend on these proven strategies.
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The Power of Electricity: How Effective Is It in Promoting Sustainable Development in Rural Off-Grid Islands in the Philippines?
Electrification significantly impacts rural sustainable development, but effectiveness depends on access duration. The authors tested a framework measuring economic, technical, social, and environmental dimensions across two Philippine islands. Islands with 24-hour electricity access showed improvements across most indicators, while limited-access islands continued using conventional fuels and saw minimal socioeconomic gains. The framework helps policymakers assess electrification projects in off-grid rural communities.
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Perceptions of local population on the impacts of substitution of fossil energies by renewables: A case study applied to a Spanish rural area
This study surveyed 231 people in a Spanish rural region to understand how local communities perceive the shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy. The research measured willingness to pay for complete renewable energy replacement and identified which economic, social, and environmental impacts matter most to rural residents affected by this energy transition.
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Renewable Energy Interventions for Sustainable Rural Development: A study on Solar Home System Dissemination in Bangladesh
Solar Home Systems have been rapidly disseminated across rural Bangladesh, where electrification rates lag far behind national averages. This study examines how off-grid solar technology delivers electricity to remote communities and generates socio-economic benefits while reducing environmental impact. The research emphasizes that sustained success requires coordinated collaboration among government, private sector, and community stakeholders to ensure long-term program viability.
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Assessment of Indigenous Knowledge Practices for Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security in Idemili South Local Government Area of Anambra State, Nigeria
Rural farmers in Nigeria's Idemili South region possess extensive indigenous knowledge for sustainable agriculture and food security, including practices like mulching, organic manure use, and traditional food preservation. The study identifies major barriers to wider adoption: lack of documentation, time demands, and poor recognition. Recommendations include using ICT infrastructure to document and share indigenous practices, and providing financial incentives to reduce farmers' implementation costs.
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Multi-Objective Optimization of Complex Measures on Supplying Energy to Rural Residential Buildings in Uzbekistan Using Renewable Energy Sources
This study optimizes rural residential building designs in Uzbekistan to minimize energy costs and carbon emissions using renewable sources. Researchers modeled four-room houses with varying insulation levels and tested three scenarios: minimizing reconstruction costs, reducing primary energy consumption to zero, and achieving low-carbon communities. Results show optimal insulation thicknesses for roofs, floors, and walls, plus solar collector sizing across regions, though renewable solutions remain economically unviable at current electricity prices.
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Techno-Economic Feasibility Study of Investigation of Renewable Energy System for Rural Electrification in South Algeria
This paper evaluates renewable energy system configurations for electrifying rural areas in South Algeria. The researchers compared four different technology combinations using an energy management algorithm to identify the most cost-effective and reliable design. They analyzed each configuration based on energy costs, diesel consumption, capital and maintenance expenses, and emissions. The study found an optimal configuration that supplies continuous electricity to rural homes while minimizing operational costs and environmental impact.
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Hybrid renewable energy with membrane distillation polygeneration for rural households in Bangladesh: Pani Para Village case study
A hybrid renewable energy system combining solar panels, biogas digesters, and membrane distillation can simultaneously provide electricity, cooking fuel, and clean drinking water to rural Bangladeshi households. The system, tested in Pani Para village serving 52 households, meets electricity demand while producing cooking gas and 2-3 liters of purified water per person daily. Cost analysis shows this integrated approach outperforms other renewable energy options.
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Dynamic Simulation and Optimization of Off-Grid Hybrid Power Systems for Sustainable Rural Development
This paper designs and models a hybrid solar-generator power system for rural Pakistan, combining renewable energy with traditional generators to reduce emissions and improve electricity access. Using simulation software, the researchers sized the system for a 137.48 kWh daily load and validated its performance under varying solar conditions. The system achieves 100% renewable energy generation at USD 0.158 per kilowatt-hour, demonstrating economic and environmental feasibility for scaling rural electrification.
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The relationship between rural finance development and food ecological total factor productivity: Moderating effects of food science and technology progress
Rural finance development improves food ecological total factor productivity in China, with stronger effects in non-food-producing regions. Food science and technology progress moderates this relationship, particularly benefiting lower-productivity provinces. The study measures ecological value in food cultivation and finds that increased rural finance and technology adoption help achieve higher food production with reduced environmental degradation.
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Techno-Economic and Environmental Analysis of Renewable Mix Hybrid Energy System for Sustainable Electrification of Al-Dhafrat Rural Area in Oman
This paper designs and models a hybrid renewable energy system combining solar, wind, and diesel generation for a rural area in Oman. Using HOMER optimization software, researchers found that a PV-wind-diesel microgrid reduces energy costs by 55%, diesel consumption by 70%, and greenhouse gas emissions by 70% compared to the current diesel-only system. The study demonstrates that Oman can achieve sustainable rural electrification through hybrid microgrids.
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Rural low‐carbon energy development in the information age: Can internet access drive the farmer to participate in personal carbon trading schemes related to bioenergy?
Internet access increases farmers' willingness to participate in personal carbon trading schemes for bioenergy in rural China. The study finds that farmers with internet access show higher participation rates and demand higher carbon prices. Male, younger, and less-educated farmers respond most strongly to internet access. Longer internet use correlates with greater participation willingness, suggesting rural broadband infrastructure can promote carbon trading adoption and reduce rural poverty.
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Renewable Energy Solution for Electricity Access in Rural South Africa
South Africa's rural electrification lags far behind urban areas, limiting economic and social development. This paper designs a renewable energy microgrid for Jozini municipality using solar, wind, biomass, and hydro sources. The proposed system delivers electricity at one-third the cost of the national grid while producing zero carbon emissions, compared to the grid's 0.99 kg CO2 per kilowatt-hour.
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Access to energy sources in the face of climate change: Challenges faced by women in rural communities
Rural women in Botswana's Tswapong villages rely heavily on firewood for cooking and electricity for lighting, but face severe energy access challenges. Depleting wood supplies and unaffordable electricity connection costs force continued dependence on unsustainable firewood harvesting, which accelerates climate change impacts. The research recommends economic diversification, electricity subsidies, solar energy adoption, and energy-saving technologies to enable poor rural women to access affordable, sustainable energy services.
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The Impact of Microfinance on Rural Economic Growth: The Nigerian Experience
Microfinance banking in Nigeria from 2000 to 2015 failed to boost agricultural productivity but successfully increased rural savings. The study recommends that government invest in rural infrastructure to attract microfinance institutions, encourage relationship-based lending to farmers, and diversify farm resources to mitigate climate-related risks and improve overall rural economic growth.
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Prospects for the Uptake of Renewable Energy Technologies in Rural Tanzania
Rural communities in southern Tanzania lack familiarity with renewable energy technologies and perceive them skeptically, viewing them as failed development interventions. The study found that most villagers do not use solar home systems or other renewable technologies. Understanding community perceptions and attitudes is essential before promoting renewable energy adoption in rural African areas, requiring approaches beyond the economic and regulatory models used in developed countries.
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Renewable Energy for Rural Sustainability: Lessons From China
Rural electrification in western China requires sustainable solutions. This paper examines energy needs across Inner Mongolia, Qinghai, and Xinjiang provinces, assesses renewable resource availability, and evaluates off-grid renewable energy technologies. An eight-year collaboration between Chinese research institutes and an international center demonstrates that stand-alone renewable energy systems can reliably and sustainably meet rural electricity demands while supporting broader development goals.
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Optimization and comparative analysis of hybrid renewable energy systems for sustainable and clean energy production in rural Cameroon considering the loss of power supply probability concept
This study optimizes hybrid renewable energy systems combining solar, wind, and energy storage for a commercial building in rural Cameroon. Using three optimization algorithms, researchers compared PV/Wind systems paired with thermal or pumped-hydro storage. The Cuckoo Search Algorithm performed best. PV/Wind/thermal storage proved most cost-effective, while Wind/pumped-hydro storage delivered the highest reliability and lowest emissions, offering a viable alternative to fossil fuel power plants.
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Indigenous people's perception of indigenous agricultural knowledge for climate change adaptation in Khumbu, Nepal
Indigenous farmers in Nepal's Khumbu region perceive their traditional agricultural knowledge as effective for adapting to climate change, including observed shifts in seasons, reduced snowfall, and increased rainfall. The study finds this knowledge remains dynamic and relevant despite climate pressures. However, government authorities do not formally recognize indigenous practices. The research recommends integrating indigenous knowledge into local climate policies to support both knowledge transmission across generations and cost-effective adaptation strategies.
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Context matters: Co-creating nature-based solutions in rural living labs
Rural living labs co-create nature-based solutions with local stakeholders, but context shapes these processes differently than in urban settings. This study identifies eighteen contextual factors influencing co-creation in rural areas, including stakeholder engagement challenges. The authors recommend treating co-creation as a dynamic interplay of interconnected local factors rather than a standardized approach, arguing this place-based method increases the success and real-world impact of nature-based solutions in rural territories.
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Innovations in Community-Based Tourism: Social Responsibility Actions in the Rural Tourism in the Province of Santa Elena–Ecuador
Community-based tourism in rural Ecuador integrates social responsibility practices that enable local participation, protect cultural heritage, and distribute benefits equitably. This qualitative study identifies how social responsibility actions in tourism operations strengthen local organization and sustainable development. The research reveals that informal community tourism practices embody social responsibility dimensions comparable to formal organizations, establishing indicators for measuring sustainable rural tourism outcomes.
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Converging for deterring land abandonment: a systematization of experiences of a rural grassroots innovation
Rural grassroots initiatives in Portugal's Alentejo region build resilience against land abandonment and degradation through participatory governance, shared sustainability vision, and social capital. The study documents how these socially innovative projects preserve traditional land management knowledge while creating ecological and social resilience in a climate-vulnerable area.
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Advancing Rural Agribusiness Innovation Strategies for Building Climate-Resilient and Economically Inclusive Communities.
Rural agribusinesses drive economic resilience and food security, especially in climate-vulnerable regions. The paper examines how digital agriculture, precision farming, sustainable value chains, and green financing build climate resilience and economic inclusion. It identifies barriers like poor infrastructure and limited finance access, then presents best practices for scaling sustainable models. The analysis of global case studies shows that inclusive ecosystems empowering smallholder farmers and integrating climate-smart approaches create adaptive frameworks that boost productivity and community resilience.
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Rural Digital Economy, Agricultural GreenTechnology Innovation, and AgriculturalCarbon Emissions– Based on Panel Data from 30 Provincesin China between 2012 and 2021
Rural digital economy expansion significantly reduces agricultural carbon emissions in China, with effects strongest in western and northeastern regions and less-developed areas. Green agricultural technology innovation serves as a key mechanism through which digital economy growth lowers emissions. The study uses panel data from 30 Chinese provinces (2012–2021) and confirms robust results across multiple tests, demonstrating that promoting rural digitalization and green agricultural innovation drives sustainable, low-carbon agricultural development.
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Entrepreneurial Strategies to Address Rural-Urban Climate-Induced Vulnerabilities: Assessing Adaptation and Innovation Measures in Dhaka, Bangladesh
Climate change drives rural-urban migration to Dhaka, Bangladesh, where the city pursues technology-based innovation for adaptation. The study finds that effective innovations prioritize community ownership over technological sophistication. Misaligned definitions of risk between recipients, corporations, and government undermine projects. Even technical climate measures carry political dimensions. The authors recommend recognizing innovation lifecycles and broadening how cities define innovation to enable more inclusive, effective adaptation.
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Decentralized Wetland-Aquaponics Addressing Environmental Degradation and Food Security Challenges in Disadvantaged Rural Areas: A Nature-Based Solution Driven by Mediterranean Living Labs
Mediterranean living labs developed decentralized wetland-aquaponics systems to address environmental degradation and food insecurity in disadvantaged rural areas. The study demonstrates how participatory innovation ecosystems enable communities to co-design nature-based solutions that provide environmental and socioeconomic benefits. Public participation proved essential for ensuring solutions aligned with local values and were feasible in mountainous rural settings like Lebanon's Akkar al-Atika region.
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‘Regenerative’ Social Innovation for European Rural Regions? Lessons from Regenerative Farming
Regenerative agriculture represents an emerging form of rural social innovation in Europe, where grassroots farming initiatives embed food production within social and ecological systems. These practices encourage shared responsibility for resource use and challenge mainstream development models. The paper argues regenerative farming offers a pathway toward non-extractivist economies that fundamentally rethink growth and production systems.
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Digital Transformations in Agri-Food Systems: Innovation Drivers and New Threats to Sustainable Rural Development
Digital technologies transform agri-food systems globally, improving efficiency and creating new markets. However, corporate monopolization of digital processes threatens food security, biodiversity, and rural livelihoods. The paper proposes ICT-based safeguards to strengthen food security and rural development while protecting small producers from corporate concentration of land, power, and resources.
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MICROBIOLOGICAL QUALITY OF WATER SOURCES FROM THE LARGEST DISTRICT IN GREATER-ACCRA REGION, GHANA: A CALL FOR INNOVATIONAL SCHEMES TOWARDS RURAL WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
This study tested 122 water samples from various sources in Ghana's Dangme West district to assess microbiological contamination. Dams and rivers showed the highest bacterial counts, exceeding safe drinking water standards. Contamination levels differed significantly between rainy and dry seasons. The findings highlight urgent needs for improved rural water management systems and innovative approaches to protect public health in developing country water supplies.
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Knowledge sharing in open social innovation for sustainable development: evidence from rural social enterprises
Rural social enterprises in India use knowledge sharing to drive open social innovation across three stages: collaborating with stakeholders to identify needs and develop ecological solutions, refining market offerings through dynamic knowledge exchange, and expanding opportunities to address complex societal problems. Social enterprises act as orchestrators, evolving as open systems to maximize sustainable development impact in economically marginalized communities.
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Rural development as the propagation of regional ‘communities of values’: A case study of local discourses promoting social innovation and social sustainability
Rural development initiatives in Austria's Mühlviertel region use social innovation to address economic and demographic decline by reconstructing how communities understand themselves and their places. The study shows that social innovation efforts succeed by promoting shared regional values and reshaping social bonds, creating new visions of sustainable countryside life that counter narratives of rural decline.
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Social Innovation for Rural Bioeconomies
The SCALE-UP project identifies how social innovation strengthens rural bioeconomies by building multi-actor partnerships among companies, governments, civil society, and researchers. Analysis of regional bioeconomy projects reveals that inclusive approaches—where local communities shape and benefit from sustainable bio-based value chains—drive success. Cross-sector collaboration proves essential for scaling these practices, offering rural regions a framework for sustainable development.
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Digital transformation in agricultural circulation: enhancing rural modernization and sustainability through technological innovation
Digital transformation of agricultural product circulation significantly enhances rural modernization in China, with stronger effects in technologically advanced regions and spillover benefits to neighboring areas. Green innovation and industrial structure optimization drive both environmental sustainability and economic growth. The study demonstrates that digitalization makes agricultural practices more resilient, efficient, and environmentally friendly, supporting sustainable development and climate resilience in rural economies.
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Frugal innovation and sustainable development: a holy grail for rural transformation
Frugal innovation—affordable, accessible, and sustainable solutions—offers rural communities a pathway to development. Multinational companies can drive positive change by aligning with UN Sustainable Development Goals, establishing local partnerships, and empowering local entrepreneurs. This approach addresses rural poverty, healthcare, education, and energy access while creating social impact, economic growth, and environmental sustainability.
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Digital rural construction and agricultural green total factor productivity: the role of land finance, land resource misallocation, and agricultural technology innovation
Digital rural construction in China significantly improves agricultural green total factor productivity through three mechanisms: better access to land finance, reduced misallocation of land resources, and increased agricultural technology adoption. The benefits are strongest in central and western regions, non-grain-producing areas, and regions with lower land transfer efficiency. The study analyzes 2,128 counties over a decade using rigorous econometric methods.
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Empowering communities through digital innovation: evaluating FeralScan adoption by Australian rural landholders
FeralScan's WildDogScan platform enables Australian rural landholders to report invasive wild dogs through a web and mobile application. The study found 51% of surveyed landholders had used it at least once since 2015. Adoption barriers included usability confusion, difficulty using the tool, preference for personal contact, and skepticism about benefits. The authors recommend improving promotional, educational, and support services to increase uptake.
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A three-pronged approach to the digitalization–innovation–sustainable rural development nexus among Italian farms
Italian farms show highly uneven adoption of digital innovations and their links to sustainable development. Using census data and cluster analysis, the study identifies distinct geographic patterns across Italian regions, revealing that farms differ significantly in how they combine digitalization, innovation, and sustainability practices. These scattered adoption patterns create varied rural development outcomes across territories.
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Evaluating the Efficacy of Social Innovation Programming at Advancing Rural Development in the Context of Exogenous Shocks
A randomized evaluation in rural Peru shows that a social innovation program significantly improved household economic well-being, food security, and community outlook despite COVID-19 disruptions. Participating households shifted income sources away from traditional agriculture toward entrepreneurship and specialized labor in both agricultural and non-agricultural sectors. These diversified, value-added activities proved more resilient than traditional farming during the pandemic, generating net income gains that outweighed losses from reduced agricultural earnings.
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Digital Economy, Green Innovation and Urban-Rural Income Gap—Analysis Based on Prefecture-Level City Panel Data of China
Using panel data from 273 Chinese cities between 2011 and 2019, this study finds that digital economy development drives green innovation, which in turn widens the urban-rural income gap in the short term. However, long-term analysis reveals a positive feedback loop where all three factors reinforce each other. The authors recommend governments balance digital and green innovation promotion with policies that control income inequality to achieve sustainable development.
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A systematic review of social innovation and sustainable entrepreneurship practices in the agri-food sector and their contribution to socioenvironmental resilience of rural producers
This systematic review examines social innovation and sustainable entrepreneurship practices in agri-food systems across multiple continents. Initiatives like social agriculture, community gardens, women's cooperatives, and regenerative projects improved social inclusion, market access, and environmental practices. Success required collaborative governance, local leadership, and institutional support. Barriers included weak regulatory frameworks and funding dependency. Hybrid practices combining both approaches strengthened rural resilience when embedded in favorable policy environments.
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Relevant drivers and barriers for transforming Heritage Communities into stakeholders of social innovations in rural an marginal areas: a vademecum
Heritage Communities in rural and marginal areas can drive social innovation by collectively organizing preservation of local natural, cultural, and social resources. This vademecum identifies drivers and barriers for integrating Heritage Communities into public policy to support territorial resilience. It examines legal, economic, and organizational mechanisms these communities can use, emphasizing tourism's role in sustainability and economic benefit, while documenting structural obstacles to implementing heritage principles and commons approaches.
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Social Protection, Agro-Environmental Innovation, And Carbon Sequestration Management as Pathways to Climate-Resilient Development: Empirical Evidence from Rural Kogi State, Nigeria
Rural households in Kogi State, Nigeria that integrated carbon sequestration, agro-environmental innovations, and social protection systems achieved significantly higher climate resilience scores than those using single interventions or none. Only 17% of households achieved full integration, with governance failures, weak extension systems, and exclusion of women as primary barriers. The study proposes the Kogi Integrated Resilience Strategy Model to align local climate adaptation with national policy frameworks.
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Ciclo Lab: A Social Innovation Model for Circular Waste Management and Community Empowerment in Rural Indonesia
Ciclo Lab demonstrates a circular economy model in rural Indonesia that converts organic waste into livestock feed through maggot cultivation. The program processed over 6 tons of waste annually, reduced poultry feed costs by 44%, and increased community income while engaging youth and women in productive activities. The model proves replicable for other rural areas facing similar waste management challenges.
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Social innovation in rural areas to promote Sustainable Development: A Systematic Review
A systematic review of 2010–2020 literature identifies social innovation models applied in rural areas to promote sustainable development and adapt to new agricultural practices. The study finds that information and communication technologies, entrepreneurship, family farming, and transformative practices drive rural innovation. Government entities and rural communities play promoter and facilitator roles through governance structures that enable community participation and leadership to improve socioeconomic conditions.
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Social Innovation for Rural Bioeconomies
The SCALE-UP project identifies how social innovation strengthens rural bioeconomies by building multi-actor partnerships among companies, governments, civil society, and researchers. Analysis of regional bioeconomy projects reveals that inclusive approaches—where local communities shape and benefit from bio-based value chains—drive sustainable development. Cross-sector collaboration proves essential for scaling these practices, offering rural stakeholders a framework for integrating social dimensions into bioeconomy initiatives.
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SOCIAL INNOVATION AND PEDAGOGICAL TOURISM IN RURAL AREAS
Pedagogical tourism in rural areas combines education with community engagement, transforming villages into learning environments. This study shows that integrating pedagogical tourism with social innovation creates experiential learning for students while strengthening rural economies and addressing local challenges. The approach aligns with sustainable development goals and produces measurable improvements in educational outcomes, community income, and environmental conditions.
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The contribution of agritourism to social innovation and sustainable development in the rural areas of the Portuguese Beja region
Agritourism businesses in Portugal's Beja region drive social innovation and sustainable development. A qualitative study of eight microenterprises found strong consensus that agritourism contributes environmental, economic, and social benefits to rural areas. While perceptions of social innovation varied among managers, the research validated that agritourism serves as an effective alternative to traditional agriculture and promotes regional sustainability.
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Advancing Rural Agribusiness Innovation Strategies for Building Climate-Resilient and Economically Inclusive Communities.
Rural agribusinesses build climate resilience and economic inclusion through digital agriculture, precision farming, and green financing. The paper identifies barriers like poor infrastructure and limited finance access, then recommends scaling sustainable models that empower smallholder farmers and promote gender equity. Inclusive business ecosystems combining technology, institutional support, and climate-smart practices strengthen rural productivity and community resilience.
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ICTs for Climate Resilience and Rural Development in Pakistan: Bridging Digital Divides for Inclusive Innovation
ICTs like satellite telemetry and flood early warning systems can help rural communities in Pakistan's glacier regions adapt to climate risks, but their success depends on local trust, gender-sensitive design, and community-based training. Top-down technology deployment fails; instead, ICTs must be co-designed with local actors, translated into local languages, and supported through inclusive capacity-building to bridge digital divides rather than widen them.
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Co-designing and implementing biomass circularity at the territorial level through rural living labs: Insights from a transdisciplinary and participatory approach in Madagascar
Rural living labs in Madagascar's Central Highlands enable communities to co-design and implement biomass circularity strategies tailored to local conditions. The transdisciplinary and participatory approach helps rural stakeholders identify biomass potential, design circular systems, and assess environmental and economic impacts. This addresses a critical gap in tools available to Global South communities for reducing import dependence and achieving sustainable rural development.
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Digital Innovations for Rural Industry Create Socio-Economic and Environmental Impacts
Digital innovations using 5G and IoT technology in rural forestry operations reduce operational time and costs while improving environmental outcomes like flora preservation and reduced contamination. The study identifies two organizational pathways to successful implementation, involving factors like process innovation experience, agility, and digital competence. Results come from field trials in the Horizon Europe COMMECT project.
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CONSUMER PERCEPTIONS OF SUSTAINABILITY, DIGITAL AND GREEN INNOVATIONS IN RURAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Consumers increasingly prefer rural businesses that pursue sustainability and digital innovation. This study surveyed consumers nationwide about their attitudes toward sustainable practices, greenwashing, and digitalization in rural tourism and agriculture. The research identifies what drives consumer choices for environmentally friendly products and digital services, examines consumer awareness of greenwashing, and reveals barriers to adopting digital tools in rural tourism. Consumer trust, legislation, and technology adoption shape sustainable rural development.
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Climate Change, Water Scarcity, and Farmer Innovations in Rice Cultivation Irrigation: A Case Study of Dry-Seeded Rice in Rural Eastern Mazandaran
Farmers in rural eastern Mazandaran, Iran adopted dry-seeded rice cultivation with phased irrigation instead of traditional flood irrigation. This innovation reduces water consumption by 65%, cuts pesticide use, lowers production costs, and increases per capita income per hectare up to four times compared to other regional crops. The method works for both high-yield and high-value rice varieties and spreads rapidly across villages facing water scarcity.
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Rural Social Innovation: An Exploratory Study in Rural Brazil
Rural social innovations in Brazil emerge from families collectively addressing socio-environmental challenges over time, rather than simply adopting new techniques. Ethnographic research in a Pantanal settlement reveals that social innovation strengthens rural development and tackles problems affecting farming communities. Understanding these innovations requires deep fieldwork to capture how they actually develop through shared problem-solving.
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Laboratory of Social Innovation in Water Engineering and its effect on the provision of drinking water service in rural areas and marginalized urban areas
A social innovation laboratory in water engineering trained students to design and build drinking water systems for rural and marginalized communities lacking access. The laboratory focused on sustainable water supply solutions, connecting water sources to underserved areas. Results demonstrate that students developed both technical and cross-disciplinary competencies in water sustainability through hands-on project work addressing real community needs.
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Sustainable Rural Living Lab: Indian Case Studies
This paper examines Living Labs as spaces for participatory innovation in rural India, analyzing three case studies: cardamom dryer, cooking stove, and farm reservoir design. The authors map European Living Lab evaluation criteria to the Extended Business Model Canvas to identify characteristics of rural Living Labs. They propose a framework for developing sustainable rural Living Labs that support community-driven innovation in agricultural and domestic technologies.
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Triple Helix, Quadruple Helix and Quintuple Helix and How Do Knowledge, Innovation and the Environment Relate To Each Other?
This paper introduces the Quintuple Helix framework, expanding on earlier Triple and Quadruple Helix models. It integrates universities, industry, government, media/culture, and the natural environment into a unified system for understanding knowledge and innovation. The framework positions eco-innovation and eco-entrepreneurship within sustainable development and social ecology, showing how environmental considerations must shape innovation policy and practice.
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Green innovation to respond to environmental regulation: How external knowledge adoption and green absorptive capacity matter?
Environmental regulations drive green innovation in manufacturing firms, but the mechanism depends on how firms adopt external knowledge. Using survey data from 237 Chinese manufacturers, the study finds that both command-and-control and market-based regulations increase external knowledge adoption, which then drives green product and process innovation. A firm's capacity to absorb and use green knowledge strengthens the effect of market-based regulations specifically.
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Open innovation and its effects on economic and sustainability innovation performance
This study examines how different external partners contribute to innovation performance in industrial firms. The researchers found that collaborating with universities, customers, NGOs, and intermediaries all improve both economic and sustainability innovation outcomes. Importantly, pursuing economic and sustainability goals simultaneously is not a conflict—firms can achieve both. The findings clarify which open innovation partnerships most effectively drive performance.
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Navigating the Back Loop: Fostering Social Innovation and Transformation in Ecosystem Management
This paper examines how social innovation drives transformation in ecosystem management. The authors argue that fostering innovation during periods of ecosystem change—particularly in the 'back loop' of adaptive cycles—enables communities to develop new management approaches and adapt to shifting environmental conditions. The work emphasizes social innovation as essential for navigating complex ecosystem challenges.
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Absorptive capacity and relationship learning mechanisms as complementary drivers of green innovation performance
A study of 112 Spanish automotive component manufacturers finds that absorptive capacity and relationship learning both significantly boost green innovation performance. Relationship learning moderates the effect of absorptive capacity on green innovation outcomes. Managers should invest in building absorptive capacity and cultivating learning relationships with stakeholders to drive green innovation in manufacturing.
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Environmental Innovations, Local Networks and Internationalization
This study examines what drives environmental innovations in firms across the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Cooperation with local suppliers and universities, combined with workforce training and digital technology adoption, most strongly encourages firms to adopt environmental innovations. Agglomeration economies show mixed effects—they boost environmental innovation in established industrial clusters but can hinder it elsewhere. Local networks and agglomeration together strongly promote environmental innovation adoption by multinational firms, demonstrating the importance of linking local and global business relationships.
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Green Knowledge Sharing, Stakeholder Pressure, Absorptive Capacity, and Green Innovation: Evidence from Chinese Manufacturing Firms
Chinese manufacturing firms can improve green innovation by sharing environmental knowledge within supply chains, but only if they develop strong absorptive capacity—the ability to recognize, assimilate, and apply new information. Stakeholder pressure amplifies this effect. The study of 247 firms shows that absorptive capacity fully mediates the relationship between knowledge sharing and green innovation outcomes.
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Responsible Innovation Toward Sustainable Development in Small and Medium‐Sized Enterprises: a Resource Perspective
Small and medium-sized enterprises can develop responsible innovations for sustainable development even with limited resources. Research on 13 Nordic SMEs shows that equity capital is necessary, but the specific resource combinations needed vary by innovation type. Business model innovations require minimal resources—mainly equity and social capital—while environmental technology innovations demand more abundant resources, particularly industry knowledge and R&D cooperation.
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Transformative innovation and translocal diffusion
Transformative innovations emerge from locally rooted sustainability initiatives that challenge unsustainable systems by developing alternatives. These innovations grow through replication, partnership, and embedding, spreading across regions via translocal networks that share ideas and practices. The paper synthesizes European research to show how connecting local initiatives across contexts creates potential for sustainability transitions, though governance support remains necessary.
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Green Process Innovation and Financial Performance in Emerging Economies: Moderating Effects of Absorptive Capacity and Green Subsidies
Green process innovation improves financial performance in manufacturing industries, particularly in emerging economies. Using ten years of Chinese industrial data, the study finds that both clean and end-of-pipe technologies boost profitability. Absorptive capacity—a firm's ability to learn and apply knowledge—strengthens this benefit, while government subsidies surprisingly weaken it. Industries gain more from leveraging internal capabilities than relying on external government support.
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Innovations in climate policy: the politics of invention, diffusion, and evaluation
This paper argues that climate policy innovation at national and sub-national levels deserves greater scholarly attention. The authors propose a comprehensive framework for understanding policy innovation across three stages: invention of new policy elements, diffusion into wider use, and evaluation of effects. They identify analytical and methodological challenges in integrating these perspectives and present a framework applied throughout the volume to examine climate mitigation and adaptation policies.
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How Industry 4.0 technologies and open innovation can improve green innovation performance?
Industry 4.0 technologies boost green innovation performance in Malaysian manufacturing firms by enabling open innovation practices, which in turn strengthens green innovation behavior. The study surveyed 217 firms and found that adopting Industry 4.0 and collaborative innovation approaches creates conditions for sustainable innovations. Policymakers should incentivize firms to adopt these technologies to achieve competitive advantage while meeting environmental goals.
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Frugal Innovation: Core Competencies to Address Global Sustainability
Frugal innovation represents a core competency for addressing global sustainability challenges. The paper examines how resource-constrained approaches to innovation can deliver effective solutions to pressing environmental and social problems worldwide, positioning frugal methods as essential capabilities for organizations committed to sustainable development.
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Towards a collaboration framework for circular economy: The role of dynamic capabilities and open innovation
This paper develops a framework for cross-sectoral collaboration in circular economy transitions by combining relational view, open innovation, and dynamic capabilities theories. Studying the Circle-House-Project in Danish construction, the authors find that successful circular economy scaling depends on knowledge-sharing routines and ecocentric dynamic capabilities built through collaborative networks. The framework shows how diverse sectors working together can advance circular production practices.
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The Determinants of Green Radical and Incremental Innovation Performance: Green Shared Vision, Green Absorptive Capacity, and Green Organizational Ambidexterity
This study introduces green organizational ambidexterity—balancing exploration and exploitation learning—as a framework for driving green innovation. The research shows that green shared vision and absorptive capacity drive both radical and incremental green innovation performance through exploration and exploitation learning pathways. Firms must strengthen these capabilities to improve their environmental innovation outcomes.
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Sustainable Tourism in the Open Innovation Realm: A Bibliometric Analysis
This bibliometric analysis examines how sustainable tourism and open innovation intersect in academic research. The authors map the field's conceptual structure, identify leading trends, key journals, influential papers and authors, and track geographic contributions. The findings reveal the current state of sustainable tourism research in the digital era and highlight emerging themes to guide future scholarship and practice.
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What influences the diffusion of grassroots innovations for sustainability? Investigating community currency niches
Community currencies like Local Exchange Trading Schemes and time banks represent grassroots innovations for sustainability. This study of 12 community currency niches across multiple countries tests whether strategic niche management theory predicts their diffusion success. The researchers find that niche-level activity does correlate with diffusion, but identify additional factors that existing theory misses. They develop an adapted model specifically for grassroots innovations and offer recommendations for practitioners and policymakers supporting these civil society initiatives.
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Eco-innovation: Definition, Measurement and Open Research Issues
This paper examines eco-innovation as a concept distinct from environmental technology, establishing a typology and measurement framework. It discusses push-pull mechanisms driving different eco-innovation types and analyzes patterns showing a shift toward cleaner products alongside continued end-of-pipe solutions. The work reveals national differences in eco-innovation adoption and emphasizes system-level innovation. The author concludes that statistical measurement remains inadequate and recommends improvements to data collection.
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A Tool to Analyze, Ideate and Develop Circular Innovation Ecosystems
This paper presents the Circularity Deck, a card-based tool designed to help organizations analyze and develop circular economy innovations across their ecosystems. The tool organizes circular economy principles by strategy type (narrowing, slowing, closing, regenerating material flows) and innovation scope (product, business model, ecosystem level). Tested with 136 participants across 62 organizations in 12 workshops, the Circularity Deck enables groups of loosely coupled organizations to collectively redesign their interactions and resource flows.
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How Frugal Innovation Promotes Social Sustainability
Frugal innovation—developing solutions with minimal resources—directly supports social sustainability by addressing key social themes. The paper builds a framework connecting both concepts and demonstrates how frugal innovation approaches help achieve the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. This positions frugal innovation as a practical pathway to realizing social sustainability in practice.
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An absorptive capacity model for green innovation and performance in the construction industry
Swedish construction companies can improve their capacity to adopt green innovations and boost business performance by focusing on three key processes: acquiring new environmental knowledge, assimilating it into operations, and transforming it into practice. The study applies absorptive capacity theory to construction and develops a revised framework called green ACAP that identifies specific mechanisms driving environmental innovation and performance improvements.
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Technological Capabilities, Open Innovation, and Eco-Innovation: Dynamic Capabilities to Increase Corporate Performance of SMEs
Small and medium enterprises in Mexico improve corporate performance through technological capabilities that enable open innovation and eco-innovation practices. The study of 684 SMEs shows technological capability does not directly boost performance, but works through open innovation or eco-innovation. Both open and eco-innovation independently strengthen corporate performance, demonstrating that encouraging these practices in SMEs yields measurable business benefits.
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The diffusion of environmental sustainability innovations in North American hotels and ski resorts
This study surveyed North American hotels and ski resorts to identify which environmental sustainability innovations they adopt and what drives adoption rates. Using diffusion of innovations theory, researchers found that perceived simplicity of innovations and strong opinion leadership among resort managers most strongly predicted adoption. Relative advantage and general innovativeness also mattered. The research recommends that sustainability advocates emphasize ease of implementation to accelerate adoption across the hospitality sector.
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LIVING LAB: user‐driven innovation for sustainability
This paper presents the conceptual design of LIVING LAB, a research infrastructure that tests sustainable home technologies with real users in actual households. The approach combines laboratory analysis with real-world household systems to develop and evaluate sustainable domestic innovations while prioritizing user needs and environmental performance. The infrastructure enables long-term, user-centered research on sustainable technologies in their actual contexts of use.
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Green core competencies to prompt green absorptive capacity and bolster green innovation: the moderating role of organization’s green culture
Chinese tourism businesses that develop green core competencies—skills and resources focused on environmental sustainability—improve their green innovation performance. Green absorptive capacity, the ability to recognize and apply environmental knowledge, mediates this relationship. Organizational culture that values sustainability partially strengthens the link between absorptive capacity and innovation. Hotels and restaurants in northeast China show these effects hold in practice.
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Impact of knowledge absorptive capacity on corporate sustainability with mediating role of CSR: analysis from the Asian context
This study examines how employees' ability to absorb and apply knowledge affects manufacturing companies' corporate social responsibility practices and sustainability performance in the Asia Pacific region. Analyzing data from 587 multinational corporations, the research finds that knowledge absorptive capacity directly improves sustainability outcomes and indirectly influences them through corporate social responsibility practices. Knowledge absorptive capacity proves more important than CSR alone for achieving sustainability goals.
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Crafting Sustainable Development Solutions: Frugal Innovations of Grassroots Entrepreneurs
Grassroots entrepreneurs in India create frugal, sustainable innovations using locally available materials and minimal resources. These bottom-of-pyramid solutions address unmet needs while reducing environmental impact and ownership costs. The study argues these grassroots innovations directly advance UN Sustainable Development Goals by improving productivity, sustainability, and poverty reduction in underserved communities.
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Environmental Innovation, Open Innovation Dynamics and Competitive Advantage of Medium and Large-Sized Firms
Greek medium and large firms implement environmental innovation at moderate levels, with ISO 14001 certification and toxic substance reduction as most common practices. Environmental process and product innovation both positively impact competitive advantage. The study surveyed 225 firms and found increasing adoption of environmental management systems, while open innovation dynamics contribute to environmental innovation outcomes.
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Networks as a means of supporting the adoption of organizational innovations in SMEs: the case of Environmental Management Systems (EMSs) based on ISO 14001
Small and medium enterprises struggle to adopt environmental practices, but networks can facilitate this shift. This study examines how SMEs use collaborative networks to implement Environmental Management Systems based on ISO 14001 standards. The research develops a practical model showing how networked SMEs can collectively adopt organizational environmental innovations, moving from reactive to proactive environmental behavior.
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The influence of responsible leadership on environmental innovation and environmental performance: The moderating role of managerial discretion
Responsible leadership drives environmental innovation in manufacturing firms. The study found that relationship building, relational governance, and sharing orientation boost incremental environmental innovation, while relational governance and sharing orientation increase radical environmental innovation. Both innovation types improve environmental performance. Managerial discretion strengthens these relationships, particularly between sharing orientation and both innovation types, and between relational governance and radical innovation.
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Simulation of Enthalpy and Capacity of CO<sub>2</sub> Absorption by Aqueous Amine Systems
This paper develops a model to predict how well amine-based solvents absorb CO2 and the energy required for absorption and release. The model works for both well-studied solvents and new experimental systems. Testing shows that by adjusting amine properties and carbamate formation, researchers can improve CO2 capture capacity and reduce the energy needed compared to standard monoethanolamine systems.
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Grassroots Innovation for Urban Sustainability: Comparing the Diffusion Pathways of Three Ecovillage Projects
Three ecovillage projects successfully spread sustainable practices through education and outreach activities. One project achieved broader impact by partnering with municipal planners to create a new zoning category, enabling mainstream developers to adopt ecovillage concepts. The research shows that grassroots innovation projects bridge niche and mainstream sectors most effectively when they operate simultaneously in two distinct action domains.
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Sustainable open innovation to address a grand challenge
Carlsberg developed the Green Fiber Bottle through open innovation partnerships to address sustainability challenges in food and beverage manufacturing. The case demonstrates that grand challenges require leveraging external collaboration, pursuing sustainability beyond profit motives, adopting new business models, achieving early wins for scaling, and maintaining long-term vision. The Nordic context proved important to success.
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Green absorptive capacity: A mediation‐moderation model of knowledge for innovation
This study examines how environmental and organizational factors drive green innovation in Brazil's electric power industry. The research finds that organizational factors mediate the relationship between environmental pressures and green innovation performance. Green absorptive capacity—a firm's ability to recognize, assimilate, and apply environmental knowledge—strengthens this entire process. The findings demonstrate that firms better equipped to absorb green knowledge achieve superior innovation outcomes.
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Enhancing Green Absorptive Capacity, Green Dynamic Capacities and Green Service Innovation to Improve Firm Performance: An Analysis of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM)
This study examines how green absorptive capacity and green dynamic capacities drive green service innovation and improve firm performance. The research finds that green absorptive capacity directly boosts dynamic capacities, service innovation, and performance. Green dynamic capacities similarly enhance both innovation and performance. The analysis reveals that dynamic capacities and service innovation mediate the relationship between absorptive capacity and firm performance outcomes.
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A Quadruple and Quintuple Helix Approach to Regional Innovation Systems in the Transformation to a Forestry-Based Bioeconomy
This study examines how a Swedish forestry region can transform its innovation system by including more actors—particularly civil society—to develop a sustainable bioeconomy. Researchers interviewed stakeholders and found that a quintuple helix model, which adds environmental and civil society perspectives to traditional innovation systems, could drive broader societal change in consumer behavior, production, technology, and values. However, civil society involvement remains largely aspirational in current regional policy.
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A call for action: The impact of business model innovation on business ecosystems, society and planet
Business model innovation significantly affects companies, their ecosystems, and the environment. This paper distinguishes between standard business model innovation, sustainable variants, and ecosystem-level approaches. The authors argue that research must examine how these innovations create or destroy value and evolve over time, particularly as sustainability pressures intensify.
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Transformative innovation policy to meet the challenge of climate change: sociotechnical networks aligned with consumption and end-use as new transition arenas for a low-carbon society or green economy
The paper argues that climate policy must shift from incremental innovation to transformative change through sociotechnical transitions. Rather than focusing on technology supply or macroeconomic approaches, innovation policy should target consumption and end-use patterns organized around fundamental societal functions. The author shows that current policy mixes new demand-driven systemic initiatives with outdated supply-side approaches, and proposes that energy system visualization reveals consumption categories offering better frameworks for designing sociotechnical experiments toward a low-carbon society.
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Towards Sustainable Digital Innovation of SMEs from the Developing Countries in the Context of the Digital Economy and Frugal Environment
Digital orientation, Internet of Things, and digital platforms directly drive sustainable digital innovation in small and medium enterprises. Digital platforms mediate the relationship between digital orientation and sustainable innovation, and between IoT and sustainable innovation. SMEs in developing countries can adopt frugal business models to reduce resource use and waste while competing in the digital economy.
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Intelligent Autonomous Vehicles in digital supply chains: A framework for integrating innovations towards sustainable value networks
This paper develops a software framework for integrating intelligent autonomous vehicles into sustainable supply chains. The researchers review existing simulation tools, create an integrated framework to monitor supply chain sustainability performance with autonomous vehicles, translate it into a working software application through a five-stage process, and demonstrate the tool using a warehouse model. The framework enables flexible, decentralized supply chain reconfiguration and helps operations managers assess autonomous vehicle performance while tracking sustainability metrics.
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Collaboration beyond the supply network for green innovation: insight from 11 cases
Firms collaborate on green innovation across industry boundaries through horizontal partnerships and extended networks including suppliers and customers. Digital technologies, connectivity, and big data enable knowledge sharing and drive environmental improvements in energy efficiency, materials, emissions reduction, and recycling. Successful green innovation requires developing business models and finding collaboration partners that facilitate transformation toward connected products and services.
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Tourists' perceptions of environmentally responsible innovations at tourism businesses
Tourists with strong nature-oriented motivations view environmentally responsible practices at tourism businesses as significantly more important and valuable than tourists without such motivations. A survey of visitors to Arizona tourism centers found that nature-oriented tourists consistently rated green innovations more favorably, suggesting that visitor attitudes toward environmental practices depend heavily on their underlying travel motivations and connection to nature.
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The Penetration of Green Innovation on Firm Performance: Effects of Absorptive Capacity and Managerial Environmental Concern
Green innovation significantly improves firm performance across operational, financial, and environmental dimensions in Chinese companies. A firm's ability to absorb new knowledge and managers' environmental commitment both strengthen this positive relationship. The study demonstrates that combining green innovation with organizational capacity and leadership values creates integrated benefits for business performance.
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Responsible Aquaculture in 2050: Valuing Local Conditions and Human Innovations Will Be Key to Success
Aquaculture must expand sustainably by 2050 by improving management practices, emphasizing local decision-making and human capacity development, implementing risk management to prevent disease and contamination, and creating market systems that identify and promote sustainable products. The paper argues that respecting local conditions and human innovation will be essential to avoid the intensification mistakes made in agriculture.
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Do Frugal and Reverse Innovation Foster Sustainability? Introduction of a Conceptual Framework
This paper examines how frugal and reverse innovation relate to sustainability performance. The authors establish connections between these innovation approaches and sustainability across three dimensions: resource sustainability in value creation, process sustainability, and outcome sustainability. They argue that improvements in these sustainability dimensions drive better market performance for companies.
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Technological innovation to achieve sustainable development—Renewable energy technologies diffusion in developing countries
Renewable energy technologies spread slowly in developing countries due to economic barriers and market failures. This paper examines diffusion obstacles through innovation systems theory, showing how socioeconomic factors affect renewable energy adoption. Governments can strengthen infant renewable markets by understanding these barriers and building robust innovation ecosystems that address poverty and inequality while creating competitive advantages.
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Rare Earths: Market Disruption, Innovation, and Global Supply Chains
A 2010-2011 rare earth price spike triggered innovation across geoscience, process engineering, and materials science. Researchers improved understanding of mineral deposits, made production and recycling more efficient, and developed substitutes requiring fewer rare earths. Though global supply chains remain largely unchanged, this innovation wave will reshape rare earth markets and supply chains in unpredictable ways.
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Administrative environmental innovations, supply network structure, and environmental disclosure
Administrative environmental innovations help firms track and manage environmental impacts, leading to greater environmental disclosure. The relationship strengthens when firms implement both internal and external innovations together. A firm's position within its supply network—measured by accessibility, control, and interconnectedness—moderates this relationship, affecting how network learning and status influence environmental reporting.
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A Two-Staged SEM-Artificial Neural Network Approach to Analyze the Impact of FinTech Adoption on the Sustainability Performance of Banking Firms: The Mediating Effect of Green Finance and Innovation
Banks in Bangladesh that adopt financial technology improve their sustainability performance through two mechanisms: increased green finance and green innovation. The study analyzed 351 banking employees and found that FinTech adoption directly strengthens both green finance and innovation, which then drive sustainability outcomes. Green finance and innovation fully mediate the relationship between technology adoption and sustainability performance.
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Potential and Realized Absorptive Capacity as Complementary Drivers of Green Product and Process Innovation Performance
Companies absorb external environmental knowledge through two mechanisms—potential capacity (acquiring and assimilating knowledge) and realized capacity (transforming and exploiting it)—to develop green innovations. A study of 112 Spanish automotive component manufacturers found that both dimensions of absorptive capacity directly drive performance in green product and process innovation, showing how firms convert external knowledge into environmental improvements.
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Anticipatory life-cycle assessment for responsible research and innovation
Life-cycle assessment (LCA) can guide innovation toward beneficial outcomes, but current approaches rely on mature industries and lack stakeholder engagement. This paper proposes anticipatory LCA—a forward-looking method that explores uncertain future scenarios for emerging technologies without claiming prediction. By identifying key uncertainties and engaging decision-makers, anticipatory LCA can help researchers prioritize environmental considerations and promote responsible innovation.
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On the Decay Behavior of the CO<sub>2</sub>Absorption Capacity of CaO-Based Sorbents
This paper examines how calcium oxide-based sorbents lose their ability to capture CO2 over repeated absorption and desorption cycles. The authors propose a new mathematical equation that better describes this decay behavior using a single parameter. They identify sintering as the mechanism causing capacity loss and provide a method to compare different sorbents' performance using this decay parameter.
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The Role of Green Innovation between Green Market Orientation and Business Performance: Its Implication for Open Innovation
Green market orientation directly improves business performance in Indonesian manufacturing small and medium enterprises, and this effect is strengthened when companies adopt green innovation practices. The study of 175 MSME owners in East Java shows that balancing economic, environmental, and social concerns through green strategies enhances business outcomes, supporting sustainability theory in the Indonesian context.
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Implications of Frugal Innovations on Sustainable Development: Evaluating Water and Energy Innovations
This paper evaluates four frugal innovations in water and energy sectors against sustainability criteria covering ecological, social, and economic dimensions. The innovations outperformed existing low-income solutions in energy production and water purification capacity. However, social sustainability varied significantly: energy solutions emphasized capacity building and inclusion, while water solutions relied on traditional corporate responsibility. The authors identify three major challenges: integrating material efficiency into systems, promoting inclusive employment, and supporting local industrialization. They conclude that frugality and sustainability, though related, should not be treated as equivalent concepts.
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Digital green value co-creation behavior, digital green network embedding and digital green innovation performance: moderating effects of digital green network fragmentation
Digital green value co-creation behavior and digital green network embedding significantly improve digital green innovation performance in business ecosystems. Network embedding mediates this relationship, while network fragmentation strengthens it. The study surveyed 326 organizations and found that companies engaging in collaborative green innovation through digital networks achieve better environmental and innovation outcomes, with fragmented networks actually enhancing performance by encouraging diverse partnerships.
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Frugal innovation and sustainable business models
Frugal innovations emerging from grassroots communities in developing countries create sustainable business models that serve underserved customers. The study examines how individuals with limited education and resources develop affordable products through creative thinking, analyzing value proposition, creation, and capture across three cases. These innovations transform poor customers into viable consumer groups and contribute to sustainable development.
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Phase Transfer‐Catalyzed Fast CO<sub>2</sub> Absorption by MgO‐Based Absorbents with High Cycling Capacity
Researchers developed a new CO2 absorption method using magnesium oxide and molten salts. The molten salts dissolve the oxide and create triple-phase boundaries where CO2 reacts more efficiently than in traditional gas-solid reactions. This approach works with other basic metal oxides and molten salts, offering a new design strategy for absorbent systems.
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Financial Inclusion, Technological Innovations, and Environmental Quality: Analyzing the Role of Green Openness
Financial inclusion in BRICS countries increases CO2 emissions and environmental degradation, but technological innovation and green openness reduce emissions. Economic growth and energy consumption also drive environmental harm. The study finds that financial inclusion, technological innovation, and green openness influence each other and collectively affect emissions. BRICS nations should combine financial inclusion with environmental policies while promoting green technology and openness to meet climate goals.
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Implementation of green innovations – The impact of stakeholders and their network relations
Stakeholder relationships significantly influence whether green innovations succeed or fail. This case study of an offshore wind farm in Germany shows that networks among stakeholders—including companies, government bodies, and communities—can either support or hinder green innovation implementation. The researchers argue that understanding these stakeholder interactions is essential for successfully deploying environmentally sustainable technologies.
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Embedding environmental innovation in local production systems: SME strategies, networking and industrial relations: evidence on innovation drivers in industrial districts
Environmental innovation in Italian manufacturing firms depends more on strategic choices than firm size. The study finds that R&D investment, industrial relations focused on innovation, and networking activities drive environmental performance improvements. Policy pressure and environmental auditing also encourage adoption. Networking effectively replaces the innovation advantages that larger firms typically enjoy, making local collaboration critical for small and medium enterprises.
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Social Innovation and New Industrial Contexts: Can Designers “Industrialize” Socially Responsible Solutions?
Designers have long faced calls to address social and environmental problems, but mainstream industrial production has largely ignored these responsibilities. The paper argues that design has been trapped between market-driven approaches and isolated socially responsible initiatives, with little exploration of middle ground. Recent sustainability studies and environmental targets like Kyoto demonstrate the urgent need for designers to integrate social responsibility into industrial production rather than treating it as separate from economic logic.
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Frugal innovation as a source of sustainable entrepreneurship to tackle social and environmental challenges
Frugal innovation drives sustainable entrepreneurship in developing countries by enabling businesses to achieve social and environmental goals simultaneously. The study found that frugal innovation-based ventures deliver female empowerment, improved healthcare access, better living standards, and sustainable production methods while creating new markets and inclusive growth. This approach shifts focus from barriers to enablers of sustainable entrepreneurship.
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Are regional systems greening the economy? Local spillovers, green innovations and firms’ economic performances
Environmental innovations spread through local geographic spillovers within manufacturing districts in Italy's Emilia-Romagna region. When many firms in the same municipality adopt green innovations, nearby firms follow suit. Companies that adopt environmental innovations experience improved productivity and economic performance, suggesting that greening the economy and achieving business gains are compatible goals.
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Enhancing sustainable development: Innovation ecosystem coopetition, environmental resource orchestration, and disruptive green innovation
Manufacturing firms in China that balance cooperation and competition within innovation ecosystems develop stronger environmental resource management capabilities, which drives disruptive green innovation. Big data analytics amplifies the cooperation-to-resource-orchestration pathway but not the competition pathway. Both ecosystem cooperation and competition independently boost environmental resource orchestration, which then enables breakthrough green innovations.
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Dynamic ARDL Simulations Effects of Fiscal Decentralization, Green Technological Innovation, Trade Openness, and Institutional Quality on Environmental Sustainability: Evidence from South Africa
This study examines how fiscal decentralization, green technological innovation, trade openness, and institutional quality affect carbon emissions in South Africa from 1960 to 2020. Fiscal decentralization, green innovation, and institutional quality reduce emissions in both short and long term. Trade openness worsens environmental quality long-term. Population and energy consumption increase emissions. The findings support an environmental Kuznets curve and suggest that clear government responsibility allocation across governance tiers is essential for achieving low-carbon objectives.
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Eco-innovation, Responsible Leadership and Organizational Change for Corporate Sustainability
Organizations pursuing sustainability must integrate environmental and social goals into their operations through eco-innovation and responsible leadership. The paper links corporate sustainability, eco-innovation, responsible leadership, and organizational change as interconnected drivers of corporate sustainability. Research on Romanian organizations shows that visionary management plays a critical role in adopting and implementing sustainability practices, particularly ecological components of sustainable development.
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Market-Based Instruments for Ecosystem Services: Institutional Innovation or Renovation?
Market-based instruments for ecosystem services have proliferated globally, but their actual institutional design varies widely from their theoretical promise. This paper examines payments for environmental services and biodiversity offsets—both labeled as market-based instruments—and finds significant gaps between the pro-market rhetoric surrounding these policies and their actual implementation. The instruments are less genuinely innovative than claimed and take diverse institutional forms depending on local context.
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Circular economy practices and environmental performance: Analysing the role of big data analytics capability and responsible research and innovation
This study examines how big data analytics capability and responsible research and innovation drive circular economy practices in manufacturing, ultimately improving environmental performance. Using survey data from 326 manufacturers, the research finds that responsible research and innovation has the strongest influence on environmental outcomes. Circular economy practices partially mediate the effects of both big data analytics and responsible innovation on environmental performance, though resource commitment does not significantly moderate these relationships.
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Environmental collaboration, responsible innovation, and firm performance: The moderating role of stakeholder pressure
Environmental collaboration drives responsible innovation in firms, which improves performance. This effect strengthens when stakeholder pressure increases. The study of 225 firms demonstrates that responsible innovation mediates the relationship between environmental collaboration and firm performance, advancing understanding of how companies can leverage environmental strategies to achieve business success.
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The circular economy, environmental performance and environmental management systems: the role of absorptive capacity
Organizations struggle to implement circular economy practices, but developing absorptive capacity—the ability to acquire, assimilate, transform, and exploit knowledge—significantly improves their success. Analysis of over 800 European certified organizations shows that absorptive capacity directly enables circular economy implementation and environmental management systems adoption, which together enhance organizational performance. Environmental pressure from peers does not drive commitment to circularity.
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Sustainable Business Performance: Examining the Role of Green HRM Practices, Green Innovation and Responsible Leadership through the Lens of Pro-Environmental Behavior
Green human resource management practices, responsible leadership, and green innovation all positively influence sustainable business performance in Pakistan's banking sector. Pro-environmental behavior partially mediates the relationship between responsible leadership and sustainable performance. The study surveyed 396 banking professionals and used structural equation modeling to demonstrate that these green management strategies effectively drive business sustainability in developing country contexts.
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Green innovation output in the supply chain network with environmental information disclosure: An empirical analysis of Chinese listed firms
Supply chain network structure influences green innovation in Chinese firms. Network power and cohesion both boost green innovation output, but their combined effect reduces it due to information overload. Environmental information disclosure strengthens the positive relationship between network structure and green innovation. The study analyzed 1,048 Chinese listed firms from 2012 to 2019.
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Eco-Innovation, Sustainability and Business Model Innovation by Open Innovation Dynamics
Polish eco-innovative companies tend to develop radical rather than incremental environmental innovations, particularly in biodiversity protection. Larger firms with over 50 employees show greater capacity for both types of eco-innovation than smaller competitors. Open innovation strategies significantly boost eco-innovation generation, especially radical changes. Forward supply chain collaboration and direct market knowledge absorption drive these developments, offering a framework for post-pandemic business model innovation.
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Linking Resilience Theory and Diffusion of Innovations Theory to Understand the Potential for Perennials in the U.S. Corn Belt
This paper combines resilience theory with diffusion of innovations theory to analyze how perennial crops could be adopted in the U.S. Corn Belt. The authors examine the conditions and barriers that affect whether farmers will shift from annual commodity crops to perennial alternatives, using theoretical frameworks to understand both the ecological benefits of such transitions and the social factors driving agricultural innovation adoption.
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A service ecosystem perspective on the diffusion of sustainability-oriented user innovations
This paper argues that service ecosystem theory better explains how sustainability-focused user innovations spread through markets and communities. The authors identify three key insights: diffusion involves multiple levels and actors working together, user innovators must be integrated as active ecosystem participants, and innovation spreads through ongoing co-creation rather than one-way adoption. The findings suggest policymakers should build innovation infrastructure that recognizes and supports users as drivers of sustainable change.
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Antecedents of absorptive capacity in the development of circular economy business models of small and medium enterprises
Small and medium enterprises struggle to adopt circular economy business models. This study examined six Italian horticultural SMEs to identify what enables them to absorb and implement circular economy practices. The research found that acquisition, assimilation, transformation, and exploitation capabilities drive successful circular economy adoption. Three specific antecedents support each capability dimension.
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Water Holding Capacity and Absorption Properties of Wood Chars
Wood chars produced from poplar and pine at different temperatures show strong positive correlations between water holding capacity and total pore volume. Surface area alone does not predict water holding capacity, but pore size distribution matters significantly. Large pores facilitate water movement to smaller pores, while mesopore volume critically affects water absorption rates. These findings support using biomass char as a soil amendment.
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Technological development for sustainability: The role of network management in the innovation policy mix
This paper analyzes how policy can strengthen collaborative networks driving sustainable technology development. Using advanced biorefinery technology in Sweden as a case study, the authors develop a framework showing how network management strategies should evolve across different phases of technological development. They demonstrate that ignoring network management in innovation policy leads to inefficient collaboration, fragmented competing networks, and knowledge gaps.
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An absorption capacity investigation of new absorbent based on polyurethane foams and rice straw for oil spill cleanup
Researchers developed a new absorbent material by combining polyurethane foam with rice straw, an agricultural residue from Vietnam, to clean up oil spills. The material achieved oil absorption capacity of 12.012 grams of oil per gram of absorbent after 120 minutes, performing 3–4 times better than pure polyurethane or cellulose-based alternatives. The optimal composition used 25% rice straw by mass with 0.5 mm particle size.
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Do knowledge sharing and big data analytics capabilities matter for green absorptive capacity and green entrepreneurship orientation? Implications for green innovation
Big data analytics capabilities directly strengthen firms' ability to absorb green knowledge and adopt green entrepreneurship practices. Knowledge sharing amplifies these effects. Together, these factors drive green innovation in manufacturing. The study demonstrates that aligning data analytics with green business strategies creates a foundation for sustainable competitive advantage.
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High CO2 absorption capacity of metal-based ionic liquids: A molecular dynamics study
Metal-based ionic liquids enhance CO2 absorption through molecular dynamics simulations. The study shows these liquids create hydrogen bond networks that increase CO2 absorption capacity while promoting diffusion. Metal-chloride bond length and anion volume determine absorption performance. Findings enable rational design of ionic liquids for carbon capture and chemical engineering applications.
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Green innovation networks: A research agenda
Green innovations emerge from organizational collaborations, yet little research examines the networks driving them. This literature review of 63 papers identifies green innovations across products, services, processes, business models, and marketing. The authors map different actor types, network structures, and engagement motivations. They propose three research priorities: horizontal collaborations among peers, cross-sectoral partnerships including public-private arrangements, and the role of users as active network participants in developing green innovations.
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A data-driven robust optimization in viable supply chain network design by considering Open Innovation and Blockchain Technology
This paper develops a supply chain network design model that integrates open innovation and blockchain technology to improve resilience and sustainability. Using robust optimization and risk management techniques, the model minimizes costs while reducing CO2 emissions and energy consumption. The authors demonstrate that adding open innovation and blockchain platforms reduces costs by 0.2% and enhances overall supply chain performance against disruptions.
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Green Governance: New Perspective from Open Innovation
This paper proposes a green governance framework that uses open innovation to balance economic development with environmental protection. The framework involves cooperation among enterprises, governments, social organizations, the public, and nature. It examines how open innovation activities can address resource and environmental externalities while coordinating economic and environmental values. The authors suggest countries and regions can adapt this framework to suit their environmental capacity and enterprises can use it to develop sustainable strategies.
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The impact of clean energy consumption, green innovation, and technological diffusion on environmental sustainability: New evidence from load capacity curve hypothesis for 10 European Union countries
This study analyzes how clean energy consumption, green innovation, and technological diffusion affect environmental sustainability across ten European Union countries from 1990 to 2018. Using the load capacity curve hypothesis framework, researchers found that green innovation and technological diffusion significantly support environmental sustainability, with the hypothesis validated for Denmark, France, Portugal, and Spain. The findings demonstrate that these factors are critical for promoting environmentally friendly practices.
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Economic, Functional, and Social Factors Influencing Electric Vehicles’ Adoption: An Empirical Study Based on the Diffusion of Innovation Theory
This study identifies factors driving electric vehicle adoption using diffusion of innovation theory. Survey data from 375 respondents reveals that perceived compatibility, complexity, and relative advantage predict EV adoption. Economic factors like subsidies and price risk, functional factors like intelligent features and sustainability concerns, and social factors like status and reputation significantly influence these perceptions. The findings help explain why EV market penetration lags despite environmental benefits.
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Information systems absorptive capacity for environmentally driven IS‐enabled transformation
Organizations can leverage information systems to address environmental sustainability by developing IS-environmental absorptive capacity—the ability to recognize, assimilate, and apply environmental knowledge through IS. The study identifies that sustainable IS triggers, knowledge exposure, and prior experience build this capacity, which then drives environmentally sustainable IS adoption and improves cost savings, operational performance, and organizational reputation. Survey and case study evidence confirm the model.
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How Environmental Innovations Emerge and Proliferate in Supply Networks: A Complex Adaptive Systems Perspective
Environmental innovations in supply networks emerge through self-organizing processes that cross organizational boundaries, according to this qualitative study of two firms. The research shows that once innovations enter the network, they spread through decentralized coordination rather than top-down control by dominant firms. The authors develop a process model explaining how environmental innovations come into being and proliferate across supply networks over time.
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To walk in beauty: Sustainable leadership, frugal innovation and environmental performance
This study examines how sustainable leadership affects environmental performance in large Pakistani manufacturing firms, with frugal innovation playing a mediating role. Researchers surveyed 500 employees and found that frugal innovation partially explains the relationship between sustainable leadership and improved environmental outcomes. The findings suggest that leaders adopting sustainable practices and resource-efficient innovation strategies can enhance their firms' environmental performance.
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Improving technology transfer through national systems of innovation: climate relevant innovation-system builders (CRIBs)
National systems of innovation can more effectively transfer climate technologies to developing countries than existing UNFCCC mechanisms. The authors propose establishing Climate Relevant Innovation-System Builders (CRIBs)—institutions that nurture climate-relevant innovation systems and build technological capabilities in developing nations. This approach, grounded in innovation studies and socio-technical transition literature, offers a transformative policy mechanism for climate-compatible technological change and development.
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Green growth as a determinant of ecological footprint: Do ICT diffusion, environmental innovation, and natural resources matter?
Green growth, ICT adoption, and environmental innovation reduce ecological footprint in both emerging and developed economies over the long term. Natural resources increase ecological footprint in emerging economies but decrease it in developed ones. The study analyzes 14 countries using advanced econometric methods and recommends policy interventions to leverage green growth and innovation for environmental sustainability.
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Iron Deficiency in Cyanobacteria Causes Monomerization of Photosystem I Trimers and Reduces the Capacity for State Transitions and the Effective Absorption Cross Section of Photosystem I in Vivo
Iron deficiency in cyanobacteria triggers production of CP43' protein, which forms rings around photosystem I. Contrary to laboratory predictions, this does not increase PSI's light absorption capacity in living cells. Instead, iron stress causes PSI trimers to break apart into monomers, reduces the cell's ability to balance energy between photosystems, and lowers levels of key electron transport proteins. CP43' functions primarily as a protective mechanism against photodamage rather than enhancing light capture.
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Studying disruptive events: Innovations in behaviour, opportunities for lower carbon transport policy?
Transport policy assumes travel patterns are fixed, leading to over-reliance on technological solutions like electric vehicles. This paper examines how people actually adapt mobility during disruptive events, revealing greater capacity for behavior change than policy recognizes. The authors argue that broadening interventions beyond technology to address when and how mobility matters for daily activities could reduce travel demand and carbon emissions more effectively.
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Measurement of Social Networks for Innovation within Community Disaster Resilience
Social networks are critical for community disaster resilience, but measuring their impact has lacked standardized methods. This paper reviews empirical studies from the Global South using social network analysis to quantify social capital in disaster risk reduction. The authors find that robust social network analysis methodologies are emerging, enabling better cross-study comparison. They argue that mapping local social networks is essential for effective disaster preparedness policy, and recommend social network analysis as a core methodology for future resilience research and planning.
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Importance of innovation and flexibility in configuring supply network sustainability
This study examines how organizational culture, green supplier development, supplier relationships, flexibility, and innovation affect supply network sustainability in South African manufacturing firms. The research finds that organizational culture strengthens supplier relationships and drives innovation and flexibility. Institutional pressures from government regulations amplify the link between innovation and sustainable supply networks, particularly when firms adopt eco-friendly practices and collaborate with specialist suppliers.
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How incumbents realize disruptive circular innovation ‐ Overcoming the innovator's dilemma for a circular economy
Established companies struggle to adopt circular economy innovations because these threaten their existing profitable linear business models. This paper analyzes how incumbents can overcome this dilemma using disruptive innovation theory. Two case studies show that creating separate organizational units helps implement circular innovations, but success requires clear strategy, strategic partnerships, supportive culture, and relevant competencies.
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Innovation in the Green Economy: An Extension of the Regional Innovation System Model?
Green innovation in California varies significantly by sector and doesn't automatically drive growth. Environmentally pressured firms innovate processes most, while new green companies target local markets. Traditional firms benefit from innovation, but emerging green firms need local network support and additional resources to commercialize new products and reach markets.
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Restructuring existing value networks to diffuse sustainable innovations in food packaging
Sustainable food packaging innovations struggle to reach markets because existing industry networks resist change. This study examines how value networks must restructure to enable diffusion of sustainable packaging made from agro-food waste. The research identifies necessary changes across firm, network, and macro levels: recognizing opportunities, integrating new actors and resources, building new relationships, creating supportive regulations, and stimulating market demand. Adopting sustainable packaging requires fundamental reorganization of entire value networks, not just product innovation.
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Green intellectual capital and green business strategy: The role of green absorptive capacity
Green intellectual capital drives manufacturing firms to adopt green business strategies, with this effect mediated by green absorptive capacity and moderated by corporate environmental ethics. Research on 268 Pakistani manufacturing workers shows that organizations with stronger green knowledge and learning capabilities implement more environmentally responsible business practices, regardless of industry type. Knowledge-based resources and environmental regulations emerge as key drivers of green strategy adoption.
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Innovative products and services with environmental benefits: design of search strategies for external knowledge and absorptive capacity
French firms pursuing environmental innovations use different external knowledge strategies depending on their goals. Acquiring machinery and equipment drives eco-process innovations, while external R&D partnerships specifically support eco-product development. Collaborative R&D sharing advances both types of environmental innovation. Market-based information sources consistently support all environmental innovation efforts.
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Green innovation peer effects in common institutional ownership networks
Chinese firms imitate their peers' green innovation decisions when they share common institutional investors. The study finds two mechanisms drive this: institutional investors sharing information about green innovation, and competitive pressure between firms with shared investors. Firms with tight finances and lower risk tolerance imitate more, preferring peers in similar industries with matching ownership structures. This peer-driven imitation improves firm value, suggesting it reflects genuine strategic adoption rather than hollow mimicry.
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Strategic orientations and responsible innovation in SMEs: The moderating effects of environmental turbulence
This study examines how strategic orientations drive responsible innovation in Chinese SMEs under different environmental conditions. Using data from 194 firms, the researchers found that digital and environmental orientations both boost responsible innovation, with environmental orientation having stronger effects. Market and technological turbulence strengthen the link between digital orientation and responsible innovation, but weaken the link between environmental orientation and responsible innovation.
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Green Innovation Sustainability: How Green Market Orientation and Absorptive Capacity Matter?
This study examines how green market orientation and absorptive capacity drive green innovation in manufacturing firms. Using survey data from 262 Chinese firms, the authors find that green market orientation boosts only green product innovation, while absorptive capacity improves both product and process innovation. The two factors interact positively to enhance both innovation types. The research reveals differential effects of internal capabilities on different forms of green innovation.
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Innovation for a steady state: a case for responsible stagnation
This paper argues that responsible innovation frameworks should explicitly consider 'responsible stagnation'—deliberately slowing or halting innovation in certain sectors. Drawing on ecological economics, the authors challenge the growth-driven paradigm and contend that managing resource consumption and development pace in over-productive or risky sectors represents a legitimate form of responsible innovation, not its failure.
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The diffusion of grassroots innovations for sustainability in Italy and <scp>G</scp>reat <scp>B</scp>ritain: an exploratory spatial data analysis
Grassroots sustainability networks spread unevenly across space and time. Transition Towns and Solidarity Purchasing Groups diffused differently in Great Britain and Italy, with similar patterns only in central Italy. The research reveals that spatial structure matters for grassroots innovation diffusion, challenging assumptions about their universal momentum and highlighting the importance of institutional context, cross-movement collaboration, and geographic proximity.
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How firms realign to tackle the grand challenge of climate change: An innovation ecosystems perspective
This study examines how established electric utilities and clean-tech startups collaborate in innovation ecosystems to address climate change. Analyzing 10 utilities and 57 startups across pilot projects, the researchers identify three ecosystem configurations that drive climate impact: incumbent-led digital platforms, device complementors that enable customers, and new orchestrators. These configurations succeed by improving resource efficiency, enhancing infrastructure flexibility, and enabling better information sharing.
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Perspective: The Green Innovation Value Chain: A Tool for Evaluating the Diffusion Prospects of Green Products
Green products often fail to replace conventional alternatives at scale despite promotion for climate and sustainability benefits. This paper introduces the green innovation value chain framework to assess financial viability across manufacturers, distributors, consumers, environment, and government. Analysis of hybrid vehicles reveals they remain financially unattractive compared to conventional cars across the entire value chain.
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Measuring green innovation through total quality management and corporate social responsibility within SMEs: green theory under the lens
This study examines how total quality management (TQM) practices drive green innovation in small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises in Pakistan. The research finds that TQM significantly improves both green product and process innovation. Corporate social responsibility partially mediates this relationship, meaning CSR practices strengthen the link between TQM and green innovation outcomes. The findings provide manufacturing SMEs with a roadmap for reducing waste and improving innovation through integrated TQM and CSR strategies.
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Mapping Europe’s institutional landscape for forest ecosystem service provision, innovations and governance
This paper analyzes European forest policies across national strategies on forests, biodiversity, and bioeconomy to map how institutions govern ecosystem service provision. The researchers found that policies focus heavily on wood and bioenergy value chains, while neglecting non-wood products, cultural heritage, and recreation. Regulating ecosystem services lack sufficient policy attention and innovation support, despite forests' prominence in sustainability agendas. The institutional landscape shows significant gaps where new governance mechanisms and innovations could better promote ecosystem service provision.
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Institutional pressure and the implementation of corporate environment practices: examining the mediating role of absorptive capacity
Firms facing similar environmental regulations respond differently based on their absorptive capacity—their ability to acquire and use environmental knowledge. This study of Indian textile and apparel companies shows that absorptive capacity mediates between institutional pressure and actual implementation of environmental practices. Managers must develop internal capabilities to acquire and exploit external environmental knowledge to effectively respond to sustainability demands.
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Diffusion Dynamics of Sustainable Innovation - Insights on Diffusion Patterns Based on the Analysis of 100 Sustainable Product and Service Innovations
This study analyzes 100 sustainable product and service innovations to understand what drives their market adoption. The researchers identified five distinct diffusion patterns, each shaped by different factors, actors, and institutional conditions. The findings show that sustainable innovations follow varied adoption paths, and understanding these differences helps explain why some innovations succeed while others fail.
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Experimental networks for business model innovation: A way for incumbents to navigate sustainability transitions?
Incumbent firms struggle to innovate business models during sustainability transitions due to unclear pathways forward. This paper examines three case studies of emerging technology projects and shows how cross-industry networks operating on limited timescales help organizations collaboratively explore new business models for major socio-technical changes. The research introduces the concept of experimental networks as a mechanism enabling incumbents to actively shape sustainability transitions through interorganizational collaboration.
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Lowering in water absorption capacity and mechanical degradation of sisal/epoxy composite by sodium bicarbonate treatment and PLA coating
Researchers treated sisal fibers with sodium bicarbonate and coated them with polylactic acid to create stronger, water-resistant biocomposites. The treated and coated sisal-epoxy composites absorbed 30% less water than untreated versions and showed minimal mechanical degradation when exposed to moisture, maintaining superior tensile strength, flexural strength, and hardness compared to conventional sisal composites.
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National culture, regulation and country interaction effects on the association of environmental management systems with environmentally beneficial innovation
Environmental management systems boost process innovations in firms, but this effect varies significantly by country. The study of nine European nations reveals that national culture and regulatory frameworks moderate whether firms implementing these systems actually develop environmental innovations. Management systems show no consistent link to product innovations across countries.
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The Development and Diffusion of Radical Technological Innovation: The Role of Bus Demonstration Projects in Commercializing Fuel Cell Technology
Governments in North America, Europe, and Japan have funded demonstration projects to commercialize fuel cell bus technology as part of climate change strategies. This paper examines how various stakeholders—government agencies, automotive developers, and industry players—interact through these projects. The authors find that demonstration projects play a crucial role in technology adoption, but conflicting objectives among industry participants and complex government-developer relationships significantly hinder progress toward widespread commercialization.
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Disruptive innovation and circularity in start‐ups: A path to sustainable development
Brazilian start-ups are implementing disruptive innovations that advance circular economy principles in their business models. Through interviews with 50 start-up leaders, researchers found that these companies are partially adopting circular resource initiatives—including data management, supply chain partnerships, digitization, and new market opportunities—that support sustainable development. The study reveals varying adoption levels across market segments and identifies pathways for accelerating circular economy integration.
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Subsistence over symbolism: the role of transnational municipal networks on cities’ climate policy innovation and adoption
City governments that join transnational municipal networks adopt significantly more climate mitigation policies than those outside such networks. The study analyzed global data on urban environmental policy adoption and found network membership matters, with differences between networks suggesting that tailored services drive results. Networks enable cities to adopt climate policies independently when international commitments lack local enforcement, while considering co-benefits optimizes global climate strategies.
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Green creativity, responsible innovation, and product innovation performance: A study of entrepreneurial firms in an emerging economy
Green creativity drives product innovation performance in entrepreneurial firms through responsible innovation practices. A study of 273 Vietnamese firms shows that firms committing more resources to environmental innovation strengthen this relationship. Responsible innovation mediates the effect of green creativity on product innovation outcomes, demonstrating how environmental commitment translates creative ideas into market performance.
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Incentivizing biodiversity conservation in artisanal fishing communities through territorial user rights and business model innovation
The authors designed a market-based program in Chile that gives artisanal fishers territorial user rights and financial incentives to establish no-take marine areas. The program commodifies biodiversity benefits created by fishers' conservation actions, using simple transactional infrastructure that can scale while remaining attractive to investors. Success requires matching supply, infrastructure, and demand components to local social-ecological conditions, potentially generating significant marine conservation gains.
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Circular Economy in the Triple Helix of Innovation Systems
This paper examines how industry, government, and universities conceptualize circular economy within innovation systems. Using natural language processing, the authors find that while each sector has distinct priorities—industry focuses on global business opportunities, government on waste-related policies and economic growth, and universities on production and environmental issues—they share limited consensus around materials, products, and creating resources from waste. This consensus space, the authors argue, can drive systemic innovation if strengthened across all three sectors.
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Toward Efficient CO<sub>2</sub> Capture Solvent Design by Analyzing the Effect of Chain Lengths and Amino Types to the Absorption Capacity, Bicarbonate/Carbamate, and Cyclic Capacity
This paper investigates how molecular structure of amine solvents affects CO2 capture efficiency. Researchers tested six diamines with varying chain lengths and amino groups, comparing them to standard monoamines. Results show that extending the carbon chain from C2 to C3 and adding substituents to nitrogen atoms both increase CO2 absorption capacity, bicarbonate formation, and desorption performance, offering guidance for designing more energy-efficient industrial CO2 capture solvents.
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No‐tillage farming: co‐creation of innovation through network building
No-tillage farming development in Switzerland involves complex networks of farmers, experts, scientists, and equipment working together to create innovation. Despite economic and environmental benefits, no-tillage spreads slowly because it requires radical transformations in farm equipment, work practices, institutional arrangements, and farmers' professional identities. Policy works best as a mediator facilitating these reciprocal translations rather than imposing top-down directives.
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Innovations and stepwise evolution of CBFs/DREB1s and their regulatory networks in angiosperms
This paper traces the evolutionary origin of CBF/DREB1 genes, which regulate cold tolerance in flowering plants. The researchers found that CBF/DREB1 evolved from tandem duplication of an ancestral DREB III gene, then split into two clades through whole genome duplication. Only one clade developed cold sensitivity. Gene duplications accelerated during the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary and Ice Age, when global temperatures dropped. These duplications rewired regulatory networks that enabled plants to survive colder climates.
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Pursuing Frugal Innovation for Sustainability at the Grassroots Level
Frugal innovation offers firms a practical approach to sustainability while serving underserved customers in developing countries. Three case studies from India show how frugal innovation creates new business models that address economic, social, and environmental challenges simultaneously. The paper argues that firms should adopt frugal innovation strategies to tackle pressing societal problems while promoting sustainability.
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Absorptive capacity and interpretation system's impact when ‘going green’: an empirical study of ford, volvo cars and toyota
Three automotive companies—Ford, Volvo, and Toyota—developed greener cars with lower fuel consumption. The study found that companies with an 'enacting' approach to environmental interpretation, actively shaping market demand, succeeded better than those with a 'discovering' approach that passively responded to existing demand. Companies using discovery mode needed to combine engineering expertise with consumer psychology insights to profitably market environmental benefits.
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Social Dynamics Shaping the Diffusion of Sustainable Aquaculture Innovations in the Solomon Islands
Small-scale tilapia farming spread unevenly across rural Solomon Islands. Wealthier, older farmers with diverse income sources adopted it first. Opinion leaders promoted adoption but couldn't teach the technical knowledge needed for success. The research shows that sustainable aquaculture innovations require attention to poor households and the social institutions that shape farming decisions, not just technology transfer.
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Collaborative Innovation for Sustainable Construction: The Case of an Industrial Construction Project Network
This paper examines how multiple organizations collaborate to drive innovation in sustainable construction. Using social network analysis of a Chinese industrial construction project, the researchers identified key actors and structural patterns that enable inter-organizational collaboration. The study reveals which factors influence successful collaboration and how network structures replace traditional hierarchies to improve innovation performance and construction efficiency.
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Fabrication of Functional Polyurethane/Rare Earth Nanocomposite Membranes by Electrospinning and Its VOCs Absorption Capacity from Air
Researchers created polyurethane membranes embedded with rare earth nanoparticles using electrospinning technology to remove volatile organic compounds from air. Membranes containing 50% rare earth powder showed the strongest performance, absorbing VOCs three times better than pure polyurethane. The material effectively captured styrene, xylene, toluene, benzene, and chloroform, making it a promising solution for air pollution control.
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Evaluation of Circular and Integration Potentials of Innovation Ecosystems for Industrial Sustainability
This paper develops methods to assess industrial ecosystem potential by examining circular economy and symbiotic integration principles. The authors analyze two real industrial ecosystems—Kalundborg Symbiosis and Baltic Industrial Symbiosis—to evaluate their circular and integration capabilities. They find that Kalundborg achieves productive but incomplete circularity. The framework helps policymakers and stakeholders understand how industrial symbiosis reduces environmental problems and advances sustainable development.
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Determination of Absorption Rate and Capacity of CO<sub>2</sub> in Ionic Liquids at Atmospheric Pressure by Thermogravimetric Analysis
This paper develops a thermogravimetric analysis method to measure CO2 absorption in ionic liquids and tests 11 different ionic liquids varying in chemical composition. The researchers find that ionic liquids with acetate anions absorb CO2 most effectively, showing both high absorption capacity and fast absorption rates. Initial absorption rate within 10 minutes can reliably predict total absorption capacity, offering a practical screening tool for identifying promising CO2 capture materials.
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Strategic green marketing orientation and environmental sustainability in sub-Saharan Africa: Does green absorptive capacity moderate? Evidence from Tanzania
Manufacturing enterprises in Tanzania that adopt strategic green marketing orientation significantly improve their environmental sustainability practices. The study finds that green absorptive capacity—the ability to recognize and apply environmental knowledge—strengthens this relationship. These findings demonstrate that integrating environmental considerations into business strategy and building capacity to absorb green innovations drives measurable sustainability improvements in manufacturing.
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Mediation-moderation model of green absorptive capacity and green entrepreneurship orientation for corporate environmental performance
Chinese manufacturing firms improve environmental performance by developing green absorptive capacity—the ability to convert environmental knowledge into practical application. The study shows that green absorptive capacity strengthens managerial environmental concern and green innovation performance, which then enhance environmental outcomes. Green entrepreneurship orientation helps exploit eco-friendly opportunities but only when green absorptive capacity bridges the gap between environmental awareness and business strategy.
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Adoption of Sustainability Innovations and Environmental Opinion Leadership: A Way to Foster Environmental Sustainability through Diffusion of Innovation Theory
This study examines how Pakistani hospitals can adopt sustainability innovations by leveraging environmental opinion leadership. Using survey data from hospital employees, the research identifies five key factors that drive adoption: trialability, innovativeness, compatibility, simplicity, and relative advantage. The findings provide practical guidance for improving environmental sustainability in Pakistan's hospital sector.
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Frugal innovation and sustainability outcomes: findings from a systematic literature review
This systematic review of 130 empirical studies examines how frugal innovation drives sustainability outcomes. The authors find that frugal innovation's potential to improve social, environmental, and economic conditions depends on who develops it—whether large firms, small firms, or non-profit actors, and whether they are foreign or local. Collaboration across innovation stages proves critical. The review identifies gaps in understanding when and where frugal innovation most effectively produces sustainability benefits.
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Networking towards sustainable tourism: innovations between green growth and degrowth strategies
This study examines a rural Irish tourism network using network analysis, categorizing businesses by their sustainability ideology from green growth to degrowth approaches. The research shows that sustainability networks help rural areas pursue change, but achieving genuine shifts away from conventional business practices requires degrowth strategists to play central roles in communication and collaborative activities.
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A framework of disruptive sustainable innovation: an example of the Finnish food system
This paper develops a framework for understanding disruptive sustainable innovation by combining insights from socio-technical transition research and management literature. Using four Finnish food system companies as case studies, the authors show how disruptive innovation operates across production and consumption practices, involving both producer-entrepreneurs and citizen-consumers. The framework addresses gaps in existing literature by examining business model innovation and user practices alongside technological change.
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Potential and Pitfalls of Frugal Innovation in the Water Sector: Insights from Tanzania to Global Value Chains
Frugal innovations—affordable, stripped-down solutions—offer promise for addressing water challenges in developing regions like Tanzania. However, the study finds significant pitfalls: these innovations struggle to scale and lack institutional support. Water's critical role across natural and human systems, combined with complex global supply chains, creates barriers to sustainability impact. Success requires understanding entire value chains and their water dependencies.
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Responsible leadership, organizational ethical culture, strategic posture, and green innovation
Responsible leadership in service organizations drives green innovation, with organizational ethical culture acting as the mechanism through which this influence operates. A progressive strategic posture strengthens this relationship. The study surveyed 168 hospitality employees across three waves and found that leaders signaling responsibility through ethical organizational culture encourage green innovation more effectively when the firm pursues progressive strategies.
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Frugal innovation in the midst of societal and operational pressures
Frugal innovation—developing solutions under resource and societal constraints—delivers sustainable outcomes primarily through business model design rather than technological sophistication. The authors establish a framework linking frugal innovation to sustainable business models, analyzing three firms to show that sustainability results depend on how companies integrate societal concerns with operational activities across their business model elements.
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Effect of fiber loading on mechanical and water absorption capacity of Polylactic acid/Polyhydroxybutyrate-co-hydroxyhexanoate/Kenaf composite
Researchers blended polylactic acid with polyhydroxybutyrate-co-hydroxyhexanoate and reinforced it with kenaf fiber at varying levels. Tensile strength and stiffness improved as fiber content increased from 10 to 40 percent. Water absorption rose with both fiber content and exposure time. The biodegradable composite shows promise for automotive and other applications seeking alternatives to petroleum-based plastics.
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Greening logistics and its impact on environmental performance: an absorptive capacity perspective
Australian logistics and transport operators improve environmental performance by building absorptive capacity—the ability to acquire, assimilate, transform, and exploit green logistics knowledge. The study of 279 firms shows that enhancing knowledge exploitation through operational changes and new practices reduces CO2 emissions, fuel consumption, and environmental compliance costs. Firms must systematically integrate environmental information across channels to achieve greener logistics.
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Research trends in innovation ecosystem and circular economy
This bibliometric analysis of 2,981 Scopus documents reveals research trends linking innovation ecosystems and circular economy. Five key research clusters emerge: circular economy for eco-innovation, circular business models in the bioeconomy, renewable energy and sustainable development goals, green innovation through entrepreneurship, and AI in Industry 4.0. The study identifies significant gaps in understanding how innovation ecosystems and circular economy interact, and highlights opportunities in industrial symbiosis and energy transition.
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Board interlocks, absorptive capacity, and environmental performance
Firms with diverse board interlocks—connections to multiple companies, across industries, and to top performers—achieve better environmental performance. However, this benefit depends on absorptive capacity: companies must invest in research and development to actually use the knowledge gained through these board connections. The study shows that R&D intensity moderates how effectively board interlocks translate into environmental improvements.
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Social innovation, sustainability and the governance of protected areas: revealing theory as it plays out in practice in Costa Rica
This paper examines how social innovation drives adaptive governance in Costa Rica's Juan Castro Blanco National Water Park. Local community mobilization sparked social innovation that produced three key outcomes: satisfied stakeholder interests, effective governance arrangements, and community empowerment. The socially-innovative approach to park management improved both environmental sustainability and social-ecological outcomes across multiple levels.
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The potential contribution of disruptive low-carbon innovations to 1.5 °C climate mitigation
This paper identifies 99 disruptive low-carbon innovations across mobility, food, buildings, and energy sectors that could reduce emissions and help limit warming to 1.5°C. Examples include car clubs, mobility-as-a-service, prefabricated retrofits, and urban farming. Using expert surveys and UK population scaling analysis, the authors demonstrate that consumer-facing innovations offering alternative value propositions can meaningfully contribute to climate mitigation targets.
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Agricultural Productivity and Poverty Alleviation: What Role for Technological Innovation
Agricultural productivity significantly reduces poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa, with technological innovation playing a crucial role. The study analyzed 32 SSA countries from 1990-2011 and found that technological innovation directly lowers poverty and indirectly reduces it by boosting agricultural productivity and broader economic growth. Agriculture's poverty-reduction impact depends on sector growth, poor people's participation, and agriculture's economic share.
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Innovation and productivity in dryland agriculture: a return-risk analysis for Australia
Australian dryland farming has remained productive despite harsh conditions, driven by science and technology investments over 30 years. The paper examines risks and returns from technological innovations and identifies sources of future productivity gains. It finds that agricultural research and development significantly contributed to productivity growth, but this has slowed in the past decade due to drought and declining public investment. Future gains require sustained RD&E investment, improved risk management, farmer skills, and policies promoting efficiency.
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Innovation in risk transfer for natural hazards impacting agriculture☆
Agricultural yields face significant risks from natural hazards, price fluctuations, and output variability. This paper examines innovations in risk transfer mechanisms for agriculture, particularly crop insurance. While wealthy nations use established crop insurance programs, these rely on subsidies unsuitable for lower-income countries. Yet lower-income nations with many small farms urgently need affordable agricultural insurance to protect farm households from catastrophic losses.
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Towards agri‐food industry sustainability: Addressing agricultural technology adoption challenges through innovation
Agricultural technology adoption remains low in Thailand despite its promotion, limiting sustainability gains in the agri-food sector. This study identifies adoption barriers at both farmer and ecosystem levels, including infrastructure gaps and limited awareness of technology benefits. Solutions require reshaping farmer attitudes and upgrading physical, digital, and legal infrastructure. The findings provide guidance for technology providers and policymakers seeking to increase smallholder farmer adoption and improve environmental sustainability.
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Innovation in the Rural Areas and the Linkage with the Quintuple Helix Model
Rural areas function as productive systems where agriculture connects with other economic activities. The paper argues that protecting ecosystems and implementing the Quintuple Helix Model—which links innovation processes across multiple sectors—enables rural development based on sustainable competitiveness. Using Sicily and Italian regional data, the authors demonstrate how peripheral areas can adopt Smart Specialization Strategy to create new development models that balance economic growth with environmental protection.
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Innovations in afforestation of agricultural bottomlands to restore native forests in the eastern USA
The paper presents innovations for restoring native forests in former agricultural fields across the eastern USA. Key advances include improved nursery production of larger, healthier seedlings with better root systems, and new silvicultural practices like planting seedlings with cover crops to reduce competition and herbivory. An innovative strategy uses fast-growing poplar trees as nurse crops to establish slower-growing oak species, which are then harvested to release the oaks. These ecosystem-based approaches restore ecological function faster and more affordably than traditional single-species afforestation.
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Agriculture and crop science in China: Innovation and sustainability
China's agricultural sector is transitioning from traditional to modern crop science through innovations in hybrid rice breeding, minor cereals, legumes, rapeseed, and genomics-based research. The paper surveys advances in crop management, cotton production, and QTL mapping while identifying constraints to sustainable agricultural development. China must modernize its farming systems to meet future food security and sustainability demands.
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10 best bet innovations for adaptation in agriculture: A supplement to the UNFCCC NAP Technical Guidelines
This paper identifies ten high-impact agricultural innovations that help countries adapt to climate change while improving food security and environmental sustainability. Drawing on research from CGIAR centers, the authors present proven adaptation strategies that countries can incorporate into their National Adaptation Plans to access climate finance and implement effective agricultural practices that benefit nutrition, livelihoods, and ecosystem health.
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Towards climate smart agriculture : How does innovation meet sustainability?
Precision farming and climate-smart agriculture innovations enable sustainable food production by efficiently using natural resources and reducing environmental harm. The authors argue that farming strategies based on farmer cooperation, technologies that minimize health risks, and de-growth principles are essential for sustainability. Strengthening rural areas and helping farmers adopt competitive, innovative practices through cooperation is necessary for maintaining a sustainable economy.
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Adoption and Dis-Adoption of Sustainable Agriculture: A Case of Farmers’ Innovations and Integrated Fruit Fly Management in Kenya
Kenyan mango farmers face severe losses from invasive fruit flies and rely heavily on pesticides despite knowing integrated pest management alternatives. The study finds that farmer adoption of sustainable IPM practices increases with education, orchard size, extension contact, and prior use of indigenous methods. Dis-adoption occurs when orchards shrink or farmers abandon non-pesticide practices. Better training and extension services can boost sustainable pest management uptake.
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Empowering Women and Building Sustainable Food Systems: A Case Study of Cuba's Local Agricultural Innovation Project
Cuba's Local Agricultural Innovation Project (PIAL) uses participatory plant-breeding and agroecological methods to build sustainable food systems while empowering women farmers. Operating across 75 municipalities, PIAL increases women's participation in farm innovation, boosts their confidence and income through diversified production and micro-enterprises, and strengthens community resilience. The program challenges gender norms, engages youth, connects local farmers with research institutions, and embeds itself in government structures to ensure long-term sustainability.
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Sustainability, Innovation and Rural Development: The Case of Parmigiano-Reggiano PDO
This paper develops a framework to measure sustainability across environmental, economic, and social dimensions in food quality schemes. Using Parmigiano-Reggiano PDO as a case study, the authors track how innovations between 2000 and 2018 affected product quality, value chain performance, and rural development. They create synthetic indexes showing how these innovations shifted the overall sustainability of the production system over time.
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Research and innovation in agriculture: beyond productivity?
Agricultural research impact assessment has traditionally focused on productivity gains, but this approach is insufficient. The paper argues that emerging concepts—bioeconomy, circular economy, eco-innovation, life cycle assessment, and ecosystem services—require rethinking how we measure research effects. While aggregate productivity metrics remain relevant, researchers need more nuanced analytical frameworks and broader definitions of productivity that account for environmental performance and sustainability outcomes.
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Innovation-Sustainability Nexus in Agriculture Transition: Case of Agroecology
Agroecology offers a promising pathway for sustainable agricultural transition by combining innovation and sustainability across environmental, economic, and social dimensions. The paper argues that agroecology can harmonize these goals, though not all traditional practices qualify as agroecological, and farmer-led innovations require careful evaluation. Clarifying relationships between agroecology as science, movement, and practice remains essential for maximizing agricultural transition potential.
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Potential Benefits from Innovations to Reduce Heat and Water Stress in Agriculture
Climate change will reduce agricultural productivity in the central United States through two distinct mechanisms: heat stress and water stress. Using econometric analysis of rental rates, the author finds that by mid-century, climate damages will reach $9.5 billion annually, with heat stress causing 65% of losses and water deficit causing 32%. The spatial variation in damage sources suggests that targeted innovations addressing heat or water stress will have different benefits depending on region.
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Ai-driven innovations in greenhouse agriculture: Reanalysis of sustainability and energy efficiency impacts
AI integration in greenhouse agriculture significantly reduces heating energy consumption, improving energy efficiency. However, AI shows only marginal improvements in CO2 emissions, electricity, and water usage compared to traditional methods. Crop quality and profitability gains match conventional techniques. The study reveals AI's mixed impact on sustainability, highlighting strong potential in energy efficiency but limited effectiveness in other key sustainability areas, requiring further research and investment.
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Seeking unconventional alliances and bridging innovations in spaces for transformative change: the seed sector and agricultural sustainability in Argentina
Argentina's seed sector demonstrates how unconventional alliances between diverse actors—including farmers, researchers, and civil society—drive transformative agricultural innovations toward sustainability. The paper identifies bridging innovations that connect conventional and alternative farming systems, showing how collaborative networks create spaces for systemic change in food production practices.
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Harnessing biostimulants for sustainable agriculture: innovations, challenges, and future prospects
Biostimulants enhance plant growth and resilience while reducing chemical inputs, but face adoption barriers from inconsistent formulations, unclear regulations, and limited mechanistic understanding. This review examines biostimulant development, classifications, and mechanisms while identifying challenges in product performance, regulatory compliance, and economics. The authors argue biostimulants can improve nutrient efficiency and climate resilience, and propose a framework integrating research, policy, and practice to advance sustainable agriculture.
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Empowering small farmers for sustainable agriculture: a human resource approach to SDG-driven training and innovation
Training programs significantly boost small farmers' adoption of sustainable agriculture when they combine sustained exposure, intrinsic motivation, and farmer innovation capacity. The study of 331 small farmers in a government intervention shows that psychological characteristics and training quality together drive sustainable practice adoption, advancing progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals.
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Effect of Climate Smart Agriculture Innovations on Climate Resilience among Smallholder Farmers: Empirical Evidence from the Choke Mountain Watershed of the Blue Nile Highlands of Ethiopia
Climate-smart agriculture innovations significantly strengthen smallholder farmers' ability to withstand climate change impacts in Ethiopia's Blue Nile Highlands. Using data from 424 farmers, the study found that improved crop varieties, crop residue management, and soil-water conservation increase climate resilience capacity, though effects vary by innovation type. Success requires complementary systems including early warning networks, extension services, safety nets, and climate-resilient infrastructure.
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The Effect of Agriculture Insurance on Agricultural Carbon Emissions in China: The Mediation Role of Low-Carbon Technology Innovation
Agricultural insurance reduces carbon emissions from farming in China by encouraging adoption of low-carbon technologies. Using provincial data from 2001–2019, the study finds insurance directly cuts emissions and indirectly reduces them by spurring farmers to adopt cleaner practices. The effect is strongest in eastern China and non-grain-producing regions. Expanding agricultural insurance can help China meet carbon neutrality goals.
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Research and innovation in agricultural water management for a water‐secure world
Agricultural water management requires transformative innovation to sustain food systems under climate change and water scarcity. New technologies optimize irrigation and water productivity, but innovations often fail to address equity and access gaps, particularly in the global South. The paper argues that transdisciplinary approaches integrating water-energy-food nexus thinking enable innovations that account for local constraints and governance, making solutions more relevant and scalable.
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Eco-Innovations in Rural Territories: Organizational Dynamics and Resource Mobilization in Low Density Areas
Rural areas develop eco-innovation projects despite limited agglomeration. This study examines how organizational factors and environmental conditions influence eco-innovation in low-density areas. Using interviews across five French rural cases, researchers found that personal and local professional networks, combined with strong leadership, enable projects to absorb local resources effectively. While local resources remain essential, successful projects increasingly mobilize distant resources as they develop.
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Exploring business growth and eco innovation in rural small firms
Rural small business owners implement eco-innovation by reducing waste and raw material consumption. While growth wasn't their primary motivation, all eight studied firms gained economic benefits from environmental practices. Rurality mattered significantly because owners felt climate change impacts directly and faced visibility within local communities. The findings show eco-innovation can simultaneously address environmental and economic goals in rural enterprises.
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Technological Innovations in Urban and Peri-Urban Agriculture: Pathways to Sustainable Food Systems in Metropolises
Urban and peri-urban agriculture addresses food security and sustainability challenges in cities, but technological barriers limit its potential. This review examines advanced technologies for improving productivity, optimizing space use, and managing resources in urban farming. The authors identify obstacles across research, dissemination, and commercialization stages, then recommend increased funding for interdisciplinary R&D, stronger technology extension systems, improved business models, and stakeholder collaboration to scale these innovations.
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Institutional Innovations for Climate Smart Agriculture: Assessment of Climate-Smart Village Approach in Nepal
Nepal's Climate Smart Village approach uses institutional collaboration among government, private, and civil society organizations to introduce climate-adapted agricultural technologies to smallholder farmers. The study finds that this institutional innovation successfully increased farmer awareness and adoption of climate-smart practices in the Gandaki region, though scaling remains challenging. Multi-stakeholder partnerships proved effective for communicating climate science and developing locally appropriate farming solutions.
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Agricultural Innovation and Sustainable Development: A Case Study of Rice–Wheat Cropping Systems in South Asia
Rice-wheat cropping systems feed billions in Asia but face declining yields, high emissions, and environmental damage from nitrogen fertilizer and residue burning. Farmers in South Asia are adopting direct-seeded rice instead of transplanted rice, reducing water use, labor, and methane emissions. The paper recommends precision agriculture, allelopathic crops for weed control, legume incorporation for soil health, and rice-specific harvesters for residue management, while accounting for local soil conditions and farmer economics.
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Review of climate change issues: A forcing function perspective in agricultural and energy innovation
Climate change creates urgent innovation opportunities in agriculture, energy, and food systems. Rising temperatures increase cooling demands and energy stress, while droughts threaten food production despite projected 60% global food demand increases by 2050. The paper argues that innovations in agri-food and energy sectors can simultaneously reduce emissions, build climate resilience, improve food security, and reduce poverty. These sectors hold significant potential for novel products, processes, and policies that accelerate both climate mitigation and adaptation.
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Innovation Issues in Water, Agriculture and Food
Agriculture must produce more food despite growing competition for water and land, climate change, and droughts. This special issue examines innovations in agricultural water management across field and basin scales, focusing on irrigation efficiency, water productivity, sustainable practices, and inclusive water governance. Papers address crop water use, irrigation scheduling, system adaptation to water scarcity, drought impacts, water quality, remote sensing technologies, and participatory governance approaches to ensure food security and rural welfare.
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Creating value from intangible cultural heritage—the role of innovation for sustainable tourism and regional rural development
Intangible cultural heritage drives sustainable rural development by creating economic and social value for communities. Two case studies—alpine farming in Bavaria and sharecropping heritage in Italy—show how innovation transforms traditional practices into tourism assets. Bad Hindelang succeeds through long-term collaboration between farmers, conservationists, and locals balancing tourism with conservation. Le Marche's culinary heritage project preserves oral traditions but has yet to generate significant economic returns. Storytelling and participatory engagement make cultural heritage accessible to tourists, enhancing both visitor experience and community wellbeing.
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Exploring innovation for sustainable agriculture: A systematic case study of permaculture in Nepal
This case study examines permaculture practices in Nepal as a sustainable alternative to industrial agriculture. The researchers analyzed three Nepalese permaculturists' approaches, which integrate biodiversity, crop-animal systems, watershed management, and on-site energy production. The study shows how local knowledge and practitioners' imaginaries can transform agricultural systems toward ecological sustainability and encourage emotional connections between farmers and the environment.
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Place-Based Policies for Sustainability and Rural Development: The Case of a Portuguese Village “Spun” in Traditional Linen
European rural development policies increasingly emphasize place-based approaches that leverage local resources for sustainability. This study examines a Portuguese village that revitalized itself through traditional linen production, using collective action and local identity to combat depopulation and marginalization. The case demonstrates how place-based policies enable sustainable practices that improve both social well-being and economic conditions in rural communities facing demographic decline.
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Innovations in Government Responses to Catastrophic Risk Sharing for Agriculture in Developing Countries
Agricultural risk markets barely exist in developing countries, and even wealthy nations require heavy government subsidies to support crop insurance against natural disasters. These subsidies prove expensive and inefficient, sometimes worsening future catastrophes. The paper examines how governments with limited budgets can still foster agricultural risk-sharing markets for crop and livestock losses caused by natural hazards, identifying specific policy interventions that work without massive subsidies.
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Conservation Tillage and Cropping Innovation: Constructing the New Culture of Agriculture
This book examines how no-tillage farming technology spread among farmers through social networks and action-learning groups. The authors show that successful conservation tillage systems depend on farmer management and personal motivation to change. They analyze how deeply entrenched plowing culture was in both farming communities and broader U.S. and Australian societies, and how farmers overcame this cultural resistance through innovation networks.
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Relative advantage and complexity: Predicting the rate of adoption of agricultural innovations
Farmers adopt agricultural innovations at rates determined by perceived complexity and relative advantage, not just novelty. A survey of 200 New Zealand dairy farmers found that simple technologies take months to adopt while complex ones take years. Critically, originality doesn't predict integration difficulty—apparently simple practices often prove hard to implement in real farm systems. Understanding farm-system integration requirements is essential for predicting adoption timelines and assessing farmers' adaptive capacity to climate change.
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Rural Agriculture and Poverty Trap: Can Climate-Smart Innovations Provide Breakeven Solutions to Smallholder Farmers?
Climate-smart agriculture adoption by smallholder farmers in Ghana's Upper West and Upper East regions did not significantly improve food security or income. While climate change severely damages agricultural productivity and rural livelihoods, CSA practices alone cannot break the poverty trap without complementary support. Farmers need better infrastructure, inputs, and market access to realize CSA's potential benefits.
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Promoting uptake and integration of climate smart agriculture technologies, innovations and management practices into policy and practice in Nigeria
Nigerian farmers face major barriers to adopting climate-smart agriculture technologies and practices, including lack of government policies, poor farmer awareness, and weak extension services. The study identifies insufficient funding, policy inconsistencies, and farmer resistance as key obstacles. Researchers recommend targeted awareness campaigns through local media, dedicated CSA departments in each state, increased agricultural budget allocation to 10%, and strengthened links between researchers, extension agents, and farmers.
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Agricultural education and extension curriculum innovation: the nexus of climate change, food security, and community resilience
Agricultural education and extension programs must integrate climate change, food security, and community resilience into their curricula. Rising natural disasters threaten food production and livelihoods. The paper argues that educators and extension agents need updated training and resources to help rural communities adapt to climate impacts, strengthen food systems, and build long-term resilience through practical, community-centered learning approaches.
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An Open IoT Platform to Promote Eco‐Sustainable Innovation in Western Africa: Real Urban and Rural Testbeds
The paper presents an open IoT platform deployed across rural Senegal and Ghana and urban Togo to address environmental challenges in Western Africa. The full-stack framework reduces energy consumption and emissions while meeting the region's specific environmental, economic, and social needs. Three real testbeds demonstrate how IoT technology can support sustainable development in African contexts.
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Unlocking the Potential of Agrifood Waste for Sustainable Innovation in Agriculture
Food waste represents a major global challenge, with 1 billion tons generated annually. This review examines how agricultural and food waste can be converted into valuable products—biocides, bio-based fertilizers, and biostimulants—that boost crop yields and plant health. Using waste-derived compounds supports circular economy principles while addressing food security and environmental sustainability goals simultaneously.
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Augmenting agricultural sustainability: Investigating the role of agricultural land, green innovation, and food production in reducing greenhouse gas emissions
This study examines how agricultural land use, green innovation, food production, and renewable energy affect greenhouse gas emissions across the world's top 20 agricultural countries from 1980 to 2021. The researchers found that green innovation combined with agricultural land management, renewable energy adoption, and increased food trade openness all reduce emissions, while agricultural expansion and food production alone increase them. The findings support policies that balance agricultural productivity with environmental sustainability.
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Measuring the social and ecological performance of agricultural innovations on rangelands: Progress and plans for an indicator framework in the LTAR network
The Long-Term Agroecosystem Research Network developed an indicator framework to measure how agricultural innovations on rangelands perform across five domains: environment, productivity, economics, human condition, and social outcomes. The framework compares management innovations against site-specific benchmarks applicable to grazinglands worldwide. A key challenge remains scaling measurements from fine scales like individual ranches to broader landscape and community levels.
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Assessing climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies and agricultural innovation systems in the Niger Delta
This study evaluates climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies for agriculture in Nigeria's Niger Delta region by analyzing 129 previous studies and surveying 282 extension agents. The researchers developed a method to assess how innovative these strategies are for building sustainable agricultural innovation systems. They found that many recommended strategies face adoption barriers and don't effectively support regional agricultural innovation systems. The work explains why farmers reject most climate strategies and proposes a new scoring approach for agricultural innovations.
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Citizen Science as Democratic Innovation That Renews Environmental Monitoring and Assessment for the Sustainable Development Goals in Rural Areas
Citizen science offers a democratic approach to environmental monitoring that strengthens the legitimacy of data used for sustainable development in rural areas. Traditional environmental monitoring fails to adequately support local implementation of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. By incorporating citizen science into environmental assessment, rural communities can produce and use data more effectively for transformative governance, particularly for protecting land and natural resources while addressing resource conflicts.
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An Assessment of Seaweed Extracts: Innovation for Sustainable Agriculture
Seaweed-based plant growth regulators reduce fertilizer inputs while improving pear production. Field trials in Italy cut primary nutrients by 35–46% and total fertilization by 13%, while increasing fruit weight by 5% and yield by 19–55%. The agronomic efficiency of the seaweed treatment exceeded conventional fertilization by five to nine times, demonstrating that farmers can achieve better results with fewer inputs.
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Organic cultivation and farm entrepreneurship: a case of small tea growers in rural Assam, India
Small tea growers in rural Assam shifted to organic production for ecological and economic benefits, but faced obstacles including insufficient training, technical knowledge gaps, and limited market access. Despite these challenges, some growers succeeded by demonstrating entrepreneurial traits—innovation, risk-taking, and opportunity-seeking. The study concludes that developing entrepreneurial skills among small growers is essential for expanding organic tea cultivation in the region.
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Enhancing competitiveness and sustainability in Spanish agriculture: The role of technological innovation and corporate social responsibility
Spanish agricultural firms that adopt sustainable technological innovations—particularly precision agriculture and smart livestock management—achieve better corporate social responsibility outcomes by using resources more efficiently and reducing environmental harm. However, regional differences exist based on local economic resources, infrastructure, and policy support. The study shows that combining technological innovation with corporate social responsibility strategies strengthens both sustainability and competitiveness, and calls for targeted policies to help lagging regions.
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Creating a sustainable ripple in rural entrepreneurship – the case of Deserttulip in resource-constrained rural Jordan
Rural entrepreneurs in Jordan navigate severe environmental, financial, and institutional constraints to drive sustainable development. The case of Deserttulip demonstrates how entrepreneurs use innovative agricultural technology and collective action to overcome resource scarcity. The study shows that while external structures limit opportunities, entrepreneurs' agency and collaborative initiatives create sustainable ripple effects that strengthen rural communities and promote empowerment beyond individual business success.
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R&D Innovation Adoption, Climatic Sensitivity, and Absorptive Ability Contribution for Agriculture TFP Growth in Pakistan
Agricultural R&D innovation adoption significantly boosts total factor productivity growth in Pakistan, particularly through tractors, improved seeds, and fertilizer use. Climate factors, especially moderate rainfall, positively affect productivity. However, farmers' weak absorptive capacity limits gains. The study recommends government investment in extension services, farmer training, and climate-smart agriculture practices including rainwater harvesting infrastructure to enhance technology adoption and farmer knowledge.
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On the Way to Eco-Innovations in Agriculture: Concepts, Implementation and Effects at National and Local Level. The Case of Poland
Polish agriculture adopted eco-innovations through two pathways: policy-driven organizational changes like organic certification and CAP greening mechanisms, which expanded organic farms from 0.5% to 4.6% of holdings between 2005–2016; and farmer-led product and process innovations driven by individual knowledge, family capital, and local institutional support. Both approaches proved effective at increasing sustainable farming practices and soil-protective crops.
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Capacity development for scaling up Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) innovations: agricultural extension's role in mitigating climate change effects in Gqumashe community, Eastern Cape, South Africa
Farmers in Gqumashe, Eastern Cape, South Africa recognize climate change threatens their agricultural production. The study recommends that agricultural extension agents increase targeted training on climate change awareness, conduct regular farm visits to share information about new technologies and techniques to adapt to climate variability, and provide market information and storage facility guidance to help farmers build resilience.
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Overcoming Challenges of Incorporating Higher Tier Data in Ecological Risk Assessments and Risk Management of Pesticides in the United States: Findings and Recommendations from the 2017 Workshop on Regulation and Innovation in Agriculture
U.S. pesticide regulation uses tiered testing to assess ecological risk, but lacks clear guidance on incorporating advanced higher-tier studies into risk decisions. A 2019 workshop brought together EPA, USDA, NOAA, universities, and industry to recommend improved communication between registrants and regulators, simpler study designs, transparent risk management criteria, and retrospective analysis of past decisions to strengthen how advanced data informs pesticide approval.
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Introduction : Innovations et agricultures urbaines durables
Urban agriculture represents a new agricultural frontier addressing food security and health for growing urban populations. The paper examines how innovation in urban agriculture creates proximity between cities, nature, and farming systems. Urban farming practices challenge traditional agricultural concepts and offer sustainable solutions for reconnecting urban populations with food production.
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Cultivating sustainability: Harnessing open innovation and circular economy practices for eco-innovation in agricultural SMEs
This study examines how open innovation and circular economy practices drive eco-innovation in agricultural SMEs in Thailand. Surveying 211 SMEs, the research finds that eco-processes most strongly influence SME sustainability initiatives, which in turn generate sustainable products including waste-derived and eco-friendly items. However, eco-products and eco-managerial practices show limited impact on SME initiatives, suggesting these areas need stronger frameworks to support environmental performance.
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Toward a sustainable agricultural system in China: exploring the nexus between agricultural science and technology innovation, agricultural resilience and fiscal policies supporting agriculture
Agricultural science and technology innovation significantly strengthens agricultural resilience across China's 31 provinces from 2007 to 2021. This effect is non-linear and amplified by fiscal policies supporting agriculture. The southeast region shows the strongest resilience development, while non-main producing and economically underdeveloped areas benefit most from innovation investments. Policymakers should tailor innovation strategies locally and reinforce agricultural fiscal support.
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Green technology innovation, trade deficit and carbon emission transfer in agriculture under the new “dual circulation” development pattern of China
China's agricultural trade deficit and carbon emissions from agricultural trade are both increasing, with significant regional variation. Green technology innovation shows complex effects: it reduces trade deficits but increases carbon emission transfer in the short term, with benefits varying by region and innovation type. The relationship between trade deficit and carbon emissions is expected to improve over time, supporting coordinated economic and environmental goals in agricultural trade.
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Alleviating Relative Poverty in Rural China through a Diffusion Schema of Returning Farmer Entrepreneurship
Returning farmers in rural China can alleviate relative poverty by sharing entrepreneurial knowledge and experience with other poor households through family, local, and internet networks. This diffusion model reduces entrepreneurial barriers, increases farmer income, creates employment, and improves rural environments across economic, social, and ecological dimensions. Success requires supportive government policies and active local participation.
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Climate-Smart Agricultural Extension Service Innovation Approaches in Uganda: Review Paper
Uganda's agricultural extension services employ diverse providers—government, NGOs, universities, and commercial organizations—to deliver climate-smart farming practices. Extension approaches include soil fertility management, crop rotation, agroforestry, and farmer field schools. Innovative methods leverage ICT platforms, mass media campaigns, and climate-smart villages to help farmers adapt to climate change. The paper recommends integrating ICT across extension systems and developing strategic plans to increase women's participation in agricultural advisory services.
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Climate variability, innovation and firm performance: evidence from the European agricultural sector
Climate variability drives agricultural firms to develop adaptation innovations, which significantly improve their performance. Using panel data from European farms between 2007 and 2017, the authors find that firms generating knowledge about climate adaptation technologies perform better, particularly in aquaculture and fishing sectors in northern Europe. Innovation emerges as a key mechanism linking climate stress to business success.
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Making Darkness a Place-Based Resource: How the Fight against Light Pollution Reconfigures Rural Areas in France
French rural communities are turning darkness into an economic and environmental resource by fighting light pollution. The paper identifies three approaches: economicizing darkness for profit, protecting it for biodiversity conservation, and integrating it into sustainable development planning. These rural areas become experimental spaces where communities resolve conflicts between different visions of darkness protection, ultimately enabling new development trajectories that balance economic, ecological, and energy goals.
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Land tenure system innovation and agricultural technology adoption in Burkina Faso: Comparing empirical evidence to the worsening situation of both rural people vulnerability and vulnerable groups’ access to land
Burkina Faso's 2009 land reform gave farmers formal property rights to encourage agricultural technology adoption. The study finds formal land rights do increase adoption of soil fertility technologies compared to customary rights. However, the law's actual implementation worsens rural livelihoods and reduces vulnerable groups' land access, creating a gap between theory and practice. The authors conclude additional measures are needed to protect rural people despite technology gains.
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Phosphorus dynamics and sustainable agriculture: The role of microbial solubilization and innovations in nutrient management
Phosphorus availability limits crop growth in many soils, and heavy reliance on chemical fertilizers causes environmental damage like water eutrophication. Phosphorus-solubilizing microorganisms—bacteria and fungi that convert insoluble phosphorus into plant-available forms—offer a sustainable alternative. Integrating these microbes into farming systems reduces chemical fertilizer dependence, improves soil health, and decreases phosphorus pollution while meeting growing food demand.
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Can an innovation platform support a local process of climate-smart agriculture implementation? A case study in Cauca, Colombia
An innovation platform in Cauca, Colombia brought together farmers, NGOs, local authorities, and associations to implement climate-smart agriculture. The platform improved stakeholder interactions, increased farmer knowledge about climate change, and led to adoption of practices like crop diversification and reduced fertilizer use. Innovation platforms can effectively enable farmers to understand and adopt climate-smart agriculture suited to their local conditions.
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Innovations in Value-Addition of Agricultural By-Products in Uganda
Uganda generates millions of tons of agricultural by-products from crops, livestock, fish, and forestry annually. Current innovations convert these materials into briquettes, biogas, biochar, organic fertilizers, and composite building materials. The review identifies additional opportunities: bones for soft tissue and buttons, blood for adhesives and fertilizers, and fish oil for food enrichment. These value-addition strategies reduce waste while creating new products and income sources.
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What Prompts Agricultural Innovation in Rural Nepal: A Study Using the Example of Macadamia and Walnut Trees as Novel Cash Crops
In Nepal, researchers studied what drives farmers to adopt macadamia and walnut cultivation as novel cash crops. Through household surveys and statistical analysis, they found that ethnicity, wealth, and prior experience with fruit trees significantly influence adoption. Years of tree cultivation experience and existing fruit tree income most strongly predict nut farming. The study concludes that wealthier households lead adoption, while poor, landless, and female-headed households need alternative business models and new policies to participate in this agricultural innovation.
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Agricultural innovations at a Late Iron Age oppidum: Archaeobotanical evidence for flax, food and fodder from Calleva Atrebatum, UK
Archaeological plant remains from a Late Iron Age settlement in Britain reveal that agricultural innovations focused on animal fodder production rather than feeding urban populations. Evidence shows flax cultivation, hay meadow management, and heathland use alongside staple crops and imported foods. These findings challenge existing theories about how proto-urban settlements sustained themselves and demonstrate that new grassland management and oil crops supported livestock rather than people.
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Balancing technological innovation and environmental regulation: an analysis of Chinese agricultural biotechnology governance
China manages agricultural biotechnology development through state-led institutions while balancing limited regulatory capacity, a massive smallholder farming sector, and international oversight. The paper examines how China governs genetically modified crops, particularly Bt cotton and GM rice, analyzing the institutional arrangements and competing biotechnology discourses that shape policy decisions around technology adoption and environmental risk assessment.
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A sustainable rural entrepreneurship model developed by the organic farmers of India
Organic farmers in Uttarakhand, India developed a sustainable entrepreneurship model that generates higher revenue and improves socioeconomic status compared to conventional farming. The model, pioneered by farmer Bhagchand Ramola in Manj Gaon village, delivers economic, health, and environmental benefits. However, growth faces constraints: farmers depend heavily on Japanese buyers and struggle to convince conventional farmers to switch to organic methods.
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Patterns of investment in agricultural research and innovation for the Global South, with a focus on sustainable agricultural intensification
Global South governments invest approximately $60 billion annually in agricultural research and innovation, with China's government alone matching all other countries combined. Private sector and development partners contribute smaller shares. Less than 7% of funding targets environmental goals, and under 5% addresses both social and environmental outcomes. The study reveals a significant funding gap for sustainable agricultural intensification and recommends transparent reporting standards to redirect investment toward sustainability.
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Research on the Efficiency of Green Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Resource Allocation Based on a Three-Stage DEA Model—A Case Study of Anhui Province, China
This study evaluates how efficiently Anhui Province allocates resources for green agricultural technology innovation. Using a three-stage data envelopment analysis model, researchers found that overall resource allocation efficiency improved over time, but scale efficiency remained low. Technical efficiency was strong across 16 cities, yet scale efficiency varied significantly by region. Hefei and Fuyang led in allocation efficiency. The study recommends improving scale efficiency through better government-market coordination, stronger research platforms, talent development, and open knowledge-sharing mechanisms.
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Innovation of argan (Argania spinosa (L.) Skeels) products and byproducts for sustainable development of rural communities in Morocco. A systematic literature review
Argan trees in Morocco face threats from overgrazing and land degradation, but innovative processing of argan byproducts offers economic opportunities for rural communities. Argan press cake, nut shells, and pulp can be converted into livestock feed, bioplastics, biochar, bioenergy, and natural repellents. However, local populations remain underinvolved in development strategies. The paper recommends participatory approaches, training, and product differentiation among women's cooperatives to realize sustainable rural development benefits.
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How can agricultural extension and rural advisory services support agricultural innovation to adapt to climate change in the agriculture sector?
Agricultural extension and advisory services must expand their roles to support farm innovation for climate adaptation. The paper finds that these services should connect diverse actors across sectors, facilitate learning and collaboration, and help farmers develop collective approaches to climate change. This broader, more networked approach to extension work is essential for agricultural sustainability under changing climate conditions.
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Associations between local land use/land cover and place-based landscape service patterns in rural Tanzania
This study maps how landscape services relate to land use patterns in three rural Tanzanian villages. Researchers used participatory mapping to identify eight provisioning and one cultural service, then analyzed their spatial associations with local land cover. The findings show that land use patterns significantly predict landscape service distribution, with both village-specific patterns and common associations across sites. This suggests land use data could help estimate landscape services at larger scales.
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Sustainable innovations for rural Africa: Case studies from Nigeria and Tanzania
Two African startups in Nigeria and Tanzania developed sustainable business models for rural communities by engaging early adopters, leveraging existing networks, and providing education through community associations. The research found that this approach effectively increases innovation adoption rates. However, entrepreneurs must navigate political and cultural dynamics and build community trust to successfully diffuse innovations in rural African settings.
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The Role of Buildings in Rural Areas: Trends, Challenges, and Innovations for Sustainable Development
Rural buildings are central to agricultural sustainability. This systematic review of 2000–2022 research identifies five main research areas: production (25.1%), environmental management (23.2%), construction and efficiency (20.6%), sustainability (20.8%), and engineering technologies (10.3%). The authors find that life cycle assessment, green building design, energy efficiency, and remote detection systems represent the most promising directions for improving rural building performance and reducing environmental impact.
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Entrepreneurship in organic production – an incentive for sustainable rural development
Organic production entrepreneurship drives sustainable rural development by combining economic growth with environmental protection. The paper argues that organic farming, integrated with tourism and related activities, creates an effective entrepreneurial strategy that meets urban demand while preserving soil, water, biodiversity, and landscapes. This approach increases rural competitiveness through ecological technology and comprehensive management of production processes.
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Co-creating cultural narratives for sustainable rural development: a transdisciplinary learning framework for guiding place-based social-ecological research
This paper presents a transdisciplinary framework that combines cultural heritage, landscape, and social-ecological systems thinking to support sustainable rural development. The framework emphasizes continuous dialogue and collaboration among communities, stakeholders, and researchers across four steps. Testing in four European UNESCO Biosphere Reserves demonstrated that the framework successfully guides place-based research and enables comparative analysis, allowing insights from local contexts to scale up to national and global levels.
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Does the Application of ICTs Improve the Efficiency of Agricultural Carbon Reduction? Evidence from Broadband Adoption in Rural China
Rural broadband adoption in China improves agricultural carbon reduction efficiency, according to analysis of 30 provinces from 2011 to 2019. The effect strengthens when land transfer rates are high and farmers invest more in production equipment. Income and efficiency follow an inverted U-shaped relationship, confirming the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis. These findings suggest broadband and smart equipment adoption can help farmers in developing countries reduce agricultural emissions.
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Rural Tourism Entrepreneurship Survey with Emphasis on Eco-museum Concept
Rural tourism and ecotourism entrepreneurship can address unemployment and economic stagnation in villages. This study examines how eco-museums—institutions that preserve traditional material and cultural heritage—support rural business development and sustainability. Evaluating Espidan village in Iran against three criteria (public participation, eco-museum activities, and social-cultural-natural conditions), the authors find the village has significant potential to become an eco-museum, which would generate entrepreneurial opportunities and rural economic growth.
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Influencing Factors of Sustainable Rural Entrepreneurship: A Four-Dimensional Evaluation System Encompassing Entrepreneurs, Economy, Society, and Environment
This study develops a four-dimensional evaluation system for sustainable rural entrepreneurship covering entrepreneurs, economy, society, and environment. Using fuzzy DANP analysis, the researchers identify causal relationships among influencing factors and their weights. Economic dimensions prove most important, with entrepreneurial motivation, business type, financial backing, economic value, policy frameworks, and business environment as key indicators. Financial support, business type, economic value, and favorable policies drive progress, while motivation and business environment depend on other factors.
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Rural sustainable development: A case study of the Zaozhuang Innovation Demonstration Zone in China
This case study of China's Zaozhuang Innovation Demonstration Zone examines how innovation drives rural sustainable development. Between 2016 and 2020, economic and social sustainability grew strongly, but ecological sustainability declined. Rural innovation capacity increased rapidly yet had weak effects on overall sustainable development. The authors identify imbalances across sustainability dimensions and propose a multi-dimensional pathway combining policy, technology, projects, and institutions to strengthen innovation's role in rural development.
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Green Innovation and the Urban–Rural Income Gap: Empirical Evidence from China
Green innovation significantly reduces China's urban–rural income gap, with each unit increase in green innovation cutting the gap by 0.017 units. The effect is stronger in economically developed regions and areas with higher-skill workforces. Green innovation narrows income inequality by driving urbanization, restructuring labor forces, and reducing wage disparities. Environmental pollution amplifies these benefits, making green innovation particularly effective in polluted areas.
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Indigenous Knowledge and Acceptability of Treated Effluent in Agriculture
This study examined whether indigenous knowledge can increase acceptance of treated effluent from human waste in agriculture. Researchers conducted focus groups in rural and peri-urban South Africa and found that communities showed willingness to grow and consume food using treated effluent. Participants referenced indigenous practices supporting recycling and reuse of human excreta. The findings suggest leveraging traditional knowledge to address food insecurity and sanitation challenges simultaneously in rural and peri-urban areas.
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Rural Farmers Use of Indigenous Knowledge Systems in Agriculture for Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation in Southeast Nigeria
Farmers in Southeast Nigeria use traditional indigenous knowledge practices to adapt to and mitigate climate change. The study surveyed 360 farmers and found they employ crop diversification, rotation, mulching, agroforestry, water storage, and natural pest control methods. These proven practices remain effective and safe, and the researchers recommend integrating them with modern agricultural techniques.
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Hybrid Power System Options for Off-Grid Rural Electrification in Northern Kenya
This study evaluates hybrid energy systems combining wind, solar, and battery storage to replace diesel generators in six remote villages in northern Kenya. The researchers simulated five different configurations and used trade-off analysis to identify the optimal design. A wind-diesel-battery system with two 500 kW turbines proved most effective, reducing diesel consumption and CO2 emissions by up to 98.8% while remaining economically viable.
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Design of an off-grid PV system for the rural community
This paper designs an off-grid photovoltaic system for rural communities located far from conventional electricity grids. The system provides portable and emergency power access using renewable energy, addressing the energy needs of remote populations in areas where grid connection is impractical or unavailable.
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Adverse selections and microfinance in rural Africa: signalling through environmental services
Microfinance institutions struggle to identify creditworthy agricultural borrowers in rural Africa because farmers misrepresent their success. This paper uses game theory to show that certified environmental services, particularly carbon credits, can signal genuine farming project viability. Borrowers with certification reveal their actual farming conditions, reducing adverse selection and loan default problems.
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Entrepreneurship in Rural Tourism? Australian Landcare Programs as a Destination Marketing Tool
Landcare programs in Australia represent a bottom-up community approach to environmental management that creates educational tourism opportunities. Two case studies show that rural enterprises running Landcare-based tourism initiatives lack understanding of tourism industry mechanics, missing significant business opportunities. The paper demonstrates that bridging environmental conservation with tourism requires better industry knowledge among rural operators.
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Techno-economic and environmental assessment of grid and solar photovoltaic microgrid supply options for isolated off-grid rural communities toward sustainable and affordable electricity in Nkoranza South, Bono East, Ghana
This study compares grid extension and solar photovoltaic microgrids for delivering electricity to isolated rural communities in Ghana. A 746 kW solar microgrid proved economically superior to a 19.5 km grid extension, with positive net present value, 24% internal rate of return, and 7-year payback period versus negative returns for grid expansion. The solar option also delivers substantial environmental benefits, preventing 31 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions over 25 years.
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Reflective and Cooperative Learning for Understanding Sustainability through an Eco-Innovation Strategy in Rural Travel and Hospitality: A STEAM Case Study
This case study in Taiwan demonstrates how eco-innovation can be taught through experiential STEAM education. Hospitality and tourism students engaged in hands-on learning by managing organic farms, preparing farm-to-table meals, and guiding heritage tourism activities. The approach successfully fostered sustainable practices and cultural preservation while showing that eco-innovation serves as a viable marketing strategy for rural community economic development.
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Rural electrification with hybrid renewable energy-based off-grid technology: a case study of Adem Tuleman, Ethiopia
A hybrid renewable energy system combining wind, solar, and diesel power can effectively electrify the remote rural village of Adem Tuleman in Ethiopia. The system meets the village's 204 kWh/day energy demand at a cost of $0.195/kWh, with initial capital costs of $24,817 and total net present value of $189,233. This approach provides a financially viable alternative to biomass burning, reducing health risks and environmental damage while delivering reliable electricity to off-grid communities.
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Techno-economic study of a distributed hybrid renewable energy system supplying electrical power and heat for a rural house in China
Researchers designed a hybrid renewable energy system combining solar panels, wood-syngas generators, and batteries to power a rural house in China. Using computer modeling, they tested different system configurations to find the most cost-effective setup that meets the house's energy needs while reducing greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels.
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Energy planning model with renewable energy using optimization multicriteria techniques for isolated rural communities: Cajamarca province, Peru
This paper develops SEPLAN, an energy planning model using multicriteria optimization to balance economic, environmental, and social objectives for isolated rural communities in Peru. Applied to Cajamarca province, the model evaluates renewable energy alternatives against six competing goals including emissions reduction, cost minimization, and universal energy access. Results show photovoltaic solar energy emerges as the priority solution when prioritizing rural electrification, offering decision-makers a practical tool for sustainable energy planning.
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Status of Rural Electrification in India, Energy Scenario and People's Perception of Renewable Energy Technologies
Rural electrification in India faces barriers of awareness and social attitudes toward renewable energy. A survey in Karnataka village reveals rural communities support sustainable energy but prioritize cost, reliability, and ease of use over environmental benefits. Government initiatives promote decentralized renewable technologies, but success requires targeted awareness campaigns to help communities understand how local renewable systems can meet energy needs while protecting the environment.
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SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION IN THE HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT OF AUSTRALIA'S DROUGHT STRICKEN RURAL COMMUNITIES
Small businesses in drought-affected rural Australian communities implemented innovations to survive economic hardship. Most changes were incremental, focusing on protecting markets, accessing resources, and improving efficiency. However, some businesses pursued radical innovations including mergers, acquisitions, and product diversification. These high-risk strategies contributed significantly to their communities. Planning and resource access reduced risks associated with major innovations.
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Rural energy security utilizing renewable energy sources: Challenges and opportunities
Nepal faces severe rural energy insecurity due to complete dependence on imported petroleum and coal, low electricity access, and widespread reliance on kerosene and firewood. Deforestation from biomass extraction threatens environmental stability. The paper examines Nepal's renewable energy development status and identifies challenges to deploying abundant domestic renewable resources, proposing solutions to improve rural energy security while halting forest depletion.
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Role of gender in determining energy poverty, clean energy access, and energy expenditure: Insights from rural China
In rural China, male-headed households experience lower energy poverty and greater access to clean energy for cooking and heating compared to female-headed households. Female-headed households, particularly smaller ones, face significant barriers to clean energy access and higher energy poverty levels. The study recommends empowering rural women through skills training, financial support, and energy subsidies to enable equal participation in household energy decisions and reduce energy poverty.
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Exploring the Impact of Green Finance on Sustainable Rural Development: Evidence From 283 Cities in China
Green finance promotes rural sustainable development in Chinese cities, according to analysis of 283 prefecture-level cities from 2004 to 2022. Environmental regulations and digital economy adoption strengthen this positive effect. However, green finance creates negative spillover effects on neighboring regions while benefiting its own area. The study recommends strengthening green finance deployment, enhancing environmental oversight, and promoting digital economy adoption to support rural sustainability.
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Sustainability and Rural Empowerment: Developing Women’s Entrepreneurial Skills Through Innovation
Rural women entrepreneurs in artisanal sectors face success factors and barriers shaped by individual, social, structural, and innovation elements. Digital technologies and social innovation drive entrepreneurial success, while gender roles, poor infrastructure, and discrimination remain significant obstacles. The COVID-19 pandemic intensified these challenges, spurring innovative resilience strategies. Holistic approaches addressing skills development, resource access, and innovation promotion are essential to empower rural women and advance sustainable community development.
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Comprehensive land improvement innovation for rural revitalization: Public value creation and realization
This paper examines how comprehensive land improvement innovations create and realize public value for rural revitalization. The authors analyze mechanisms through which land improvement projects generate benefits for rural communities, focusing on the processes that transform potential public value into actual realized outcomes. The work addresses how innovation in land management and improvement practices supports broader rural development goals.
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The role of permaculture in the integration of indigenous and modern agricultural knowledge: Evidence from Konso, Ethiopia
Farmers in Konso, Ethiopia adopt some modern agricultural practices like improved seeds and pest control methods, but remain skeptical about chemical fertilizers and seed varieties that threaten local crops. The study finds that permaculture offers a promising bridge between indigenous and modern farming systems because its philosophy aligns with traditional knowledge while addressing food security challenges. Properly implemented permaculture can integrate both approaches effectively.
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Mapping the least-cost option for rural electrification in Burkina Faso: Scaling-up renewable energies
Rural electrification in Burkina Faso currently reaches only 2% of the rural population, with electricity lacking at schools and hospitals. This report develops a spatial analysis methodology to identify cost-effective pathways to universal access. The analysis shows that the government's grid-extension strategy is inefficient and unsustainable. Instead, distributed renewable-powered minigrids using local resources would connect more people faster, reduce fossil fuel imports, and provide a sustainable long-term energy model.
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Sustainability of rural energy access in developing countries
Rural energy access remains unresolved in developing countries despite policy efforts. This dissertation analyzes policies and their impacts on renewable energy markets, technological choices for electrification, and sustainability performance across Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. The research shows market-oriented policies expand rural electrification in Nepal, identifies cost-effective technology pathways in Afghanistan and Nepal, models cooking fuel transitions in China, and introduces sustainability indices to evaluate energy technologies and country progress. Mature technologies like biomass and micro-hydro outperform solar and wind without policy support, while credit access and subsidy delivery mechanisms require innovation.
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Analysis on the environmental effect of renewable energy consumption by rural residents in daily life in China-from the perspectives of carbon emissions
This paper analyzes carbon emissions from rural residents' energy consumption in China between 1998 and 2007, focusing on renewable energy use in daily life. The research finds that traditional biomass energy sources—straw, firewood, and similar materials—generate the largest share of carbon emissions in rural energy consumption. The authors provide policy recommendations based on these environmental findings.
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Strengthening financial innovation in energy supply projects for rural communities in developing countries
Rural communities in developing countries need sustainable energy supply to reduce poverty and improve agricultural productivity. This paper surveys expert opinion on financing agricultural electrification projects and finds that new financial mechanisms can mobilize funding for renewable energy systems. The authors argue that financing models must adapt to decentralized energy production, involve beneficiaries in project planning, and help overcome high upfront costs to create sustainable, productive solutions.
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Agricultural Extension with Information and Communication Technology (ICT)Mediated Open Distance Learning (ODL) Methods: A Case Study from Rural South India
Rural communities in South Asia face recurring droughts that cause severe food shortages, disease, and economic hardship. The paper argues that lack of awareness and information access prevents communities from preparing for and mitigating drought impacts. The authors propose using ICT-mediated open distance learning methods for agricultural extension to deliver sustained information and education to vulnerable rural populations, making drought preparedness possible rather than relying on relief.
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Sustainability Assessment of Food Waste Biorefineries as the Base of the Entrepreneurship in Rural Zones of Colombia
Food waste biorefineries can drive rural economic development in Colombia by converting agricultural residues into valuable products. Researchers analyzed six food wastes from three Colombian regions and designed biorefinery processes for each. Organic kitchen food waste conversion to levulinic acid proved most sustainable and economically viable, while other residues could produce bioactive compounds, oils, flour, and biogas. These biorefineries reduce greenhouse gases while creating local income opportunities.
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Relationship between Indigenous Knowledge Development in Agriculture and the Sustainability of Water Resources
Indigenous agricultural knowledge can address water scarcity in dry regions. This study examined factors affecting indigenous knowledge and sustainable water management in Iran's Sistan region through interviews with 40 experts and a fuzzy hierarchy analysis. Educational extension emerged as the top priority factor (0.37 weight), followed by social factors, government support, economics, and farmer knowledge. The authors recommend strengthening local indigenous knowledge and promoting modern irrigation techniques.
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Effect of Broadband Infrastructure on Rural Household CO2 Emissions in China: A Quasi-Natural Experiment of a “Broadband Village”
Broadband infrastructure in rural China increases household carbon dioxide emissions, with a coefficient of 1.7 according to difference-in-differences analysis of a "Broadband Village" pilot program. However, this growth effect weakens significantly once broadband penetration exceeds 31.32%, revealing a threshold effect. The findings suggest policymakers should coordinate digital village expansion with carbon reduction and income redistribution strategies.
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Place-based perceptions, resilience and adaptation to climate change by smallholder farmers in rural South Africa
Smallholder farmers in South Africa's Joe Gqabi District respond to climate change through diverse adaptation and resilience strategies. Their choices depend on household characteristics, access to information and technology, assets, and climate perceptions. The study finds farmers lack institutional support and awareness. Strengthening farmer and institutional capacity, building on existing knowledge, and implementing supportive policies are essential for sustaining production under changing climate conditions.
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Renewable Energy Plants and Business Models: A New Rural Development Perspective
Renewable energy plants in Spain create opportunities for rural development through local economic activities and business model innovation. Some businesses directly connect to energy plants and generate stable jobs, while others diversify through land leasing arrangements. The study finds that renewable energy integration requires stronger governance frameworks and strategic planning to align energy transition with sustainable development goals and rural community well-being.
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Eco-Innovation Activities in the Czech Economy 2008–2014: Impact of the Eco-Innovative Approach to the Profit Stream and Differences in Urban and Rural Enterprises
Rural and urban enterprises in the Czech Republic show similar capacity to develop and market eco-innovations, despite urban firms engaging more broadly in innovation activities. Rural enterprises that relocated to countryside areas actually achieved higher sales from innovative goods and services. High-tech industries paradoxically show lower rates of eco-innovation adoption. The study reveals that eco-innovation represents a viable strategy for both rural and urban businesses, with location having minimal impact on R&D intensity or new-to-market eco-innovation success.
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Effects of Land Degradation on Agricultural Land Use: A Case Study of Smallholder Farmers Indigenous Knowledge on Land Use Planning and Management in Kalama Division, Machakos County
Smallholder farmers in Machakos County, Kenya use indigenous knowledge to manage land degradation and plan agricultural land use across different slope zones. Farmers recognize degradation indicators through local environmental knowledge and employ traditional practices like tree planting, crop rotation, organic manure application, and water conservation structures. Land use patterns and management strategies vary by terrain and zone characteristics, with tree planting and water conservation being the most common practices. The study demonstrates that place-based understanding of local decision-making can improve rural livelihood security and inform targeted land management interventions.
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Practical agricultural communication: Incorporating scientific and indigenous knowledge for climate mitigation
This research developed a practical agricultural communication framework combining scientific and indigenous knowledge to help farmers mitigate climate change. Working in Thailand's Phichit province, the authors used participatory methods to identify successful farmers practicing sustainable techniques like rice straw composting and alternative wetting and drying. These farmers became messengers, delivering practical, visually clear information through vinyl signage in community spaces. The framework emphasizes that blending scientific and indigenous knowledge strengthens relationships among people and with nature, and requires enhanced communication promotion at local and national levels.
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Towards sustainable energy systems: integrating renewable energy sources is the key for rural area power supply
Rural areas in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia lack access to modern energy services, relying instead on biomass fuels that cause indoor pollution and deforestation. This paper argues that integrating renewable energy technologies is essential for sustainable rural power supply and poverty reduction. It identifies barriers to renewable energy adoption in South Asia and India, proposing an integrated model to demonstrate how renewable systems can deliver affordable, sustainable energy to remote rural communities.
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Environmental and Socioeconomic Impacts of the Photovoltaic Battery Charging Stations for Philippine＇s Off-Grid Rural Electrification
A Philippine program installed photovoltaic battery charging systems in 255 households and community facilities across off-grid rural areas from 1999 to 2004. The systems reduced kerosene consumption by 75%, cut air pollution, and enabled households to extend economic activities into evening hours. The project demonstrates that solar charging stations provide cost-effective, environmentally friendly electrification for remote communities, though careful energy demand planning and efficient appliances remain essential for success.
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Renewable Energy Integration into Industrial and Residential Buildings: A Study Across Urban, Rural, and Coastal Areas
This study evaluates how different renewable energy sources—photovoltaic, wind, geothermal, and biomass—perform when integrated into residential, commercial, and industrial buildings across urban, rural, and coastal areas. The research finds that photovoltaic energy works best for urban residential buildings, wind energy suits coastal industrial buildings, and geothermal energy provides the most consistent baseload power across all settings. Combining multiple renewable sources reduces grid dependence and improves sustainability more effectively than relying on single sources.
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Enhancing Rural Revitalization in China through Digital Economic Transformation and Green Entrepreneurship
Digital economic transformation significantly drives rural revitalization in China by promoting green entrepreneurship, which then cultivates green innovation. The study surveyed rural entrepreneurs across different regions and business sizes, finding that green entrepreneurship and green innovation together mediate the relationship between digital transformation and rural revitalization outcomes. The results support a pathway model for policymakers designing sustainable rural development strategies.
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Comparative analysis of rural communities’ tradeoffs in large-scale and small-scale renewable energy projects in Kenya
Rural Kenyan communities make complex decisions about trading land for electricity access in renewable energy projects. Using institutional analysis, the study finds that trade-off outcomes depend on land tenure systems, project scale, electricity access, traditional knowledge, and local power dynamics. Communities' diverse roles and governance structures shape whether they benefit from large-scale or small-scale renewable projects.
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Feasibility study of hybrid renewable energy systems for off-grid electrification in Kuwait’s rural national park reserve
This study designs a hybrid renewable energy system for an off-grid rural national park in Kuwait. Researchers evaluated photovoltaic panels, wind turbines, diesel generators, and battery storage to power a facility requiring 832,640 kWh annually. The optimal configuration combines 500-kW solar panels, 200-kW wind turbines, and 1,424-kW batteries, generating 1.8 million kWh yearly while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 757,162 kg annually compared to diesel operation.
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A hybrid solar–biogas system for post-COVID-19 rural energy access
A hybrid solar-biogas system can provide reliable electricity to rural households while managing livestock waste. The study designed a 1.2-kWp solar and 1.2-m³ biogas system to power a rural home consuming 6.6 kWh daily. With subsidies, the system costs $5,777 upfront, achieves energy at $0.21/kWh, and pays back in 14.7 years. The authors recommend energy service contracts to ensure effective operation and maintenance.
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Ecoliteracy Competence Assessment to Improve Innovation Capability in a Rural Community
Rural communities possess awareness and knowledge of ecological resources but face economic pressures limiting their use. The study identifies three dimensions of ecoliteracy competence: cognitive awareness of environmental potential, emotional satisfaction from resource use, and practical land management for income. These findings support developing ecoliteracy learning models tailored to community needs and economic circumstances.
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Sustainability of productive use of off-grid renewable energy: A case of a women’s collective from rural India
Off-grid renewable energy systems can power productive activities in rural areas, but their long-term sustainability remains unclear. This study develops a framework assessing sustainability across technical, economic, social, institutional, and environmental dimensions, then tests it with a women's collective in rural India. The research finds that capacity building, participatory planning, proper needs assessment, and steady cash flow are critical for sustained operations. Sustainability and socio-economic benefits reinforce each other, supporting India's renewable energy development goals.
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Inventory of Water–Energy–Waste Resources in Rural Houses in Gran Canaria Island: Application and Potential of Renewable Resources and Mitigation of Carbon Footprint and GHG
Rural houses in Gran Canaria can substantially reduce their carbon footprint by adopting renewable energy technologies including solar photovoltaic, solar thermal, and waste methanation. The study inventoried water, energy, and waste resources across rural tourism properties and found that renewable energy generation tailored to available surface area significantly lowers environmental impact while supporting sustainable rural tourism development and EU decarbonization targets.
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Techno‐Economic Potential of Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems for Rural Health Units in the Philippines
This study evaluated hybrid renewable energy systems for rural health clinics in the Philippines, comparing grid-connected and off-grid configurations. Solar photovoltaic panels paired with either the grid or battery-generator systems reduced energy costs by 37–42 percent and carbon emissions by 59 percent while meeting at least 70 percent of facility electricity demand. The findings support integrating these systems into rural healthcare facilities to improve energy access, resilience, and sustainability.
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Design and Control of a PV-FC-BESS-Based Hybrid Renewable Energy System Working in LabVIEW Environment for Short/Long-Duration Irrigation Support in Remote Rural Areas for Paddy Fields
This paper presents a hybrid renewable energy system combining photovoltaic panels, fuel cells, and battery storage to replace diesel pumps for irrigation in remote paddy fields. The system generates 0.4 kW of single-phase power and operates reliably under varying solar and load conditions, supporting rice production while reducing carbon emissions. Control systems were developed and tested in LabVIEW.
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Thermodynamic analysis of a hybrid wind turbine and biomass gasifier for energy supply in a rural off-grid region of Nigeria
Researchers designed and analyzed a hybrid renewable energy system combining a biomass gasifier and wind turbine to supply electricity, heating, and cooling to 2,000 rural homes in Nigeria. The system achieved 48% energy efficiency and 25% exergy efficiency, with the biomass gasifier accounting for 95% of energy losses. The analysis identifies how performance varies with changing environmental conditions and operational parameters.
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Indigenous Knowledge for Climate Smart Agriculture—A Review
Indigenous knowledge systems in sub-Saharan Africa offer proven strategies for climate-smart agriculture that help rural farmers adapt to rising temperatures, changing rainfall, and extreme weather. Farmers have successfully used traditional practices passed down through generations to manage climate risks. Despite evidence that integrating indigenous knowledge with modern climate-smart agricultural innovations improves adaptation and resilience, adoption remains low in developing countries. Strengthening indigenous knowledge systems through capacity building could enhance smallholder farmer resilience to climate change.
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RENEWABLE ENERGY ACCESS CHALLENGE AT HOUSEHOLD LEVEL FOR THE POOR IN RURAL ZIMBABWE: IS BIOGAS ENERGY A REMEDY?
This study examines renewable energy access for poor rural households in Zimbabwe, specifically investigating whether biogas energy can address energy poverty. The research finds that biogas alone cannot solve Zimbabwe's energy crisis. Key barriers include lack of knowledge about biogas technology, insufficient startup capital, high installation costs, inadequate funding, and negative community attitudes. The paper argues that sustainable energy solutions require addressing root causes of energy poverty beyond technology provision.
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CIRCULAR ECONOMY DRIVEN INNOVATIONS WITHIN BUSINESS MODELS OF RURAL SMEs
Rural small and medium enterprises face low competitiveness due to limited scale, distance from markets, and weak innovation capacity. This research examines how circular economy principles can drive new business models in rural SMEs, enabling them to turn environmental challenges into opportunities while meeting consumer demand. Analysis of seven focus groups across six European countries reveals practical pathways for rural SMEs to adopt eco-efficient, waste-minimizing production models.
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Integrated Renewable Energy System Based on IREOM Model and Spatial–Temporal Series for Isolated Rural Areas in the Region of Valparaiso, Chile
This study proposes a smart integrated renewable energy system for isolated rural areas in Valparaiso, Chile, using locally available resources like solar, wind, biomass, and biogas. The researchers modified an optimization model to identify which areas could benefit from this approach and designed systems that minimize energy generation costs. Results show that renewable systems cost roughly three times less than extending the electricity grid to remote locations.
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Identifying the Conditions for Rural Sustainability through Place-Based Culture: Applying the CIPM and CDPM Models into Meibei Ancient Village
This paper examines how culturally significant ancient villages in China can achieve sustainable development by analyzing Meibei village through two cultural models: the Cultural Inverted Pyramid Model and Cultural Dual Pyramid Model. The study finds that Meibei's historical prosperity resulted from integrating cultural elements across economic, social, institutional, environmental, and cultural dimensions. The paper argues that recreating a resilient cultural ecosystem combining heritage preservation with tourism can restore the village's vitality and support rural transition.
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Documentation and Application of Indigenous Traditional Knowledge (ITK) for Sustainable Agricultural Development
This paper documents indigenous traditional knowledge systems and demonstrates how they can be applied to achieve sustainable agricultural development. The authors show that indigenous practices offer practical solutions for improving agricultural productivity while maintaining environmental sustainability, providing a framework for integrating traditional wisdom with modern agricultural approaches.
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The urban‒rural income gap, green innovation and urban carbon emissions: An empirical study in the Yangtze River Delta, China
Widening income gaps between urban and rural areas in China's Yangtze River Delta increase carbon emissions by suppressing green innovation. The effect varies across regions and time periods. Market reforms and government intervention both help reduce emissions independently of income inequality. Policymakers can address income inequality and environmental challenges simultaneously through coordinated market and government action.
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Comprehensive Analysis and Optimal Design of Hybrid Renewable Energy System for Rural Electrification in West Papua, Indonesia
Researchers designed an optimal hybrid renewable energy system for rural electrification in Anggi District, West Papua, Indonesia. Using HOMER software, they compared five configurations combining diesel generators, hydropower, solar, and batteries. A hybrid system with diesel, hydro, solar, and battery storage proved most cost-effective and environmentally sound, reducing emissions by 4,372 kg annually compared to diesel alone while achieving 67.7% renewable energy fraction and lowering energy costs to $0.311/kWh.
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Hybrid renewable energy systems for rural electrification in developing countries: Assessing feasibility, efficiency, and socioeconomic impact
Hybrid renewable energy systems combining solar, wind, biomass, and hydro power offer viable alternatives to grid expansion for rural electrification in developing countries. These systems create jobs, improve health and education outcomes, and build economic resilience. However, high upfront costs, insufficient technical expertise, and weak policy frameworks hinder adoption. Successful deployment requires targeted policies, financial support, community involvement, and ongoing technical innovation.
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Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Genomics to Improve Poultry: a holistic approach to improve indigenous chicken production focusing on resilience to Newcastle disease
Researchers developed a genetic selection platform to breed indigenous African chickens resistant to Newcastle disease, a major threat to small-scale poultry production. They identified genetic markers and genes conferring resistance through controlled virus challenges, characterized circulating virus strains in Ghana and Tanzania, and assessed farmer demand for improved birds. Results show farmers value both disease resistance and productivity traits like egg production and growth rate.
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The Potential of Indigenous Technological Knowledge for Sustainable and Climate-Resilient Agriculture
Indigenous Technical Knowledge practices in India offer proven methods for sustainable and climate-resilient agriculture. The paper documents traditional techniques including green manuring, vermicomposting, and traditional irrigation systems that improve soil health, manage water efficiently, and adapt to climate variability. Integrating these indigenous practices with modern agriculture enhances resource efficiency, conserves biodiversity, and strengthens rural livelihoods.
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Urban-Rural Cooperation for an Economy with 100% Renewable Energy and Climate Protection towards 2030 - the Region Berlin-Brandenburg
Berlin and Brandenburg can achieve 100% renewable energy by 2030 through a system based primarily on rooftop solar panels and green hydrogen production, with electricity replacing fossil fuels across all sectors. The analysis shows this transition is technically feasible and costs less than continuing with fossil and nuclear energy. Hydrogen storage emerges as a critical cost factor, and coordinating with broader German and European energy transitions could further reduce expenses.
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Analyzing the mechanism among rural financing constraint mitigation, agricultural development, and carbon emissions in China: A sustainable development paradigm
China's policy to ease rural financing constraints for agriculture increased farm production and farmer income, but also raised agricultural carbon emissions per unit area. The emissions increase came from higher input intensity per hectare. However, mechanization and agricultural scale expansion can offset these emissions. The policy's effects varied by region based on economic development and agricultural conditions. Other developing countries can learn from China's experience to balance agricultural growth with emission control.
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RURAL GREEN TOURISM AS AN INNOVATIVE FORM OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Rural green tourism represents an innovative entrepreneurship model that drives rural development in Ukraine. The paper identifies key factors enabling agritourism, agro-ecotourism, and rural tourism enterprises, and develops a framework for their growth. It demonstrates how green tourism entrepreneurship achieves economic, environmental, social, and cultural goals while addressing barriers to expansion. The authors recommend specific government support measures to strengthen this sector.
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Eco-Friendly Women Entrepreneurship in Rural Areas:A Paradigm Shift for Societal Uplift
Eco-friendly women entrepreneurship in rural areas drives societal development and economic self-reliance. Women entrepreneurs, equipped with artisan skills and multitasking abilities, create sustainable businesses in agriculture and domestic sectors that address rural poverty. This paradigm shift combines traditional capitalist entrepreneurship with environmental responsibility, enabling women to contribute meaningfully to agrarian economies despite patriarchal barriers.
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Viability of renewable energies and industrialization of rural areas using high-performance concrete
High-performance concrete enables construction of solar thermal collectors and water retention structures that integrate renewable energy sources in tropical rural areas. The system combines solar heating with biomass-fired boilers, increases biomass production on degraded land, and generates biogas from agricultural waste. This integrated approach provides reliable electricity, thermal energy, and fuel while supporting livestock production and attracting industrial development to rural regions.
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Diverse interpretations enabling the continuity of community renewable energy projects: A case study of a woody biomass project in rural area of Japan
A Japanese woody biomass project sustained itself for over a decade by allowing members with different motivations to interpret project goals flexibly. Rather than enforcing strict quantitative targets, the project succeeded through diverse social interactions and collaborative practices. This flexibility enabled each member to define success according to their own values and contributions, creating multiple interpretations that ultimately strengthened the project's resilience and long-term viability.
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Enhancing Synergy Effects Between The Electrification Of Agricultural Machines And Renewable Energy Deployment With Semi-Stationary Energy Storage In Rural Grids
Electrified agricultural machines and renewable energy deployment both strain rural electrical grids, but combining them creates synergies. Solar power generation often aligns with peak demand from electric farm equipment. Semi-stationary energy storage systems can balance these flows, reduce grid extension needs, enable higher renewable penetration, and provide grid services. The analysis shows such storage becomes profitable when providing primary balancing power for at least 10 weeks annually.
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Material Implications of Rural Electrification—A Methodological Framework to Assess In-Use Stocks of Off-Grid Solar Products and EEE in Rural Households in Bangladesh
This paper develops a methodology to measure electrical equipment stocks in rural households using off-grid solar systems as a case study. Applying the framework to Bangladesh's 4.1 million solar home systems, the authors find that off-grid solar products are lighter and fewer in variety than standard electrical equipment, resulting in lower overall material stocks. The findings help predict future waste flows and inform recycling infrastructure planning in developing countries pursuing universal electricity access.
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Feasibility Study of Renewable Energy Resources and Optimization of Hybrid Energy System of Some Rural Area in Bangladesh
This paper designs and optimizes a hybrid renewable energy system for rural Bangladesh combining solar, biomass, and diesel backup power. Using HOMER software, researchers modeled a system generating 11 kW average hourly capacity with a cost of energy at $0.077/kWh, undercutting Bangladesh's rental power plants at $0.097/kWh. The analysis demonstrates that locally available renewable resources can reduce fossil fuel dependence while remaining economically competitive and environmentally viable.
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Potential assessment of establishing a renewable energy plant in a rural agricultural area
Researchers assessed the feasibility of building a renewable energy plant in a rural Taiwanese township that generates substantial agricultural waste from pig farms. Using GIS mapping and energy modeling, they found that biogas from manure combined with solar panels could viably produce electricity while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and treating waste. The study identifies the most suitable location and demonstrates strong economic and environmental potential under Taiwan's green energy policies.
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Achieving food security and climate change mitigation through entrepreneurship development in rural Nigeria: Gender perspective
Rural entrepreneurship development in Nigeria can address food security and climate change by supporting integrated food production, processing, and marketing. Women comprise a significant portion of rural agricultural entrepreneurs despite representing only 8% of formal agricultural workers. The paper analyzes Nigeria's agricultural greenhouse gas emissions and conducts cost-benefit analyses to recommend gender-inclusive entrepreneurship strategies that improve food security while reducing climate impacts from farming and livestock production.
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Development of Renewable Energy and Sustainability for Off-Grid Rural Communities of Developing Countries and Energy Efficiency
Off-grid rural communities in developing countries face severe energy shortages due to high fuel costs and lack of renewable energy infrastructure. This paper proposes an incentive-driven approach to deploy renewable energy technology while promoting energy efficiency. The strategy emphasizes community engagement, awareness-building, and government participation to overcome past project failures and ensure local ownership of renewable energy systems.
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Gender and renewable energy in rural Nigeria.
Poor women in rural Nigeria rely on traditional biomass fuels that harm their health and wellbeing. Expanding access to renewable energy sources can reduce this burden while advancing multiple development goals: poverty reduction, improved health and education, environmental protection, and women's empowerment.
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Bamboo Entrepreneurship - Opportunities for Rural Employment
Bamboo offers significant entrepreneurial opportunities for rural employment in India. The crop matures quickly, regenerates easily, and has over 1500 documented uses spanning traditional and modern applications. Its versatility as a substitute for wood and expensive materials, combined with low production costs and environmental benefits, makes bamboo-based technologies viable for generating rural income and employment.
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Indigenous Agricultural Knowledge in Kumaon hills of Uttaranchal
Farmers in Uttaranchal's Kumaon hills maintain indigenous agricultural knowledge developed over thousands of years, which sustains production while protecting environmental quality. Modern chemical-intensive farming threatens these practices, yet local farmers continue using traditional methods for crop production. The study documents this indigenous knowledge across various aspects of farming.
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Household access to clean fuels and technologies, rural and urban electrification, renewable energy consumption, and environmental sustainability in Africa
This study analyzes how clean fuel access, electricity access, and renewable energy affect carbon emissions across African countries. The research finds that clean fuel and electricity access paradoxically worsen environmental conditions, while economic growth increases emissions. However, renewable energy consumption improves environmental quality. The authors recommend prioritizing renewable energy electrification to deliver clean electricity and reduce emissions.
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Strategies for Sustainable Rural Tourism Innovation: Evidence from Hanoi, Vietnam
Rural tourism innovation drives economic and social development in rural areas while addressing environmental challenges. This study examines sustainable rural tourism innovation strategies in Hanoi, Vietnam, showing how innovation enhances tourism regeneration, meets sustainable development goals, and improves economic, social, and environmental outcomes. The research provides insights for policymakers developing rural tourism destination innovation policies in developing countries.
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When digital technology innovation enhances Indigenous Peoples’ e-participation in climate change resilience-building: perspectives under the “e-GIS Smart, Inclusive, and, Climate-resilient Indigenous Peoples Landscape and Community Clearing-House Mechanism Solution”
Digital GIS and satellite technology tools can help Indigenous Peoples participate in climate resilience and biodiversity conservation on their territories. The paper presents an e-GIS platform with mobile and app interfaces designed to facilitate Indigenous participation in decision-making and climate action while supporting data sovereignty and decolonization. Implementation requires state support and alignment with UN agendas on Indigenous affairs.
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Feasibility study of hybrid energy system for off-grid electrification in rural areas
A hybrid energy system combining photovoltaic, wind, battery storage, and diesel generation can reliably electrify a remote rural village in eastern Iraq at lower cost than single-source systems. Optimization modeling shows a 6 kW solar array, 35 kW wind turbines, battery storage, and inverter can meet 30 kW daily demand at $0.117/kWh while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25 tons CO2 annually.
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Decentralised Renewable Energy and Rural Development: Lessons from Odisha’s First Solar Village
A solar energy project transformed Barapita village in Odisha into India's first 100% solar-powered village, initially succeeding with the Ho tribal community. However, technical failures and maintenance problems caused usage to decline. The study recommends training villagers as solar engineers using Gandhian principles and Nai Talim pedagogy to enable communities to manage renewable energy systems independently and sustain rural development.
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Optimal Design and Techno-economic Analysis of Off-grid Hybrid Renewable Energy System for Remote Rural Electrification: A Case Study of Southwest China
Off-grid hybrid renewable energy systems combining solar, wind, and biomass power generation offer a cost-effective and reliable alternative to grid extension for electrifying remote villages in Southwest China. The study modeled different system configurations to meet residential, community, and agricultural electricity demands while accounting for seasonal variations. Results demonstrate that hybrid systems deliver both economic and environmental benefits compared to traditional grid extension approaches.
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Community Mangrove Aqua-Silviculture (CMAS Culture): An Innovation and Climate Resilient Practice by the Sundarbans Mangrove Forest Dependent Rural Communities of Bangladesh
Rural communities in southwestern Bangladesh have developed Community Mangrove Aqua-Silviculture (CMAS), an integrated farming system combining mangrove trees with fish and shrimp cultivation in shallow water plots. The practice produces harvestable mangrove species within 13-14 months and fish within one year, requires minimal maintenance costs, and strengthens climate resilience for forest-dependent communities in the Sundarbans region.
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Sustainability and development impacts of off-grid electrification in developing countries : An assessment of South Africa's rural electrification program
South Africa's rural electrification program and similar initiatives across southern Africa succeed when they combine appropriate technology with strong government support, progressive tariff systems, and sufficient energy capacity for income-generating activities. Hybrid hydro mini-grids prove most cost-effective. Programs fail without adequate spare parts supply, capable management, and designs that account for existing businesses and population growth. Cross-subsidies from high-income users sustain service for low-income households.
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Stem Barks and Roots Extravitism in Ekiti State Nigeria: Need for Conservation as a Sustainable Innovation in Healthcare Management in Rural Areas
Rural communities in Ekiti State, Nigeria rely heavily on botanical stem and root extracts for healthcare, viewing them as safer and cheaper than conventional medicine. However, most medicinal species are wild-harvested unsustainably and face depletion from deforestation. The paper argues that conservation of these indigenous species is essential to maintain rural healthcare access and sustainability.
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Renewable energy technology means of providing sustainable electricity in Nigerian rural areas: a review.
Nigeria's rural areas lack electricity access for over 65% of the population, causing economic decline and migration. This review examines renewable energy technologies as sustainable alternatives to failed fossil fuel systems. Biomass, hydro, and solar sources are viable for rural Nigeria, but implementation remains extremely low due to absent energy policy, government neglect, and low purchasing power. The authors recommend whole-life costing analysis to optimize economic performance.
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Rural Energy Poverty: An Investigation into Socioeconomic Drivers and Implications for Off-Grid Households in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa
This study examines energy poverty among off-grid households in South Africa's Eastern Cape Province, identifying key socioeconomic drivers. Female-headed households face greater vulnerability to energy poverty, while larger households experience less. Education alone does not improve energy access due to infrastructure gaps. Social grant dependency correlates strongly with energy poverty. The research calls for gender-responsive policies addressing both infrastructure and socioeconomic barriers to energy access in rural areas.
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Fuzzy Logic-Enhanced Sustainable and Resilient EV Public Transit Systems for Rural Tourism
This paper develops F-AMIS, a fuzzy logic-based optimization system for managing electric vehicle public transit in rural tourism areas. The system handles variable tourist demand and infrastructure constraints better than traditional methods. A case study shows F-AMIS reduces operational costs by 20% and increases service coverage from 75% to 90% while improving resilience and sustainability. The framework offers a scalable solution for rural EV transit planning.
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Toward a Renewable and Sustainable Energy Pattern in Non-Interconnected Rural Monasteries: A Case Study for the Xenofontos Monastery, Mount Athos
This paper designs renewable energy systems for Xenofontos Monastery on Mount Athos, Greece, which operates independently without grid connection. The author models two alternative systems combining wind turbines or solar panels with either pumped hydro storage or battery storage. Results show that 100% electricity demand coverage is achievable using hydro power with pumped storage at 0.22 EUR/kWh, or 90% coverage with lithium-ion batteries at 0.11 EUR/kWh, enabling the monastery to transition from diesel generators to sustainable energy.
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Socioeconomic indicators and their influence on the adoption of renewable energy technologies in rural Malawi
This study examines how socioeconomic factors affect renewable energy adoption in rural Malawi. Researchers surveyed 87 households in Kasangazi and found that despite low income and education levels, communities rely entirely on non-renewable sources like firewood and batteries. However, households express strong demand for electrical appliances such as refrigerators and stoves. The study concludes that mini-grid systems offer viable solutions for remote areas and that renewable energy expansion should prioritize energy access alongside environmental goals.
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Application of GIS in Introducing Community-Based Biogas Plants from Dairy Farm Waste: Potential of Renewable Energy for Rural Areas in Bangladesh
This study uses GIS mapping and spatial analysis to identify optimal locations for community-based biogas plants in Bangladesh that convert dairy farm waste into renewable energy. Five feasible sites were identified that could collectively generate 200.60 GWh of electricity annually while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 104.26 Gg/year CO2eq. The approach integrates geographical, social, economic, and environmental factors to create a practical framework for sustainable waste management and rural energy production.
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Assessing the Viability and Impact of Off Grid Systems for Sustainable Electrification of Rural Communities in Sub-Saharan Africa
Off-grid solar minigrids offer a viable solution for rural electrification in sub-Saharan Africa, where centralized power systems have failed to reach communities. The research identifies key barriers to adoption including high capital costs, land expenses, and long break-even periods. Techno-economic analysis reveals that economic viability, regulatory frameworks, and technical challenges—measured through levelized cost of electricity—determine whether these systems succeed in rural areas.
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Off-grid photovoltaic-powered capacitive deionization for groundwater desalination in rural Africa
Researchers developed and tested an off-grid water purification system combining solar panels with capacitive deionization technology for rural Uganda. The system successfully desalinated groundwater to meet drinking water standards while operating entirely on solar power, achieving over 60% salt removal and low energy consumption. This innovation provides a practical, modular solution for households lacking access to centralized water and electricity infrastructure.
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Economic impact of productive use of renewable energy: A case of a women-collective from rural Maharashtra (India)
A women-led renewable energy collective in rural Maharashtra, India, generated significant income increases for beneficiary households compared to non-beneficiaries, with multiplier effects across the local economy. The study demonstrates that productive use of renewable energy can simultaneously advance socio-economic development and climate goals in rural areas, supporting India's strategy to address infrastructure gaps and rural poverty through clean energy.
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Re-centring and recovering knowledge about climate-friendly agriculture: Learning from a woman African indigenous knowledge holder
An African indigenous knowledge holder taught fifteen science teachers climate-friendly agricultural practices, including animal manure use, manual soil turning, crop rotation, and medicinal plant cultivation. Teachers documented learning through portfolios and reflections. The intervention challenged conventional hierarchies about legitimate scientific knowledge and teachers, advancing epistemic justice while enabling educators to transcend curriculum boundaries and teach sustainable food production methods rooted in Southern knowledge systems.
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Renewable energy development in rural areas of Uttar Pradesh: Current status, technologies and CO2 mitigation analysis
Rural areas in Uttar Pradesh, India face severe energy deficiency affecting millions in poverty. This paper analyzes renewable energy technologies for rural electrification, examining current status, available options including hybrid systems, and CO2 mitigation potential. The authors assess power generation capacity against demand, calculate emissions reductions from different renewable sources, and evaluate cost savings to support India's 175 GW renewable energy target by 2022.
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The Concept for the Development of Biogas as Renewable Energy in Rural Indonesia
Indonesia's energy policy targets 5% renewable energy by 2025. Jimbaran Village, where 1,663 families raise dairy cattle, produces substantial animal waste currently dumped untreated into the environment. The authors propose converting this livestock waste into biogas through a communal system. Energy performance analysis shows the biogas system generates over 100% of required energy, with surplus capacity to replace grid electricity and produce compost for agricultural use.
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REVIEW ON RURAL ENERGY ACCESS POLICIES
Rural energy access remains neglected in developing countries, leaving nearly two billion people without electricity or clean cooking. This systematic review examines rural energy policies as solutions to energy poverty, analyzing challenges, barriers, and alternatives. The authors argue that comprehensive rural energy policy is essential for achieving universal energy access and sustainable development, with particular focus on Latin America and the health and environmental impacts on rural communities.
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Renewable Energy (Solar) and its Impact on Rural Households’ Welfare (Case Study of Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan)
Solar energy adoption in rural Afghanistan improves household welfare by reducing health issues, increasing savings, and decreasing environmental damage from wood collection. Study of 200 households in Badakhshan province found that solar systems cut hospital visits and lowered energy costs compared to generators, though studying hours remained unchanged. The research calls for greater government investment in solar household systems to meet basic rural energy needs.
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Renewable Energy for Rural Development in Bangladesh
Bangladesh faces energy poverty in rural areas where 65% of the population lacks reliable electricity. Conventional fossil fuel power plants worsen climate change, threatening Bangladesh's low-lying agricultural lands and water security. The paper examines renewable energy sources as a solution for sustainable rural development, presenting current conditions and future prospects for renewable energy adoption in Bangladesh.
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The Role of Microfinance in Climate Change Adaptation: Evidence from Rural Rwanda
Microloans from Urwego Bank help Rwandan farmers increase agricultural productivity and income by providing access to seeds and fertilizer, strengthening their ability to cope with climate impacts like drought and erratic rainfall. However, loans alone do not fund broader climate adaptations like irrigation or contour digging. While cooperatives and VSLAs create safety nets, they risk deepening socio-economic inequality. The bank's informal flexibility on repayment during poor harvests raises questions about long-term financial sustainability as climate impacts intensify.
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Innovation an Eco Friendly Technology: Tanning System using Semi Chrome and Improved Indigenous Tannins (Acacia Nilotica Pods)
Researchers in Sudan developed an eco-friendly leather tanning method using semi-chrome tanning combined with indigenous plant materials—Acacia nilotica pods (Garad) and Neem bark. Testing showed the resulting leather matched or exceeded traditional tanned leather in tensile strength, tear resistance, and thermal stability. Blending these local plant tannins significantly improved leather quality while reducing environmental impact.
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From technology transfer to innovation-based rural development: A necessary turn at the Indio Hatuey experimental station
Cuba's economic crisis in the 1990s prompted the Indio Hatuey Experimental Station to shift from technology transfer to innovation-based rural development. The station adopted a holistic, territorial approach to research and education in pasture and forage production. This transformation improved farm environmental outcomes, strengthened food security and sustainable agriculture, and created horizontal networks connecting researchers, farmers, and institutions across local and provincial levels to address climate change and rural development challenges.
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Optimal Modeling of off-grid Renewable Energy Systems for Rural Electrification in Bangladesh
This paper develops optimal models for off-grid renewable energy systems to electrify rural homes in Bangladesh, where 72% of the population lacks reliable electricity. Researchers analyzed solar, biomass, and hybrid systems for a village in Sirazganj district using HOMER optimization software. The comparative analysis evaluated net present cost and energy cost across the three models to identify the most economically viable solution for rural electrification.
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Profitable small-scale renewable energy systems in agrifood industry and rural areas: demonstration in the wine sector
This EU-funded project demonstrates small-scale renewable energy systems for rural wine production, installing photovoltaic prototypes in vineyard fields and wineries. The systems reduce CO2 emissions from rural energy consumption, enable clean energy for irrigation in areas without grid access, and eliminate noise, waste, and visual impacts from traditional electrical infrastructure. The approach addresses both climate change mitigation and agricultural adaptation.
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Prospective modelling of the hourly response of local renewable energy sources to the residential energy demand in a mixed urban-rural territory
This paper models how local renewable energy sources can meet residential electricity demand in a mixed urban-rural French territory by 2050. The researchers calculated hourly energy consumption using building archetypes and geographic data, estimated local renewable potential, and tested scenarios showing how different energy transition approaches affect the balance between demand and production. The analysis reveals specific challenges for residential energy transition and local renewable deployment.
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Renewable Energy – Implications for Agriculture and Rural Development in Poland
Rural areas in Poland significantly contributed to renewable energy targets between 2005–2014, with renewable energy's share of primary production doubling from 5.8% to 12.1%. Biomass dominated initially, but wind and solar grew rapidly after 2010. However, Poland's subsidy system favors large hydroelectric plants and co-combustion over citizen-led renewable initiatives, limiting economic potential in small installations and community energy development.
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Energy Sovereignty in Rural Areas: Off-Grid Paradigm for Strengthen the Use of Renewable Energy.
This paper presents the Off-Grid Box, a containerized renewable energy system designed to provide electricity, hot water, water harvesting, and purification to isolated rural communities. The system enables energy independence and sovereignty in marginal areas while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The authors demonstrate that modular off-grid systems can support sustainable livelihoods for small family farms and local communities, creating small-scale smart grids integrated into rural territories.
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Determining factors influencing the adoption of indigenous knowledge in agriculture water management in dry areas of Iran
Iranian agricultural experts identified four key factors influencing farmers' adoption of indigenous water management knowledge in dry regions: social factors, extension education, economic conditions, and managerial practices. Social factors had the strongest impact, followed by education, economics, and management. The findings come from surveying 150 experts across agriculture and interior ministries.
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Back to basics: the role of Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) in agro-biodiversity and household food security in the smallholder agriculture sector: the case of Chipinge (Zimbabwe)
Indigenous knowledge systems in Zimbabwe's Chipinge district sustain agro-biodiversity and food security among smallholder farmers. Between 1994 and 2002, agro-biodiversity declined over 50%, with smaller farms maintaining greater diversity. Older farmers and female-headed households conserved more crop types and varieties than younger and male-headed households, demonstrating that traditional knowledge practices directly support agricultural resilience and household nutrition.
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Indigenous Soil Knowledge for Sustainable Agricultural Development in the Sahel Zone of Niger, West Africa. 2. Indigenous Soil Classification System.
Farmers in Niger's Sahel zone classify soils using color, texture, and fertility based on generations of experience. Scientists validated nine local soil types against laboratory analysis of soil properties. The indigenous classifications matched scientific findings—farmers correctly identified poor sandy soils and fertile clayey soils. This indigenous knowledge system provides a practical, rapid method for evaluating soil variation in semi-arid regions and supports sustainable agricultural development.
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Evaluation and Obstacle Factors of Renewable Energy Substitution Potential in Underdeveloped Rural Areas of China
This study evaluates renewable energy substitution potential in underdeveloped rural areas of Gansu Province, China, using multi-objective analysis and obstacle factor modeling. The research finds that renewable energy substitution potential is generally low with significant spatial and temporal variation. Key obstacles include limited renewable energy resource endowment, low irrigated agricultural area, insufficient agricultural machinery, and small rural populations. The authors recommend strategic planning of renewable energy development models and coordinated regional approaches to enhance economic value.
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Energy Valorization Strategies in Rural Renewable Energy Communities: A Path to Social Revitalization and Sustainable Development
Rural energy communities in Spain can help combat depopulation by adopting innovative energy valorization strategies. The study analyzed seven villages across three scenarios: self-consumption models, battery storage systems, and advanced options like hydrogen production. While no single strategy reverses depopulation alone, combining social impact principles with approaches like energy retail or unified community structures significantly mitigates rural decline and supports sustainable revitalization.
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Importing innovation or indigenous innovation: Evaluating the effect of climate finance on promoting environmental sustainability in developing countries
Climate finance reduces CO2 emissions in developing countries by approximately 3.31% per standard deviation increase, but works primarily through importing external innovations rather than fostering indigenous innovation. The mechanism fails in least developed countries, where climate finance shows no significant emissions reduction and sometimes increases carbon output. Indigenous innovation pathways remain underutilized despite their potential.
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Establishing large, permanent protection outcomes on Indigenous‐owned private land: Innovations at Gayini, Australia
Gayini, a wetland restoration project in Australia's Murray-Darling Basin, demonstrates an innovative conservation model combining Indigenous land ownership with legally-binding protection covenants. The project was co-developed with Traditional Custodians and shows how new governance arrangements can expand protected areas while respecting different tenure systems and ensuring biodiversity representation across diverse landscapes.
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Constructing an Indigenous knowledge approach to agroecology and regenerative agriculture: The case of Yucatec Maya
Yucatec Maya farmers are abandoning traditional sustainable practices for conventional agriculture, driven by climate change and resource degradation. This paper reveals how Indigenous Yucatec Maya concepts—including diversity, resilience, food security, and sovereignty—underpin their traditional food systems. The authors argue that integrating this Indigenous knowledge with agroecology and regenerative agriculture approaches will strengthen food system transformation and increase long-term success.
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Economic optimization of hybrid renewable energy resources for rural electrification
Researchers used the bat algorithm to optimize hybrid renewable energy systems for rural electrification in Kalema village, comparing it against diesel-only and genetic algorithm approaches. The bat algorithm reduced energy costs by 45.6% and carbon emissions by 62.2% compared to diesel generators alone, outperforming the genetic algorithm on both metrics. This demonstrates that optimized hybrid renewable systems are more cost-effective and environmentally sustainable than traditional diesel generation for rural areas.
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Demonstration of the potential use of off-grid renewable energy in agricultural production in rural Uganda
Rural Ugandan farmers have widely adopted off-grid renewable energy technologies—particularly solar—for agricultural production, with women showing higher adoption rates. Solar powers irrigation and crop drying, while biogas and charcoal briquettes support diverse farming activities. Farmers report time savings, improved health, and income gains, though high upfront costs and limited awareness remain barriers. Scaling requires coordinated support from government, NGOs, and private sectors to fund technology acquisition and build local capacity.
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NGOs' Role in Sustaining Indigenous Knowledge in RuralBangladesh: Agriculture, Healthcare, and Disaster Management
NGOs in rural Bangladesh actively preserve and apply indigenous knowledge across agriculture, healthcare, and disaster management. The study documents how organizations like BARCIK support local communities in using traditional practices for cyclone resilience, seed preservation, and farming methods. NGOs bridge indigenous knowledge with modern science, protecting these practices from erosion due to globalization while enabling sustainable rural development.
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Rural innovation and the green transition: The role of further education colleges
Further Education Colleges in rural areas can drive innovation addressing the green transition, particularly in agriculture. A Welsh case study shows how one college developed slurry management solutions by aligning skills training with innovation goals, distributing leadership across stakeholders, and creating experimental regulatory spaces. The findings demonstrate FECs' overlooked potential to tackle major environmental challenges while strengthening rural economies.
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How does science and technology finance affect the agricultural green development: an interpretation from the perspective of rural human capital and agricultural industrial agglomeration
Science and technology financing significantly promotes agricultural green development in China through rural human capital improvements, though agricultural industrial agglomeration partially masks this effect. The relationship is non-linear: marginal effects increase with higher science and technology finance levels but decrease when mediated through rural human capital or industrial agglomeration. Regional differences are minimal.
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Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems: An Integrated Approach to Rural Electrification
Hybrid renewable energy systems combining solar, wind, hydro, and biomass offer transformative potential for electrifying remote rural areas in developing nations. These integrated approaches leverage diverse local resources to overcome grid isolation, reduce carbon emissions, and provide equitable energy access. Supportive policies and growing research momentum position hybrid systems as revolutionary solutions for rural electrification strategies.
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Design Optimization and Techno-Economic Analysis of Off-Grid Hybrid Energy Systems for Sustainable Rural Electrification in Bangladesh
This paper evaluates hybrid energy systems for bringing electricity to remote rural areas in Bangladesh. Using HOMER Pro software, researchers compared three off-grid hybrid systems in Char Amanullah. A solar-biomass-battery system proved most cost-effective at $0.197 per kilowatt-hour, outperforming solar-diesel-biomass and solar-wind-biomass alternatives. The analysis examined technical performance, economic viability, and environmental emissions to identify the best sustainable electrification option for grid-disconnected locations.
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Sustainability of Africa through technological innovations and indigenous knowledge systems: a discussion of key factors and way forward
African sustainable development requires integrating indigenous knowledge systems and philosophical frameworks like Ubuntu with contemporary technological innovation, rather than adopting purely Western-imposed models. The authors argue that higher education institutions must bridge indigenous knowledge practices with global development approaches, shifting away from narratives that position Africa as deficient and toward locally grounded solutions that add value to African resources while preserving the environment.
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Integration of renewable resources into the electricity energy matrix. Practical case applied to a small rural municipality
This paper designs and manages renewable energy resources for a small rural municipality in Spain's Valencian Community. The researchers modeled how solar, wind, and other renewables could meet the municipality's annual electricity demand while maximizing self-consumption and reducing grid dependence. Results demonstrate that rural communities can achieve high renewable self-sufficiency, supporting Europe's energy transition away from fossil fuels.
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Evaluation of Road Traffic Noise Change due to Bus Route Variation of Demand Responsive Transit Scenario in Rural Area
This study evaluates how demand-responsive transit (DRT) bus services affect road traffic noise in rural areas. Researchers compared noise levels from a fixed bus route against five DRT scenarios using a three-dimensional prediction model. DRT operations reduced noise in certain areas, particularly in low-traffic locations surrounded by mountains. The noise reduction depended on traffic volume and local topography.
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REVITALIZING INDIGENOUS AGRICULTURAL KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICES: MANUGAL AS AN ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE FARMING METHOD IN DAYAK NGAJU, INDONESIA
The Dayak Ngaju people of Central Kalimantan have practiced Manugal, a traditional rice cultivation method using direct planting, rainwater, and natural materials without synthetic inputs, for thousands of years. The Green Revolution marginalized this practice in favor of intensive agriculture with chemical inputs. This study examines how modernization damaged local traditions and proposes strategies to revive Manugal farming as an ecologically sustainable alternative to monoculture systems.
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Rural Communities Access to Clean Cooking Fuels, Energy and Technologies: Socioeconomic Implications and Progress Toward Sustainable Development
This study analyzes data from 43 African countries between 2000 and 2023 to examine how rural access to clean cooking fuels and technologies affects sustainable development and socioeconomic outcomes. Results show that increased rural access to clean cooking energy significantly improves both sustainable development and socioeconomic conditions, with a 1% increase in access raising socioeconomic outcomes by 1.43%. The research recommends governments reduce commercialization timelines, provide subsidies and tax incentives, and establish supportive financing policies for clean cooking energy adoption.
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Experimental 3E analysis of a biomass gasification plant for off-grid electrification in rural Ghana
Researchers tested a biomass gasification plant using peanut shells to generate electricity and heat in rural Ghana. The system achieved 20.6% electrical efficiency and 60.2% combined heat and power efficiency. Exergy analysis showed the genset caused the largest energy losses at 35.9%, while the gas conditioning unit was highly efficient. The electricity cost of $0.05/kWh makes this technology competitive with diesel generators for off-grid rural areas, demonstrating peanut shells as a viable renewable energy feedstock.
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Adapting to climate change amidst innovation diffusion and declining indigenous agricultural knowledge and practices in Ghana
Small-scale farmers in Ghana adapt to climate change by combining indigenous agricultural practices with externally promoted technologies, though adoption rates vary. Traditional methods like planting drought-resistant crops remain relevant, while some farmers integrate modern practices based on available knowledge and resources. Technology diffusion occurs unevenly across communities, shaped by lived experience and local conditions. Younger, educated farmers adopt modern approaches more readily, while older farmers navigate both traditional and new methods. The findings suggest governments should engage farmers by recognizing existing knowledge systems alongside innovation.
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Indigenous Knowledge on Shifting Cultivation and Sustainable Agriculture
Arfak farmers in West Papua use indigenous knowledge called igya ser hanjob to manage shifting cultivation on mountainous land sustainably. This ecological concept, passed down through generations, balances agricultural production with environmental protection and food security. However, modernization, plantation expansion, mining development, and land pressure threaten both the practice and the oral transmission of this knowledge to younger generations.
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Harvesting Traditions: Exploring the Indigenous Agricultural Knowledge Systems in Java, Indonesia and Mindanao, Philippines
Indigenous agricultural knowledge systems in Java and Mindanao demonstrate sustainable land management practices rooted in ecological understanding and cultural tradition. The study documents how indigenous farmers manage biodiversity, transmit knowledge across generations, and integrate spiritual dimensions into agriculture. These systems offer practical solutions to modern agricultural challenges while preserving cultural heritage and environmental sustainability in both regions.
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Has the Development of Broadband Infrastructure Improved Household Energy Consumption in Rural China?
Broadband infrastructure expansion in rural China increases household energy consumption and accelerates adoption of cleaner fuels. Higher-income and better-educated households benefit most from broadband access. The policy drives change through technological innovation, improved energy efficiency, and greater environmental awareness. These findings show broadband's role in supporting China's carbon neutrality goals and energy transition.
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Impact of Innovation and Agricultural Cooperative Societies towards Ecological Equilibrium Among Rural Farmers in Kenya.
Agricultural cooperatives in Kenya drive agroecological innovation that strengthens farming resilience to climate change while protecting ecosystems. Cooperatives enable small-scale farmers to adopt ecology-based practices, create production chains, include marginalized groups, and build local markets. This approach combines farmer knowledge with scientific expertise to deliver locally appropriate solutions that improve livelihoods, food security, and environmental protection simultaneously.
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Advancing Renewable Energy in Rural India: An techno-economic Evaluation of the Deenbandhu Biogas Model in Rajasthan
This study evaluates the Deenbandhu biogas model in Rajasthan, India, finding it a viable renewable energy solution despite a gap between potential and actual adoption. The technology reduces women's labor, improves health, decreases fossil fuel dependence, and enhances soil fertility through biogas slurry. Addressing adoption barriers and strengthening dissemination strategies can help India transition to a low-carbon economy while leveraging the region's substantial livestock resources.
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Empowering Rural Communities: Feasibility and Optimization of Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems for Sustainable Electricity Using HOMER Software
This case study examines a hybrid solar and wind energy system designed for Khajuri-Motihani village in Bihar, India, using HOMER software to optimize system configuration. The analysis shows that a renewable energy system is technically and economically feasible for this rural community, reducing costs while maximizing renewable generation and cutting carbon emissions. The findings demonstrate that this approach could serve as a replicable model for other rural Indian villages seeking energy independence and sustainability.
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Optimal planning of solar energy using a sensitivity factor for rural electricity needs in an off-grid system (case study: Sebesi Island, South Lampung, Indonesia)
A feasibility study of solar power for Sebesi Island, Indonesia demonstrates that an off-grid solar system with battery storage meets the island's daily electricity needs more economically and sustainably than diesel generators. Using sensitivity analysis to account for resource uncertainty, the optimal solar configuration costs $1.26 million with an energy cost of $0.346/kWh, compared to $1.29 million and $0.397/kWh for diesel. The solar system generates twice the annual energy while reducing CO2 emissions by 241,812 kg yearly.
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Knowledge-Based Approaches to Adaptive Agriculture: An Ethnoecological Case Study of Indigenous Communities in Climate Change Adaptation
Indigenous vegetable farmers in Dieng, Java integrate traditional ethnoecological knowledge with adaptive farming practices to build agricultural resilience against climate change. Community leaders, elders, and government support through subsidies, loans, and policies protecting customary land rights drive successful adoption of these indigenous practices. The findings suggest these approaches have potential for broader implementation in similar regions.
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Indigenous Knowledge System and Agricultural Drought Adaptation in the uMkhanyakude District Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal
Small-scale farmers in South Africa's uMkhanyakude District use indigenous knowledge systems to adapt to agricultural drought, which severely reduces crop yields and livestock. The study reveals that gender norms intensify drought impacts differently for men and women. Indigenous practices prove effective for building resilience, yet policy typically ignores them in favor of Western approaches. The research calls for culturally grounded, equitable adaptation strategies that address structural inequalities rather than one-size-fits-all solutions.
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Indigenous Technical Knowledge Practices for Managing Pests and Diseases in Agricultural Crops
Farmers in Tamil Nadu's Tirunelveli district rely on indigenous technical knowledge to manage agricultural pests and diseases. The study documented traditional practices like neem leaves, cow urine, and plant-based remedies used by 80% of 150 interviewed farmers. Sixty percent reported success in reducing crop damage. These methods proved cost-effective and eco-friendly, offering viable alternatives to chemical pesticides while reducing environmental dependence.
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Determinants of solar energy access in urban and rural areas of Ethiopia: implications for equitable climate transitions
This study analyzes solar energy adoption across Ethiopia using nationally representative household data and spatial analysis. Rural adoption is driven by necessity—older male heads in areas without grid electricity—while urban adoption reflects choice among younger, wealthier residents. Peer effects play minimal roles; instead, institutional programs and market interventions shape adoption patterns. The findings show that equitable clean energy transitions require different strategies tailored to rural and urban contexts.
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Leveraging ICT for Knowledge-Driven Agripreneurial Innovations: Advancing Sustainable Development Goals in Rural Economies
This study examines how information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure, knowledge of sustainable practices, and ICT literacy influence farmers' adoption of sustainable agricultural innovations. Using structural equation modeling on survey data, the researchers found that all three factors significantly drive adoption, with knowledge acquisition for sustainable practices having the strongest effect, followed by ICT infrastructure access and ICT literacy.
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Do natural environmental protection, regional innovation climate, entrepreneurs’ cognition of green development positively influence the sustainable development of small rural businesses
A study of 439 rural entrepreneurs across 17 Chinese provinces found that environmental protection alone does not drive sustainable development in small rural businesses. Instead, a supportive regional innovation climate and entrepreneurs' understanding of green development significantly boost sustainability. Technological innovation partially mediates these relationships. The findings challenge assumptions about environmental regulation's direct impact and offer guidance for developing countries pursuing green rural transitions.
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Co-creating a festival with and for rural commoning initiatives: a transdisciplinary place-based process
This paper describes a transdisciplinary collaboration that co-created a rural festival to showcase commoning initiatives and strengthen community care during COVID-19. Artists, designers, farmers, educators, and other stakeholders worked together using place-based methods. The festival engaged the public in collective care for social-ecological systems and challenged dominant narratives about rural life. The research shows how arts-based approaches and festivals can serve as boundary objects that facilitate dialogue across disciplines and create actionable knowledge reflecting local needs.
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Perspectives from Rural Maine Educators: Supporting and Inspiring Youth Through Place-Based Education
Rural Maine educators naturally implement place-based education by connecting youth learning to local environmental changes, seasonal industries like potato and maple production, and community knowledge. The study of nine educators shows that place-based approaches build engagement and collaboration, though they demand more time, relationships, and curricular flexibility than traditional instruction. Rural contexts provide ideal conditions for this pedagogy, preparing young people to become resilient community leaders.
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Storying the FEW Nexus: A Framework for Cultivating Place-Based Integrated STEM Education in Rural Schools
Rural schools often teach STEM disconnected from students' lives and communities. This paper presents Storying the FEW Nexus, a framework combining food, energy, and water resource education with place-based learning for K-12 rural students. The approach integrates STEM with local narratives and social sciences to help students develop sustainable solutions to environmental challenges specific to their communities, grounding abstract knowledge in authentic rural contexts.
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Optimal Design of an Off-grid Hybrid Renewable Systems with Battery Storage for Rural Electrification of Academic Community in Ibogun Campus, Nigeria
Researchers designed an off-grid hybrid renewable energy system combining solar, wind, and battery storage to power an engineering department at a Nigerian university. Using HOMER Pro software and local climate and energy data, they compared four hybrid configurations. The solar-wind-battery system proved most cost-effective and environmentally friendly, with the lowest total project cost, energy cost, and operating expenses, making it viable for rural electrification.
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Decarbonizing Rural Off-Grid Areas Through Hybrid Renewable Hydrogen Systems: A Case Study from Turkey
A hybrid renewable energy system combining solar, wind, battery storage, and hydrogen was modeled for a rural off-grid settlement in Turkey. The system with all four components delivered the best balance of cost and performance, producing electricity at $0.340/kWh with carbon emissions of 36–45 gCO2-eq/kWh. Control strategies and component selection significantly affect system efficiency and hydrogen consumption, making hybrid hydrogen systems viable for decarbonizing rural areas without grid access.
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Field evaluation of a hand-powered reverse osmosis system for sustainable water purification in off-grid rural India
Researchers developed and tested a hand-powered reverse osmosis water purification system in rural India that operates without electricity. Field trials over six months in West Bengal and Rajasthan showed the system rejected 88–94% of dissolved solids while using half the energy of commercial alternatives. Community surveys confirmed users accepted the technology and valued the improved water quality, demonstrating viability for off-grid rural areas lacking infrastructure.
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Techno-Economic Analysis of Off-Grid Hybrid Renewable Energy System for Ethiopian Rural Electrification
This study designs off-grid hybrid renewable energy systems for 180 rural Ethiopian communities using solar, wind, and micro-hydro resources. Researchers modeled three system configurations with HOMER software, analyzing costs and feasibility. Results show energy costs ranging from $0.043 to $0.14 per kilowatt-hour depending on resource availability and diesel hybridization. The proposed systems offer competitive pricing against Ethiopia's national tariff and provide a practical pathway for sustainable rural electrification.
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Trigeneration based on the pyrolysis of rural waste in India: Environmental impact, economic feasibility and business model innovation
This study evaluates trigeneration systems powered by rural waste pyrolysis in India, combining environmental and economic analysis with business model innovation. Researchers surveyed villagers to understand actual feedstock prices, then used cost-benefit analysis and life cycle assessment to design two novel business models. The proposed models achieve up to 90% economic profitability with benefit-cost ratios of 1.35–1.75, offering viable pathways for rural bioenergy production in developing countries.
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REVITALIZING EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABILITY: EXPLORING SOCIAL INNOVATION AND INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE IN MODERN PEDAGOGY
This paper argues that education systems should integrate indigenous knowledge and social innovation to prepare learners for sustainability challenges. The authors demonstrate how indigenous wisdom can be incorporated into modern pedagogy to catalyze sustainable development solutions. They call for reconstructing conventional educational delivery models to embrace community cultural values and environmental sustainability alongside academic achievement.
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Integrating Gender and Indigenous Knowledge in Sub-Saharan African Animal Agriculture: Pathways to Climate Resilience and Food Security
Climate change in Sub-Saharan African animal agriculture worsens gender disparities and erodes indigenous knowledge systems. A systematic review finds that empowering women and integrating indigenous knowledge systems significantly strengthen communities' ability to adapt to climate impacts and achieve food security. Policymakers should adopt gender-responsive strategies that incorporate indigenous knowledge.
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Research on the Mechanism and Development Path of Green Finance Enabling Rural Revitalization under the Goal of "Double Carbon"
Green finance, particularly carbon finance instruments, can drive rural revitalization by promoting industrial development, improving rural governance, and creating sustainable environments. The paper identifies barriers in current green financial markets and proposes developing carbon financial derivatives linked to forest projects as a mechanism to achieve rural revitalization goals while meeting carbon reduction targets.
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Financing Climate Resilience: NABARD’s Role in Sustainable Rural Development in India
NABARD, India's agricultural development bank and Green Climate Fund implementing entity, mobilizes climate finance to strengthen rural resilience. The paper examines NABARD's funding mechanisms and projects addressing climate adaptation and mitigation in Indian agriculture, which faces threats from monsoon dependence, low irrigation, fragmented farms, and weak infrastructure. These initiatives support sustainable rural development and environmental sustainability.
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Innovations of Rural Areas as a Necessity of Green Economy and Sustainable Development
Rural innovation in Serbia requires applying green economy principles to increase agricultural competitiveness and ensure sustainable development. The paper examines plum production as a case study, revealing unstable market placement and declining rural populations. Serbia's EU accession demands alignment with environmental standards. Success depends on state support, institutional frameworks, farmer training, advisory services, and promotion of innovation through shorter marketing channels and knowledge exchange.
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The Role of Islamic Values in Sustainable Development Innovation to Support the SDGs in Rural Communities
Islamic principles, particularly Maqasid Syariah, offer a framework for sustainable development in rural communities that addresses poverty, inequality, and climate action. The study finds that Islamic values like social justice and environmental stewardship, combined with mechanisms such as zakat and waqf, can advance the Sustainable Development Goals. Integrating these religious values into development policy creates more inclusive and equitable rural development outcomes.
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Enhancing Energy Access in Rural Indonesia: A Holistic Assessment of a 1 kW Portable Power Generator Based on Proton-Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs)
Researchers designed a portable 1 kW hydrogen fuel cell system for rural Indonesian households. The device uses proton-exchange membrane fuel cell technology to convert hydrogen into electricity, producing only water vapor as emissions. The final design achieved 1132 W peak power with 48.66% efficiency and includes selected auxiliary components like converters and inverters, offering a clean, sustainable power solution for off-grid rural areas.
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Transforming Energy Access: The Role of Micro Solar Dome in Providing Clean Energy Lighting in Rural India
Micro Solar Dome technology deployed across eight Indian states provides clean lighting to marginalized rural communities, replacing kerosene use. The intervention improved household illumination, safety, children's study time, and evening economic activities. Education and awareness programs significantly influenced adoption rates. Small-scale solar off-grid solutions effectively enhance well-being and empower disadvantaged communities in rural areas.
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An Investigation of Renewable Energy Solutions for Off-Grid Sustainable Housing in Rural Nigeria
Solar photovoltaic systems are the most widely adopted renewable energy technology in rural Nigerian off-grid housing, significantly improving health, economic activity, and education. Income, education level, and awareness strongly predict adoption, with awareness mediating the relationship between socioeconomic factors and technology uptake. The study recommends comprehensive policies, community engagement, capacity building, and financial support to scale renewable energy adoption and maximize its benefits.
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Harnessing the Experience of Research and Indigenous Knowledge for Sustainable Agricultural Transformation in Arunachal Pradesh, India
Indigenous farming practices in Arunachal Pradesh, India—including botanical extracts, organic materials, and Vetiver grass barriers—effectively manage soil nutrients and prevent erosion while reducing artificial input costs. Integrating these traditional knowledge systems with modern agricultural research, supported by India's plant protection laws, improves farmer livelihoods, environmental health, and cultural preservation. This model offers a sustainable agricultural transformation pathway for the region and beyond.
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Topic Analysis of the Relationship between Green Finance, Rural Green Development Level and Rural Residents' income: Based on The Empirical Study of Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle
Green finance significantly boosts rural residents' income in China's Chengdu-Chongqing region, with strongest effects on operational income, followed by wages and transfers. Urban green development levels don't adequately reflect rural conditions. The study recommends governments strengthen rural green finance to balance economic growth with environmental protection and ensure rural communities benefit from green development.
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The Multilateral Development Banks and Rural Climate Finance: Adaptation, Mitigation, and Resilience
Multilateral development banks emphasize climate adaptation and mitigation in their governance documents as essential for equitable outcomes and poverty reduction. However, analysis of 140 governance documents and 284 lending operations reveals they predominantly finance climate resilience projects that focus on reducing agricultural and rural income vulnerability to climate change rather than pursuing transformative adaptation or mitigation strategies.
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A Smart Innovation Development of Agriculture Based Irrigation Systems for Rural Heritages
Smart irrigation systems are critical for rural agriculture, delivering water reliably and preventing soil erosion while improving crop yields. However, these systems face challenges including high installation and maintenance costs, water loss, and over-irrigation risks. The paper recommends farmers adopt water conservation practices like drip irrigation and water recycling, research efficient systems suited to local conditions, and monitor systems carefully to address problems.
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Identification Of Different Indigenous Technical Knowledge Application In Agriculture And Allied Sector In Some Selected Areas Of West Bengal
This study documents indigenous technical knowledge in agriculture, animal husbandry, and allied sectors across three blocks in West Bengal's Birbhum district. Researchers interviewed 90 respondents from nine villages and catalogued traditional practices spanning seed germination to post-harvest management, animal health, traditional implements, and medicinal plants. The findings show farmers value these environment-friendly, cost-effective, location-specific methods passed down through generations. Integrating indigenous knowledge with scientific approaches can create sustainable, locally applicable agricultural technologies.
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Enhancing Resilience and Sustainability of Renewable Energy Microgrids in Rural Africa from an Interdisciplinary Design Perspective: Driven by Community Engagement and Technological Innovation
This study develops an interdisciplinary framework combining social science, engineering, and environmental methods to design resilient renewable energy microgrids for rural Africa. Testing the approach in Tanzania, researchers found that strong community engagement significantly improves social acceptance and operational efficiency, while modular energy storage solutions enhance system resilience during extreme conditions. The framework provides practical guidance for sustainable microgrid implementation across rural African regions.
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Linking energy service access and human capabilities to assess energy justice in the rural Sahel
Energy infrastructure in rural Senegal reaches some communities but leaves others behind, including semi-nomadic and low-income populations. The authors show that expanding energy access alone doesn't guarantee equitable benefits—local energy service access and end-use equipment matter equally. New energy services sometimes create social tensions over resource management. Energy policies must account for population diversity and unintended consequences across sectors.
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Harmonizing Solar Energy Access and Affordability in Nigeria: The Role of Policy and Energy Management in Rural Electrification
This study examines how policy and energy management can improve solar energy access and affordability in rural Nigeria. Using case studies in Abuja, Kaduna, and the University of Abuja, the researchers assess current strategies for deploying decentralized solar systems, optimizing energy efficiency, and financing renewable energy. They compare approaches from India, Egypt, China, and Germany to identify deployment solutions and propose policy reforms that expand rural electrification while reducing emissions.
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Reframing Electricity Access in Rural Latin America: An Energy Justice Analysis
This paper analyzes electricity access in rural Latin America through an energy justice lens. The author examines how power systems are distributed and who benefits from energy infrastructure, revealing inequities in rural electrification. The work reframes electricity access beyond simple availability metrics to address fairness, participation, and control over energy resources in rural communities.
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Design of an Off-Grid Biogas/PV Hybrid Energy System to Meet the Electricity Needs of Rural Areas
Researchers designed an off-grid hybrid energy system combining solar panels, biogas, and battery storage for a rural Turkish village. Using HOMER software, they compared lithium-ion and lead-acid batteries for storing energy. Both battery types met the village's electricity needs, but lithium-ion systems proved more economical long-term despite higher upfront costs, due to lower maintenance expenses and longer lifespan.
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Modeling the Performance of Glass-Cover-Free Parabolic Trough Collector Prototypes for Solar Water Disinfection in Rural Off-Grid Communities
Researchers developed a numerical model to optimize glass-free parabolic trough collectors for solar water disinfection in rural off-grid communities. Testing the design in Colombia's Caribbean region, they found that compact collectors can reach temperatures above 70°C and effectively kill pathogens quickly. The model identifies which design features—rim angle, focal length, optical properties—matter most for performance, providing a practical tool for communities to build and adapt low-cost water treatment systems locally.
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Scenario-Based Optimization of Hybrid Renewable Energy Mixes for Off-Grid Rural Electrification in Laguna, Philippines
This paper optimizes hybrid renewable energy systems combining biomass, solar, and wind power for off-grid rural electrification in Laguna Province, Philippines. The analysis shows that adding biomass generators to hybrid systems reduces carbon emissions by 17% and cuts operation costs by 9.4% over seven years. Battery backup systems further improve economic and environmental performance. The findings support decentralized, community-based renewable energy solutions for rural electrification.
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Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems (HRES) for Off-Grid Rural Electrification: A Comprehensive Review of Components, Optimisation, and Real-World Applications
Hybrid renewable energy systems combining solar, wind, and biomass with storage technologies improve rural electrification in off-grid areas. Recent systems achieve 30-40% higher reliability, 10-25% lower costs, and 40-60% emission reductions compared to diesel alternatives. Key barriers include high upfront capital costs, battery degradation, and financing challenges. AI-based controls, hybrid battery-hydrogen storage, and digital twin technology enable better system optimization and predictive maintenance for scalable rural energy access.
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Reviving indigenous farming knowledge in an input-intensive agriculture system: evidence from Eastern Uttar Pradesh
In Eastern Uttar Pradesh, India, indigenous farming practices like organic manuring and intercropping are disappearing among smallholder farmers. A survey of 1,768 farmers found that while 60% still use organic fertilizer, most apply it incorrectly, reducing effectiveness and harming soil health. Farmers rely heavily on chemical inputs and monocropping instead. The study recommends farmer training, community awareness programs, and extension services to revive traditional practices and restore soil fertility.
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INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICES (IKPs) AS RESPONSE TO AGRICULTURAL RISKS OF IP FARMERS IN BAAO, CAMARINES SUR
Indigenous farmers in Baao, Camarines Sur use traditional knowledge and practices to manage agricultural risks including climate variability, pests, and soil degradation. The study surveyed 179 Indigenous People farmers and found that rice farmers demonstrated the highest risk awareness, while corn, vegetable, and root crop farmers showed varying knowledge levels. Environmental observations and traditional rituals proved effective in building farm resilience and maintaining sustainable indigenous farming systems.
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Indigenous Knowledge of the Hmong People in Lai Chau, Vietnam: Sustainable Agricultural Adaptation and Climate Resilience
Hmong farmers in Lai Chau, Vietnam use a dynamic indigenous knowledge system combining ecological observation, cosmological reasoning, and social autonomy to adapt agriculture and build climate resilience. Their practices—flexible planting calendars, crop diversification, and ecological management—sustain food security and community wellbeing. The study argues that effective climate adaptation for indigenous peoples requires protecting their knowledge systems, cultural continuity, and agroecological practices.
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Indigenous Knowledge and Agriculture: A Study on Terrace Cultivation Practices Among Angami Nagas
The Angami Nagas of Nagaland have developed sophisticated terrace farming systems for paddy cultivation on steep mountain slopes. Their agricultural practices embed indigenous knowledge within cultural and environmental contexts, proving both ecologically adaptive and culturally resilient. The study demonstrates that preserving these traditional systems is essential for long-term food security and environmental stewardship, as their sustainability depends on the integration of ecological practices with community life.
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Digital finance development enhances the expenditures for household energy products in rural China
Digital finance development in rural China significantly increases household spending on traditional energy products and electricity. The study analyzes 30 provinces from 2011 to 2020 and finds that digital finance boosts energy expenditures primarily by raising family income levels. These findings support sustainable energy transitions and rural development.
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LEVERAGING GREEN FINANCING FOR SUSTAINABLE RURAL DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA
Green financing in rural Africa faces significant barriers including policy uncertainty, regulatory instability, and financial-sector constraints that limit awareness and accessibility for rural enterprises. The study identifies that successful green financing requires policy clarity, alignment with global climate architecture, and inclusive programs integrating skills development, small businesses, and gender inclusion to improve rural welfare and support sustainable development.
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Bridging the digital divide: Determinants of mobile payment adoption and continuance intention in rural retail contexts
Green innovation significantly increases firm value in Indonesian mining and energy companies, with profitability amplifying this effect. Environmental costs alone do not meaningfully impact firm value, and profitability cannot moderate their relationship. The findings suggest companies should prioritize transparent green innovation strategies aligned with profitability to enhance shareholder value, as stakeholders do not yet view environmental spending as a long-term strategic investment.
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Achachay App: a community-driven innovation for flood data collection in urban and rural areas
Achachay App is a mobile application that enables communities to report real-time flood events with photos, videos, and location data. Researchers analyze these crowdsourced reports to understand flood patterns and identify flood-prone areas. Piloted in Ecuador, the app successfully mapped flood risks and secondary water flows, providing policymakers with data to design disaster prevention strategies and support sustainable development.
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Rural electromobility: innovation for transportation in indigenous and rural communities
Rural electromobility using light electric vehicles like tricycles and motorcycles can reduce transportation gaps in indigenous and rural communities in southeastern Mexico. The study of three states found that despite financing and maintenance challenges, electric vehicles offer emissions reductions, cost savings, and improved service access. Success requires participatory design, local technical training, and coordination with academic institutions.
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Empowering rural communities through corncob-based feed innovation for sustainable agriculture in special purpose forest area (KHDTK) Ngrawoh Village, Blora, Central Java, Indonesia
A rural community in Central Java, Indonesia developed WanaFeed, a livestock feed product from processed corncob waste, addressing both environmental degradation and expensive feed costs. Supported by foundations and universities, the initiative established a production facility, trained farmers, and implemented digital marketing. Within two years, the program converted 70% of village corncob waste into feed, produced over 12 tons monthly, reduced feed costs, created jobs, and improved sustainable waste management practices.
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Local Waste Management Innovation in Encouraging Behavioral Change in Rural Communities
This study implemented a waste management innovation project in rural communities, combining construction of disposal facilities with educational activities. Results show that providing adequate infrastructure alongside community education effectively increased awareness of proper waste disposal and cleanliness practices. The combination of physical facilities and socialization activities successfully fostered behavioral change toward sustainable waste management in rural areas.
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Stormwater Management Challenges in Rural Coastal Maine: Identifying Place-Based Solutions by Studying Current Practices
Rural coastal Maine communities face severe stormwater management challenges exposed by catastrophic 2023-2024 storms. Town officials lack formal data collection systems, mapping infrastructure, and adequate budgets, forcing reactive rather than proactive decision-making. The study identifies solutions including voluntary education, inter-town collaboration, culvert inventories, and system mapping to strengthen climate resilience and prevent costly infrastructure failures.
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Evaluating The Influence Of Solar Energy Access On Household Income And Employment Opportunities In Rural Khandwa
Solar energy access in rural Khandwa, India significantly increases household income and creates employment opportunities. A study of 300 households found that adopting decentralized solar systems boosts entrepreneurship and diversifies livelihoods. However, maintenance costs, financing barriers, and low awareness limit adoption. The researchers recommend stronger policy support and local solar business programs to expand sustainable energy access.
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Leveraging Microfinance for Solar Energy Access: Policy and Practice in Rural Areas for Sustainable Development of Marginalized Rural Communities
Rural communities in South Asia lack reliable electricity access, hindering development. Microfinance institutions can bridge this gap by funding household solar systems, which provide clean energy while reducing poverty and emissions. The paper argues that combining microfinance with solar technology empowers marginalized populations—particularly women—through affordable financing, enabling sustainable rural electrification and progress toward UN sustainable development goals.
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ENHANCING RURAL ENERGY ACCESS IN NIGERIA THROUGH SOLAR MICROGRID: A CASE OF MGBERE-CLAN IBAA RIVERS STATE
A hybrid solar-diesel microgrid system in rural Nigeria outperforms diesel-only power generation for a 380 kWh daily load. The hybrid configuration with 250 kW solar panels and battery storage meets 67% of demand through solar, reduces diesel consumption by 75%, cuts CO₂ emissions by 67%, and lowers electricity costs from $0.159 to $0.152 per kWh while maintaining reliable power supply.
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The hybrid renewable energy community approach (HyRECA): Synergising electricity access with bush encroachment mitigation in rural Southern Africa
Hybrid renewable energy systems using encroacher bush biomass can provide affordable electricity to rural off-grid communities in Southern Africa while simultaneously addressing bush encroachment. Off-grid PV/biomass/battery systems achieve the lowest costs and zero emissions, though grid-connected systems dominate where cheap electricity exists. Over 70% of households can afford medium-power appliances. Sustainable biomass harvesting could electrify 1.35 million people across Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa using less than 1% of encroached land.
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TECHNO-ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY AND OPTIMIZATION OF OFF-GRID HYBRID RENEWABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS FOR RURAL ELECTRIFICATION IN ETHIOPIA
This study evaluates hybrid renewable energy systems combining solar, wind, and battery storage for powering remote rural areas in Ethiopia. Using computer modeling, researchers tested different system configurations and found that optimized solar-wind-battery combinations significantly reduce electricity costs, emissions, and fossil fuel dependence. The findings support Ethiopia's rural electrification goals and offer a practical framework for deploying clean energy in underserved regions.
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Development of a solar photovoltaic-biogas hybrid microgrid for off-grid rural communities in Uganda
Rural Uganda lacks electricity access for over 80% of inhabitants, forcing reliance on biomass and primitive stoves while generating substantial agricultural waste. This study designed and piloted a solar photovoltaic-biogas hybrid microgrid combining abundant solar resources with animal waste. Financial analysis proved the hybrid system viable with positive returns, while solar alone was not. A pilot serving seven users launched successfully in April 2024 with enthusiastic community response, demonstrating the system's potential to simultaneously address energy poverty and waste management across off-grid Ugandan communities.
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Simulation, Optimization, and Techno-Economic Assessment of 100% Off-Grid Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems for Rural Electrification in Eastern Morocco
Researchers designed and optimized 15 hybrid renewable energy systems for a rural village in eastern Morocco using solar, wind, and concentrated solar power technologies. A photovoltaic system with battery storage proved most cost-effective, delivering electricity at 0.184 USD/kWh while reducing CO2 emissions by 81.7 tons annually. The study demonstrates that hybrid renewable systems can reliably and economically provide 100% of electricity demand for remote Moroccan communities.
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Off-Grid Lighting System for Rural Communities Using Renewable Energy, IoT, and Recyclable Materials
Researchers developed an off-grid lighting system for rural Nigerian homes using recycled plastic bottles, solar panels, and LED bulbs powered by lithium-ion batteries. The system provides natural daytime lighting through water-filled bottles and electric lighting at night for up to 10 hours, reducing energy consumption by 80% compared to traditional bulbs. Pilot testing demonstrates the solution can serve over 600,000 households in South-West Nigeria, offering a scalable, affordable alternative to fossil fuel-dependent lighting.
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INTEGRAÇÃO DE UM SISTEMA FOTOVOLTAICO OFF-GRID NA ESCOLA MUNICIPAL SANTO ANTÔNIO NA ZONA RURAL DE MANAUS
This study designs and tests an off-grid photovoltaic system for a rural school near Manaus, Brazil, powered by diesel generators. The researchers surveyed the school's electrical load, designed a solar system with batteries and controls, built a prototype, and modeled performance. Results show the solar system can reduce diesel emissions and operating costs while improving daytime power reliability, providing evidence for implementing renewable energy in isolated Amazonian schools.
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Evaluating an Off-Grid PV-Battery Hybrid System with Starlink Monitoring in Rural Malaysia
Researchers implemented and evaluated a 5.5 kW solar-battery hybrid system in rural Malaysia, using Starlink satellite internet for remote monitoring. HOMER Pro simulations predicted higher energy output than actual measurements achieved, revealing gaps between idealized models and real-world performance caused by factors like localized solar radiation variations. The system proved technically feasible with a 25-year net present cost of 80,066 MYR, demonstrating that IoT-enhanced monitoring improves renewable energy optimization in remote communities.
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Techno-Economics Analysis of Off-Grid Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Systems in Remote Areas in Indonesia for Rural Village Electrification: Case Study of Pantar Island
This study evaluates off-grid solar photovoltaic systems for electrifying remote villages in Indonesia, comparing diesel generators against various solar configurations using cost and emissions analysis. Solar PV with battery storage proved most economical at $0.35/kWh, roughly one-quarter the cost of diesel-only systems at $1.20/kWh, while also reducing carbon emissions significantly. The findings demonstrate that renewable energy offers a viable, cost-effective alternative to diesel power in Indonesia's isolated areas.
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Powering tomorrow’s farms: A roadmap for hydrogen energy systems in off-grid rural agricultural decarbonization
This paper develops a practical roadmap for implementing hydrogen energy systems on off-grid farms to reduce agricultural emissions. It compares hydrogen systems against renewable energy and diesel alternatives, examines costs and logistics of hydrogen transport, analyzes power electronics integration, explores hydrogen use in farm vehicles, and proposes a simplified system design to help farmers adopt the technology. The work targets researchers, engineers, and policymakers working on sustainable agriculture.
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Enabling Sustainable Rural Power: Off-Grid Solar PV as a Diesel Alternative in Tumbang Manjul
This study evaluates a 1,000 kWp standalone solar PV system for the isolated Indonesian region of Tumbang Manjul as a replacement for diesel power generation. The system is technically feasible given strong local solar resources and financially viable, with an electricity cost of IDR 2,014/kWh—far below the current diesel cost of IDR 5,714/kWh. Risk management and project scheduling frameworks ensure structured implementation, while the project reduces annual CO2 emissions by 2,253 tons and advances multiple sustainable development goals.
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The Value of Off-Grid Renewable Electricity’s Non-Market Benefits in Rural Sumba, Indonesia
Off-grid renewable energy systems in remote areas face sustainability challenges due to limited local technical and financial capacity. This study of a community-managed micro-hydro plant in Indonesia identifies and values non-market social benefits—such as improved health, education, and quality of life—that households receive from electricity access. Using interviews and willingness-to-pay surveys, researchers found these social benefits justify investment even when direct economic returns are weak, arguing that project evaluations should include social value alongside financial metrics.
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Bridging tradition and innovation: strengthening food system resilience through Indigenous Guardian partnerships and knowledge sharing in the Sierra Nevada and British Columbia
Indigenous communities in California's Sierra Nevada and British Columbia strengthen food system resilience by combining traditional knowledge with modern tools. Through Guardian programs and participatory mapping, these communities restore stewardship of lands and waters while reclaiming data sovereignty. Elders transmit Indigenous knowledge through oral traditions and hands-on practice, enabling climate adaptation and food sovereignty. The study demonstrates that integrating Indigenous governance with emerging technologies creates resilient, culturally-grounded food systems.
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Correction: Bridging tradition and innovation: strengthening food system resilience through Indigenous Guardian partnerships and knowledge sharing in the Sierra Nevada and British Columbia
Indigenous Guardian partnerships in California's Sierra Nevada and British Columbia integrate traditional Indigenous knowledge—particularly cultural burning practices—with modern technologies to strengthen food system resilience and wildfire preparedness. The paper demonstrates that Indigenous-led stewardship enhances ecosystem restoration, community safety, and climate adaptation while advancing food sovereignty and supporting Indigenous land governance and cultural continuity.
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Smart and Sustainable Economic and Indigenous Farming: Modern Innovation With Traditional Wisdom Bridged
Smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa face severe climate impacts on rainfed agriculture. This paper evaluates smart technologies that combine indigenous knowledge with modern approaches, finding that indigenous knowledge can be quantified and integrated with scientific methods. The authors argue this integration strengthens farmer resilience and food security decision-making, though current early warning systems often neglect traditional practices.
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Review Conservation Strategy and Innovation of Indigenous Indonesian Orchids for Sustainable Practice
Indigenous Indonesian orchids face extinction from habitat loss, overexploitation, and climate change. This bibliometric review of 355 articles from 2018–2024 identifies research trends in orchid conservation and innovation, revealing three main themes: biodiversity protection, propagation technology, and ecotourism. The analysis shows 72 countries and 162 institutions contributed to this research, indicating substantial global interest and untapped potential for future conservation work.
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Integrating Indigenous Knowledge and Scientific Innovation: Sociological Perspectives on Climate Adaptation in India
Indigenous communities in India possess centuries of ecological knowledge crucial for climate adaptation. This study examines how indigenous knowledge systems integrate with scientific innovation in agriculture, watershed management, and biodiversity conservation. The research identifies power imbalances and marginalization of indigenous voices in adaptation planning, advocating for inclusive frameworks that equally value traditional and scientific approaches to build more equitable climate policies.
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Integrating indigenous knowledge in modern agriculture: Challenges and opportunities
Indigenous agricultural practices developed over millennia offer sustainable, low-cost solutions to modern farming challenges like climate change and food insecurity. These traditional techniques are environmentally friendly and community-centered, but face extinction without documentation and scientific validation. The paper argues that integrating indigenous knowledge with contemporary agriculture requires collaboration between research institutions, NGOs, and policymakers to revive and disseminate these practices, creating resilient farming systems that preserve biodiversity and ensure food security.
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Gender Equality, Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Resilient Smallholder Agriculture for a Changing Climate: A Path to Sustainable Rural Development in Africa
This study develops an intersectionality framework for African rural development that connects gender equality, indigenous knowledge systems, climate resilience, and smallholder farming. The research identifies gender inequality, climate change, low farm productivity, and food insecurity as interconnected barriers to rural development. The framework emphasizes that addressing these challenges together through gender-inclusive and culturally grounded approaches drives sustainable rural development and climate resilience in Africa.
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Study on Relevance of Indigenous Technical Knowledge of North East India in Sustainable Agriculture
Indigenous technical knowledge systems in Northeast India offer proven sustainable agriculture practices including traditional cropping patterns, soil conservation, pest management, and seed preservation. These methods promote ecological balance, climate resilience, and low-cost farming. However, commercialization, generational knowledge loss, and lack of scientific validation prevent wider adoption. The research recommends integrating and documenting indigenous knowledge alongside modern agricultural practices.
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Harnessing Indigenous Knowledge for Sustainable Agriculture in Maharashtra, India
Indigenous knowledge systems in Maharashtra, India offer practical solutions for sustainable agriculture and environmental management. The paper documents traditional practices for soil and water conservation, pest control, and climate resilience that local communities developed through generations of experience. These knowledge systems address soil fertility, biodiversity, water management, and animal health, providing actionable insights for community-based agricultural development.
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Indigenous Knowledge of Soil Fertility and Agricultural Practices in Mopa Muro LGA, Kogi State, Nigeria
Rural farmers in Nigeria's Mopa Muro LGA rely heavily on indigenous soil fertility practices—organic manure, bush fallowing, and crop rotation—transmitted through oral tradition across generations. Most farmers face land scarcity, youth migration, and climate variability. However, 69% willingly combine traditional methods with modern inputs like improved seeds and chemical fertilizers. Education and age significantly influence adoption patterns. The study urges policy support and youth engagement to preserve these knowledge systems while integrating modern techniques.
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Climate change adaptation strategies among rural communities: Examining indigenous knowledge systems and modern agricultural techniques for sustainable food security
Rural communities adapt to climate change by combining indigenous knowledge systems with modern agricultural techniques. The study examines how traditional weather forecasting, crop diversification, and community resource management work alongside scientific advances. A synergistic approach integrating both indigenous practices and modern agriculture proves most effective for achieving sustainable food security and resilient livelihoods in rural areas facing environmental change.
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Indigenous Knowledge and Climate Resilience in Lao Agriculture
Indigenous knowledge systems in Northern Laos provide effective strategies for seasonal climate adaptation through bio-indicator prediction, nature-based farming techniques, and climate-tolerant crops. However, farmers lack confidence in these traditional methods for responding to extreme events like flash floods. The study reveals a critical gap between long-term adaptation capacity and short-term disaster response, leading researchers to recommend integrating indigenous knowledge with modern science through co-created early warning systems.
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International journal of agriculture extension and social development indigenous technical knowledge for water conservation: A review
Indigenous water conservation techniques like stepwells, tanks, and qanats offer proven, low-cost solutions to global water scarcity. Developed through generations of local adaptation, these traditional systems harvest rainwater, manage groundwater, and support agriculture in arid regions while strengthening community resilience. The paper argues that integrating indigenous knowledge with modern approaches can address current water crises and ensure sustainable resource management.
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Climate Smart Disaster Risk Reduction: Indigenous Knowledge Practiced for Agriculture Sector in Coastal Bangladesh
Coastal Bangladesh communities have developed indigenous agricultural practices over generations to survive recurring climate disasters. This study documented traditional methods in Dashmina Upazila, including crop selection by weather observation, raised farming, fruit tree planting, arum cultivation, ridge-furrow farming, seed storage in mud pitchers, and livestock management on platforms. These low-cost practices build agricultural resilience and should be integrated into disaster risk reduction and development planning.
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Applying indigenous knowledge in agricultural livelihood models in A Ngo commune, A Luoi district
Indigenous knowledge systems among Ta Oi and Pa Co ethnic minorities in Vietnam's A Ngo commune enable sustainable agricultural livelihoods. The study identifies five viable models—beef cattle, organic pig farming, vegetable cultivation, traditional tree crops, and medicinal plants—that integrate local ecological and cultural practices. These approaches increase household income, conserve natural resources, and preserve indigenous culture in mountainous rural areas.
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Sustainable Micro-Finance and Rural Development Green Investing
Microfinance serves as a development tool with significant potential and notable risks for low-income populations. The research shows microfinance can advance gender empowerment, financial inclusion, and climate adaptation, but requires responsible lending, regulatory oversight, and equity-focused implementation to avoid entrench inequality. Success depends on integrating health education, financial literacy, and crisis preparedness while addressing informal sector needs and institutional sustainability challenges.
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Research on the Challenges and Strategies of Green Finance to Help the Development of Rural E-Commerce
Green finance is essential for rural revitalization and e-commerce development in China. The paper identifies three main barriers: insufficient innovation in financial products, incomplete support mechanisms for rural green finance, and lack of skilled professionals. It proposes targeted strategies to integrate green finance with rural e-commerce, enabling sustainable economic growth in agricultural regions.
Media stories — 23
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Empowering Rural Areas: Microgrid Initiatives in Developing Countries
Microgrids—local electricity networks powered by renewable resources—enable rural communities in developing countries to generate and distribute their own energy independently. Examples from Cambodia, Japan, and Yemen demonstrate how microgrids provide reliable power for healthcare, water treatment, and lighting. Success requires community engagement, maintenance planning, and strategic investment in priority needs like healthcare infrastructure.
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Alliance to Advance Climate-Smart Agriculture receives extension, expands enrollment
A Virginia Tech-led initiative providing financial incentives and technical support to help farmers adopt climate-smart practices received a one-year extension through 2027 from the USDA. The $80 million program has enrolled 1,800 farms across 475,000 acres in four states since 2023. The extension enables continued enrollment, expanded livestock producer support, and comprehensive measurement of environmental and economic outcomes.
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Gates Foundation Announces New Commitment for Smallholder Farmers on the Frontlines of Extreme Weather
The Gates Foundation announced a new financial commitment to support smallholder farmers facing extreme weather impacts. The initiative aims to help vulnerable farming communities adapt to climate-related challenges and build resilience in food production systems across developing regions.
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The Next Generation of Agtech in Brazil
Agrosmart, a Brazilian agtech startup founded in 2014, uses artificial intelligence and sensor technology to help over 100,000 farmers across nine countries optimize irrigation, planting, and crop care decisions. The company's app monitors 48 million hectares and provides real-time weather forecasts and soil data. As Latin America's agtech market grows toward $10.4 billion by 2033, Agrosmart exemplifies how integrated data platforms address climate unpredictability in tropical agriculture.
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Poverty Eradication in Guatemala
Guatemala tackles poverty affecting 55% of its population through agricultural technology, digital education, mental health AI platforms, clean water innovations, and solar energy access. USAID's Feed the Future program trains small farmers in modern techniques, reaching 36,800 producers in 2021. Complementary initiatives deploy mobile learning labs in indigenous communities, AI-powered mental health services, pedal-powered water systems, and prepaid solar energy to drive inclusive economic growth.
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From Fields to the Future: £21.5m Drives UK Farm Innovation
The UK Government awarded £21.5 million to 15 agricultural innovation projects across England through the Farming Innovation Programme. Projects include precision-bred crops like vitamin D-enriched tomatoes, low-emissions fertilisers for dairy farms, climate-resilient hemp varieties, and methane reduction technologies. The funding aims to help farms cut emissions, boost productivity, and strengthen resilience while supporting long-term food security.
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It's time to give agriculture the attention it deserves
Central and Eastern Europe's agriculture sector, accounting for 2–5% of GDP and employing millions, remains underinvested and undervalued compared to tech and manufacturing. The region hosts emerging agri-tech innovators like Poland's SatAgro and Lithuania's Agrokoncernas, while venture capital investment reached €3 billion in 2023. Modernizing agriculture through technology, land consolidation, and sustainability practices could boost productivity, create rural jobs, and strengthen Europe's food security.
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Case Study: Café Seguro: Climate Protection for Smallholder Farmers
Café Seguro, an index insurance product, scales up to protect smallholder coffee farmers in rural Colombia against drought and excessive rainfall. Delivered through cooperatives as group policies, the program strengthens climate resilience, safeguards farmer incomes, and supports employment stability for Colombia's second-largest export commodity.
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Rural Impacts
Rural Southeast communities dependent on agriculture, fishing, and forestry face mounting climate risks including rising temperatures, drought, and sea-level rise that threaten crop yields, livestock health, and forest productivity. Heat stress endangers outdoor workers while energy-intensive facilities face resource constraints. Researchers develop climate-adapted crop varieties and livestock management strategies to help rural economies adapt to changing conditions.
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Ghana and Kenya Rural Communities Adopt Innovative Solutions to Strengthen Food Security
Rural communities in Ghana and Kenya are adopting climate-resilient innovations to strengthen food security and incomes. In Ghana, Open Ghana established dry-season gardens using solar water pumps and village savings schemes, enabling vulnerable farmers to grow vegetables year-round. In Kenya, innovator Joe Ouko developed LOFODA-G-Meal, a locally-formulated feed from leaves, herbs, and mineral salts that doubled dairy goat milk production and created new income streams.
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African Development Bank Group awards $16.6 million grant to IITA to scale agricultural technologies in Africa
The African Development Bank awarded $16.6 million to the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture to launch the third phase of its Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation Program. The initiative scales climate-resilient farming practices across Africa, having already reached 25 million farmers and increased crop yields up to 69 percent. The new phase targets 14 million additional farmers across 37 countries through improved seed systems and digital tools.
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UJ hemp brick innovation signals a new era for sustainable rural housing in South Africa
Researchers at the University of Johannesburg have developed a hemp-based brick designed to address South Africa's rural housing crisis. The carbon-negative material offers thermal efficiency, fire resistance, and mold protection while creating jobs in hemp cultivation and sustainable construction. The innovation, developed with Canna-B-Africa and government partners, is undergoing certification to meet national building standards.
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New rural development strategy targets sustainability and innovation
Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is launching a new rural development strategy for 2026–2030 that prioritizes innovation, digital transformation, and sustainable economies over traditional infrastructure. The programme aims to extend new rural standards to over 90 percent of communes, double or triple rural incomes, and pilot smart rural areas and community-based models, requiring an estimated 89 trillion Vietnamese dong in investment.
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Better Yields, Better Jobs: New Initiative to Benefit 5 Million Filipino Farmers
The World Bank approved $1 billion in funding for the Philippines Sustainable Agricultural Transformation Project, targeting five million farmers. The initiative modernizes rice farming through climate-smart practices, promotes crop diversification, and introduces digital voucher systems for farm inputs. It aims to boost productivity, create rural jobs, enhance food security, and build climate resilience across the Philippine agrifood sector.
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IFAD Opens New Office in Salvador and Boosts Rural Development in Brazil
The International Fund for Agricultural Development opened a new office in Salvador, Brazil, to strengthen rural development operations in the country's northeastern region. IFAD has invested approximately $1.1 billion across Brazil, supporting nearly one million families through programs focused on sustainable agriculture, climate resilience, food security, and agroecology. The expansion enhances IFAD's capacity to coordinate initiatives addressing poverty and environmental challenges in Brazil's vulnerable Nordeste region.
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In Brazil, regenerative farming advances but deforestation still pressures ecosystems
Brazil's agribusiness sector drives over 90% of deforestation through cattle ranching and soy production. The REVERTE program and similar initiatives aim to restore 40 million hectares of degraded pastureland by 2030 using regenerative farming techniques. However, experts warn that without stronger forest governance and binding private-sector commitments, productivity gains may simply enable further agricultural expansion rather than reduce pressure on the Amazon and Cerrado ecosystems.
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Innovative practices in rural gender transformation: Lessons from Brazil and Uruguay
A study examines women-led rural development initiatives in Brazil and Uruguay supported by IFAD. Using agroecological and inclusive production methods with minimal resources, these women drove transformative results, strengthened local policies, and spurred economic growth. Empowered women became community role models, fostering sustainable and equitable rural development through active participation in local governance.
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Mexico Advances Food, Agriculture, and Health Initiatives
Mexico is advancing multiple food and agriculture initiatives, including a proposed ban on energy drink sales to minors, opening native corn tortilla shops to achieve self-sufficiency, and partnering with Germany to develop sustainable agri-food systems. The government is also launching a food sovereignty framework with universities to address obesity and malnutrition while strengthening rural economies.
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How China boosts rural specialty industries for rural revitalization
China is modernizing rural agriculture through specialized regional industries tailored to local conditions. Sensor-controlled greenhouses, medicinal herb cultivation, tea plantations, and AI-enabled strawberry factories exemplify technology-driven approaches. The 15th Five-Year Plan prioritizes technology integration, eco-friendly practices, and brand development to transform agriculture into a modern pillar sector while raising farmer incomes.
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High tech in the fields
German companies and research institutions are deploying driverless machinery, artificial intelligence, sensors, and drones to transform agriculture. Technologies include precision farming software, autonomous robots for weeding, genome editing for crop resilience, and smart livestock monitoring systems. These innovations aim to increase efficiency, reduce chemical inputs, and improve sustainability across farming operations.
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Fossil-fuel subsidies and high costs stall energy transition across rural Indonesia
A new report reveals that household solar energy adoption across Indonesia's 84,000 villages declined 26% between 2021 and 2024, despite cheaper technology. High installation costs, fossil fuel subsidies, and maintenance challenges in remote areas—particularly eastern Indonesia—are blocking the energy transition. Street lighting adoption increased, but household renewable energy use fell significantly.
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Precision Agriculture and AI: A Climate Solution or Corporate Consolidation?
Precision agriculture—using AI, satellites, and data analytics to optimize farming—has grown into an $30 billion global market with promises of resource conservation. However, researchers and advocacy groups now question whether it delivers environmental benefits, noting pesticide and fertilizer use have actually increased since its adoption. Critics warn that Big Tech and Big Ag consolidation reduces farmer autonomy and favors industrial monocultures over sustainable practices.
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Rural Women Redefine Entrepreneurship: Stories of Courage, Growth, and Grassroots Innovation
Rural women across India are building thriving enterprises through farming, livestock, and community-based food systems. Five case studies show how women like Anita Moody, Kanti Oraon, and Siya Maravi transformed their villages through climate-smart agriculture, organic inputs, and collective marketing. With support from PRADAN, these entrepreneurs increased incomes dramatically, gained financial independence, and shifted their communities toward sustainable practices.
Organizations — 7
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The James Hutton Institute
Scottish research institute combining strengths in crops, soils, and land use, with deep work on rural economies and northern peripheral and remote rural regions.
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Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
The FAO's Agroecology division promotes a holistic approach that integrates ecological and social principles into sustainable food systems. It develops frameworks like the 10 Elements of Agroecology to help countries transition toward sustainable agrifood systems that optimize interactions between plants, animals, humans, and the environment. The organization operates the Agroecology Knowledge Hub and facilitates communities of practice that bring together practitioners to exchange knowledge and co-develop locally adapted solutions for family farming and agroecological transitions.
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Wageningen University & Research
Wageningen University & Research combines academic research and education with practical application across agriculture, food systems, biodiversity, and environmental management. The institution conducts research on sustainable food production, climate adaptation in agriculture, water and land management, and circular economy approaches relevant to rural contexts. WUR integrates natural and social sciences to develop solutions that address rural sustainability challenges and can be rapidly implemented in practice.
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CEDA
CEDA operates the Rural Business Innovation Lab (RBIL), a cohort-based entrepreneurial development program serving rural entrepreneurs in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The program provides eight months of personalized coaching, peer networking, and professional resources to help businesses scale in sectors including agriculture, agtech, sustainability, construction, and climate economy. RBIL has supported 34 businesses over three years in accessing capital, creating rural jobs, and building resilience in underserved communities.
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Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs
Defra is a UK government department responsible for improving and protecting the environment, growing a green economy, and sustaining thriving rural communities. It supports the food, farming, and fishing industries while managing environmental policy and species recovery programs. The department works across rural affairs through 34 agencies and public bodies to address environmental challenges and rural development.
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World Economic Forum
International organization for public-private cooperation, headquartered near Geneva. Through its Centre for Nature and Climate and food systems work, the WEF convenes leaders on rural innovation themes — climate adaptation in agriculture, smallholder digitization, and inclusive value chains. Publishes case studies and impact reports that frequently feature rural communities in the Global South.
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Ryan Institute, University of Galway
Research institute at the University of Galway focused on the intersection of environment, marine sciences, and energy. Affiliated with the Whitaker Institute and other Galway centres, the Ryan Institute hosts research on rural development, peripheral economies, and sustainable communities — particularly in the Atlantic margin and rural Ireland.