Showing papers on "Directive published in 2022"

Real effects of a widespread CSR reporting mandate: Evidence from the European Union's CSR Directive*

Abstract: We investigate real effects of a widespread corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting mandate. In 2014, the European Union (EU) passed Directive 2014/95 (hereafter, “CSR Directive”), mandating large listed EU firms to prepare annual nonfinancial reports beginning from fiscal year 2017 onward. We document that firms within the scope of the directive respond by increasing their CSR activities and that they start doing so before the entry-into-force of the directive. These real effects are concentrated in firms that are plausibly more strongly affected by the directive, i.e., those with previously low levels of both CSR reporting and CSR activities. Using various alternative outcome variables (e.g., new CSR initiatives, improvements in CSR infrastructure, or firm performance), we show that these real effects reflect meaningful increases in CSR beyond firms’ potential attempts to “greenwash” CSR performance. Finally, we conduct tests that increase our confidence that the documented real effects are attributable to the CSR Directive and not general EU trends in CSR. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

Differentiated citizenship in the European Economic Area

Abstract: This contribution shows how free movement and residence rights of EEA EFTA State nationals may today be considered largely comparable to that of EU citizens, notwithstanding the lack of EEA rules directly mirroring the EU Treaty provisions on citizenship. This has been ensured by incorporating various secondary EU measures into EEA law (notably the Citizenship Directive), by the highly dynamic interpretation of such rights by the EFTA Court, and by the recent insti-tution of a general, unwritten principle of free movement under EEA law. The EFTA Court's continued development of an effects-based understanding of the principle of homogeneity has proven key to ensuring an exceptionally high degree of convergence. The only real differentia-tion between EU and EEA law in this field is found in the lack of EEA parallels to EU citizens' political rights under Arts 20-25 TFEU.

Are Front-of-Pack Labels a Health Policy Tool?

Abstract: To stem the increasing incidence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and obesity, front-of-pack labels (FOPLs) have been developed since 1989. Whereas several countries have already adopted one voluntarily, the European Community wants to harmonize an FOPL system that will be mandatory for all member states. The purpose of this narrative review is to describe what could be achieved or not by FOPLs, and to discuss if there is enough evidence to establish whether such labels are effective in modifying purchasing behavior, in directing individual dietary patterns towards a healthy and sustainable diet, and in reformulating food products by the food industry. Non-directive FOPLs, which are still under study, appear to be informative and well-accepted by consumers even if they require a cognitive effort. Conversely, directive FOPLs are supported by several studies, but they are mostly conducted in simulated scenarios and/or performed as retrospective studies. Nevertheless, directive FOPLs are rated as an intuitive tool, and they have demonstrated a high capacity to help consumers rank food products as more or less healthy. In conclusion, directive and non-directive FOPLs convey different messages. No FOPL individually can be considered exhaustive in relation to all the objectives outlined in this narrative review, and therefore, the development of a model synthesizing both messages is advisable. Many questions remain open, such as the possibility of reformulating pre-packaged products, how to deal with traditional products, and the impact on the incidence of NCDs and obesity. In the light of the complexity of factors that condition consumption choices and health, none of the current FOPLs can be considered a health policy tool on its own. The possibility of development remains open, but as the state of the art, these tools do not seem to be able to achieve all the European Community goals together. We can speculate that they could meet these goals only if they are integrated into a multi-tiered, structured health policy intervention.

Assessing the transition of municipal solid waste management by combining material flow analysis and life cycle assessment

Abstract: European Commission has promulgated a series of directives to divert MSW from landfills to more sustainable management options. To investigate whether the directives affect the MSW management practice locally, the transition of MSW management in Nottingham, UK, since the enforcement of the EU Landfill Directive, has been assessed by combining materials flow analysis (MFA) and life cycle assessment (LCA). The results confirm that paralleled to the enforcement of the EU directives MSW management system in Nottingham evolved from a simple landfill and energy from waste (EfW) mode to a complex multi-technology mode. Landfill rate has been reduced through waste prevention, material recycling, and energy recovery. The complex multi-technology mode contributed to the reduced GHG emission per unit waste treated from 1,076.0 kg CO2–eq./t in 2001/02 to 228.1 kg CO2–eq./t in 2019/20. The temporal correlation between enforcement of EU directives and the progression of the MSW management in Nottingham depicted a trickle-down effect of the directives driving the improvement of local MSW management. Similar temporal patterns were exhibited among the EU member states. Interestingly, some European countries whose landfill rate already surpass the requirement prior to the enforcement of the related EU directives continued advancing waste management system, mostly incentivized by extracting valuable materials or energy from the well-sorted waste. This incentive, aligning with the principle of circular economy, may become the future drive of cities like Nottingham, who either achieved the regulatory targets or without regulatory incentives by the international governmental bodies.

Assessing the transition of municipal solid waste management by combining material flow analysis and life cycle assessment

Abstract: European Commission has promulgated a series of directives to divert MSW from landfills to more sustainable management options. To investigate whether the directives affect the MSW management practice locally, the transition of MSW management in Nottingham, UK, since the enforcement of the EU Landfill Directive, has been assessed by combining materials flow analysis (MFA) and life cycle assessment (LCA). The results confirm that paralleled to the enforcement of the EU directives MSW management system in Nottingham evolved from a simple landfill and energy from waste (EfW) mode to a complex multi-technology mode. Landfill rate has been reduced through waste prevention, material recycling, and energy recovery. The complex multi-technology mode contributed to the reduced GHG emission per unit waste treated from 1,076.0 kg CO2–eq./t in 2001/02 to 228.1 kg CO2–eq./t in 2019/20. The temporal correlation between enforcement of EU directives and the progression of the MSW management in Nottingham depicted a trickle-down effect of the directives driving the improvement of local MSW management. Similar temporal patterns were exhibited among the EU member states. Interestingly, some European countries whose landfill rate already surpass the requirement prior to the enforcement of the related EU directives continued advancing waste management system, mostly incentivized by extracting valuable materials or energy from the well-sorted waste. This incentive, aligning with the principle of circular economy, may become the future drive of cities like Nottingham, who either achieved the regulatory targets or without regulatory incentives by the international governmental bodies.

Caught in a Loop with Advance Care Planning and Advance Directives: How to Move Forward?

Abstract: Completion of an advance care planning (ACP) process and/or an advance directive should result in patients receiving the care they desire at the end of life. However, three decades of research have shown that is just not the case. ACP has been a front runner in developing the science within palliative care. Some positive outcomes such as lowering levels of surrogate grief may be associated with ACP. Yet, it does not appear that further ACP research will ensure that seriously ill patients will get goal-concordant care. An unfortunate consequence of palliative care research and advocacy so far is the misguided notion of many hospital systems trying to solve their palliative care problems by only implementing an ACP initiative. At best, ACP is but one tool in the collective palliative care toolbox. New tools are needed. Given that we have finite resources, future research should focus more on tools to improve symptom management, better models of care, and systems that will ensure goal-concordant care that meet the needs of the population that the health care system is designed to meet.

Mainstreaming Community Energy: Is the Renewable Energy Directive a Driver for Renewable Energy Communities in Germany and Italy?

Abstract: By 30 June 2021, EU Member States were expected to transpose the recast Renewable Energy Directive (RED II) which includes provisions for renewable energy communities (RECs) and to develop an enabling framework to promote the development of RECs. Although there is a growing number of studies analysing the emergence of various forms of community energy, comparative studies investigating the transposition and creation of enabling frameworks for RECs in a multi-level governance (MLG) perspective are scarce. This article examines the transposition in Germany and Italy and compares elements of the respective enabling frameworks. Key methods include context and MLG analysis combined with methods of descriptive (legal) studies. Insights and participatory observations of the stakeholder desks established in the Horizon2020 project COME RES complement the spectrum of methods deployed. Although community energy development is more advanced in Germany, the transposition of the RED II provisions has been slow and piecemeal so far. Conversely, in Italy, RED II played a catalyst role; the transposition has been rather dynamic and encouraged a continuous growth of REC initiatives. Nevertheless, a widespread uptake of RECs requires structural adjustments of the governance system in both countries and attention to MLG as well as vertical policy coordination.

The State of the Art of Smart Energy Communities: A Systematic Review of Strengths and Limits

Abstract: The Smart Energy Community topic has attracted a lot of interest from policy, research centres, companies and private citizens since 2018, when in Europe the recast of the Renewable Energy Directive, and later in 2019 the Internal Electricity Market Directive, came into force to support the new role of users in energy systems. Following these directives, energy community experimentations, real projects and/or simulations and case studies have been developed and investigated in the literature. In this review paper, an investigation of recent literature about Smart Energy Communities in terms of common characteristics, fundamental scopes, and principal indexes used for their evaluation, has been realized by considering 111 scientific references, 78 of which have been published since 2018. The reference papers have been selected through the “Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analysis” methodology. In developing the review, significant barriers to Smart Energy Communities’ diffusion emerged. The main shortcomings concern citizens’ uncertainty about these new projects, due to their poor information and technical skills. These issues often hide energy, economic, environmental, and social benefits of Smart Energy Communities. Therefore, this study wants to be an opportunity for bringing to the attention of citizens Smart Energy Communities’ positive outcomes, especially from the social point of view, thus boosting their spreading and overcoming still existing criticalities.

The revised European Directive 2020/2184 on the quality of water intended for human consumption. A step forward in risk assessment, consumer safety and informative communication.

Abstract: Water is an indispensable element for humankind and indeed all living beings; as such it is essential that it be supplied in adherence with safety and security criteria so as to fulfill its primordial role in community development. Therefore, the European Union has issued a new Directive on drinking water, updating the previous one (98/83/EC). The main new features of the updated Directive issued on January 12, 2021 include: • The adoption of a risk-based approach, in accordance with the principles of the Water Safety Plan, along the entire supply chain including the domestic system from the meter to the tap; • The updating of some quality standards, mainly related to the introduction of new parameters and the modification of parameter values for some in a more restrictive sense and for others in more permissive terms; • The identification of possible emerging pollutants present in supply sources (catchment areas); • The demand for effective and transparent communication to citizens on the quality of the water supplied, necessary to foster consumer confidence in the mains water supply. The Directive is the first European legislation adopted following a European Citizens' Initiative (ECI), a European Union participatory democracy tool launched through the "Right2Water" initiative aiming to positively affect the environment. Indeed, the increased consumer confidence in tap water resulting from the desired improvement in communication to citizens should lead to a gradual reduction in the use of plastic water bottles. In addition, the Directive confirms what WHO has been reporting for some time through its Water Safety Plans. It is not limited to monitoring activities but also reproposes and promotes a generalised safety approach based on risk identification and management along the entire drinking water supply chain (from the catchment area to extraction, treatment, storage including distribution). The revised Directive will become the reference standard for the quality of water intended for human consumption in EU countries, and its entry into force will make it possible to minimise the harmful impacts of pollution on human health.

A Concise Overview on Solar Resource Assessment and Forecasting

Abstract: Abstract China’s recently announced directive on tackling climate change, namely, to reach carbon peak by 2030 and to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, has led to an unprecedented nationwide response among the academia and industry. Under such a directive, a rapid increase in the grid penetration rate of solar in the near future can be fully anticipated. Although solar radiation is an atmospheric process, its utilization, as to produce electricity, has hitherto been handled by engineers. In that, it is thought important to bridge the two fields, atmospheric sciences and solar engineering, for the common good of carbon neutrality. In this überreview, all major aspects pertaining to solar resource assessment and forecasting are discussed in brief. Given the size of the topic at hand, instead of presenting technical details, which would be overly lengthy and repetitive, the overarching goal of this review is to comprehensively compile a catalog of some recent, and some not so recent, review papers, so that the interested readers can explore the details on their own.

What gets measured gets managed – does it? Uncovering the waste electrical and electronic equipment flows in the European Union

Abstract: Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) is valued for its usability, generating an important waste stream, but overall information on their flows through society is generally not available. Data on End-of-Life (EoL) flows is scattered, unstructured, with varying classifications and formats, and uncertain levels of data quality and availability. This provides a big challenge of a structured mapping of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) flows, both officially reported as collected and complementary flows (the term refers to all flows not documented at a national level via designated official compliance schemes). To address these issues, a model quantitatively describing the WEEE flows has been developed based on the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/699 and WEEE Directive collection targets. Consequently, it evaluates the impacts of WEEE Directive policies that have been adopted in the past. The model is applied to the EU Member States, as well as Great Britain, Norway, and Switzerland, for the reference year of 2018. The results show that about 9.7 Mt of WEEE was generated, whereas roughly 5.0 Mt were collected. The analysis shows that a significant amount of waste (4.7 Mt) was not properly collected and recycled. Of the total amount of complementary flows, the majority, approx. 1.1 Mt was in complementary recycling (mixed metal scrap). Moreover, the obtained results provide an insight to improve collection targets through multidimensional drivers, i.e., economic policies, legal framework, and sustainability approach that are needed to be set in waste management.

OUP accepted manuscript

Abstract: Abstract Based on the European guidelines—the Renewable Energy Directive (RED) and the Electricity Market Directive (EMD)—legislation to enable Renewable Energy Communities (RECs) and Citizen Energy Communities (CECs) is currently being developed in individual European countries. In July 2021, Austria, as one of the first countries in Europe, enacted legislation on both, RECs and CECs. A previous study of Fina and Fechner provided a detailed comparison of the legislative draft for energy communities in Austria, published in March 2021, to the European guidelines. Strengths and weaknesses of the Austrian transposition were highlighted and discussed. Now that the enacted version of the Austrian legislation has been published, important changes from the legislative draft to the final legislation have been identified. Building upon Fina and Fechner, this work aims at supplementing the previous study by examining and critically discussing these changes in order to present the Austrian legislation on energy communities as enacted to an international readership.

Platform work in Europe: Lessons learned, legal developments and challenges ahead

Abstract: Several years since first emerging in Europe, platform work continues to represent a ‘social dilemma’ for workers, social partners, policymakers and society as a whole. As a result of intense litigation, analysis and reporting, much is known about the contractual and working conditions in this growing labour market segment. While the European Union (EU) institutions are considering adopting a new Directive based on Art. 153 TFEU, there are a number of significant top-down and bottom-up national cases worth discussing. Workers across Europe have been reclassified by many courts; some governments have taken regulatory initiatives to address the risk of precariousness and have implemented new comprehensive legal instruments to safeguard a level playing field for both workers and platforms. This article discusses how existing and new domestic and EU labour law provisions can improve the labour conditions of platform workers. Its overarching goal is to address possible policy gaps and the implications for EU social law by exploring the lessons that can be drawn from recent policies and legal developments. Section two briefly touches upon the policymaking initiatives in France, Spain and Italy. Moreover, it presents and reviews the main outcomes of litigation at the domestic level, focusing on the pervasive role played by algorithmic management. After introducing the Pillar of Social Rights (EPSR), section three critically analyses two key achievements at the EU level: the Directive on transparent and predictable working conditions and the Recommendation on access to social protection for workers and the self-employed. Section four explores the elasticity of the triad of Directives that regulate atypical forms of employment (part-time, fixed-term and temporary agency work). It is argued that the narrow construction of the Directives’ scope of application could represent an obstacle. However, an adaptive and purposive approach by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) could result in the classification of platform workers as falling within the scope of the social acquis in certain fields. Finally, section five concludes by providing concrete policy proposals focussed on cross-border issues, algorithmic transparency, the introduction of a presumption of employment status and collective bargaining.

The 2018 Revision of Italian Dietary Guidelines: Development Process, Novelties, Main Recommendations, and Policy Implications

Abstract: The fourth edition of the Italian Dietary Guidelines (IDGs) for Healthy Eating was published in 2019. The objective of this paper is to describe the developmental process of IDGs, the main recommendations, the differences with previous revisions, and the concordance and differences with international guidance on a healthy diet. A National Commission oversaw IDG development. A Scientific Dossier (SD), including analysis on nutrition, health, and risk factors status in Italy, was the reference for IDGs preparation. The IDGs are based on the principles of the Mediterranean Diet and are mainly aimed to prevent obesity and nutrition-related non-communicable diseases. The IDGs included 13 directives that were divided into four conceptual blocks: i) how to balance weight; ii) foods to be promoted; iii) foods to be limited; and iv) how to ensure a varied and sustainable diet. Each directive has a box summarizing the key recommendation, myths lists, and false beliefs to be dispelled. The topics of sustainability and the correct approach to food supplementation and weight-loss diet were introduced in the present edition of IDGs. This paper contributes to the debate on the complexity of derivation of Dietary Guidelines and their adaptation to the national context.

Linking Energy Poverty with Thermal Building Regulations and Energy Efficiency Policies in Portugal

Abstract: Energy-poverty (EP) must be considered an energy-related issue since buildings are a central part of people’s daily lives. Thus, it has an important role in energy-related policy implementation. Even though the European Union (EU) has endorsed general energy efficiency through the Energy Efficiency Directive and Energy Performance of Buildings Directive recast, it was the Clean Energy Package for all Europeans that clearly highlighted EP. The growing concerns with EP have also been emphasised in subsequent directives and initiatives. Despite some regulatory framework and the milder climate situation, the proportion of the population experiencing thermal discomfort in southern and eastern European countries, namely in the winter season, is relatively high, reflecting the poor thermal performance of building stock, low family incomes and high energy prices, among others. The current work analysed the EP evolution in Portugal in the EU context, and the Thermal Building Regulations and Energy Efficiency Policies developed, aiming to add insight into the effectiveness of those policies concerning EP mitigation in Portugal as an EU Member state. Moreover, a critical debate on the potential to lower the EP Portuguese situation was also an objective to pursue. It is plausible to admit that reducing EP by acting on residential building stock, namely through the increase of energy efficiency and comfort, plays a key role in improving the living conditions, namely of vulnerable households and deprived areas. This will also decrease energy consumption and dependence while further promoting a smarter, sustainable and inclusive society, contributing to economic growth.

Impact of Home-Based Learning Experience During COVID-19 on Future Intentions to Study Online: A Chinese University Perspective

Abstract: As coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) swept the world in early 2020, all the Chinese universities and colleges adopted online learning to fulfill the directive saying “classes suspended but learning continues.” Understanding the impact of this large-scale online learning experience on the future online learning intention of Chinese university students can help design better blended-learning activities. This study applies flow experience and theory of planned behavior (TPB) to construct a theoretical framework for assumption making and the assumptions made are validated by data gained from questionnaires. A total of 6,933 students from 54 institutions in China participated in the investigation, with 5,456 valid questionnaires returned. This study employs partial least squares (PLS) regression and confirmative factor analysis (CFA) to analyze and estimate the measurement model and the structural model. The results indicate that the experience of home-based learning significantly influenced the attitudes of Chinese university students, which in turn had a positive influence on their intention to continue online learning. The research findings provide a theoretical framework and practical guidelines on building a scientific online learning platform with appropriate online learning environments and tasks for a post-COVID-19 era blended-learning in Chinese universities.

Can Education Save Money, Energy, and the Climate?—Assessing the Potential Impacts of Climate Change Education on Energy Literacy and Energy Consumption in the Light of the EU Energy Efficiency Directive and the Austrian Energy Efficiency Act

Abstract: The Austrian Education Energy Initiative ETSIT has been established as a response to the EU Energy Efficiency Directive and the Austrian Energy Efficiency Act. This paper investigates the energy literacy of its young participants, i.e., 6000 primary and secondary school students altogether, on a cognitive, affective and behavioural level, and it compares the putative energy-saving effectiveness of the workshops to that of conventional energy audits.For the current analysis, data from, 640 students who validly answered an online survey shortly after participating in one of the energy education workshops, and 353 students who validly answered the online survey approximately one year after having participated (overall n = 993) were analysed. The results indicate that ETSIT raises students’ energy literacy on a cognitive, affective and behavioural level with about three-quarters of participants claiming they will positively change their energy consumption behaviour in the future as a result of workshop participation. This is true shortly after participation in the workshops, and also at the 1-year follow-up. In its second impact perspective, this paper delivers an innovative attempt to look at education from a cost-benefit analysis. A default formula for energy audits is adopted to quantify the kilowatt hours (and thus emissions and costs) saved through workshop participation. Despite limitations, the surprising results show that such workshops can compete with conventional energy audits, and that education can, in fact, help save money, resources, and, most important of all, the climate.

The Comparability of Non-Financial Information: An Exploration of the Impact of the Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD, 2014/95/EU)

Abstract: Abstract This study explores the impact of the implementation of Directive 2014/95/EU on the comparability of non-financial information across listed European firms, focusing on the usage of non-financial reporting (NFR) frameworks – those developed by the SASB, IIRC, OECD, EFFAS, GRI, UNGC, ISO, AA, and FEE. Using computer-aided text-analysis software (MAXQDA 2022), we analysed the annual reports and stand-alone non-financial (sustainability) reports from listed firms in the STOXX Europe 600 Index covering 2012–2020. The results showed that the implementation of the Directive led to an increase in the use of investor-oriented NFR frameworks (e.g. that of the SASB); frameworks oriented towards a wide range of stakeholders (e.g. GRI) are predominantly used by voluntary adopters. Furthermore, although disclosures by resisters (mandatory adopters) indicate a stronger focus on investors, the disclosure of non-financial information exacerbated information asymmetry for resisters, whereas NFR mitigated information asymmetry for voluntary adopters.