ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 crisis has immensely impacted the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development worldwide. This research aims at providing a policy response to support achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) taking the COVID-19 long-term implications into account. To do so, a qualitative analytical method was employed in the following four steps. First, a fuzzy cognitive map was developed to specify causal-effect links of the interdependent SDGs in Iran as a developing country in the Middle East. Second, potential effects of the pandemic on the SDGs achievement were analyzed. Third, five strategies were formulated, including green management, sustainable food systems, energizing the labor market, inclusive education, and supporting research and technology initiatives in the energy sector. And finally, different scenarios corresponding to the five proposed strategies were tested based on the identified interconnections among the SDGs. The analysis showed that applying each of the five considered strategies or their combination would mitigate the effect of COVID-19 on the SDGs only in case of a medium pandemic activation level. Moreover, implementing a single strategy with a high activation level leads to better outcomes on the SDGs rather than applying a combination of strategies in low or medium activation levels during the pandemic situation. The provided insights support stakeholders and policy-makers involved in the post-COVID-19 recovery action plan towards implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
ABSTRACT
Vehicle sharing, electrification, and automation, as the triple revolutions in urban transportation, have been under debate towards a new transport paradigm. In this regard, carsharing services, as a potential solution for sustainable urban transport, have gained momentum within the context of sustainable cities in recent years. This research, as the first attempt in the literature, aims to render a comprehensive map of the body of knowledge in the carsharing field of research through conducting a systematic bibliometric analysis. To achieve that, a total of 729 peer-reviewed journal articles from the Web of Science database were scrutinized using keyword, text mining, and bibliographic coupling analyses. The analyses revealed four main research themes building the carsharing literature, including (1) collaborative consumption and carsharing business models development in the context of sustainable urban transport, (2) carsharing adoption with a special focus on user behavior, intention, and preferences, (3) carsharing operational challenges, considering infrastructure and fleet management, and (4) technological advancement towards deployment of shared autonomous vehicles and mobility as a service. The results showed that the carsharing literature lacks (i) a well-established and comprehensive long-term sustainability assessment framework, (ii) inclusive and integrative marketing and training plans, as well as effective incentives, (iii) a holistic analysis of the role of carsharing in the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals, (iv) reliable circular economy indicators designed to measure the circularity of carsharing to help transitioning towards a circular economy, and (v) a timely broad analysis on the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic and the future of carsharing post pandemic era, which call for more investigations in the future. The provided insights support both researchers and policy-makers by shedding light on carsharing services research by providing a state-of-the-art of carsharing studies and developments up to date, uncovering the emergent research themes and trends, and identifying research gaps for future studies towards better positioning carsharing services in sustainable cities developments.
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic has immensely impacted the economic, social, and environmental pillars of sustainability in human lives. Due to the scholars' increasing interest in responding to the urgent call for action against the pandemic, the literature of sustainability research considering COVID-19 consequences is very fragmented. Therefore, a comprehensive review of the COVID-19 implications for sustainability practices is still lacking. This research aims to analyze the effects of COVID-19 on the triple bottom line (TBL) of sustainability to support the future sustainable development agenda. To achieve that, the following research questions are addressed by conducting a systematic literature review: (i) what is the current status of research on the TBL of sustainability considering COVID-19 implications? (ii) how does COVID-19 affect the TBL of sustainability? and (iii) what are the potential research gaps and future research avenues for sustainable development post COVID-19? The results manifest the major implications of the COVID-19 outbreak for the triple sustainability pillars and the sustainable development agenda from the economic, social, and environmental points of view. The key findings provide inclusive insights for governments, authorities, practitioners, and policy-makers to alleviate the pandemic's negative impacts on sustainable development and to realize the sustainability transition opportunities post COVID-19. Finally, five research directions for sustainable development corresponding to the United Nations' sustainable development goals (SDGs) post COVID-19 are provided, as follows: (1) sustainability action plan considering COVID-19 implications: refining sustainability goals and targets and developing measurement framework; (2) making the most of sustainability transition opportunities in the wake of COVID-19: focus on SDG 12 and SDG 9; (3) innovative solutions for economic resilience towards sustainability post COVID-19: focus on SDG 1, SDG 8, and SDG 17; (4) in-depth analysis of the COVID-19 long-term effects on social sustainability: focus on SDG 4, SDG 5, and SDG 10; and (5) expanding quantitative research to harmonize the COVID-19-related sustainability research.