The article aims to identify the degree to which tourism managers who work in Romania in the area of the Carpathian Mountains have implemented sustainable development practices. It also assesses the quantification of their availability to be informed and to apply voluntary tools of sustainable development. Qualitative research based on the method of semi-structured in-depth interviews was conducted, with 34 managers who work in the accommodation units in the Romanian Carpathians. Results show that most managers are concerned with issues linked to sustainable evolution of the accommodation unit they manage. The researchers have noticed a low interest in sustainable evolution negatively correlated with the comfort level of the accommodation unit and competitiveness. Based on these results the authors recommend the adoption of measures that may allow sustainable development, and for the Romanian authorities to encourage the increase in the number of tourism units that can use sustainable management systems. This can be done through accessible rules, development of networks that may offer information about good practices and codes of conduct, as well as the possibility to participate in exchange programs.

Sustainable development is a constant and a necessity of daily life in the restaurant industry. The restaurant industry has high consumptions of energy, water, detergents, and consumables, together with tremendous food waste. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted many acute sustainable development problems. In this context, this article analyzes the practices identified by restaurant managers that define their responsible behavior, and the significant changes made towards sustainability during the COVID-19 pandemic. This article presents the results obtained through qualitative research, carried out by semi-directive in-depth interviews, conducted with 56 restaurant managers from Romania. The answers obtained are based on five topics of discussion highlighting the managers’ growing interest in finding solutions to counteract negative effects on the environment, to ensure the wellbeing of customers and employees, and to increase the profitability of their company. The results obtained from the research reflect the thoughts and actions of restaurant managers in Romania, contributing to the body of knowledge in the understanding of sustainability practices in the foodservice sector.

It has been shown that the development of tourism brings many benefits to the areas where this activity takes place (jobs, incomes for the community and for individuals, etc.), but it also has some shortcomings, such as the environmental degradation and the negative impact on local traditions. In order to stop these negative effects, the concept of sustainable development must be applied. This paper wants to identify the extent to which tourists are familiar with the term of „sustainability” and how they perceive the implementation of sustainable practices in the tourism sector in Romania. The research also wanted to reveal whether the application of sustainable development practices in this sector influenced tourists in choosing a specific economic agent. The authors have conducted a qualitative marketing research, and interviewed tourists who have used tourist services in Romania for the last 5 years. The research was based on the semi-structured depth interview method. The results show that most of the interviewees do not have a very clear idea about the concept of „sustainability” and that of the implementation of consistent practices in the hospitality industry. Therefore, they do not consider the application of these practices when choosing a certain economic agent for spending their free time. The results of this research can be the basis of some governmental and nongovernmental programs for educating potential tourists regarding the impact of tourism on the environment and the need for sustainable development of this sector. Also, these results can be useful to the economic operators in the tourism industry, to consider participating in the sustainable development of the sector and to take measures to promote the sustainable practices that they have applied.

The Smart City concept has emerged in the last decade as a fusion of ideas about how information and communication technologies could improve the functioning of cities. A new concept, that of a sustainable Smart City, is already under discussion. This article aims at analyzing the Smart City concept in Romania. The resulting advantages, but also the difficulties and obstacles that need to be confronted, are considered when becoming a Smart City. When a city wants to become smart, it must consider both the advantages and the difficulties it will face in this endeavor. This paper has been able to take into account and group the four key features of a sustainable Smart City. The authors conducted research in two parts. The first consisted of conducting a comparative analysis of the most important results of Smart City projects implemented in the four reference cities in Romania compared to London. The second, a quantitative analysis, aimed to analyze the opinions and attitudes of Romanians regarding the Smart City concept in relation to sustainability. An important finding of the study shows that over half of the respondents are familiar with the Smart City concept and 41.9% consider health as a priority for investment in technology. The authors of the article propose clearer highlighting and division of cities from the point of view of creating a Smart City.

The European Union (EU) labor market needs a better-skilled workforce that can work in any of the Member States. In order to develop the skills and competencies of future competitors in this market, several student mobility programs have been set up in the EU, where they can travel to universities in partner countries to further their studies and enrich their academic performance, culture and knowledge. The best known of these programs is ERASMUS (European Region Action Scheme for the Mobility of University Students). Because Romania also participates in this program in the exchange of university students, the authors wanted, through this study, to highlight the benefits and challenges of participation in the program, to analyze how international mobilities are emotionally perceived by students and what are the behavioral reasons that determine Romanian students to choose a certain university as a study destination abroad. For this purpose, the authors conducted quantitative marketing research among students from the Transilvania University of Brasov who have been abroad with ERASMUS scholarships. The research results show that an important component in choosing a certain university is not the financial expense during the mobility as might have been expected, but rather the initial desire to study abroad. Students also consider the improvement of their academic performance as an equally important reason for embarking on mobility to the social aspect of getting to know other cultures.

The increased number of road accidents, leading to deaths and serious injuries is a social problem facing most of the world countries, which can affect the sustainable development of a society. This has economic implications, because it impacts the increase of expenditure on hospitalization and the recovery costs of those injured. The current article is based on a quantitative research, coordinated by the authors, conducted among traffic participants from Romania. The major objective of the study was to quantify the main aspects of seatbelt wearing behavior. The research was carried out at national level and used a systematic probabilistic sampling. The sample contains 4346 subjects, of which 3120 were from the automobile section, representing the topic of this article, and being representative of the Romanian adult population. The main research results showed that the percentage of women always wearing seatbelts (76.4%) is higher than the percentage of men (69.9%). Additionally, the highest percentage of people always wearing seatbelts is found at the age group over 55 years (85.2%). The percentage decreases with age—the age group 18–25 are the least likely to wear seatbelts.