Energy poverty, or the inability of households to afford adequate access to energy services, is an issue that can have a significant effect on the quality of life and even the state of health of individuals and even the overall development of a nation. Since it was first brought into focus more than two decades ago in the UK, this topic has gradually gained the attention of academics and policy makers all across the EU and beyond. The current paper addresses the topic by providing not only a renewed discussion, but also an improved energy poverty indicator (with clear and relevant results at the EU level): the Compound Energy Poverty Indicator (CEPI). Moreover, knowing that the risk of poverty and social exclusion, efficiency of heating systems, total consumption of energy per household and rising energy prices tend to increase the severity of this problem in some countries, CEPI is then included into an econometric model so as to determine some possible factors that tend to put pressure on an already existing issue of energy poverty. The results of this research are expected to be relevant not only for academics (as it offers insights into the structure and severity of this topic within the European Union), but also for national and EU policymakers who are confronted in the field with the problem of sustainable development.

Our purpose is to assess the influence of national culture and higher education on entrepreneurship among students and fresh graduates. The aim was to determine whether the grouping of students based on certain personality traits (most of which are connected to culture) is effective at predicting entrepreneurial intention and whether entrepreneurial training over the course of their studies significantly influences their entrepreneurial intention and capability. A hierarchical agglomerative cluster analysis generated four student typologies: mediocre, goal-oriented, withdrawn and opportunistic. Both the personality and academic profile-based groupings showed a weak, but significant effect on entrepreneurial intention; however, the second method had a slightly higher statistical relevance. The results also showed that receiving entrepreneurial training over the course of university enrolment is a determining factor when choosing an entrepreneurial career and that national culture likely has a moderating influence over the relationship between feasibility and intention to become an entrepreneur.

The paper investigates the drivers and barriers that encourage or hinder the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies within Romanian SMEs. By using the Technology-Organisation-Environment (TOE) framework, we examined the role of several factors from each TOE dimension in predicting the AI adoption behaviour. The factors were constructed through factor analysis followed by the estimation of a linear regression model. Partial least squares structural equation modelling was then used in order to further explore the relationships and to check the robustness of the linear regression model. Our findings highlight the significant role played by leadership, organizational readiness, as well as the “push-and-pull” effect of competitors and customers in encouraging SMEs to adopt AI technologies. However, in the case of Romania, specific challenges related to a lack of digital skills among employees, a limited understanding of the relative advantage that digitalisation can offer, as well as a lack of marketing efforts from the side of vendors make it difficult for SMEs to consider the implementation of AI technologies. This exploratory study seeks to understand the underlying trends of the phenomenon and serves as a stepping stone for vendors, managers, as well as researchers to better understand the market for AI tools and solutions among Romanian SMEs.

Conceptual and methodological divergence in defining the issue of energy poverty (i.e. the inability of households to afford adequate access to energy services) has made it difficult to assess the problem at a European level using a standardized approach. Moreover, existing research raises concerns with regard to socio-economic and environmental differences between European states that may have a significant impact on this phenomenon. The current paper builds upon a set of newly proposed econometric methods for the trans-national measurement of energy poverty and for the study of its determining factors – the Compound Energy Poverty Indicator. The research shows that Southern and Eastern European countries present peculiar socio-economic traits that distort the impact of predicting variables, such as the tenure status of households. The results imply that a cautious approach is needed when attempting to measure and predict energy poverty at a trans-national level based on macroeconomic indicators. Regionally specific policy measures and indicators may be needed in order to assess the problem in a truly functional, accurate and more efficient. Keywords: energy poverty; Compound Energy Poverty Indicator; sustainability; tenure status

Renewable energy is seen as a key tool in addressing the dual issue of increasing energy demand and climate change mitigation. In the current geopolitical climate, it may also play a key long-term role in increasing energy security. In order to reach the ambitious green energy targets set for each European Union member state public support for fiscal and other support mechanisms is required. The purpose of this paper is to determine to what extent the population in the North-East region of Romania is willing to make financial sacrifices for further development of renewable energy. We also explore what lifestyle and socio-demographic factors influence willingness to pay. We applied a discrete choice experiment on a sample of 602 households from the populous North-East region of Romania. Our results show that the creation of new jobs and the increase of the national energy independence, followed by the reduction of pollution are societal benefits that would convince households to pay a premium in order to support renewable energy development. Increased local budgets for rural communities resulting from the taxation of new energy companies is not one of the desired outcomes of green energy development. The study is useful in the design of adequate fiscal and renewable support policies and serves companies by identifying willingness to pay influence factors, as well as by demonstrating a market segmentation procedure.