This paper summarizes the presently available knowledge about the association between low-frequency noise and its effects on health. A database was constructed with a total of 142 articles published between 2016 and 2019 regarding low-frequency noise exposure and its effects on health. A total of 39 articles were analysed in depth. The articles were divided into categories according to the effects on human health addressed. Regarding the emitting source, there was a greater number of articles addressing issues related to sources of environmental noise and noise from wind turbines. As for the effects generated on human health, there was a greater number of articles referring to the effects on sleep disorders, discomfort, sensitivity to and irritability from noise, annoyance, hearing loss, and cardiovascular diseases, and these effects are analysed in more detail in the present article.

Discussing urban planning requires rethinking sustainability in cities and building healthy environments. Historically, some aspects of advancing the urban way of life have not been considered important in city planning. This is particularly the case where technological advances have led to conflicting land use, as with the installation of power poles and building electrical substations near residential areas. This research aims to discuss and rethink sustainability in cities, focusing on the environmental impact of low-frequency noise and electromagnetic radiation on human health. It presents data from a case study in an urban space in northern Portugal, and focuses on four guiding questions: Can power poles and power lines cause noise? Do power poles and power lines cause discomfort? Do power poles and power lines cause discomfort due to noise? Can power poles and power lines affect human health? To answer these questions, we undertook research between 2014 and 2015 that was comprised of two approaches. The first approach consisted of evaluating the noise of nine points divided into two groups “near the source” (e.g., up to 50 m from power poles) and “away from the source” (e.g., more than 250 m away from the source). In the second approach, noise levels were measured for 72 h in houses located up to 20 m from the source. The groups consist of residents living within the distance range specified for each group. The measurement values were compared with the proposed criteria for assessing low-frequency noise using the DEFRA Guidance (University of Salford). In the first approach, the noise caused discomfort, regardless of the group. In the second approach, the noise had fluctuating characteristics, which led us to conclude that the noise caused discomfort.

Creative tourism is a quite recent tourism segment that has been rapidly diffused all over the world. Nevertheless, studies on this segment were not concerned, until present, with the differences in gender intention, evaluation and the overall satisfaction regarding creative tourism activities. For that, this paper examines these three components from a gender perspective regarding the creative tourism activities developed by CREATOUR pilots in the northern region of mainland Portugal between 2017 and 2019. The methods used were quantitative in nature. Five hundred and ninety-five questionnaires were applied to the participants in the 45 creative tourism activities developed by the 10 pilot institutions selected to join the CREATOUR project (Creative Tourism Destination Development in Small Cities and Rural Areas). The questionnaire used consisted of 31 closed questions aimed at the profile, the motivations, the perception and the evaluation of activities by the participants. It used descriptive statistics and discriminate analysis. The main results show that men and women had similar demographic characteristics (e.g., age and educational level), but they were significantly different in some variables, such as their intention to participate in creative activities, and their evaluation and overall satisfaction with their personal experiences. It is statistically confirmed that, based on their experiences in creative tourism, men and women fall into different clusters.

This article analyses the managerial practices implemented by international organisations that provide platforms for promoting and carrying out creative tourism activities and workshops. The methodology of this research was conducted in four phases. The first phase consisted of Internet-based research to identify organisations involved in creative tourism and 24 institutions were found. In the second phase, we analysed the information provided on the institutions’ websites. In the third phase, we prepared an interview script and sent it to those institutions. We received 12 positive replies and held a semi-structured interview with those managers. In the last phase, the narratives of the interviews were subjected to content analysis. The 12 managers interviewed, between the ages of 35 and 56, belong to public and private entities and lead technical teams. The studied institutions displayed good practices for creative tourism and strategic lines to consolidate this tourist product in the future. This study is pertinent and original because no international study has analysed in detail the management practices implemented by creative tourism platforms and a consistent characterisation of the profile of the creative tourist is yet to be outlined. It can also help institutions involved in creative tourism to better understand the international state of the field in this tourism segment.

Noise pollution is the second most harmful environmental stressor in Europe. Portugal is the fourth European country most affected by noise pollution, whereby 23.0% of the population is affected. This article aims to analyze the effects of exposure to low frequency noise pollution, emitted by power poles and power lines, on the population’s well-being, based on a study of “exposed” and “unexposed” individuals in two predominantly urban areas in north-western Portugal. To develop the research, we used sound level (n = 62) and sound recording measurements, as well as adapted audiometric test performance (n = 14) and surveys conducted with the resident population (n = 200). The sound levels were measured (frequency range between 10 to 160 Hz) and compared with a criterion curve developed by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). The sound recorded was performed 5 m away from the source (400 kV power pole). Surveys were carried out with the “exposed” and “unexposed” populations, and adapted audiometric tests were performed to complement the analysis and to determine the threshold of audibility of “exposed” and “unexposed” volunteers. The “exposed” area has higher sound levels and, consequently, more problems with well-being and health than the “unexposed” population. The audiometric tests also revealed that the “exposed” population appears to be less sensitive to low frequencies than the “unexposed” population.