One of the approaches to achieve sustainable development is based on smart specialization. Rural areas are of particular importance in ensuring sustainable development, the smart development of which largely determines the balanced sustainable development of a state as a whole. The present study reflects the quantitative and the qualitative assessment of sustainable development in the region of Latgale (Latvia) on the level of 19 districts; the assessment has been carried out on the basis of the concept of smart specialization. The assessment has been performed within the framework of the project 5.2 of the National Research Programme EKOSOC-LV. The quantitative assessment is based on scientific and practical experience taking into consideration the distinguishing features of the development of Latvian regions and districts, and it has resulted in the establishment of an integrated index (Smart Development Index), which comprises four dimensions - Resources, Population, Economy, and Management. The qualitative assessment is based on the views concerning the cornerstones of smart specialization and the factors influencing it expressed by experts from the state administration, business and scientific environment. Expert opinions have been collected by using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method. The results of the research might facilitate the understanding of the support measures of smart specialization and the opportunities for sustainable development in rural areas, taking into account the level of the regional socio-economic development and the rate of development, as well as regional differences on the level of districts. The example of Latgale has shown that a small number of people and a low rate of development in most of the region districts simultaneously create both the acute need for and a great challenge in the sphere of sustainable development. By contrast, as a result of both the quantitative and the qualitative assessment the population has been recognised to be the main driving force of the development of rural areas in Latgale region.

Like many modern economies, Latvia experiences demographic decline, which will cause shortages in the labor force in the future. This article aims to characterize the decline in the working-age population and the factors causing it using system dynamics, PEST, and SWOT analysis. First, the article provides two scenarios for the numerical presentation of a long-term change in the population of working age in Latvia due to emigration. Second, the article describes political, economic, social, and technological factors important for a territory to be economically active and attractive for living and working, which, in turn, is a prerequisite for a populous territory. Third, the article characterizes current peculiarities of the labor market in Latvia given findings on political, economic, social, and technological factors, including achievements and issues. As a result of the analysis, the article provides an analysis of a highly illustrative case study of Latvia, with low birth rates and high emigration, on the one hand, and a broad understanding of reasons for demographic decline on the other hand. In combination with the current characteristics of the labor market, the analysis provides knowledge on achievements and issues for the long-term development of the labor force. The article contributes to debates through a multimethod approach to clarify both working-age population projections and factors affecting the economic attractiveness of a territory. The novelty of the research lies in the application of system dynamics for population projections and a combination of PEST and SWOT analysis for macroeconomic issues. The findings may advise policy-making. The main research findings demonstrate that the expected decline in the working-age population in Latvia is alarming. Besides policies for preventing further decline in the working-age population, policy-making should address such issues as the lack of human capital in smart specialization areas, a low interest of society in becoming an entrepreneur, and insufficient activity in high-tech sectors of the economy. At the same time, the realization of smart specialization strategies contributes to labor market resilience.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused a lockdown in schools followed by a transition to a fully online mode worldwide. This article aims to determine themes and fields of education that have gained immediate attention within academic research devoted to the issue. Additionally, the author thematically classifies challenges in education during lockdown by keyword and content analyses. Quantitative analysis reveals the heterogeneous nature of studies, which may be explained by the lack of previous experience with lockdowns in education. Themes of specific styles of education, technological solutions, well-being, and perception are most prevalent. Qualitative analysis reveals that lockdown resulted in the comingling of previously separate spaces—personal (family, home) and professional (learning and teaching). According to the analysis, success in online education depends on the psycho-emotional readiness of a person, their ability to professionally develop, the technological readiness of institutions and countries, the curricular content, and one’s practical possibility to acquire specialized skills online. A comprehensive review of the effects of the COVID-19 lockdown on education provides novel contributions to the literature. Understanding the adaptive behavior of the educational community during a crisis is significant for developing and improving coping strategies and for managing the educational process by making it more flexible and technology based in the future.

Remote work, as a technologically possible and widely applicable working mode, gained renewed attention during lockdowns amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. On one hand, remote work ensured that working remained sustainable; on the other hand, the unexpected and widespread nature of the immediate shift to remote work led to issues in terms of practicing and adapting to the process. Moreover, remote work can have strong social, economic, and environmental effects that have to be comprehensively understood. The high interest of employees in continuing with full or hybrid remote work calls for effective coping strategies at the individual and organizational levels in the future. This article focuses on academic studies documenting the peculiarities of remote work during the COVID-19 lockdowns. The aim is to identify the issues relating to remote work during the COVID-19 lockdowns that are documented in academic studies and thematically classify them into a range of factors. In this study, bibliometric and content analyses were employed, leading to comprehensive insights into the following areas: (1) remote work as a cause for changes in physical and psychological health; (2) remote work as a cause for changes in daily behavior, routine, and lifestyle; (3) factors that affect the process and productivity of remote work; (4) societal, economic, and environmental consequences of remote work; and (5) the distribution of the effects of remote work on individuals, economic subjects, and sectors. In conclusion, this study on working practices during the COVID-19 lockdowns that were documented in academic studies offers several benefits and areas of novelty: first, a comprehensive overview of the widespread process of adjusting to this new working mode; second, a classification of factors that affected the process at different stages and in different areas; and third, common factors that had more widespread effects during the remote working period. The findings also offer the following theoretical and practical implications: For researchers, this article can be a reference offering a holistic view of remote working during these lockdowns. For practitioners, it can provide an understanding of the impacting factors and their contextualization in terms of health, sociodemographic, and sectoral aspects can allow for more accurate human resource management strategies.

Climate change and depopulation challenge regional sustainability through their negative effects on socioeconomic conditions. Given regional peculiarities in terms of geographical, economic, social, cultural, demographic, and environmental aspects, regions differ. As a result, the intensity of the possible negative effects provided by climate change and depopulation also differs across regions. A timely understanding of possible risks that have to be addressed through sustainable regional development policies allows for effective risk management. The article aims to characterise depopulation and climate change risks for the regions of Latvia. Within the article, the authors, first, elaborate long-term forecasts for population change by application of system dynamic modelling; second, characterise the climatic and environmental peculiarities of the regions in Latvia. The research findings introduce a wider audience of scientists and practitioners to possible risks for sustainable regional development in terms of climate change and depopulation. According to the data analysed, at the moment, for sustainable regional development in Latvia, depopulation is a greater risk than climate change. However, both risks have to be addressed through effective management.