Sustainable Development and its Connection to Teaching Geoethics

Purpose: This article aims to analyze performance evaluation in the Portuguese hospitality sector. It assesses the frequency with which performance indicators are monitored, the relevance assigned to them and how the two are related. It further evaluates whether performance evaluation practices in the Portuguese hospitality sector are based on the balanced scorecard (BSC) philosophy.Design/methodology/approach: The study builds upon a doctoral research addressing the hospitality sector in Portugal. Theoretically, it resorts to a literature review on performance indicators and the Portuguese hospitality sector. Empirically, it looks at a sample of four- and five-star hotels operating in Portugal in 2012. A questionnaire addressing the four perspectives of BSC was applied, and a descriptive analysis was developed.Findings: Performance indicators cover the four perspectives of BSC in a balanced way, which confirms its relevance as a strategic management tool. However, there is no coincidence between the performance indicators most frequently monitored and those considered to be most relevant.Practical implications: The study reviews/identifies performance indicators suitable for the hospitality sector and highlights ways to improve their use in the Portuguese hospitality sector.Social implications: Redirecting the use of performance indicators to long-term objectives will benefit the financial results of the hospitality industry, with positive impacts on employment. This is particularly relevant as the hospitality industry is an activity strongly characterized by seasonality.Originality/value: This is a descriptive study related to the use of indicators in the Portuguese hotel sector, to this date inexistent/innovative. It highlights the need for changes in the choice of performance indicators in the Portuguese hospitality sector and offers suggestions for future performance evaluation frameworks.

This research compares the global debt trends in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on economies that frame the North and South divide. The research centers on debt ratios, which serve as indicators of countries’ ability to finance recovery and development projects. The study period runs from 2015 to 2022 and follows the IMF’s country classification, which divides the world into advanced economies (AE) and emerging market and developing economies (EMDE). The research employs panel data regressions to assess three key debt ratios—external debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP), external debt to exports, and public debt to GDP—against various pandemic-related indicators and control variables. The analysis provides three major contributions. Firstly, an examination of external and public debt burdens is conducted, showing that escalated external and public debt burdens in EMDE contrast with increasing public debt in AE, primarily due to fiscal stimulus. Secondly, it is argued that the ongoing pandemic has intensified the widening economic gap between the North (AE) and the south (EMDE). Thirdly, a review is presented of both orthodox and heterodox policies identified in existing literature that are considered capable of mitigating external vulnerabilities in EMDE. Findings highlight the critical need for multifaceted measures to address debt vulnerability and promote sustainable economic recovery in a post-pandemic world.

Information about the paper titled "SOCIO-SCIENTIFIC ISSUES AND SCIENTIFIC LITERACY" at IATED Digital Library

Information about the paper titled "CHECKING THE SCIENTIFIC LITERACY OF HUMANITIES AND SCIENCE STUDENTS: THEY SAY MINERALS ARE EVERYWHERE – IS THAT SO?" at IATED Digital Library