Successful energy transitions, also referred to as leapfrog development, present enormous prospects for EU nations to become carbon neutral by shifting from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. Along with climate change, EU countries must address energy security and dependency issues, exacerbated by factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, rising energy costs, conflicts between Russia and Ukraine, and political instability. Diversifying energy sources, generating renewable energy, increasing energy efficiency, preventing energy waste, and educating the public about environmental issues are proposed as several strategies. The study draws the conclusion that central European countries may transition to a clean energy economy and become carbon neutral on economic and strategic levels by locating alternative clean energy supply sources, reducing energy use, and producing renewable energy. According to the study, the EU energy industry can be decarbonised and attain energy security using three basic strategies, such as supply diversification, energy savings, and quicker adoption of renewable energy to replace fossil fuels. The energy transformation industry still needs to improve energy efficiency, incorporate a circular and sustainable bioeconomy, and support renewable energies, including solar, wind, hydropower, nuclear, and hydrogen.

The ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, two major agricultural powers, has numerous severe socio-economic consequences that are presently being felt worldwide and that are undermining the functioning of the global food system. The war has also had a profound impact on the European food system. Accordingly, this paper examines the implications of the ongoing conflict on food security pillars (viz. availability, access, use, stability) in European countries and considers potential strategies for addressing and mitigating these effects. The paper highlights that the food supply in Europe does not seem to be jeopardized since most European countries are generally self-sufficient in many products. Nonetheless, the conflict might impact food access and production costs. Indeed, the European agricultural industry is a net importer of several commodities, such as inputs and animal feed. This vulnerability, combined with the high costs of inputs such as fertilizers and energy, creates production difficulties for farmers and threatens to drive up food prices, affecting food affordability and access. Higher input prices increase production costs and, ultimately, inflation. This may affect food security and increase (food) poverty. The paper concludes that increasing food aid, ensuring a stable fertilizer supply, imposing an energy price cap, initiating a farmer support package, switching to renewable energy sources for cultivation, changing individual food behaviors, lifting trade restrictions, and political stability can safeguard food security pillars and strengthen the resilience of the European food system.

Over the past half-century, scientists from many different areas have been investigating how to switch to renewable energy, especially in the context of a circular economy. Numerous articles have discussed the scientific aspects of developing technology to support this process. This systematic literature review and bibliometric study aim to fill in research gaps by looking at trends, challenges, and possible future directions for the use of renewable energy in the context of a circular economy, especially in the fields of business, management, and economics. The study analyzed 294 peer-reviewed articles using the R Studio-Biblioshiny package version 4.1.2 software. The challenges of integrating renewable energy technologies within a circular economy include financial constraints, such as a high initial investment, the lack of an adequate regulatory framework and government support, the intermittent availability of renewable energy sources, the scarcity of resources and components for renewable energy generation technologies, relatively low energy conversion efficiency, the challenge of increasing consumer awareness, and the environmental impact of technological waste. The study suggests that future research should focus on financial models and policy incentives that can encourage businesses and investors to take advantage of renewable energy. The study also recommends exploring sustainable alternative fuel technologies, optimized waste-to-energy conversion, the increased efficiency of bioenergy conversion, more efficient solar panels, improved energy storage capacity, the life cycle management of solar panel devices, and the development of innovative business models to facilitate industrial symbiosis.

The rise of e-commerce necessitates sustainable practices for a greener future. While the e-commerce boom offers immense economic opportunities, minimizing its environmental impact and upholding ethical business conduct are essential. Current research on e-commerce heavily focuses on information technology (IT) for understanding and improving consumer acceptance. However, a critical gap exists in exploring IT's potential contributions to sustainability, crime prevention, and environmental safety. This study bridges this gap by exploring the role of IT integration in managerial practices to enhance environmental protection, crime prevention, and foster sustainability within Bangladesh's booming e-commerce sector. Focusing on e-commerce managers' perspectives, the research examines effective leadership strategies for IT implementation. Additionally, it utilizes the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to analyze the relationships between user perception and its impact on e-commerce performance. Using a structured questionnaire, we collected the data from 418 e-commerce managers. The research design incorporates a robust framework, hypothesis formulation, and methodological rigor grounded in TAM principles. The findings reveal a significant positive contribution of IT to environmental protection, crime prevention, and overall sustainability within the e-commerce sector. Managers' perceptions highlight that effective IT utilization ensures environmental safety, safeguards data against criminal activity, and promotes organizational sustainability. Furthermore, this research provides a roadmap for e-commerce businesses to accelerate their sustainability efforts. It also equips academics with valuable insights to advance knowledge on building a secure and sustainable future in the digital age.

Since COVID-19 was confirmed in Bangladesh in March 2020, the government have enacted stringent measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, which has had a significant impact on people’s lives. Food consumption habits of consumers have shifted as a result of declining grocery shopping frequency, negative income shock, and food prices shooting up. This paper aims to explore Bangladeshi consumers’ buying behaviour in association with the stress generated from a food supply shortage during the COVID-19 pandemic and the post-outbreak perception of the food industry, using a dataset with 540 online samples collected between July and August 2021. A two-stage cluster sampling method and self-administrated questionnaire techniques were adopted for collecting the data during the third wave of COVID-19. Using partial least squares path modelling (PLS-PM) and multivariate multiple ordered logit regression (MVORD) to reveal the pertinent structure between all the blocks, this study provides two key findings. First, a higher intensity of COVID-19 impact translates into higher food stress associated with income reduction and higher food prices. Second, food stress directly affects consumer buying and consumption behaviour. We strongly recommend connecting consumers with local producers and collective use of shared warehouses through institutions, policies, and reforms to prevent disruption in the food supply chain and to keep food prices stable. Additionally, food producers, distributors, stakeholders, and policy planners should strengthen the food supply chain to stabilize food security.