The aim of this work is to assess the feasibility of asteroid exploitation as a potential source of valuable elements for a future green energy society and achieving a long-term sustainable development of our society. This research is based on the compilation of chemical data of elements concentration of 13 groups of iron meteorites from literature. These data were used to feed mathematical models to fit the historical world production data of each element and predicts the peak year and the future trend of their world production until 2100. Eventually, this work aims to calculate the required mass of asteroids for reaching different productions, and identify the most suitable groups of iron meteorites for exploitation.

The necessity of increasing the generation of renewable energy is extensively recognized, however its expansion requires social and political acceptance. Wind power is seen as a promising and vital source of energy, and with new technology, it is expected to grow significantly. However, empirical experience indicates that the number of decisions to apporve wind power applications has declined, and resistance is expected to be the cause. The aim of this research study is to analyze and evaluate to what extent economic compensation or economic incentives could influence social acceptance of wind power in Sweden through the lens of the theoretical framework of energy justice. The study uses a mixed method approach while examining the principles of distributional and procedural justice. The quantitative method using surveys and a qualitative method using semi-structured interviews provided the base for the outcomes. The results demonstrate that communities often resist wind power projects, and compensation is likley to influence acceptance of wind power and is thus seen as vastly important and a requirement for future development. The injustice of current compensation systems and low involvement in the decision-making process among local residents are further considered issues for the development of wind power. This further indicates attention to energy justice using distributional and procedural justice as a framework to integarte wind power into a social context to avoid unfairness between the burden and benefits of those affected by wind power.

Some fashion companies have started to use recycled fibers to improve their sustainability practices, as it is a way to implement circularity into their business. By combining the theoretical frameworks of stakeholder theory, socio-technical (ST) systems and sustainable business models (SBM), this study discusses how the current business models of fashion companies relate to the concept of circular economy and what fashion companies’ future perspectives are. Based on a case study approach, empirical data was collected on six Nordic fashion companies: Acne Studios, Filippa K, Ganni, House of Dagmar, Gina Tricot and Pure Waste. Both fastfashion and high-fashion companies are reviewed, as their approach to business and sustainability differ. Drivers, challenges, partnerships, future perspectives to recycled fibers are discussed for each company and put in relation with the concept of circular economy. Additional circular initiatives from the companies are considered. The key findings indicate that fashion companies are motivated to use recycled fibers because of their sense of responsibility and wish to continue doing their business. Their future goals, collaborations and additional circular initiatives depicts a forward-looking attitude hopeful about the potential of sustainability. This study contributes to the understanding of implementation of circularity elements from a corporate perspective in the fashion sector, and what is needed to further implement and develop the use recycled fibers.

Cities all over the world have increasingly covered the topics about sustainable development. In the recent years, the garment industry has presented responsibilities and engagements towards sustainable development. Environmental awareness has increased in most societies. There is no doubt that consumers are demanding for more sustainable measures and this increases pressure on apparel enterprises to take actions and implement policies in order to secure their business. In terms of the garment industry, there is a rise of sustainably consciousness in the past decades.This leads to the purpose of this research project, which is to identify the key factors that affect consumer attitudes and behaviour regarding sustainability issues in textile industry, with a consumer study in Hong Kong. Key objectives in this research relate to consumer awareness of sustainable development aspects in garment purchasing decisions. This is a qualitative consumer study with an exploratory approach. Hong Kong citizens who were born in the 1990s were selected to join the two focus groups. This is because this generation is consumption-oriented, and also more conscious to sustainable development. It can be concluded that numerous factors and considerations that play an essential role in consumers’ purchasing decision in garment industry. Moreover, consumers perceive that several parties are responsible for being sustainable as this has been important in this industry.

Alleviating poverty is central to the Sustainable Development Goals. It is emphasized that strong partnerships are required for achieving this goal. While governments are responsible for reducing the poverty in their countries, the potential of national civil society organisations (CSOs) in solving social problems in the areas they work in allows them to be effective partners in alleviating poverty. Noting that Jordan’s poverty rate Grew between 2010 and 2018. This thesis examines the literature about the multidimensional poverty of the Jordanians and the Syrian refugees in Jordan to access their basic needs of sufficient food and nutrition, water and sanitation, basic healthcare, and basic education. It also analyses the partnership between the Jordanian government and national philanthropic CSOs by interviewing representatives of two Royal CSOs and two non-Royal CSOs that work to help the poor access their needs and improve their income. The study shows that access to basic needs is more challenging for the Syrian refugees than the Jordanian poor in all dimensions, before and during COVID-19. For Jordanians, the income dimension is more challenging than other poverty dimensions, compared with the Syrian refugees. Moreover, the partnership between the national CSOs and the government is not a strategic partnership. National CSOs are the implementers of the partnership’s projects. They are the accountable. They do their own monitoring and evaluation. They do not receive funds from the government. Their communications with the government are not effective for the partnership. Thus, to improve the partnership and facilitate the national CSOs’ work, the study suggests that the partnership’s terms be renegotiated, the communications and interactions are strengthened, and have common and periodic evaluations and monitoring for the different timeframes.

By 2050, the Netherlands wants to reduce its use of natural gas for heating to zero. Currently, over 90%of houses are dependent on the fossil resource to warm their houses. As such, the phase-out of natural gas hasbecome an important policy project. The government delegated the formulation of the phase-out strategy andexecution to the 347 municipalities. This thesis examines how one municipality, Leiden, has formulated andimplemented this strategy. In doing so, the thesis addresses two matters in the literature on energy transitionswhich have received little attention: heating and deliberate decline. Traditionally, the focus within this field hasbeen on electricity and innovation. This thesis aims to find out to what extent the Transition Management (TM)framework by Derk Loorbach (2010) can be applied as a guide to a phase-out policy formulation process of theWarmtevisie of the Dutch municipality of Leiden. The thesis uses the process tracing methodology to combinedata generated from document analysis and two interviews with policy makers involved in the policy formulationprocess. By comparing the process followed in Leiden with the analytical framework of TM, the thesis shows thatthe TM framework could be used to guide to the phase-out policy formulation process to a large extent. However,the case study also shows that knowledge and expertise must increase substantially for a sound strategy to emerge.Additionally, it shows that even within phase-out strategies the focus remains on innovation practises.

No description available.

To mitigate climate change and realize the transition towards a cleaner consumption pattern, the development of EVs needs to be ensured as it is one of the major solutions to the fossil fuel-related problems human beings face today. Lithium, as a critical material to EV cells, is seen as a strategic resource in many countries. Given the fact that the global lithium distribution is quite uneven, securing lithium supply for the development of EVs is essential for the world to phase out fossil fuels consumption in the transport sector. The supply risks of lithium can be observed in many aspects, ranging from lithium production to geopolitics. In this paper, the author combines qualitative and quantitative analysis in order to overarchingly reflect the global supply disruptions of lithium. In the qualitative section, the concept of systems theory is applied, supported by the connection circle, the stock-flow model, and the panarchy model; in the quantitative section, the author uses the combination of Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) and Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) to measure the extent of supply disruptions in a certain year. The quantitative section serves as a good supplement to the qualitative analysis. The qualitative results indicate that lithium mining and processing plays the key role in the whole lithium supply chain. It can be affected by the factors in the larger global context such as global political environment and the demand for lithium, as well as the social, ecological and technical components in the smaller scale that provides a physical environment for lithium production. The quantitative results show that the global supply disruptions of lithium are significant in 2019, mainly due to the high level of supply concentration. The author suggests that the governments of major lithium producer countries might organize panel discussions regularly to ensure the stable and non-centric supply of lithium to the global market. The rich production countries may also offer technical support to the less developed lithium holders to help the latter overcome the difficulties brought by the increasing cost of mining.

Since the turn of the last century, a substantial increase in nutrient load to the Baltic Sea is apparent. Adding the ongoing environmental change with raising temperatures and increased precipitation, this will continue to have a prominent environmental impact on our coastal ecosystems, especially in northern latitudes. Constructed wetlands are becoming more important as a mitigation measure to retain nutrients, however, they are until this day not well studied in northern latitudes. In this paper, nutrient retention in a newly constructed wetland is studied during its first month after activation, as well as potential downstream effects in associated sea bay. An additional literature study compiles information about the current knowledge, use and functionality of wetlands surrounding the Baltic Sea. This is done to widen knowledge regarding effectiveness of wetlands as nutrient traps in general, as well as to compare with the studied wetland. A net retention of 30 % for dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and total phosphorus (TP) was found, as well as 27 % for total nitrogen (TN), 25 % for phosphate (PO43-) and 21 % for nitrate (NO3-). TP was found to be within range of expected retention capacity, when comparing with wetlands included in the synthesis. TN retention, however, seemed to be somewhat greater than in other wetland studies. Furthermore, the retention varied and seemed to be highest during an increased discharge, in the beginning and end of March. This was partly reflected by greater inlet concentrations and transports in most of the parameters during the initial time period. Decreasing temporal trends was seen in concentrations of DOC, total nutrients and NO3- concentrations in the sea bay, indicating an immediate downstream effect of the wetland installation. Findings from the synthesis indicate that there are very few studies in, and thus little knowledge about, wetlands in northern climate. Overall, the results from the pioneer northern wetland in Sörleviken suggest that net retention is possible during its first month post-activation.

The study presented in this thesis aimed to explore how gender norms in four rural districts in Kilimanjaro and Lindi Region of Tanzania might influence rural women chicken farmers' economic empowerment when an urban vendor introduces an improved breed of chicken. More specifically, the following aims were explored: the normative expectations for husbands and wives in the communities researched, and how these expectations may influence intra-household negotiation processes following a market-led intervention within the Tanzanian poultry value-chain;                                                                                                                                                                   if and how intra-household resource allocation may be changed if profits were to increase within a women-led business. To achieve the aim of this study, the experiences and insights from the study participants were collected through focus group discussions in a case study methodology of the Tanzanian poultry value-chain in four rural districts of Tanzania applying a qualitative research approach within the research paradigm of Feminist Critical Theory. Data was collected through scenario responses in eight focus group discussions (FGDs) in Hai and Siha districts of Kilimanjaro Region and Ruangwa and Lindi Rural districts of Lindi Region and analyzed by applying a thematic analysis. Three findings are presented in this thesis. First, women and men in the researched communities witness a changing society in which women increase their presence in the economy. In contrast, men struggle to live up to the expectations associated with being constructed as the household's breadwinner. Second, women's economic agency may both improve but also compromise women's ability to adopt a practice of innovation if the practice is introduced without acknowledging gender dynamics present in the communities. Finally, findings imply that development opportunities in the Tanzanian poultry sector add levels of negotiations where women and men need to negotiate gender norms in their communities while deciding on resource allocation in a growing business.  In addition, the term Male Capture is brought forward as a central theme throughout the thesis. It is used to frame a dynamic in which men seize control over a previously women-controlled asset once women have demonstrated the success of an innovation. Insights are presented into the norms that trigger and legitimize the event of Male Capture in the researched communities and provide stakeholders in the Tanzanian poultry value-chain with information on how to approach market-led interventions without running the risk of marginalizing women. Finally, the thesis concludes that for researchers that aim to challenge the longstanding gender inequalities which legitimize Male Capture, Gender Transformative Approaches (GTAs) should be adopted.