Ambiente e Sustentabilidade | Artigos em revistas internacionais / Papers in international journals
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- Understanding the deep structure of the Essaouira basin using gravity data: hydrogeological inferences for a semiarid region in central-western MoroccoPublication . Khouz, Abdellah; Jaffal, Mohammed; Trindade, Jorge; Bougadir, Blaid; El Bchari, Fatima; Kchikach, Azzouz; Mustapha, El Ghorfi; Ibouh, Hassan; Jadoud, Mourad; Kadiri, Omar; Manar, AhmedThe Essaouira Basin, located in central western Morocco, faces a significant threat of water shortage due to both the substantially reduced rainfall caused by climate change and the continuously increasing demand for this essential resource. Groundwater resources are being increasingly exploited to meet the needs of the population, whether for agricultural or domestic purposes. Therefore, it has become necessary to intensify investigations across the entire basin, particularly through indirect methods such as geophysical techniques, to accurately delineate the productive zones. In this context, the present study was undertaken to investigate the deep structure of this basin with the aim of comprehending the functioning of its aquifer system. This study is based on the interpretation of gravity data covering the Essaouira Basin. In addition to their qualitative analysis, these data underwent a methodological approach involving transformations to extract meaningful insights. The observed anomalies were interpreted in terms of (i) thickness variations within the slightly folded sedimentary series of the basin; (ii) Paleozoic basement topography; and (iii) the presence of salt deposits. In fact, among the negative anomalies, some coincide with evaporitic deposits that are known either from the geological outcrops or the seismic surveys carried out in the Essaouira Basin within the framework of petroleum exploration programs, while others coincide with areas of increased thickness of sedimentary sequences. The latter include synclines and basement depressions, where the accumulation of groundwater tends to occur; as a result, they constitute suitable zones for the drilling of water extraction wells. Groundwater flows observed in some existing wells are consistent with this hypothesis. The results of the contact analysis approach implemented within the framework of the study reveals the Essaouira Basin is affected by a fault network whose main direction is parallel to the Atlantic margin (i.e., NNE–SSW). This implies that the extensional tectonic phase responsible for initiating the rifting of the Central Atlantic in the Triassic era has primarily impacted the structural configuration of this basin. This study demonstrates the strong potential of the gravity method as a tool to delineate the deep structure of sedimentary basins and to identify potentially productive groundwater zones. The final results will provide important support to decision makers in sustainable groundwater management, especially in vulnerable areas.
- Fostering refugia amid unfolding extinctionsPublication . Aldeia, JoãoAccording to Anna Tsing, Holocene resurgence, the multispecies work carried on to enable life among disturbance, and the ability to foster refugia where the living can recover from damage are crucial to oppose modern capitalogenic extinctions. I expand on this argument by looking at the geo-historical role that refugia have played (and perhaps can still play) during the Quaternary in nurturing the lives of survivors amid unfolding extinctions. Refugia have fostered multispecies life in harsh climatic and ecological times, which enabled individuals of different species to carry on the work of resurgence, because they have functioned as homes for refugees, allowing them in to recover from the hardships of the outside world for a (geo-historically long) while before they again went into the world when external conditions became more amenable. If this capacity of refugia to nurture life can be fostered, such sites might be important pieces in a political ecological strategy aiming to oppose the waste of life brought about by contemporary extinctions.
- Life’s potentiality as multispecies giftPublication . Aldeia, JoãoContemporary political ecological problems reduce possibilities for future human and non-human life. These problems are the result of modern capitalist humans’ attempt to break away from multispecies bonds and turn non-humans into resources to be appropriated. These bonds are crucial for the continued generation of life, which can only result from intergenerational and inter- species shared time, effort, and energy. By expanding the works of Mauss’ intellectual heirs and Levinas towards multispecies interactions, this gift of life can be better understood. Life received by newborn humans entangles them in a multispecies gift cycle that obligates them to reciprocate the gift of life’s potentiality. This requires acknowledging humans’ ethical responsibilities for all others, human and non-human, currently alive or potentially born in the future. In turn, this responsibility can only unfold as political ecologically sustainable actions that keep multispecies communities healthy enough to keep giving life’s potentiality to future generations.
- Contemporary extinctions and multispecies thanatopoliticsPublication . Aldeia, JoãoContrary to what Foucault argued, modern biopolitics is inherently thanatopolitical, i.e., it is a politics of life premised on a politics of death. This becomes clear when non-human elements are given greater relevance than Foucault afforded them. Since the reproduction of life results from interdependencies between species and abiotic elements, multispecies relations are at the core of ‘a power to foster life or disallow it to the point of death’. In modernity, biopolitical interventions in what Foucault defines as the milieu are intended to foster the lives of (certain) human populations, while they are also premised on killing non-human species. This occurs whether these species are needed to make humans live (e.g., as food) or whether they oppose the goal of fostering the lives of human populations (e.g., as pests or weeds). The ongoing proliferation and acceleration of the extinction of non-human species is one of the extreme manifestations of this thanatopolitical drive of biopolitics, showing that biopolitics promotes death to the point of eliminating entities and relationships on which the reproduction of life depends, which makes it increasingly difficult to keep intervening with the goal to ‘make live’.
- Pestering Capitalism: thinking with Halyomorpha halys about multispecies relations and ecological unsustainabilityPublication . Aldeia, JoãoMany non-human species trouble human-oriented forms of multispecies life, which leads to classifying some of these species as pests. One of the fields of daily life most disturbed by the action of pests is modern capitalist agriculture, leading to different types of pest management by which human beings attempt to eliminate pests' opposition to the anthropogenic appropriation of the life-making efforts and energy of multispecies assemblages, an appropriation which is essential for capital circulation. In dominant modern capitalist cosmologies, the disturbances caused by pests automatically justify and require their attempted extermination. Without denying that pests are troubling, I argue that the technoscientific framing of human relationships with these species is insufficient as a way of understanding and interacting with them. Rather than exclusively seeing pests as a problem, the manner in which humans interact with these species points us to several foundational – and in themselves problematic – aspects of modern capitalist world-ecology. Taking my research on networks concerned with kiwifruit farming and commercialization in Portugal as a basis for my arguments, I look at how actors in these networks propose to deal with Halyomorpha halys, the brown marmorated stink bug, in an attempt to think with this species about the (inextricably connected) socio-ecological unsustainability of modern capitalist world-ecology and the bio-thanato-political strategies of immunization employed to deal with non-human species in this political ecological system.
- The maturity level of the agri-food sector in the circular economy domain: a systematic literature reviewPublication . Scandurra, Federica; Salomone, Roberta; Caeiro, Sandra; Gulotta, Teresa MariaThe agri-food sector (AFS) is crucial in the transition towards sustainability. The Circular Economy (CE) has gained global attention as a tool to achieve it systemically. Nevertheless, it is necessary to understand the maturity level of circularity in the AFS. For that reason, this study aims to analyse, through a systematic and bibliometric literature review, examples of circularity in the sector at inter- and intra-company levels, considering case studies with a micro or meso perspective of analysis. The review was conducted using Scopus and Web of Science databases, identifying 43 peer-reviewed articles published from 2015 to the end of February 2022 and 162 practices. The review explored the maturity level of the agri-food sector in terms of circularity through the innovativeness of its practices. Results show that 51% of the practices have a conventional nature, whereas incremental and radical innovation represent 46% and 3% of the sample. The analysis also investigated, through content analysis, the links with Industrial symbiosis (IS), and sustainability, which remains poorly explored, especially in social terms. Although some limitations are present due to the research criteria, the study allows for deep diving into the characteristics of circularity in the sector by contributing to the definition of a database of circular best practices capable of driving practitioners towards its application and capturing challenges and potential ways of improvement.
- Marine litter education: from awareness to actionPublication . Bettencourt, Sara; Freitas, Diogo Nuno; Lucas, Carlos; Costa, Sónia; Caeiro, SandraMarine litter is a global problem. Education has been acclaimed as a potential tool to tackle this issue, yet, integrative, student-centered, and over weeks studies to raise awareness on the theme that compares pre- with post-intervention results are limited in the literature. Furthermore, almost no studies rely on the basis of previous experience on the theme and local reality. This paper presents the design, implementation, and evaluation of an educational intervention to raise awareness and educate students (1st cycle to high-school) about marine litter. Different learning skills were fostered through theoretical, laboratorial, and hands-on activities and students participated in a beach clean-up to summarize the classroom's learnings in loco. Pre- and post-questionnaire results indicate that students' knowledge, perceptions, and behavioral intentions changed. Identification of marine litter estimated degradation times and observation of microplastics in local sand samples were activities highly appreciated by youngsters. This intervention positively impacted schoolchildren's literacy, contributing to advancing education in marine litter and can be further adapted to other educational areas.
- Monitoring marine litter on Funchal beaches (Madeira Island): insights for litter managementPublication . Bettencourt, Sara; Lucas, Carlos; Costa, Sónia; Caeiro, SandraMarine litter is a complex and multi-dimensional problem, with beach litter surveys being an important cost-effective tool for monitoring and assessing marine litter pollution. In Madeira Island (Portugal, NE Atlantic), a region awarded several times as ‘Europe’s Leading Island Destination’ and with a particular orography, there is a scarce understanding of the situation of marine debris. A two-year monitoring (July 2020 to April 2022) of macro-litter was conducted on two beaches in Funchal, the largest city and capital of the island. The abundance, composition, sources, and pathways of the stranded marine litter were assessed following OSPAR guidelines. During the two years, a total of 14,265 items were recorded. The mean litter density was found to be 0.29 items/m2 and the beaches’ clean index ranged between ‘very clean’ and ‘dirty’. Cigarette butts (30.9%) and plastic objects (30.7%) were the most frequent marine litter items, followed by paper/cardboard (9.2%) and metal items (8.3%). The composition of the litter showed that most of the monitored marine debris has a land-based source, with a strong contribution from smoking-related activities and littering in streams. By characterizing the waste and identifying its source, it was possible to propose integrated management actions at a local level. Outreach and raising awareness campaigns, together with actions to limit single-use plastic items and stimulate a circular economy, could contribute to limit marine litter on the studied island but also in other regions with similar profiles.
- Towards a framework for corporate disclosure of circular economy: company perspectives and recommendationsPublication . Opferkuch, Katelin; Walker, Anna Maria; Roos Lindgreen, Erik; Caeiro, Sandra; Salomone, Roberta; Ramos, Tomás B.Circular economy (CE) is becoming an increasingly mandatory material issue within corporate sustainability reporting, however, what remains unaddressed within literature are the perspectives and capacities of the companies which must soon adapt to meet the evolving reporting requirements. This research aims to capture insights from companies engaged with CE in order to develop recommendations that support the integration of CE within corporate sustainability reports. To do this, a series of semi-structured interviews and focus groups were conducted with companies operating in Italy or the Netherlands, not limited by sector. The results provide a list of challenges experienced- and benefits gained- by companies from externally communicating CE. Companies are urged to consider not only risks associated with staying in the linear economy but also those associated with the implementation of new circular practices, to communicate potential sustainability trade-offs and reduce potential claims of CE-related greenwashing. Practical recommendations are offered for developing targets and indicators for CE as well as identifying and reporting CE-specific risks and opportunities.
- Why companies adopt supply chain sustainability practices: a study of companies in BrazilPublication . Romano, Andre; Ferreira, Luís Miguel D. F.; Caeiro, SandraWith the increased concern about social and environmental impacts, managing sustainability in supply chains has become a focus of interest. In consequence, companies are adopting supply chain sustainability practices also due to pressures from various stakeholders. Questions arise about how certain types of pressures can influence the adoption of behavioral and technical practices related to sustainability and how these relationships vary along supply chains. The research utilizes data from Brazilian companies and employs structural equation modelling to investigate the adoption of sustainability practices in supply chains. Normative and mimetic pressures positively affect behavioral and technical practices. On the other hand, coercive pressures have no influence on the adoption of sustainability practices, whether technical or behavioral. The findings enhance the understanding of how institutional pressures shape the adoption of sustainability practices, benefiting companies and policymakers aiming to promote sustainable supply chains.