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This study examines the impact of deposit money banks' loan on agricultural sustainability in Nigeria for the period 1985–2017. The study adopted the ARDL bonding test to determine the short- and long-run effect of deposit money banks' loan on agricultural sustainability in Nigeria. It found that bank loans have a negative impact on agricultural sustainability in both the short and long run. Similarly, deposit money banks' interest rate also has an inverse relationship on agricultural growth in Nigeria in both the long and short run. The study concludes that bank finance is very impactful in stimulating agricultural growth within the context of the Nigerian economy. Therefore, the study recommends that the Nigerian government should increase agricultural financing and lower interest rates in order to achieve food sufficiency and promote agricultural sustainability.

The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI), particularly within the last decade and the application of ‘deep learning’, has simultaneously accelerated human fears of the changes AI provokes in human behaviour. The question is not any more if the new phenomena, like artificially-induced consciousness, empathy or creation, will be widely used, but whether they will be used in ethically acceptable ways and for ethically acceptable purposes.

Departing from a diagnosis of the state humans have brought themselves to by (ab)use of technology, the present chapter investigates the possibility of a systematic study of adaptations human society will have to consider in order to guarantee the obeyance to the fundamental ethical values and thus its spiritual survival. To that end, a new discipline – epharmology (from the Greek epharmozein = to adapt) is proposed, together with its aims and methodology.

Given the existing quality concerns of higher education (HE), particularly in the global South, the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been seen as a panacea to improve the quality of teaching learning in HE. AI Chatbots, like ChatGPT, have created profound resonance across HE systems with both positive and negative impacts. Within HE, expectations and concerns related to the quality of HE in general, and teaching learning in particular, loom. It is yet to be investigated how university teachers use AI chatbots in their teaching inside classrooms and its potential to enhance the quality of teaching learning in HE. This chapter sheds light on these questions based on in-depth qualitative interviews with faculty members from six universities in Pakistan. Using a thematic analysis approach, the findings highlight both positive and negative aspects of ChatGPT when used for teaching in HE. Based on the findings, we developed a four-stage framework highlighting faculty members' response to integrating ChatGPT for transforming teaching learning activities. We explain that transformation of teaching learning with AI requires educators to rethink teaching and learning – navigative response – and assess its integration – evaluative response. In conclusion, we discuss how the adoption of AI chatbots provides educators with authentic assessment but will certainly require skills to properly navigate. We further discuss the findings in literature around the quality of HE making some plausible predictions regarding whether chatbots can serve as a quality enhancement tool, mainly in the global South.

The paper analyses the strategic management strategies of UK Construction Contracting Firms (CCFs) and their impact on the industry, highlighting their fragmentation, high-risk, low-profit nature and low profit returns. It suggests proactive strategies for sustainable growth and explores the potential of corporate diversification.

Utilising a thematic critical literature review, specific inclusion/exclusion criteria are used to select relevant literature together with a thematic qualitative synthesis data analysis approach to identify trends and challenges.

UK CCFs primarily use reactive and project-based strategic management, which may not align with long-term success due to market volatility, reactive supply, fragmentation, high competition and lack of differentiation. The short-term business cycle makes medium- to long-term strategy development difficult. It is recommended that CCFs adopt proactive strategic management and consider corporate diversification for enhanced competitiveness, stability and performance. Although there are conflicting findings on the impact of diversification on firm performance, this research suggests that it is a viable strategy for achieving enhanced firm performance and competitive advantage.

The importance of proactive corporate strategies for CCFs is emphasised to overcome industry challenges, promote sustainable growth and enhance competitiveness. Corporate diversification, cultural transformation, management qualifications promotion and talent development collaboration are advocated, providing valuable insights for practitioners, policymakers and researchers.

The practical implications of this research involve fostering a shift towards proactive and dynamic strategic management in the UK construction industry, addressing the historical neglect of broader strategic perspectives and empowering practitioners and academics to drive positive change and innovation within the sector.

The social implications of this research encompass the potential to enhance the overall efficiency, sustainability and collaborative dynamics within the UK construction industry, which can ultimately contribute to improved infrastructure development and the well-being of communities.

Project-driven strategic management in the UK construction industry is explored, questioning the reactive approach used by CCFs. It provides insights, best practices and improvement areas, emphasising diversification, proactive corporate strategies, cultural shifts and industry improvement, spanning theory, practice and theory.

There is little empirical evidence on how blockchain affordances may encourage consumers to make sustainable choices. Thus, this paper examines how blockchain affordances affect consumers’ sustainable consumption.

We focus on three blockchain affordances: transparency, traceability, and immutability in this paper. By integrating the affordance lens and theory of consumption values (TCV), we develop a research model wherein we posit that blockchain affordances influence several consumption values, which then affect consumers’ intention to purchase sustainable products. In the study, we designed a scenario and user interface for a novel blockchain-based app for sustainable consumption in the context of the fashion industry and surveyed 295 European consumers to examine the study’s research model. We then analyzed the collected data using the partial least squares technique.

The results show that blockchain affordances positively affect consumption values, including efficiency, social impression, trust, and sustainability information clarity. In turn, these values influence the consumers’ purchase intention of sustainable products. Additionally, our post hoc analysis shows that these consumption values fully mediate the effect of blockchain affordances on consumers’ purchase intention, where trust and sustainability information clarity is found to have a higher impact.

Empirical research studies focusing on understanding blockchain’s effect on sustainable consumption values have been limited in prior literature. This study, drawing on the affordance lens, proposes distinct blockchain affordances and empirically validates their impact on consumers’ sustainable purchase intention. By integrating TCV, it highlights the mediating mechanism that drives blockchain’s impact on consumers’ purchase intention. We empirically identify the values that mediate the effects of blockchain affordances on consumers’ purchase intention; further, we discuss implications for research and practice based on the study findings.