African economies can benefit tremendously from the new wave of digital innovation and information technology by using it to build and maintain sustainable systems. However, the gap in the theory and practice of providing these solutions remains poorly understood and difficult to fill. Only by addressing this gap head-on can it be traversed to the greater benefit of African citizens. Digital Solutions and the Case for Africa’s Sustainable Development is a pivotal reference source that presents existing technologies and their relevant solutions and further inspires inventions and innovation to provide sustainable solutions to African problems. Highlighting a wide range of topics including artificial intelligence, cryptocurrency, and digital identity, this book is ideally designed for government officials, public officials, computer engineers, economists, IT specialists, entrepreneurs, researchers, academicians, and students.

This book serves the purpose of documenting and promoting African experiences on sustainable development, which encompasses both, formal and non-formal education. Sustainable development is very important to Africa, but there is a paucity of publication which documents and promotes experiences from African countries. Due to their complexity, the interrelations between social, economic and political factors related to sustainable development, especially at universities, need to be better understood. There is also a real need to showcase successful examples of how African institutions are handling their sustainability challenges. It is against this background that this book has been produced. It is a truly interdisciplinary publication, useful to scholars, social movements, practitioners and members of governmental agencies and private companies, undertaking research and/or executing projects focusing on sustainability from across Africa. As African nations strive to pursue the UN Sustainable Development Goals, it is imperative to cater for the information needs seen across the continent and foster the dissemination of experiences and case studies, which may support both, on-going and future efforts. The scope of the book is deliberately kept wide, and we are looking for contributions across the spectrum of sustainable development from business and economics, to arts and fashion, administration, environment, languages and media studies.

Sustainable and smart spatial planning in Africa : introduction -- Theory of sustainable and smart spatial planning -- Context and external drives of sustainable and smart spatial planing -- Goals and practice of sustainable and smart spatial planning -- Methods and tools for sustainable and smart spatial planning -- Future of sustainable and smart spatial planning in Africa.

In recent decades, the industrial revolution has increased economic growth despite its immersion in global environmental issues such as climate change. Researchers emphasize the adoption of circular economy practices in global supply chains and businesses for better socio-environmental sustainability without compromising economic growth. Integrating blockchain technology into business practices could promote the circular economy as well as global environmental sustainability. Integrating Blockchain Technology Into the Circular Economy discusses the technological advancements in circular economy practices, which provide better results for both economic growth and environmental sustainability. It provides relevant theoretical frameworks and the latest empirical research findings in the applications of blockchain technology. Covering topics such as big data analytics, financial market infrastructure, and sustainable performance, this book is an essential resource for managers, operations managers, executives, manufacturers, environmentalists, researchers, industry practitioners, students and educators of higher education, and academicians.

We are living in a digital era in which most of our daily activities take place online. This has created a big data phenomenon that has been subject to scientific research with increasingly available tools and processing power. As a result, a growing number of social science scholars are using computational methods for analyzing social behavior. To further the area, these evolving methods must be made known to sociological research scholars. Opportunities and Challenges for Computational Social Science Methods focuses on the implementation of social science methods and the opportunities and challenges of these methods. This book sheds light on the infrastructure that should be built to gain required skillsets, the tools used in computational social sciences, and the methods developed and applied into computational social sciences. Covering topics like computational communication, ecological cognition, and natural language processing, this book is an essential resource for researchers, data scientists, scholars, students, professors, sociologists, and academicians.

The unprecedented nature of the COVID-19 pandemic impacted individuals, families, communities, states, and countries in ways that were never expected. A closer study of how the pandemic affected different areas of individuals’ development and mental and physical health, while also offering best practices and therapies for contending with extreme changes in life, is necessary to successfully move forward. The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Child, Adolescent, and Adult Development delves into how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted schooling, relationships, and mental, physical, and developmental health as well as how it adversely impacted those with disabilities. This publication is beneficial to those in academic settings within a variety of disciplines including psychology, sociology, epidemiology, public health, among others, as well as for laypeople and educational institutions who are trying to work through the impact of the pandemic and to better comprehend the changes, aftermath, and best practices for progressing. Covering a range of topics such as creative art therapy and child abuse, this essential reference is ideal for researchers, academicians, practitioners, administrators, instructors, counselors, and students.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused institutions to rethink traditional practices and consider new ways of learning and approaching students, faculty, and staff. Though not always embraced in the past, colleges and universities turned to online education in order to keep students enrolled as the health of students had to be prioritized. For institutions that may not have had health services on campus, such as community colleges, these needs called for more planning and options for referral of services. Education Reform in the Aftermath of the COVID-19 Pandemic educates individuals regarding the impact of COVID-19 on higher education institutions internally and externally and considers the lessons learned as well as what could be next. The book also presents solutions to the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic wrought on universities and colleges and looks toward using those solutions for future applications. Covering a range of topics such as student engagement, enrollment, and virtual spaces, it is an ideal resource for administrators, educators, mental health professionals, faculty, universities, and students.

The tourism industry faces pressing challenges amidst the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. It is necessary to address the lack of a comprehensive understanding of AI's impact on the sector, emphasizing its role in reshaping the travel ecosystem, enhancing customer experiences, and optimizing operational efficiency. Ethical considerations surrounding AI implementation in tourism must be thoroughly examined to guide responsible technology use. AI Innovations for Travel and Tourism illuminates how AI revolutionizes travel ecosystems, beginning with an insightful introduction to AI's impact on tourism, laying the groundwork for a nuanced understanding of its transformative potential. Delving into personalized travel planning, the book navigates the reader through the intricacies of AI-enhanced destination recommendations, digging into how these technologies redefine the travel experience. Smart booking systems and travel experiences demonstrate how AI streamlines operations and raises customer satisfaction. This book is ideal for tourism scholars, educators, students, researchers, and industry professionals.

Strategic Entrepreneurial Ecosystems and Business Model Innovation is the first collection to focus both on entrepreneurial ecosystems and business model innovation, thereby taking a novel and new approach to entrepreneurship and strategic management.

A level of decision making is concerned with deciding the organization’s objectives, resources, and policies. A significant problem at this decision-making level is predicting the organization’s future and its environment as well as matching the organization’s characteristics to that environment. This process generally involves technology and knowledge from the market and clients. In the current era, the implementation of marketing information systems supported with AI techniques is crucial to being a unique opportunity to leverage marketing strategies with cutting-edge technologies. Global Perspectives on the Strategic Role of Marketing Information Systems communicates the recent advances in marketing information systems. Covering topics such as digital entrepreneurship, international business, and micro and small enterprises, this premier reference source is a cutting-edge resource for marketers, entrepreneurs, business leaders and managers, IT managers, students and educators of higher education, librarians, researchers, and academicians.