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Role of AI in Strengthening ESG Governance: Perspective From Industry Experts
Socially conscious investors, especially Gen Z, value ethics over money. ESG reports are as important as financial reports for them. ESG ratings from various sources can puzzle these Gen Z investors, as there is no standardization in ESG data. Firstly, the chapter focuses on the need to integrate AI into ESG reporting by highlighting the limitations of mere frameworks such as GRI, SASB, and ISSB. Secondly, it emphasizes the difference between traditional reporting and AI-integrated ESG reporting. It also points out the challenges of AI integration and ways to overcome these challenges. Lastly, the chapter also proposes the need for a unified framework, making it easier for investors to compare and make decisions. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Bionanomaterials in Environmental Protection
The advent of globalization with ongoing anthropogenic actions has increased the rate of contaminants worsening aquatic, soil, and air systems, with increasing concern throughout the world. The several problems posed by these pollutants have endangered the environment as well as humans, leading to the application tasks of various conventional methods options to remove the pollutants. However, these technologies are costlier, of long duration, increasing energy consumption and also leading to toxins production. Nanotechnology, a newer method, has created a significant role in solving specific qualitative and quantitative, environmental issues of treating air, water, and soil by detection and removal of pollutants. Nanoparticles (NP) are low-cost, less energy consuming, eco-friendly and have higher efficiency rates. Nanosorbent, nanofiltration, nanocatalytic, and nanosensors methods have been used for the treatment of waste waters, air, and pollutant detection. There are different physical and chemical treatment options that have been employed for the synthesis of NPs, such as microwave heating and ultrasound methods. However recent decades have emphasized the green synthesis involving plant extracts and microbial sources due to their sustainability. Green synthesized NPs have gained immense interest due to their simplicity and relatively high reproducibility. In view of their capabilities, bionanomaterials can be used for eliminating pollutants and toxins, helping to maintain and spread a greener and cleaner environment. 2025 selection and editorial matter, Shakeel Ahmed; individual chapters, the contributors. -
Clinical Intelligence: Deep Reinforcement Learning for Healthcare and Biomedical Advancements
Deep reinforcement learning (DRL) is showing a remarkable impact in the healthcare and biomedical domains, leveraging its ability to learn complex decision-making policies from raw data through trial-and-error interactions. DRL can effectively extract the characteristic information in the environment, propose effective behavior strategies, and correct errors that occurred during the training process. Targeted toward healthcare professionals, researchers, and technology enthusiasts, this chapter begins with notable applications of DRL in healthcare, including personalized treatment recommendations, clinical trial optimization, disease diagnosis, robotic surgery and assistance, mental health support systems, chronic disease management and scheduling, and a few more. It also delves on challenges such as data privacy, interpretability, regulatory compliance, validation, and the need for domain expertise to ensure safe and effective deployment. Next, the chapter seamlessly transitions into DRL algorithms contributing to the biomedical field which are gaining traction due to their potential to provide timely and personalized interventions. Over time, the research community has proposed several methods and algorithms within the field of deep reinforcement learning that help agents learn optimal policies from rich data. Healthcare data is often complex, high-dimensional, and unstructured, such as medical images, genomics data, and patient records. The healthcare-suitable DRL algorithms such as Q-learning, SARSA, Bayesian, actor-critic, reinforcement learning (RL), Deep-Q-Networks (DQN), and Monte Carlo Tree Search (MCTS) are highlighted. In addition, the section offers guidelines for the application of DRL to healthcare and biomedical problems, aiming at providing indications to the designer of new applications in order to choose among different RL methods. Furthermore, a case study is included to fully realize the revolutionary benefits of DRL in healthcare environments, aiming to bridge the gap between theory and practice. The case study presents a remarkable impact on categories such as precision medicine, dynamic treatment regime, medical imaging, diagnostic systems, control systems, chat-bots and advanced interfaces, and healthcare management systems. 2024 Scrivener Publishing LLC. -
Revisiting African womanhood: Historical archives
This chapter highlights African women's lives, experiences, and contributions to the continent's social, economic, and political development by revisiting historical archives about African womanhood. The chapter provides critical insights into the diversity and complexity of women's experiences in pre-colonial, colonial, and post-colonial contexts by examining historical sources such as oral histories, archival documents, and secondary literature. The chapter explores topics including women's roles in pre-colonial societies, the impact of colonialism on women's lives, women's activism in nationalist movements, and the challenges and opportunities of post-colonial African femininity. It also emphasizes the impact of gendered power relations on women's lives and women's strategies to resist and challenge these power dynamics. In conclusion, the chapter demonstrates the significance of emphasizing women's voices and perspectives in writing African history and its implications for current efforts to advance gender equality and social justice in Africa and beyond. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Big data analytics lifecycle
Big data analysis is the process of looking through and gleaning important insights from enormous, intricate datasets that are too diverse and massive to be processed via conventional data processing techniques. To find patterns, trends, correlations, and other important information entails gathering, storing, managing, and analyzing massive amounts of data. Datasets that exhibit the three Vs-volume, velocity, and variety-are referred to as "big data. " The vast amount of data produced from numerous sources, including social media, sensors, devices, transactions, and more, is referred to as volume. The rate at which data is generated and must be processed in real-time or very close to real-time is referred to as velocity. Data that is different in its sorts and formats, such as structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data, is referred to as being varied. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Technology-integrated after-school program: A case study of the DREAMS intervention
In the rapidly evolving context of the 21st century, education is experiencing a profound and transformative shift, driven by the emergence of digital technologies. This innovative paradigm seamlessly weaves technology into the very fabric of learning and administration, not only within the traditional school setting but also extending its transformative reach to affiliated initiatives like after-school programs. The aim of this chapter is to share the valuable insights and firsthand experiences gained from the integration of technology in the DREAMS program in both learning and project management. By sharing these learnings, the chapter aims to share the knowledge and best practices of adopting technology in any program. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
ChatGPT in education: Augmenting learning experience or dehumanizing education?
This chapter critically examines the potential of ChatGPT, an AI language model, to revolutionise education. It presents a comprehensive analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of using ChatGPT in education, including its ability to enhance the learning experience and the potential loss of essential skills due to over-reliance on technology. The chapter also raises ethical concerns about using ChatGPT in education, including data privacy and bias. Ultimately, the chapter concludes that ChatGPT should be used with human teachers to create a learning environment combining technology and human interaction. It highlights the importance of using ChatGPT responsibly to enhance, rather than dehumanise, education. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Digital educational neuropsychology: Challenges and opportunities
This chapter introduces the various facets of digital educational neuropsychology. It begins by explaining digital educational neuropsychology and the current practices in digital neuropsychology. It then explains the opportunities and the challenges faced by neuropsychology in digitization of neuropsychology education, training, assessment, and rehabilitation and how it can be improved. The challenges in the implementation of digital educational neuropsychology in terms of access and equity; validity and reliability of digital assessments; training and professional development; variability in the perceptual, motor, and cognitive demands across different devices; and the rapid changes in technology are explained elaborately. A full discussion on opportunities including enhancement of digital education using neuropsychological techniques, neuroscience experimental techniques, in tandem with behavioural measures is provided. Further, the importance of collaborative effort from professionals is required to build more effective strategies for digital education is emphasized. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Involvement and implementation of corporate social responsibility (CSR): A case of COVID-19 evidence from various countries
Industry performance is a pivotal indicator for assessing the robustness of economic growth of a country. Any fluctuations in this indicator wield considerable influence over economic growth. Previous research has established that the industry performance is not a static phenomenon but rather exhibits variations across different time periods. Amongst the multitude of crises, the COVID-19 pandemic reverberated across every nation, spreading to all strata of society. It had an adverse impact on both public and private sector impacting the lives of millions. Industries were struggling with dwindling profits, thus trying vehemently to cut costs in diverse realms. This challenging financial predicament made it difficult for companies to uphold their corporate social responsibilities. Hence, only a few companies initiated CSR activities due to the paucity of funds. Having this in the backdrop, this case study analysis aims to examine corporate involvement and implementation of CSR activities during the COVID-19 pandemic and assesses the extent to which these activities have helped improve people's lives. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Place-based strategies, multichannel merger, and context-driven alerts for engagement with mobile marketing
Mobile marketing is essential for timely, personalized communication in the digital world. Engagement is increased by location-based strategies like geofencing and context-driven notifications. Integrating social media improves ties with customers. In the digital age, multi-channel integration guarantees a smooth and personalized experience. As per the authors, this chapter explores how location-based suggestions, context-driven notifications, and multi-channel integration enhance client connections while highlighting the significance of geolocation data for targeted content. For context-driven notifications to be effective, helpfulness and privacy must be balanced. Companies create stronger relationships with their consumers and improve the customer experience, which motivates both present and new customers to engage and connect with their brand. An analysis is conducted on the changing field of mobile marketing, emphasizing the use of location-based tactics, multi-channel integration, and context-driven notifications to increase user engagement. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Greenpreneurship pioneering solutions for climate change: An Indian perspective
In an era marked by pressing global climate challenges, the role of green entrepreneurship, or "greenpreneurship, " has gained paramount significance. The present chapter begins by elucidating the inherent connection between greenpreneurship and climate change, followed the contributions of the greenpreneurs appreciating their efforts to make a difference to the society. The chapter mentions certain skills and traits required by greenpreneurs to run their business. It states the challenges that the greenpreneurs face. The chapter then takes a dive into the realm of greenpreneurship from an Indian perspective. India, with its unique blend of environmental challenges and a burgeoning entrepreneurial ecosystem, presents an intriguing case study. The chapter illustrates how Indian greenpreneurs are contributing to a cleaner, greener future. It states the policies which the government has made to support greenpreneurs in the country. Finally, recommendations are given for existing greenpreneurs, budding entrepreneurs, the public, and the government to collectively drive green solutions. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Understanding green economy
Resource efficiency, environmentally friendly consumption and production, and the green economy's contribution to sustainable development resource efficiency refer to the ways in which resources are used to deliver value to society and aims to reduce the amount of resources needed, as well as emissions and waste generated, per unit of product or service. Sustainable consumption and production aim to improve production processes and consumption practices to reduce resource consumption, waste generation, and emissions across the full life cycle of processes and products. A macroeconomic strategy for achieving sustainable economic growth is offered by the green economy, with a primary emphasis on investments, jobs, and skills. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Affiliate Marketing and the Symbiotic Relationship in the Pharma Industry
The objective of the study is to understand the dynamic relationship between customers and the healthcare industry giants in the Indian context. The purpose revolves around how the consumer is benefitting and at the same time, how the indirect third-party affiliates also earn marginal profits along with serving the customers. The study is backed by both primary and secondary data, which were collected from 173 individuals from various fields through a questionnaire. The convenience sampling method was used to select the respondents, and the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was used to propose the model for the study. There exists a parallel symbiotic relationship between consumers, pharmaceutical companies, and affiliates. The application of this research can be put to use for the startups, which want to explore and excel in this industry along with the future researchers who want to forecast and study the progress of the pharma companies in the long run. The empirical evidence of this paper highlights a unique relationship between affiliates, the pharma sector, and customers, which drives customer buying behavior and a combination that has not been explored yet. The study provides a unique understanding of how feedback from customers in third-party applications can benefit and produce huge profit margins down the line. 2025 Apple Academic Press, Inc. -
Data-Driven Decision Making in the VUCA Context: Harnessing Data for Informed Decisions
Data-driven decision making (DDDM) has evolved from being a strategic advantage to a necessity for organizations aiming to thrive in the dynamic business contexts. It is about using data as a tool to enhance strategic thinking, scenario planning, and adaptation in rapidly changing environments. It involves leveraging data and analytics to navigate the challenges of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. By embracing DDDM, organizations can enhance their decision-making processes, gain a competitive edge, and navigate the challenges of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity with greater confidence. However, successful implementation requires addressing challenges, fostering a data-driven culture, and continually adapting best practices to meet the evolving demands of the VUCA environment. This chapter discusses how organizations leverage DDDM in VUCA context to support effective and rapid decision making aligned with organizations vision. Particularly, it would offer insights to transit from volatility to vision, uncertainty to understanding, complexity to clarity, and ambiguity to agility. The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2024. -
Investor behaviour, market efficiency, and regulatory challenges in digital currency investments: A comprehensive literature review
The rapid proliferation of digital currencies has ignited significant interest in understanding investor behaviour and the regulatory challenges within this evolving financial landscape. The study seeks to elucidate the factors that influence investor behaviour in the cryptocurrency/digital currency market and explore the regulatory implications associated with digital currency investments. A systematic approach was adopted to identify, review, and analyze relevant scholarly articles from reputable databases. The selected articles span various dimensions of the cryptocurrency/digital currency ecosystem, including investor behaviour, market efficiency, technological innovation, and regulatory measures. It reveals that investor behaviour in the digital currency market is influenced by a complex interplay of emotions, market sentiment, and information asymmetry. Additionally, market efficiency theories are being reconsidered in light of the highly volatile nature of cryptocurrencies. Regulatory challenges encompass issues related to fraud, pump-and-dump schemes, and legal ambiguity. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Skill sets required to meet a human-centered Industry 5.0: A systematic literature review and bibliometric analysis
The first industrial revolution, known as Industry 1.0, was primarily concerned with mechanical engineering and water and steam. Electric power systems and mass production assembly lines were established during the second industrial revolution (Industry 2.0). The third industrial revolution (Industry 3.0) was defined as automatic manufacturing and the incorporation of electronics, computers, and information technology into manufacturing. The fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0) is automating business operations and advancing manufacturing to a level based on connected devices, smart factories, cyberphysical systems (CPS), and the internet of things (IoT), where machines will change how they interact with one another and carry out specific tasks. Industry 5.0, with all modern technologies, is aimed to be a harmonious balance between human and machine interaction, and has an emphasis on sustainable growth. The present study uses an interpretive-qualitative research method to review the skill sets required to meet a human-centered Industry 5.0. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Study on the growth of the ott platform during lockdown and its future scope
This research tries to review the growth of OTT platforms throughout the lockdown. It's vital to understand the extent of increase within the popularity of OTT platforms throughout lockdown to understand their future scope. It's evident that, since their launch, OTT platforms have solely discovered an upward curve in their usage, and because of the pandemic and lockdown there has been exponential increase in its popularity because of the modification in consumption patterns of individuals for diversion through numerous media platforms. This analysis conducted a survey and analyzed the opinions of individuals relating to OTT platforms, their consumption patterns, and its comparison with cinema to examine if OTT platforms were slowly taking on the foremost fashionable standard medium of diversion. It had been found that individuals used OTT over the other platforms outside of TV and YouTube to pass their time or for diversion. 2024, IGI Global. -
Comprehending algorithmic bias and strategies for fostering trust in artificial intelligence
Fairness is threatened by algorithm bias, systematic and unfair disparities in machine learning results. Amazon's AI-driven hiring tool favoured men. AI promised data-driven, impartial decision-making, but it has revealed sector-wide prejudice, perpetuating systematic imbalances. The algorithm's bias is data and design. Biassed historical data and feature selection and pre-processing can bias algorithms. Development is harmed by human biases. Algorithm prejudice impacts money, education, employment, and crime. Diverse and representative data collection, understanding complicated "black box" algorithms, and legal and ethical considerations are needed to address this bias. Despite these issues, algorithm bias elimination techniques are emerging. This chapter uses secondary data to study algorithm bias. Algorithm bias is defined, its origins, its prevalence in data, examples, and issues are discussed. The chapter also tackles bias reduction and elimination to make AI a more reliable and impartial decision-maker. 2024, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Streaming success: Examining the impact of ott media on content production and consumption of New Malayalam Cinema
Exploring the prosperous union of New Malayalam Cinema and OTT platforms, this chapter scrutinises the circumstances under which the former thrived on OTTs during the COVID-19 pandemic. It delves into Malayalee market trends, the content diversification incited by OTTs, and the expansion of New Malayalam Cinema's market. As it explores changing audience consumption patterns and the prospects of India's OTT landscape, it particularly accentuates Malayalam regional cinema. By providing examples of films that debuted on OTT platforms, such as C U Soon and Joji, the chapter offers an in-depth analysis, highlighting the success of this symbiotic relationship. 2024, IGI Global. -
Effectiveness of gamification in facilitating microlearning for gen Z
This chapter offers a thorough examination of the uses, advantages, and difficulties of gamification in higher education. In contrast to game-based learning, gamification uses specific game features to improve the learning experience. This chapter investigates the use of gamification to engage and inspire Generation Z (Gen Z) pupils with the goal of enhancing their academic performance. It underlines the necessity for game development that increases motivation and engagement in educational settings and highlights the measurement of student progress based on completed activities. Effective instructional approaches are crucial in a time where there is a constant stream of information and people have short attention spans. A promising approach to overcoming these difficulties in both online and offline education utilizing ICT technologies is offered as gamified microlearning, which combines microlearning and games. 2024, IGI Global.