The society has changed its habits, and public demand requires a more extensive offer of environmentally friendly goods and services on the market, including more products of plant origin. New plant-based products continuously appear on the market. As competition in the segment of plant-based beverages intensifies, brands are forced into differentiating their products by including elements of sustainable marketing in their marketing materials to induce consumers into making purchase decisions and purchases. This study aims to find out which sustainable marketing elements contribute to consumer decisions to purchase and consume plant-based beverages. The article presents the results and trends based on the 1st stage of the study – a pilot survey and structured in-depth expert interviews. The pilot survey identified the key sustainable marketing elements in consumer decisions to purchase plant-based beverages: product availability at food supermarkets; advertising at point of sale indicating price discounts; healthy product composition and raw materials; convenient in-store placement, price discounts and natural raw materials, etc. Based on the results of the pilot survey, there were changes made in the consumer questionnaire, and the 2nd stage of the study – a survey of the Latvian population to find out the complex factors affecting consumer buying decisions – was launched in February 2024.

Recent developments in politics and economy has created additional challenges for medical institutions with lack of medical personnel, transportation from rural areas to medical institutions. Very often, there is a difference between medical services in urban and rural areas. In research is often mentioned that male and female persons have different evaluations on their health situation. The aim of the paper is to prepare research based recommendations for possible steps for public administrators to support availability of medical services in urban and rural areas. Tasks of the current research: analysis of theoretical findings reflected in scientific publications and discussion of research results, analysis of tendencies of self-perceived health status of population in Latvia, analysis on possible differences between gender as in scientific publications is often mentioned that female and male persons have different evaluations, analysis of health self-evaluations between inhabitants in rural and urban territories and possible differences in evaluations for persons with different employment status. Representative data from EUSILC, different statistical analysis methods and statistical indicators are used: indicators of descriptive statistics, crosstabulations, testing of statistical hypotheses with t-test and analysis of variance – ANOVA, chi-square test, as well as correlation analysis. Research results confirm that self-perceived health status in Latvia are higher in rural areas and higher health self-esteem evaluations were made by female persons.

Employment is a crucial indicator of economic development and growth, making employment policy a key component of national and regional socio-economic strategies. Self-employment is a significant form of employment widely practiced in Latvia and other EU Member States as a means to initiate businesses and integrate into the labour market. As of 2022, about 27.66 million self-employed individuals, constituting roughly 14% of the EU workforce, contribute to the European economy. Modern work dynamics allow individuals to earn income as employees or self-employed, with flexible employment forms, including self-employment, gaining popularity due to several advantages. These advantages include increased flexibility, personal independence, opportunities to join or stay in the labour market, and the potential to earn additional income alongside a primary job. However, self-employment also has its drawbacks. It can be exploited to evade taxes and bypass labour laws, leading to ʻfalse self-employmentʼ. While this may appear advantageous for the self-employed, it primarily benefits employers by reducing their costs. This practice can severely limit the self-employedʼs access to social protection and adversely impact their quality of life and financial stability in situations of social risk, such as illness, disability, or retirement. Self-employment involves various economic, psychological, sociological, and managerial dimensions and entails considerable risk. Global trends indicate that individuals in lower-income countries are more likely to be self-employed, whereas those in higher-income countries tend to have paid employment.

One of the main factors thanks to which the Ukrainian economy withstood the powerful beginning of the full-scale military invasion of Russia and has been maintaining courage for more than two years, is the high level of social initiatives of business and self-awareness of Ukrainian society. Agricultural companies not only protect their business, but also continue to work to support the army, their workers, communities and vulnerable population. The article analyses the features of the implementation of corporate social responsibility as a modern business strategy. The specifics of corporate social responsibility practices of agricultural companies have been established, which is aimed at: socio-psychological and financial support for company employees; ensuring the defence capability of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and related structures; humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons and vulnerable populations; support of territorial communities in the regions of presence. New directions of CSR, the emergence of which was a direct consequence of the war, have been identified and systematized. It has been established that these include: additional emergency leaves; military leaves with retention of compensation; regular emotional check-ins in teams; ‘Ukraine firstʼ case, ‘National Identityʼ case, ‘Ukraine Culture Codeʼ case. It was determined that the essence of these new cases is meaningful national education, support of national identity, raising the level of awareness of Ukrainian cultural heritage and debunking myths about ‘Sovietʼ Ukraine. Furthermore, it was established that the emergence of such practices is connected with a clear understanding of Ukrainian society about the need to rebuild the state after the victory.

In Lithuania, as well as throughout Europe, the areas of natural meadows and pastures are gradually decreasing due to the intensification of agriculture, leading to the ploughing of meadows and the consequent loss of valuable biodiversity, a crucial component of the landscape. The problems associated with meadow and pasture reduction is essential for informed decision-making, sustainable land management, the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystem services. Various methods, including comparative, analytical, statistical, and logical analysis, were employed in the investigation. The comparative study employed information from the Land Fund of the Republic of Lithuania covering the period from 2003 to 2023. The article also analyses the reasons and perspectives of the decrease in meadow and natural pasture areas. In 2023, meadows and natural pastures in the Republic of Lithuania covered 362,351.79 ha, constituting 5.55% of the countryʼs territory. From 2003 to 2023, the total area of meadows and natural pastures decreased by 135,439.55 hectares or 27.21%. From 2003 to 2023, in nine out of ten Lithuanian counties, the areas of meadows and pastures decreased. The most significant loss of these areas occurred in Siauliai County (36,828.33 ha or 59.02%), while the least loss was in Klaipeda County (141.05 ha or 0.34%). The decrease in meadow and natural pasture areas can be attributed to various factors: changes in land use, urbanization, climate change and other influencing factors. The area of meadows and pastures in Lithuania should increase by 87,000 hectares, and meadows and pastures in country would cover an area of 449,351.79 ha or 6.88% of the total area of the Republic of Lithuania.

This paper provides an overview of recent progress reached in semi-transparent photovoltaic systems (STPV), which are being assessed as a potential solution to enhance the productivity of plant grown in greenhouses. Utilizing this kind of renewable energy resources, relating with plant growing is attractive solution to increase sustainability for citizens. The aim of this study is to find out recent advances for application of various semi-transparent photovoltaic systems which can be integrated in greenhouses. Solar PVs are among dependable, mature and cost-effective renewable energy systems and solutions, which are promising for building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) application. The main emerging photovoltaic candidates for BIPV are amorphous silicon, kesterite, chalcopyrite, CdTe, dye-sensitized, organic and perovskite based systems. A monographic study approach has been utilized in this investigation, in ordain to compile and analyse the photovoltaic systems for BIPV mainly investigating and comparing two main parameters: average visible transmittance (AVT) and power conversion efficiency (PCE). The rapid development of new materials and structures for the manufacture of semi-transparent solar panels allows a balance to be struck between AVT, PCE and a comparison of the reviewed materials indicates that organic and perovskite are the most promising for semi-transparent solar panel production and application in greenhouse constructions, based on their PCE and AVT results.

Monitoring the operation of car engines using a smartphone and cloud services is a concept that falls within the field of intelligent vehicle technologies. Using information collection system, vehicle fleet companies can effectively manage the usage of their vehicles, minimizing investment and maintenance costs, preventing accidents and failures, identifying poor driving behaviour among employees, and reducing expenses associated with fuel, tires, and other resources. This approach involves collecting real-time data from the vehicle engine sensors, transferring data to the cloud via a smartphone, and then using cloud services to analyse and manage the information, making it understandable in a simple way. This review reflects on the working efficiency of internal combustion engines and the reduction of pollution to the environment, also gathers existing literature to gain insights into vehicle sensor data acquisition technology and systems in the automotive industry identifying gaps in current knowledge and provide a conceptual framework for next practical research in this field. After explaining the general idea of logistics tasks in technology development, various sensors and their methods are associated with engine properties are introduced. The research results show that most articles are about data acquisition systems from different systems. They can provide convenience and flexibility for users, allowing them to easily access and adjust settings on-the-go, enabling real-time monitoring and adjustment of engine performance, helping users optimize efficiency and performance based on their specific needs and preferences.

Engineering structures such as bridges, overpasses, and viaducts constitute a crucial component of the infrastructure of any industrial city. The wide-scale industrialisation of the twentieth century transformed the urban landscape. Many designs and solutions have become morally and physically outdated since those times, yet their usage continues, which is not always safe. With the aging of infrastructure, the issue of their further safe use inevitably arises. Geodetic monitoring of structural deformations can provide control and safety, as well as gather data for designers and engineers. The data collected by deformation monitoring systems should form the basis for the reconstruction and maintenance project of infrastructural facilities. Deformation monitoring systems are designed for each object based on the parameters of the structure, taking into account the constructive features, materials, and the importance of the infrastructural object to the city traffic. It is not always possible to completely close an overpass during reconstruction, as this would affect the transport flow in a specific district of the city. Monitoring of recently put into operation structures will ensure the collection of deformation data for the survival analysis. Once the structural health is defined, the period of service life until scheduled maintenance will be determined. As a result of our research on the Brasa overpass in Riga, we developed a scheme for swift response to signals from the monitoring systemʼs sensors. Additionally, we ensured the safe operation of the old overpass during the construction of the new one by promptly utilising data obtained from the deformation monitoring system.

Sustainability, green growth and the European Green Deal principles are the cornerstones that should and will affect our lives. The aim of the paper is to provide possible improvements to higher education programmes to promote the implementation of the European Green Deal as a factor for changes in business. The research is based on investigations into the entrepreneurship students’ knowledge of the European Green Deal. A theoretical analysis of literature and policy documents were investigated to develop an appropriate questionnaire for the survey of Latvian university students. The research methods involve measures of central tendency and location, T-test, ANOVA and correlation analysis. The research results indicate that business curricula involve courses on Sustainable Development and universitiesʼ role in teaching the Green Deal because the students who hold experience in entrepreneurship report similar results if compared with students without experience in entrepreneurship. Students’ knowledge of the European Green Deal should be improved since there are a number of aspects where the answers were not correct. This, in turn, prompts the need to strengthen and diversify education, so that business transformation towards the Green Deal is successful. The curricula should be further improved, as it allows students to better understand EU and global trends in saving the planet and put the knowledge into practice in their companies.

In our republic in the process of preparing students for professional activity one of the urgent tasks is considered to be the development of their professional speech. It is very important for todayʼs specialist to be competent, competitive and able to communicate effectively in his future activity. However, the main problem is the teaching of professional culture and the holistic development of professional communicative competences. The aim of the article is to develop recommendations and methodological guidelines to ensure the cultural communication of future professionals. In particular, the experiment proves that the student should feel the benefit of learning a foreign language in the future and get used to independent work on the subject, and gradually the motivation to learn the language will appear. The study highlights the role of foreign language teaching in the interdependence of ‘language – communication – profession – cultureʼ, the interdependence of language and culture in the development of language skills, the systematic approach to the study of professional terms. It is a well-known fact that students, in addition to acquiring lexical and grammatical knowledge of a foreign language, should also have a perfect command of the culture and values of their country and of the country where the language is learnt. In order to effectively implement the business communication situation in the classroom, it is desirable for the student to ‘understand the foreignerʼ, to study and master the culture of the foreign country, the accepted rules and values. While doing research, the methodological recommendations and instructions for the systematic organization of foreign language teaching are given.