The sector of agriculture is one of the most crucial in the context of ensuring food security as well as in the care for sustainable development. The food security can be improved through several aspects, one of them being the agriculture system transition, implementing more and more regenerative measures. From the agriculture transition, due to the efforts needed to achieve the expected level of green transition, farmers themselves are expected to benefit less than the future society and nature in a whole. Yet both financial institutions and agriculture companies have not reached a common understanding, what requirements should be in place to establish mutually beneficial financial products to achieve the expected level of transition in a timely manner. The aim of this study is to evaluate funding options for agriculture transition in Baltic countries – Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia. In total, for screening purposes, 29 different Banks operating in the Baltics were identified. The analysis of the financial product purposes provides a high-level perception, that loans, even if not indicating signs of support for green transition, may still support the improvements of overall country and society sustainability. The expert judgement was used to find potential links with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) identifying the potential SDGs that could be tackled when providing the financing to the specific purpose. Only two banks are observed to provide financial products that can be assessed as focused on green transition, and this research shows that financial products for agriculture companies willing to transition to sustainability are not broadly available.

Two approaches to incorporating black alder (BA) bark extractives-derived polyol into a polyurethane (PU) network were studied. In the first case, fractionation of bark extractives with tetrahydrofuran (THF), focusing on isolating the biomass fraction available for obtaining PU elastomers by casting methods using cyclic ethers as a solvent, was employed. Another approach aimed to obtain liquid bio-polyols that could be suitable for producing rigid PU foams. For this purpose, oven-dried crude BA bark water extracts were liquefied with polyethylene glycol (PEG 400) at temperatures of 130–170 °C. The effect of adding sulfuric acid as a catalyst on biomass processing was studied. Wet chemistry, GC, FTIR spectroscopy, analytical pyrolysis (PyGC/MS/FID) and rheological methods were employed to characterize the obtained polyols and insoluble fractions, enabling an assessment of biomass transformation during processing. The resulting THF-soluble fraction comprised 62% of the BA bark extract, mainly consisting of the xyloside form of the diarylheptanoid compound oregonin, along with oligomeric flavonoids and carbohydrates. The THF-insoluble fraction was most enriched with carbohydrate compounds. Moreover, it was observed that the PEG 400-insoluble fractions were predominantly composed of carbohydrate components. The results indicated that the use of sulfuric acid as a catalyst (1–1.5% of solvent) promotes the complete liquefaction of extractives, enabling biomass content in polyols of up to 15–25%. Surpassing the extract content in the starting suspension up to 30% resulted in incomplete liquefaction of biomass. These findings offer valuable insights into tailoring BA bark extractives as building blocks suitable for obtaining PU materials.

Urban trees, integral to urban environments, demonstrate intricate responses to atmospheric pollutants like particulate matter (PM), tropospheric ozone (O₃), and carbon dioxide (CO₂). Notably, O₃ induces oxidative stress in leaf tissues, while PM, consisting of fine airborne particles, interacts with urban trees through foliar deposition. This interaction is particularly interesting as tree canopies are highly effective filters, capturing and accumulating PM on their surfaces. The present study focused on silver birch, small-leaved lime, and Norway maple seedlings responses to elevated O₃ and CO₂). With and without PM. Maple seedlings exhibited the highest stem height increment, followed by lime and birch. Elevated O₃ and CO₂ without PM led to substantial height increments for lime and maple. Elevated O₃ and CO₂ without PM increased the total polyphenols in lime and maple leaves but decreased the content of total flavonoids in birch and lime leaves. Our findings underscore the adaptability of lime and maple seedlings to elevated O₃ and CO₂, positioning them as promising species for urban environments in the face of changing climates. Birch, while exhibiting biochemical changes, demonstrated less pronounced growth responses. This studyʼs insights into the intricate interactions between urban trees and multiple pollutants, particularly the species-specific responses, are of significant value for urban planning and environmental management.

To promote development, there is increasing need for activities and policies which generate and diversify income in rural areas. The starch industry in Viet Nam provides a good example of rural industrialization whereby low-value agricultural commodities such as cassava and canna are processed into high-value commodities such as starch to be used in a variety of food and non-food industries. Though this sector is relatively small, it has a high potential in terms of demand growth, poverty reduction, and income diversification in rural areas, particularly the less favored ones. The project had five main objectives: 1) to characterize the production and consumption of starch in Viet Nam; 2) to describe the marketing channels for the starch distribution system; 3) to identify the key policy issues related to the promotion of the starch industry as a strategy for rural industrialization; 4) to analyze the effects of alternative policy options for accelerating growth of the starch industry; and 5) to identify priorities for further research. The study found that growth in the starch industry has been dramatic. Over the past 10 years, the share of cassava used to process starch has grown about 250 percent, while average investment has increased by 78 percent each year. Most participants are new entrants (62 percent have entered since 1988), while industrial capacity has grown 8-fold between 1994 and 1997 alone. Moreover, the industry has strong linkages with rural development as many rural households become involved in processing through small enterprises. Rural households working as starch processors make more than twice the income of the average rural household. In turn, the industry drives increased cassava production. However, the industry faces several constraints to greater productivity: low levels of technology adoption by small operators who comprise the majority of producers; limited access to credit; the high cost of raw materials; and environmental degradation, as starch residue pollutes local water supplies. Based on an econometric analysis of key policy alternatives, the following policies were judged the most sound: research and extension activities to increase raw material (e.g. cassava) yield at the farm level, and to raise the quality of starch to compete internationally through appropriate institutions; and an increase in credit access for capital equipment investment, particularly among small and medium scale enterprises. Post-Production Research Network of International Development Research Center (IDRC), December 1998.; Donor report submitted to the International Development Research Center. December 1998