Journal of Sustainability Outreach
Open Access | Peer-reviewed | Fast Publication Guest Editor: Prof. Ganesh R. SinhaISSN 2435-7243
DOI Index 10.37357/1068/jso
Journal Article
Open Access
Published
Feasibility and community acceptance of modular urban farming in Singapore: Design, prototyping, and pilot testing
Ang BTW, Fong YM, Tan D, An H, Chien SC, Soh CB, Clementi M, and Dessi V.
Journal of Sustainability Outreach (ISSN 2435-7243), 2025, 5 (1): 13-23
DOI 10.37357/1068/JSO/5.1.02
Food security is a growing global challenge, intensified by urbanization and industrialization that encroach upon valuable agricultural land. In Singapore, a city-state with limited land and heavy reliance on food imports, ensuring nutritional self-sufficiency for its 5.9 million residents is an in-creasingly critical concern. This study investigates community attitudes toward the implementation of urban farming structures in residential areas and explores the feasibility of integrating space-saving farming solutions, such as urban, rooftop, and vertical farming, into Singapore’s urban land-scape. A survey conducted among local residents revealed a 73.4% positive outlook toward the concept of community urban farms, with respondents expressing strong support for the idea of localized food production. However, the survey also highlighted a significant gap in opportunities for residents to engage actively in the operation and maintenance of urban farms. Community in-volvement is a critical factor that influences the long-term sustainability and scalability of urban farming projects. These findings underscore the importance of developing strategies that foster and incentivize resident participation in these initiatives to enhance their success and viability. Based on the positive survey feedback, a modular urban farming unit was conceptualized and pro-totyped. With a focus on adaptable design and speed of installation, the designs focus on the inte-gration of agricultural spaces with minimal to zero modifications required for existing architectures. In particular, Housing Development Board (HDB) rooftops in Singapore, often have uneven terrain. To optimize environmental conditions for crop growth, advanced design tools such as Revit BIM for architectural modeling, IESVE for computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations to optimize air-flow, and BIM HVAC for assessing lighting conditions were utilized to study the environmental con-ditions critical to crop growth. Following the successful digital prototyping phase, a physical proto-type was constructed at SIT@Dover campus, in Singapore. Between March and August 2023, Kailan and Bok Choy were cultivated, averaging an annual yield of 25.6 kg/m². A second prototype, optimized for maximum yield per floor area, was installed at the Oasis Living Lab between Septem-ber 2023 and February 2024, achieving a yield of 130.2 kg/m² per year. These results demon-strate the feasibility and adaptability of modular urban farming systems in high-density environ-ments. With supportive policies and collaboration among stakeholders, the widespread adoption of such systems can be realized in the near future.
Barbara Ting Wei Ang
Engineering Cluster, Singapore Institute of Technology, Singapore 138683, Singapore
Yin Mei Fong
Engineering Cluster, Singapore Institute of Technology, Singapore 138683, Singapore
David Tan
Engineering Division, Netatech Pte Ltd, Singapore 469028, Singapore
Hui An
Engineering Cluster, Singapore Institute of Technology, Singapore 138683, Singapore
Szu-Cheng Chien
Engineering Cluster, Singapore Institute of Technology, Singapore 138683, Singapore
Chew Beng Soh
Engineering Cluster, Singapore Institute of Technology, Singapore 138683, Singapore
Matteo Clementi
Department of Architecture and Urban Studies, Politecnico di Milano, 20133 Milano, Italy
Valentina Dessi
Department of Architecture and Urban Studies, Politecnico di Milano, 20133 Milano, Italy
The authors acknowledge the funding support by (i) Singa-pore Science and Technology Cooperation R22I0IR116 and (ii) under the Singapore Food Story (SFS) R&D 621 Pro-gramme first Grant Call (Theme 1 Sustainable Urban Food Production) Award SFS_RND_SUFP_ 001_09.
Journal Article
Open Access
Published
Evaluating materiality disclosure in sustainability reports: A study of North American construction and engineering firms
Pang J, Sanchez A, Landsman J, Dunkerley E, Kaur H, and Xu J.
Journal of Sustainability Outreach (ISSN 2435-7243), 2025, 5 (1): 1-12
DOI 10.37357/1068/JSO/5.1.01
This research evaluates the sustainability reporting practices of 10 leading North American con-struction and engineering firms, focusing on adherence to the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Standards for the Engineering and Construction Services sector. The analysis covers five material topics: Ecological Impacts, Product Quality & Safety, Employee Health & Safety, Prod-uct Design & Lifecycle Management, and Business Ethics. Results reveal significant gaps in report-ing, with most firms failing to meet full disclosure for SASB metrics. Ecological Impacts and Business Ethics are the weakest areas, with limited disclosures on environmental risks and anti-competitive practices. Employee Health & Safety shows moderate compliance, with few firms reporting key metrics like Total Recordable Incident Rates (TRIR). The study highlights the urgent need for en-hanced transparency, standardized reporting, and robust governance frameworks. Improving alignment with SASB standards will foster accountability, strengthen stakeholder trust, and ad-vance sustainability within the sector.
Jason Pang
Institute for Management and Innovation, University of Toronto, ON M5S 1A1, Canada
Andrea Sanchez
Institute for Management and Innovation, University of Toronto, ON M5S 1A1, Canada
Jonathan Landsman
Institute for Management and Innovation, University of Toronto, ON M5S 1A1, Canada
Emilia Dunkerley
Institute for Management and Innovation, University of Toronto, ON M5S 1A1, Canada
Harleen Kaur
Institute for Management and Innovation, University of Toronto, ON M5S 1A1, Canada
Joanna Xu.
Institute for Management and Innovation, University of Toronto, ON M5S 1A1, Canada
The author(s) has received no specific funding for this article/publication.
Journal Article
Open Access
Published
Investigating the impact of building facades and finishing materials on the sustainable architectural identity of housing: A case study of Kabul
Alavi SF, and Tomoyuki T.
Journal of Sustainability Outreach (ISSN 2435-7243), 2024, 4 (1): 1-12
DOI 10.37357/1068/jso/4.1.01
The architectural identities of a city and its surroundings are crucial for maintaining its quality and preserving its unique features. The cities of Afghanistan have undergone significant changes in their identities due to various internal and external factors. These factors have altered or destroyed the identity of the city, leading to the loss of architectural identity and increased confusion in numerous cities in Afghanistan. Throughout history, the city of Kabul, the largest city, has struggled to maintain an identifiable architectural style due to the rapid growth of informal settlements. Recently, large glass and synthetic material facades have become prominent features of Kabul’s urban landscape. These structures represent a new era of modernity, in contrast to the traditional mud-colored buildings that have long dominated the city’s architecture style. The purpose of this research is to explore the influence of building façades and finishing materials on Kabul's sustainable architectural identity, with the goal of studying the relationship between residential building design features and the city's cultural, social, and historical environment. The study utilizes a mixed-methods approach, which involves conducting a comprehensive literature analysis and a field study that involves collecting data through observations, interviews, and questionnaires to achieve its objectives. The findings indicate that the selection of building façades and finishing materials has a significant impact on the sustainable architectural identity of Kabul. This study offers valuable insights for policymakers, architects, urban planners, and other stakeholders involved in shaping a sustainable built environment for Kabul and other similar cities in Afghanistan.
Alavi Sayed Farhad
Department of Architecture and Environmental Planning, Faculty of Advanced Science and Technology, Education Program for Architecture and Environmental Planning, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan
Tomoyuki Tanaka
Department of Architecture and Environmental Planning, Faculty of Advanced Science and Technology, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan
The author(s) has received no specific funding for this article/publication.
Journal Article
Open Access
Published
Integrating the United Nations sustainable development goals into organizational strategy: A sustainability balanced scorecard approach using ANP and TOPSIS
Rösner T, and Bredebach C.
Journal of Sustainability Outreach (ISSN 2435-7243), 2022, 3 (1): 1-18
DOI 10.37357/1068/jso/3.1.01
Challenges related to sustainable development require companies to align their strategies to meet stakeholder interests systematically. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are guiding objectives for sustainable development on an international level up to 2030. This article links the goals of the SDGs to a recognized strategic management tool: the sustainability balanced scorecard (SBSC). So far, few approaches exist in this field. Consequently, this article presents a framework for developing and applying an SBSC that takes an integrative view of the SDGs. For this purpose, the analytic network process (ANP) and the technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution are applied (TOPSIS). The article concludes that the solution approach presented has considerable potential to support organizations in systematically integrating the SDGs into their strategy. Also, this article proposes interesting future research directions.
Tobias Rösner
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Graduate School of Logistics, Technical University Dortmund, Dortmund, Germany
Christina Bredebach
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Graduate School of Logistics, Technical University Dortmund, Dortmund, Germany
The author(s) has received no specific funding for this article/publication.
Journal Article
Open Access
Published
A brief review of the future of smart mobility using 5G and IoT
Nazim SF, Danish MSS, and Senjyu T.
Journal of Sustainability Outreach (ISSN 2435-7243), 2022, 3 (1): 19-30
DOI 10.37357/1068/jso/3.1.02
Rapid urbanization and increasing population concentration in the cities can pose many challenges that need to be addressed intelligently. The smart city can be a proper answer to these issues. With the research and development made for the smart city, smart mobility is an important aspect that can solve everyday transportation challenges the citizens face. Smart mobility introduced the concept of connected vehicles that can sense their surroundings and make intelligent decisions based on the data collected. Such a concept must take decisions requiring a secure interface to reduce the latency in sharing information. This review and analysis of the future of 5G and IoT in smart mobility discusses the current trends in the transport system, autonomous vehicles, public transport, car sharing schemes (mobility as a service) mobility on demand. IoT connects all transport systems and communicates using 5G technology which facilitates fast communication and reduces latency, allowing millions of devices to be connected to the network. In addition, this paper discusses how 5G can cater to the needs of Internet of Things (IoT) technology for smart mobility, which looks into the aspects of smart mobility and 5G technology helping smart mobility. Lastly, this study showcases an overview of 5G that enables smart mobility.
Simra Fathima Nazim
Department of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Amity University Dubai, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Mir Sayed Shah Danish
Energy Systems (Chubu Electric Power) Funded Research Division, Institute of Materials and Systems for Sustainability (IMaSS), Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan
Tomonobu Senjyu
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan
The author(s) has received no specific funding for this article/publication.
Journal Article
Open Access
Published
A review on energy efficiency for pathetic environmental trends mitigation
Danish MSS, Senjyu T, Ahmadi M, Ludin GA, Ahadi MH, Karimy H, and Khosravy M.
Journal of Sustainability Outreach (ISSN 2435-7243), 2021, 2 (1): 1-8
DOI 10.37357/1068/jso.2.1.01
Environmental sustainability and climate changes mitigation are linked with energy efficiency and renewable energy deployment. Whereas, renewable energy exploitation at large scale generation needs high initial investment, which is not achievable in short to medium terms, especially in developing countries. Therefore, energy efficiency measures as a good alternative for environmental sustainability are the researchers' interest to evaluate its potential from individual energy consumers to utility-scale (generation, transmission, and distribution). Referring to literature and the connection between the second law of thermodynamics and environmental impact, environmental effects are reduced due to low energy when energy efficiency increases. Therefore, assuring demanding efficiency, interrelations studies, and impact analysis of influential factors are known exigence. This study draws a thematic perspective that involves an exhaustive investigation, explaining the relationship between exergy, environment, and energy within optimum efficiency requirements. Also, this study deals with indicators and indices in adapt to energy and environmental demand to reveal the underlying fundamental impressing forces regarding efficiency improvement.
Mir Sayed Shah Danish
Strategic Research Project Center, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa 9030213, Japan
Tomonobu Senjyu
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa 9030213, Japan
Mikaeel Ahmadi
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa 9030213, Japan
Gul Ahmad Ludin
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa 9030213, Japan
Mohammad Hamid Ahadi
Department of Intellectual Cooperation, Research and Education Promotion Association (REPA), Okinawa 900-0015, Japan
Hedayatullah Karimy
Department of Energy Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kabul University, Kabul 1006, Afghanistan
Mahdi Khosravy
Media Integrated Communication Laboratory, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Osaka 565-0871 Japan
The author(s) has received no specific funding for this article/publication.
Journal Article (Special Issue)
Open Access
Published
A study on sustainability of internal power generation compared with imported power in Afghanistan
Wali M, Majidi H, Abdullah MA, and Yaqobi MH.
Journal of Sustainability Outreach, 2020, 1 (1): 1-9
DOI 10.37357/1068/jso.1.1.021
Currently, Afghanistan imports a high percentage of electric energy from the neighboring countries, while less attention has been paid on the utilization of internal domestic energy resources. Recently progress has been made with solar and wind energy, but other sources such as hydro energy remain underappreciated. Originally intended as a short-term solution to fulfill demand, the policy for importing power from neighboring countries is still in effect as energy demand has increased dramatically and exposed vulnerabilities in the existing power system. These issues can be categorized based on different aspects like technical, economic, political, security-related issues, natural disasters and many others that negatively affect the reliability of the energy sector. In this paper, the sustainability of the power system of Afghanistan is analyzed from different aspects. These multi-disciplinary problems are analyzed separately and linked with the weaknesses of the existing power system. The main objective of this study is to propose long-term solutions to the power sector by encouraging investment in the internal power generation to enhance sustainability and reliability. The proposed long-term solution also takes additional measures towards achieving sustainable development goals (SDG) such as economic growth, agricultural development, groundwater recharge, industrial development, flood and water control, job creation, and a green and clean environment.
Mohebullah Wali
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kabul University, Kabul, Afghanistan
Himayatullah Majidi
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kabul University, Kabul, Afghanistan
Milad Ahmad Abdullah
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kabul University, Kabul, Afghanistan
Mohammad Homayoun Yaqobi
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kabul University, Kabul, Afghanistan
The author(s) has received no specific funding for this article/publication.
Journal Article (Special Issue)
Open Access
Published
Afghanistan as an emerging regional energy hub
Danish MSS, Senjyu T, Zaheb H, Sabory NR, Ahamadi M, Ibrahimi AM, Nazari Z, and Ahadi MH.
Journal of Sustainability Outreach, 2020, 1 (1): 10-14
DOI 10.37357/1068/jso.1.1.02
The enormous potential supply of energy in central Asia offers an excellent opportunity to establish international energy-sharing agreements, mitigate political instability, and improve regional socio-economic development. Pakistan and India have increasingly relied on energy imported from Middle and Central Asia to meet frequent energy shortages. Afghanistan has played a central role in recent efforts to balance energy trade among regional countries with an emerging opportunity as an emerging energy hub. This study considers what energy trade policies and strategies are needed to transform Afghanistan from energy consumer to energy provider. This analysis summarizes multi-disciplinary approaches that target geopolitics, economic, trade, management, institutional, environmental, and technical aspects. This study avoided a commentary description of the subject. The overriding objective of this study is addressing key solutions to enable Afghanistan as a leading stakeholder of the energy hub in the region countries. The finding of this study is outlined in 30 recommendations. Beneficiaries and stakeholders also express increasing concern about Afghanistan’s current security and political stability. This brief study can inform students, researchers, scholars, and interested policymakers with the recent trends and future outlook.
Mir Sayed Shah Danish
Strategic Research Projects Center, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan
Tomonobu Senjyu
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan
Hameedullah Zaheb
Department of Energy Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kabul University, Kabul, Afghanistan
Najib Rahman Sabory
Department of Energy Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kabul University, Kabul, Afghanistan
Mikaeel Ahamadi
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan
Abdul Matin Ibrahimi
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan
Zahra Nazari
Department of Information Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kabul Polytechnic University, Kabul, Afghanistan
Mohammad Hamid Ahadi
Department of Academic Affairs, Research and Education Promotion Association (REPA), Okinawa, Japan
The author(s) has received no specific funding for this article/publication.