Iwona Bąk

The aim of this article is to assess the level of sustainable development of European Union countries in 2015, 2019 and 2023 using a synthetic measure derived from economic, social, and environmental indicators, and to analyse typological changes as well as convergence patterns in the relative positioning of EU member states. Sustainable development, grounded in the principles of the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), requires coordinated action by the Member States, which makes it particularly important to examine differences and changes in overall development levels across countries rather than in individual dimensions considered separately. Existing research highlights heterogeneous and selective development trajectories within the EU, with partial convergence in some areas and persistent disparities in others. The analysis is based on Eurostat data and 15 diagnostic indicators describing sustainable development, aggregated using a robust positional approach employing the Weber median, which is resistant to outliers and distribution asymmetry and enables a reliable assessment of cross-country diversity. On this basis, country rankings and four typological groups were identified. The results reveal persistently high disparities in sustainable development levels, with Sweden consistently occupying the leading position, while Greece, Bulgaria, and Romania remain at the bottom of the ranking. Although some countries, including Slovakia and Croatia, recorded upward shifts in their typological classification, no clear tendency toward overall convergence was observed. The findings are relevant for policymakers involved in cohesion policy, the energy transition, and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, as well as for researchers and institutions monitoring progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The transformation of the energy market toward renewable finance is achieved primarily through green innovations, which require sources of funding. The aim of this article is to show the state of research on green credit and green bonds in the context of their role in financing the green transition of the energy market. The article uses a critical literature review supported by VoSviewer software and quantitative analysis. While most literature reviews cover green finance or sustainable finance in the energy transition process (macro level), our attempt refers to the level of financial instruments (micro level); we demonstrate the significant role of green credit and green bonds in financing energy transition and the high degree of differentiation in the functionality of both instruments. Specifically, green bonds strongly accelerate green innovation in the energy sector and stimulate energy transition through green credits. Articles from the second typological group identified in the study clearly emphasize this relationship. The remaining key findings highlight the dominant share of developed countries as a base for research and analysis, as well as large enterprises, which were the primary focus of the study.

Global discussion on energy security remains deeply embedded in social, political, and economic discourse, especially in light of ongoing geopolitical instability and disruptions in supply chains. The aim of this study is to assess the degree of differentiation in the energy security of EU countries and to distinguish typological groups of the studied facilities based on the level of this phenomenon in 2023. This article uses a three-stage research procedure to assess the energy security of EU countries. In the first stage, statistical data were collected for 21 diagnostic features belonging to three groups: energy production and consumption, energy imports and exports, and economic and social factors. Next, using the TOPSIS method, three synthetic measures were constructed: separately for each group of features, taking into account features from the first and second groups, and taking into account features from all three groups. Based on these measures, typological groups of countries were identified using the three-median method. In the final stage, the impact of socio-economic characteristics on energy security was assessed. The results presented in this paper confirm the varied level of energy security in EU countries and indicate that it is linked not only to categories directly related to the energy economy but also to the level of socio-economic development of a given country. The top places in the ranking are occupied by countries such as Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands and Austria, while the last places in the ranking include Malta, Greece, Cyprus and Ireland.

The standards of environmental protection play a key role in determining the acceptable level of ecological safety. The aim of the study discussed in the article is to identify the varying degree to which voivodships in Poland adhere to the adopted environmental standards. The research was performed in 2022. The values of the environmental protection standards were determined on the basis of the analysis of the distributions of the indicators taken into account in the study. Data for the calculations were taken from the Local Data Bank of Statistics Poland. The classical correspondence analysis performed on the basis of data presented in a binary matrix of indicators and Ward’s method was used to assess the degree of the implementation of the standards by the Polish voivodships. The obtained results made it possible to indicate the weaknesses and strengths of the voivodships in the field of environmental protection. Lubelskie, Pomorskie and Wielkopolskie voivodships met the standards to the largest degree (50% of the common indicators adhering to the standards), while Opolskie and Śląskie performed worst, with no common indicators adhering to the standards.

This study aims to present the current status and forecasts related to the generation of energy from renewable sources, as well as the challenges and barriers resulting from the development of this energy in the European Union countries. The research procedure consists of three stages: bibliometric analysis of scientific publications conducted based on the Web of Science database, visualization of results using VOSViewer software (version 1.6.20), and in-depth analysis of the content of the publications. The study covered two periods. The first one covered the years 1990–2024, in which publications on sustainable development and renewable energy sources began to appear around the world. The second one included publications from 2002, because the first works on European Union countries were identified in that year. The final sample included 96 articles that identified key links between sustainable development and renewable energy. These topics accounted for 50% of all issues discussed in these articles. It turned out that one of the most important challenges of modern economies (21.9% of the articles examined) is finding a balance between sustainable economic growth and limiting environmental degradation. The literature review also shows that the renewable energy sector in the EU and its Member States is developing dynamically. This was confirmed by Eurostat data on both renewable energy production and consumption.

This article provides insights into the causes of business crises in Europe and Asia that occurred between 2000 and 2022. The research offers a comprehensive analysis of 20 crisis situations, providing a deeper understanding of the factors that contributed to them. The study aims to identify common factors underlying business crises and detect the role of aggressive expansion that may be present in the activities of European and Asian companies. Knowing the causes, entrepreneurs can better understand the conditions for business development and make better decisions. The research findings reveal that there are four main commonalities in the cases analyzed on both continents: 1) aggressive expansion; 2) market downturn and declining sales; 3) excessive debt and lack of liquidity; and 4) operating and labor costs. When analyzing the causes typical for one continent, we can point to conflicts and strikes in the case of Asia, and a lack of investments, as well as complex corporate structures, in the case of Europe. In addition to identifying the causes, this analysis also suggests key solutions for businesses to avoid crisis and achieve success: managers should ensure the business can support new ventures without overextending resources; keep debt manageable by ensuring it aligns with the company’s revenue and growth projections; and develop strategies to quickly adapt to declining sales and market downturns. The research method used in this work is a comparative analysis of case studies, supported by a multidimensional correspondence analysis.

The sphere of leisure time fulfils important roles in human life, translating into the quality of life of the individual and society. Hence, comprehensive research is being conducted on the ways in which different age groups, including older people, use leisure time. However, few of them take into account factors related to the place of residence, which are important for respondents’ leisure time activities. This study aims to fill the gap in this regard. The aim of the article is to identify socio-demographic variables determining the way adults spend their leisure time, with a particular focus on older people in selected border municipalities in Poland. The study included 1068 individual questionnaire questionnaires completed in 2021 by respondents of border municipalities. One of the non-probability techniques was chosen as the method for selecting elements for the sample, namely, the quota method, which took into account the following characteristics of the population: age, gender, and place of residence. The analyses used selected methods of descriptive statistics and multivariate comparative analysis. The results confirmed that leisure use varied by gender, age, and education. The research also showed that, in the case of older people, leisure time use is influenced by elements relating to their place of residence. Particularly important were the development of green areas in the municipality, safety in the municipality, and the cleanliness of recreational sites.

In the last decade, rapid technological development and a simultaneous increase in social awareness related to environmental protection have been determinants of the research and development of new techniques for generating energy from renewable sources. The international situation after 24 February 2022 in turn caused an increase in demand for energy that can be generated locally. This trend has not bypassed Poland either, where dynamic development of the market related to generating energy from renewable sources has been observed for many years. The aim of this article is to identify regularities in the degree of impact of the production and consumption of renewable energy on economic growth in Poland in 2005–2022. In this study, we used power econometric models. The results obtained by the authors show that energy consumption including renewable energy affects economic growth. In Poland, in the period under review, the increase in the consumption and production of energy from renewable sources, both on a national scale and on the scale of separate regions (city agglomerations, towns and suburbs, rural areas), contributed to the increase in measures characterizing economic development.

This review organizes the current state of knowledge on the role of financial markets in energy transition. The originality of the study lies in the delimitation of its scope and diagnosis of research trends concerning the role of financing, innovation, and financial development sources. The study sets out to identify the role of the financial market in the energy transition process and present the state-of-the-art and main research focuses. For this purpose, a literature review was carried out based on the search results from the Web of Science database and using VOSViewer software, version 1.6.20. The analysis of 54 papers in the final sample allowed us to pinpoint the key links between financial markets and energy transition. Capital markets support green initiatives, with green bonds as a primary funding source. Blockchain and fintech technologies also significantly contribute to transition by offering innovative solutions. Additionally, a range of papers examine the costs associated with energy transition and the role of financial instruments in managing these. Regulatory challenges are another significant focus. This comprehensive analysis underscores the multifaceted relationship between financial markets and energy transition, providing insights into the current trends and the critical role of finance in fostering a sustainable future.