Aristi Karagkouni

Human capital represents the core asset upon which the social dimension of the transition towards the circular economy is based, as the strategies for transition depend on people and their skills, safety, development and inclusion that ultimately determine the success in meeting the human-capital-related Sustainable Development Goals. Human capital, however, represents the least measured dimension of corporate sustainability, since the existing practices of measuring human capital involve either its monetary evaluation or subjective weight allocation within the firm-specific sustainability scorecard or aggregation at the national level without the ability to create an objective firm-level benchmark of human capital performance. In this study, human capital represents a management object, and the question is about the extent to which the standardized public disclosure of data about employment, occupational health and safety, training and education, and diversity and equal opportunity according to the Global Reporting Initiative standards could be transformed into a composite index that would discriminate managerial performance of organizations in managing the human capital-related SDGs. For this purpose, the Managerial Performance Index, a composite indicator based on a data-driven approach to creating a benchmark, where indicators are normalized, weighted objectively by means of Shannon entropy for their discriminating capacity and aggregated into four sub-indexes and one overall score, is created. The framework is applied to the cross-sectional sample of the leading European airport operators—an industry characterized by intensive capital, safety and labor intensity but never benchmarked in terms of human capital before.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnoses continue to rise globally, yet the employment consequences for parents providing daily care remain largely overlooked in management research. This paper examines the employment challenges faced by parents of children with ASD through organizational behavior, bioethics, and a conceptual discussion of artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled neuroleadership as a prospective, non-empirically tested management approach. Although employment participation is often framed as an individual responsibility, this study demonstrates how workplace cultures, managerial practices, scheduling policies, and organizational attitudes toward caregiving substantially influence caregivers’ ability to remain active in the labor market. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire originally designed to investigate mobility and transport-accessibility experiences of caregivers of children with ASD. The analysis integrates descriptive empirical findings with organizational, ethical, and emerging AI-informed management perspectives to explore how socioeconomic status, caregiving intensity, and disability severity intersect with workplace expectations. The study further conceptually highlights the potential of AI-enabled workforce analytics, intelligent scheduling systems, and data-driven decision-support tools to support neuroleadership practices that enhance workplace flexibility, employee wellbeing, and organizational responsiveness to caregiving needs; no AI tools or validated neuroleadership instruments were applied or tested empirically in this study. However, the ethical implementation of such technologies requires careful consideration of transparency, fairness, privacy, and human oversight. Grounded in the principles of justice, autonomy, care, and sustainability, the study argues that equitable employment for caregivers requires organizational environments that combine empathetic leadership with innovative AI-supported management approaches. The study contributes to research on organizational behavior and health management by conceptualizing employment inclusion for caregivers of autistic children as both an ethical and sustainability imperative and a promising, conceptually framed area for future application of AI-enabled neuroleadership within healthcare, educational, and public-service organizations.

Intergenerational equity has become central to contemporary sustainability discourse and climate litigation, as courts increasingly confront whether present generations may legitimately deplete ecological resources in ways that impose irreversible burdens on those yet to come. This article argues that the normative structure underlying contemporary intergenerational climate claims reflects a recurring institutional logic identifiable much earlier in legal history. Focusing on the Gortyn Code (5th century BCE), one of the earliest and most extensive surviving Greek law codes, the analysis reveals how rules governing property, inheritance, guardianship, and family relations constructed an architecture of intergenerational continuity through enforceable constraints on present authority over inherited assets. The Code restricted alienation of inherited assets, structured succession through fixed distributive formulas, and imposed mechanisms designed to preserve the material foundations of future social existence. These provisions are then interpreted in relation to contemporary sustainability frameworks, emphasizing trusteeship, burden inheritance, and ecological thresholds. The article considers recent climate litigation to illustrate how modern courts increasingly translate intergenerational commitments into enforceable duties through functionally equivalent reasoning. The findings suggest that climate adjudication represents a modern manifestation of a deeper logic already visible in the Gortyn Code, one that emerges regardless of whether the resource at stake is owned or unowned, and that this parallel carries implications for the design and institutional anchoring of intergenerational obligations in contemporary climate governance.

The oil and gas industry is at a critical crossroads, necessitating a re-evaluation of corporate strategies to align with sustainability imperatives. This paper investigates how oil and gas companies formulate and implement corporate strategies aligned with sustainability imperatives. By identifying the factors influencing strategic decisions and analyzing the application of corporate agility mechanisms, this study evaluates the integration of sustainability goals such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the European Green Deal within strategic frameworks. It also examines alignment with international frameworks like the SDGs. The study highlights the proactive approaches of oil and gas companies to adapt to shifting market and regulatory dynamics, fostering sustainability. Key challenges include balancing trade-offs in pursuing sustainable development and meeting diverse stakeholder expectations. Through case studies and empirical analysis, this research offers actionable insights for policymakers and business leaders, emphasizing the role of corporate agility in navigating the evolving energy landscape. The findings underscore the need for adaptability as companies face unprecedented changes, driving progress toward a more sustainable energy future.

Air traffic control is widely recognized as one of the most psychologically demanding occupations, where safety and operational performance are tightly interwoven. This study explores the relationship between occupational health and safety (OHS) systems and the psychological well-being of Air Traffic Controllers (ATCOs), focusing on factors such as perceived safety, job satisfaction, stress, and mental strain. Conducted within the Hellenic Air Navigation Services Provider, the research adopts a cross-sectional design using a structured questionnaire distributed nationwide. The study draws upon the Job Demands–Resources (JD-R) theoretical framework to examine how organizational resources, such as training, clarity of role, supervisor support, and employee autonomy, interact with job demands to shape occupational outcomes. Special emphasis is placed on understanding how the presence and awareness of structured OHS systems influence ATCOs’ perceptions of safety and well-being. Our analysis indicated that participants who reported the presence of an OHS system perceived their workplace as significantly safer than those who reported no such system. Hence, the existence of structured measures allows ATCOs to feel confident in their work environment. By assessing a range of psychosocial and organizational variables, this study seeks to contribute to both the academic discourse and practical strategies aimed at improving safety culture and psychological resilience in high-risk work environments. The findings are intended to inform policy development and organizational practices within the air traffic control sector and other safety-critical domains.

In today’s global economy, large corporations possess considerable power and exert a profound impact on the societies and the environments in which they operate. The effectiveness of Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives can widely vary, depending on how well they align moral principles and social expectations, thus enhancing their impact on societal welfare and environmental sustainability. This paper examines the practical application of ethical theories in the corporate world, moving beyond normative prescriptions to what defines a corporation’s ethical character. The transition to applied ethics represents a shift towards actionable guidance and contextual relevance in a way that takes into account all the involved forces and the practical implications for various stakeholders. A conceptual framework is developed to depict the relationships and decision-making influences within a socio-economic system and outline an ethical zone where care and justice ethics converge, indicating that decisions are just and do not neglect the welfare of individual stakeholders, society and the environment.

Mediterranean island cities face unique challenges in implementing smart city initiatives due to fragmented governance structures, seasonal economic pressures, and evolving societal expectations. This study investigates how strategic aspirations and public discourse shape the feasibility of smart city policies in insular contexts. Specifically, it combines SOAR (Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations, Results) analysis with the Overton Window framework to examine both the strategic capacities and normative acceptability of technological interventions. The Overton Window, a model originally developed in political theory, is applied here to evaluate how public and policy acceptance of smart technologies, ranging from digital governance systems to AI-based mobility, varies across different islands. While this study draws on cross-case comparisons of multiple Mediterranean island contexts, the primary data were collected in Athens, Greece, through surveys and focus groups with citizens and stakeholders. The findings reveal disparities in institutional maturity, stakeholder coordination, and levels of citizen support. This study concludes that successful smart city transformation requires both strategic coherence and alignment with evolving public values. It proposes the ‘Ecopolis’ model as a conceptual planning framework that integrates sustainability, citizen participation, and data-driven governance in tourism-dependent island settings.

Objective: The objective of this study is to assess the performance of airport operators in enhancing the travel experience and workplace inclusion for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), particularly focusing on employees who are caregivers and passengers requiring neurodiverse support. Theoretical Framework: The study draws on five interrelated frameworks: social inclusion and human rights, corporate social responsibility (CSR), universal design, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and service performance models such as SERVQUAL. These frameworks support a holistic understanding of accessibility, ethics, and institutional responsibility. Method: The study is based on a criticality analysis, using a structured questionnaire administered to a purposive sample of 60 respondents, including airport employees and parents of children with ASD. Data collection focused on assessing ten targeted support measures across three quantitative dimensions: Impact, Likelihood of Implementation, and Effectiveness, each rated on a Likert scale. The overall Criticality Score was computed using the product of these dimensions and normalized to a relevant scale for comparative analysis. Descriptive statistics and heatmap visualizations were used to rank and classify measures into four strategic priority tiers. Finally, an action plan assessment matrix was also applied to guide implementation pathways. Results and Discussion: Findings identified flexible work arrangements and autism awareness training as top priorities for immediate implementation. Measures such as infrastructure modifications and crisis plan require medium- to long-term investment. Results are interpreted through ethical, operational, and SDG lenses. Research Implications: The study informs inclusive policy design, strategic planning, and CSR reporting. Implications are particularly relevant for aviation management, HR professionals, and public service designers. Originality/Value: This research offers a novel integration of stakeholder perception, criticality modeling, and inclusion theory in airport environments. It highlights a rarely addressed intersection of employee caregiving, neurodiversity, and sustainable transport.

Objective: This article explains how neuroleadership principles can be applied to enhance organizational performance and innovation within infrastructure industries. The article aims to show how neuroscience research can optimize the impact of leadership, increase emotional control, and activate cognitive resilience under high-stakes operational environments, and therefore contribute to sustainability and SDGs objectives. Theoretical Framework: The theoretical underpinning combines the SCARF model with neuroplasticity, arguing that conclusions drawn from brain research significantly inform leadership practice in infrastructure domains. Neuroscientific research explains the neural mechanisms that play a role in leadership effectiveness, decision-making ability, emotional control, and flexibility, which are all necessary for handling complex operating environments. Method: An integrative literature review methodology synthesizes previous research on neuroleadership across various industries such as healthcare, transport, shipping, energy, finance, construction, and retail. The review specifically targets academic literature that discusses brain-based leadership frameworks, neuroplasticity, and interventions that target leadership effectiveness, cognitive flexibility, emotional toughness, and organizational resilience. Results and Discussion: Results indicate considerable potential for neuroleadership to enhance organizational flexibility, innovation, and employee well-being in infrastructure operators. Discussion highlights best practices such as mindfulness-based interventions, scenario simulation, and cognitive training, with a focus on how these strengthen leadership resilience, decision-making quality, and crisis management ability, while exercising caution against excessive simplification of neuroscience application. Research Implications: The study informs inclusive policy design, strategic planning, and CSR reporting. Implications are particularly relevant for aviation management, HR professionals, and public service designers. Originality/Value: The article is the first to integrate neuroleadership precepts with sectoral applications in critical infrastructure operations, emphasizing convergence with sustainability and Sustainable Development Goals. The article makes novel contributions to the comprehension of how neuroscience-informed leadership strategies can significantly improve organizational performance, innovation, and human-centered management practices in high-consequence and high-complexity operational domains.