The European economy is under pressure. Growth is slowing and competitive challenges are rising, all while EU firms navigate the demands of the green transition. Coordinated support from national governments and EU institutions proved critical after the COVID-19 pandemic, helping Europe to bolster its resilience to future shocks and spurring the investment needed to transform and modernise the …
All organizations, institutions, business processes, markets and strategies have one aim in common: the reduction of transaction costs. This aim is pursued relentlessly in practice, and has been perceived to bring about drastic changes, especially in the recent global market and the cyber economy. This book analyzes and describes “transactions” as a model, on the basis of which organization…
"Innovation offers potential: to cure diseases, to better connect people, and to make the way we live and work more efficient and enjoyable. At the same time, innovation can fuel inequality, decimate livelihoods, and harm mental health. This book contends that inclusive innovation – innovation motivated by environmental and social aims – is able to uplift the benefits of innovation while re…
This book discusses the concepts, types, models, and patterns of Japan’s Hometown Tax Donation Payment system, to provide a clear picture of this newly developed unique and innovative fund-raising tool used by municipalities. It also sheds light on the influences that reciprocal gifts provided by each municipality to donors have on local economies by reviewing empirical works and surveys targ…
A robust and efficient tax administration in a modern tax system requires effective tax policies and legislation. Policy frameworks should cover all aspects of tax administration and include the essential processes of capturing, processing, analyzing, and responding to information provided by taxpayers and others concerning taxpayers’ affairs. By far the greatest challenges facing tax adminis…
Collaborations between entertainment industries and artificial intelligence researchers in Japan have since the mid-1990s produced a growing interest in modeling affect and emotion for use in mass-produced social robots. Robot producers and marketers reason that such robot companions can provide comfort, healing (iyashi), and intimacy in light of attenuating social bonds and increased socioecon…
Investments in energy efficiency improvements are vital to ensure Europe’s future as a sustainable, yet prosperous economy. Amid the COVID-19 crisis, however, there is a great risk of losing sight of the benefits of energy efficiency investments by European firms. The EIB Investment Survey (EIBIS) provides a unique source of data that highlights how more investment in energy efficiency is nee…