This book comprises a collection of empirical and theoretical studies covering a wide range of themes related to bank management, finance and sustainability. Sustainability represents an opportunity for banks as it contributes to improvements in trust in the banking system. However, sustainable business models must be financially viable so that they can have a positive impact on banks’ profitability, stimulating the long-term growth and resilience of the banking industry and overall financial stability.Banks are widely acknowledged as playing a crucial role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as they can promote responsible investments and integrate environmental and social criteria into lending and investment strategies. Financial intermediaries can support projects and activities that create a measurable positive economic, social and environmental impact by providing easier access to capital. Furthermore, they can have an active role in improving the financial awareness, inclusion and resilience of the most vulnerable individuals in society.

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Since the publication of Lotfi A. Zadeh’s seminal paper “Fuzzy Sets” in 1965 within the journal Information and Control, there has been constant growth in the theoretical developments and practical applications of fuzzy set theory and related mathematical tools. These tools have been applied widely, both by industry and academic research, to decision-making and economics due to their versatility. On the one hand, they can efficiently represent and handle uncertain and vague information such as subjective judgements, non-precise observations on variables, or ill-defined relations between variables. On the other hand, they make implementing computations or identifying patterns in data much easier. To do so, fuzzy set theory provides a lot of mathematical techniques in fields such as fuzzy data analysis, fuzzy multiple criteria decision making, fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis or fuzzy expert systems. Business management, decision-making, or the evaluation of public policies are some examples of practical applications in these fields. This Special Issue has provided a platform for researchers from academia and industry to present their novel works in the domain of applied developments of fuzzy sets and related methodologies for business, financial, and economic analysis. We hope that these results will help to foster future research in the fields of economics and social sciences.

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This reprint presents a vast array of information on regional groundwater chemistry and quality in coastal areas in ocean countries, including China (e.g., Hainan Province, Pearl River Delta, Fujian Province, Yangtze River Delta, Hebei Province, and Heilongjiang Province), Pakistan (e.g., Sindh), and Egypt (e.g., West Nile Delta).

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The book provides assessments and evaluations of emerging trends in the electricity markets, with a focus on high-renewables electricity systems. Specifically, various issues are examined, such as wind and solar energy, interconnection, smart meters, smart grids of the future (including their social implications), and peer-to-peer (P2P) electricity trading, which is closely connected to the principle of a sharing economy. The book also contemplates how the market design for a high-renewables electricity system would be different from the classical post-liberalization market design.

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Plants respond to diverse environmental stimuli such as light, nutrients, temperature, and oxygen, which shape their growth and fate. When these stimuli are suboptimal for adequate plant growth, they cause stress. This book is a collection of research articles providing evidence about plant responses to stresses and environmental stimuli, as well as new methodologies for plant phenotyping.

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Cities and regions have always been among the most dynamically developing territories and have played a significant role throughout human history. They have been centers of progress, education, culture, and commerce, centers of economic and social development, and their role in society is constantly growing. The approaches to their development change with the needs of society. Today’s globalizing society is characterized by intense transformation. The rapid changes and dynamics of societal development in the economy, technology, and techniques, as well as social and lifestyle changes, have undermined the concept of the supposed stability of the social and business environment. These changes are reflected in the current local and regional development trends, where sustainable cities and regions; green, or eco-cities and regions; sunny cities; creative cities and regions; smart cities and regions; resilient cities and regions; cities as living labs; slow cities and regions; and agile cities and regions belong. This Special Issue “Regional Development: Opportunities and Constraints” includes researchers and academicians who are dedicated to the current opportunities and constraints of urban and regional development based on the various drivers and concepts of development reflecting global challenges. The papers include the form of theoretical contributions moving forward theoretical knowledge, as well as empirical work, presenting original research results on the topic.

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Structural and Functional Analysis of Extracts in Plants collects 1 editorial, 3 reviews, and 26 research articles reporting recent research findings which cover several aspects of plant-derived bioactive compounds, to correlate extraction techniques with the chemical composition of extracts and their bioactivity for identifying molecules that might be used as active substances in a wide variety of areas.This book is a valuable resource for members of the scientific community wishing to further explore plants and the therapeutic applications of their bioactive compounds. It will appeal to scholars, teachers and scientists involved in plant product research, and facilitate the development of innovative new drugs.

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A virus is considered a nanoscale organic material that can infect and replicate only inside the living cells of other organisms, ranging from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea. The structure of viruses consists of two main parts: the genetic material from either DNA or RNA that carries genetic information, and a protein coat, called the capsid, which surrounds and protects the genetic material. By inserting the gene encoding functional proteins into the viral genome, the functional proteins can be genetically displayed on the protein coat to form bioengineered viruses. Therefore, viruses can be considered biological nanoparticles with genetically tunable surface chemistry and can serve as models for developing virus-like nanoparticles and even nanostructures. Via this process of viral display, bioengineered viruses can be mass-produced with lower cost and potentially used for energy and biomedical applications. This book highlights the recent developments and future directions of virus-based nanomaterials and nanostructures. The virus-based biomimetic materials formulated using innovative ideas were characterized for the applications of biosensors and nanocarriers. The research contributions and trends on virus-based materials covering energy harvesting devices to tissue regeneration in the last two decades are discussed.

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