BORE

Maja Janković participated in international ecology conference in Athens

Dragana Markanović — Thu, 16 Jul 2026 08:09:41 +0000

Maja Janković, MBA, from the Institute for Development and International Relations (IRMO) participated online in the international scientific conference “14th Annual International Conference on Ecology, Ecosystems and Climate Change,” organized by ATINER (Athens Institute for Education and Research) and held in Athens.

At the conference, she presented a scientific paper titled “Bioeconomy as a Driver of Sustainable Development: Opportunities and Challenges in the 21st Century,” co-authored with Sanja Tišma (IRMO) and Milenko Krajišnik (Faculty of Economics, University of Banja Luka).

The paper analyses the contribution of the bioeconomy to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with particular emphasis on responsible consumption and production, climate action, and decent work and economic growth. The authors employed a combination of policy analysis, a systematic literature review, and research conducted through a survey.

The results of the research show that 66.5% of respondents believe the bioeconomy can make a significant contribution to sustainable development, yet only 26.7% state that they are genuinely familiar with the concept, pointing to a clear gap between support and understanding. Furthermore, only 33.8% of respondents are willing to pay a 10–15% higher price for products made from agricultural waste, while respondents identify the main barrier to wider adoption of bio-based products not as price, but as a lack of information (37.4%). Finally, 74.1% of respondents believe that the role of the state, through subsidies and regulation, is key to the development of the bioeconomy.

Ivana Keser Publishes a Scientific Paper on the Role of Artificial Intelligence in Sustainable Digital Governance

Dragana Markanović — Mon, 13 Jul 2026 08:59:10 +0000

Researcher Ivana Keser in co-authorship with Mihael Mišo Mudrić, has published a scientific paper entitled “The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Digital Sustainability and Governance Systems” in the international scientific journal Economics Ecology Socium, examining the role of artificial intelligence in advancing Sustainable Digital Governance.
The paper explores the application of artificial intelligence within the framework of the European
Union Artificial Intelligence Act (EU AI Act) and is based on empirical research conducted among Croatian civil servants in 2025. The findings reveal a significant gap between regulatory requirements and institutional readiness for the responsible deployment of artificial intelligence in public administration. Drawing on both theoretical analysis and empirical evidence, the author proposes a conceptual framework for Sustainable Digital Governance and provides recommendations for strengthening institutional capacities, enhancing AI competencies, and supporting the effective implementation of the European regulatory framework in the public sector.

Poveznica:The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Digital Sustainability and Governance Systems

IRMO at the ERAZ2026 conference “Knowledge-Based Sustainable Development”

Dragana Markanović — Wed, 08 Jul 2026 09:12:11 +0000

Dina Tomšić, Sanja Tišma, and Anamarija Farkaš participated in the international scientific conference “12th International Scientific Conference ERAZ 2026 – Knowledge Based Sustainable Development”, held in a hybrid format in Florence, Italy, from 10 to 12 June 2026. The conference was organized by UdEkom Balkans. More information about the conference programme is available at: https://eraz-conference.com/agenda/.

This year, more than 180 abstracts have been accepted for the Conference, signed by more than 310 authors from 36 different countries (Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Austria, Barbados, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Ethiopia, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, India, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Latvia, North Macedonia, Pakistan, Panama, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Türkiye, UAE, Ukraine).

On the first day of the conference, 10 June, the authors presented their paper entitled “Linking the Biodiversity Conservation Policies and the Danube Macro-Region Economic Sustainable Development.”

The paper examines the role of biodiversity conservation policies within the framework of the European Union Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) and the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 (EUBDS). Its objective is to identify opportunities for the sustainable economic integration of biodiversity conservation practices through the implementation of the EUSDR.

The study applies a compliance analysis to assess the level of alignment between Priority Area 6 – Biodiversity (PA6) of the EUSDR and two key policy documents that constitute the European Union’s biodiversity policy framework: the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 and the European Green Deal.

The findings indicate a high degree of alignment between EUSDR Priority Area 6 and the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030. However, the analysis also reveals the absence of policies that effectively connect economic development, the financial sector, and biodiversity conservation.

Based on the findings, the authors propose several new mechanisms to bridge the identified implementation gaps, including the Biodiversity Flagship, the Danube Biodiversity Business Council, and the Biodiversity Web/Mobile Application, all aimed at strengthening the integration of biodiversity conservation into sustainable economic development within the Danube macro-region.

Anamarija Pisarović participated in the international conference EDULEARN26

Dragana Markanović — Tue, 07 Jul 2026 07:56:00 +0000

Anamarija Pisarović, PhD, scientific advisor, participated in the international conference EDULEARN26 (18th International Conference on Education and New Learning Technologies), held from June 29 to July 1, 2026 in Palma, Spain. EDULEARN is one of the largest European international conferences dedicated to education and new technologies in learning, and every year it brings together more than 800 teachers, researchers and experts from more than 80 countries around the world. The conference provides an international platform for presenting research, exchanging experiences and discussing modern educational methods, innovations and technologies in education. At the conference, Dr. Pisarović presented a paper entitled Rising Awareness of Students with High-functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder (HFASD) in Higher Education.

Paper on social entrepreneurship and sustainable rural development in Croatia published

Dragana Markanović — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:22:09 +0000

A paper by Sanja Maleković, Sanja Tišma and Ivana Keser, entitled Empirical Insights into the Role of Social Entrepreneurship in Sustainable Rural Development: Evidence from Croatian Agriculture, has been published in E4E – Education for Entrepreneurship / Obrazovanje za poduzetništvo, Vol. 16 No. 1 (2026).
The paper examines the role of social entrepreneurship in sustainable rural development, with a particular focus on the agricultural sector in Croatia. It analyses the contribution of civil society organisations, cooperatives and other social entrepreneurship actors to the generation of positive and sustainable social and economic impacts in rural areas.
Drawing on desk research and focus group findings, the paper highlights the relevance of community-led local development and bottom-up approaches in addressing social and economic challenges at the local and regional levels. These approaches are discussed in relation to the limitations of conventional public support measures for rural and regional development.
>Particular attention is devoted to actors who, while operating within a market-oriented framework, are primarily guided by the objective of improving quality of life, supporting hard-to-employ and vulnerable groups, and contributing to broader socio-economic development.
The paper contributes to the academic and policy-oriented understanding of the potential of social entrepreneurship in agriculture and rural development, as well as its role in advancing more inclusive and sustainable development models in Croatia.

Ivana Keser participated in the EURA 2026 Conference in Venice

Dragana Markanović — Thu, 02 Jul 2026 06:07:28 +0000

Ivana Keser participated in the international conference Cities under Strain: Rethinking the Ungovernable, held at Università Iuav di Venezia from 17 to 20 June 2026, under the auspices of the European Urban Research Association – EURA 2026.
At the conference, she presented the paper Navigating Urban Governance under Uncertainty: AI Literacy, Ethical Oversight, and Regulatory Readiness. The paper examines the preparedness of public administrations for the responsible integration of artificial intelligence into urban governance systems, with particular attention to institutional capacity, ethical oversight and regulatory readiness in the context of the European Union’s Artificial Intelligence Act.
The paper addresses the ways in which the increasing use of artificial intelligence in public administration is reshaping institutional capacities, decision-making processes and governance arrangements in cities and territories facing heightened uncertainty. Special attention is given to the challenges associated with climate change, socio-economic instability and complex multi-level urban issues, as well as to questions of accountability, transparency, democratic values and the preservation of meaningful human oversight in decision-making.

The analysis is based on original empirical research conducted within a national capacity-building programme on artificial intelligence for public institutions in Croatia, implemented by the State School for Public Administration. The study draws on survey data collected from 154 public officials representing ministries, public agencies, cities, counties and other public bodies, complemented by qualitative insights from structured workshop-based exercises.
The paper highlights uneven levels of AI literacy and institutional preparedness across public administration. It argues that the integration of artificial intelligence into urban governance should not be understood merely as a technical innovation, but as a broader socio-institutional transformation requiring organisational learning, regulatory compliance, ethical standards and clearly defined human responsibility.

A new chapter of the book on the application of the circular economy to cultural tourism has been published

Dragana Markanović — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 07:58:14 +0000

As part of the research of the Center for Sustainable Development through Culture, IRMO researcher Daniela Angelina Jelinčić published a new book chapter entitled Circular Cultural Tourism: Concept and Benefits Through Theory and Practice. The chapter is part of a larger publishing project that resulted in the book Cultural Heritage Tourism and Circular Economy: Enhancing Identity, Visibility and Sustainability, published by Springer Nature. The chapter deals with the application of the theme of the circular economy in all phases of the cultural-tourism product management, entailing a broader concept of using a human-centered approach, improving lesser-known cultural and natural resources, improving human capital and human rights, reducing tourist pressure, reducing the consumption of waste and natural resources by encouraging clean energy, green traffic, recycling and reuse, and improving local food and craft production (Be.CULTOUR. https://becultour.eu/). At the same time, it empowers local communities to take advantage of sustainable tourism. In this way, the chapter reveals aspects of the circular economy that are applied in cultural tourism and investigates how tourism operators understand it. The applied methodology is desk research and case study. The results show that the principles of the circular economy can be applied in all phases of the cultural tourism product management, but it is not easy to distinguish between individual principles of the circular economy, as they often overlap. In this sense, the author concludes that the concept of the circular economy is yet another name for sustainability.

More about the book chapter: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-032-14082-1_8

Study on Zagreb’s nightlife published based on TripAdvisor reviews

Dragana Markanović — Mon, 01 Jun 2026 12:38:56 +0000

Marko Raič and Dr Daniela Angelina Jelinčić from the Institute for Development and International Relations have published an article titled “Tourist assessment of nightlife in Zagreb through TripAdvisor reviews”. The article was published in the Polish Scopus-indexed journal Turyzm/Tourism and is the result of work carried out within the IRMO Centre for Sustainable Development through Culture (CORK) and the BORE project. The study is based on sentiment analysis of TripAdvisor reviews of clubs and bars over the 2022-2024 period. The findings show that tourists most frequently describe Zagreb’s nightlife through social and sensory dimensions, while generally perceiving it as friendly, affordable and vibrant. The authors note that Zagreb’s nightlife has not previously been studied in a systematic way, and that the findings can serve as a basis for improving tourism policy and developing Zagreb’s night-time economy. Article link: https://czasopisma.uni.lodz.pl/tourism/article/view/27766

Participation of IRMO in the International Conference The 17th Asian Conference on the Social Sciences – ACSS 2026

Dragana Markanović — Tue, 26 May 2026 08:25:07 +0000

From 9 to 13 May 2026, Ivana Keser and Sanja Tišma from the Institute for Development and International Relations (IRMO) participated in the international conference The 17th Asian Conference on the Social Sciences – ACSS 2026, held in Tokyo, Japan. The conference was organised in partnership with the IAFOR Research Centre at the Osaka School of International Public Policy – OSIPP, The University of Osaka, while part of the programme activities, held from 11 to 15 May, was connected with the Open Campus in Osaka.

Within the framework of the project BORE – Bits and Colours of Sustainable Regional Development in the Republic of Croatia, the paper entitled Who Lacks Time and Who Lacks Money? Lessons from the Ex Post Evaluation of the Operational Programme Competitiveness and Cohesion 2014–2020 in Croatia was presented at the conference.

The paper emphasised the use of evaluation as an analytical framework for assessing the sustainability of public policies and their effectiveness in achieving the objectives of sustainable regional development in the Republic of Croatia. Particular attention was given to how the findings of ex post evaluations can contribute to a better understanding of implementation constraints, the allocation of resources, and institutional capacities, as well as to the improvement of future programme design and public policies in times of crisis.

Marta Šveb Dragija at the ENCATC Academy in Bilbao

Dragana Markanović — Mon, 25 May 2026 10:10:37 +0000

Marta Šveb Dragija, assistant within the BORE project team and the Centre for Sustainable Development through Culture, together with her colleagues Barbara Lovrinić Higgins, PhD, and Sunčana Franić, participated in the ENCATC Academy in Bilbao, an international programme dedicated to cultural management and cultural policy, with a special focus on sustainability, innovation, and the role of culture in societal development. Through a series of expert lectures, case studies, and discussions with participants from various countries, the participants explored ways in which cultural organisations can adapt to contemporary challenges while creating long-term social impact. The programme provided practical tools and new insights into the development of the cultural and creative sectors, as well as a valuable opportunity to exchange experiences and ideas with professionals from across the world.