Practicing resilience in family firms:An investigation through phenomenography

Despite the growing interest in resilience in family business, the current literature overlooks the contribution of owners/managers in practicing resilience. We focus on the experiences and practices of owners/managers of family businesses, and apply phenomenography, an interpretive methodology, to capture variations in how owners/managers understand and practice resilience in longstanding Australian and Italian family wineries. The findings show that owners/managers’ resilience practices are determined by four qualitatively different understandings of resilience. Our understanding-based theory provides a novel interpretation of resilience in the family business field, challenging the rationalistic approach by demonstrating that resilience is not universal but multifarious, such that the owners/managers’ understanding of resilience determines how resilience is practiced

Effect of pyrolysis temperature and feedstock type on agricultural properties and stability of biochars.

Pyrolysis temperature and feedstock type used to produce biochar influence the physicochemical properties of the obtained product, which in turn display a range of results when used as soil amendment. From soil carbon (C) sequestration strategy to nutrient source, biochar is used to enhance soil properties and to improve agricultural production. However, contrasting effects are observed from biochar application to soil results from a wide range of biochar?s properties in combination with specific environmental conditions. Therefore, elucidation on the effect of pyrolysis conditions and feedstock type on biochar properties may provide basic information to the understanding of soil and biochar interactions. In this study, biochar was produced from four different agricultural organic residues: Poultry litter, sugarcane straw, rice hull and sawdust pyrolysed at final temperatures of 350°C, 450°C, 550°C and 650°C. The effect of temperature and feedstock type on the variability of physicochemical properties of biochars was evaluated through measurements of pH, electrical conductivity, cation exchange capacity, macronutrient content, proximate and elemental analyses, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermogravimetric analyses. Additionally, an incubation trial was carried under controlled conditions to determine the effect of biochar stability on CO2-eq emissions. Results showed that increasing pyrolysis temperature supported biochar stability regardless of feedstock, however, agricultural properties varied widely both as an effect of temperature and feedstock. Animal manure biochar showed higher potential as nutrient source rather than a C sequestration strategy. Improving the knowledge on the influence of pyrolysis temperature and feedstock type on the final properties of biochar will enable the use of better tailored materials that correspond to the expected results while considering its interactions with environmental conditions

Residues from black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae rearing influence the plant-associated soil microbiome in the short term

Open Access Journal; Published online: 26 Sep 2022The larvae of the black soldier fly (BSFL, Hermetia illucens) efficiently close resource cycles. Next to the nutrient-rich insect biomass used as animal feed, the residues from the process are promising plant fertilizers. Besides a high nutrient content, the residues contain a diverse microbial community and application to soil can potentially promote soil fertility and agricultural production through the introduction of beneficial microbes. This research assessed the application of the residues on plant-associated bacterial and fungal communities in the rhizosphere of a grass-clover mix in a 42-day greenhouse pot study. Potted soil was amended with BSFL residues (BR+) or conventional compost (CC+) produced by Rwandan waste management companies in parallel to residues and compost sterilized (BR-, CC-) by high-energy electron beam (HEEB) as abiotic controls. The fertilizers were applied at a rate of 150  kg N  ha−1. Soil bacterial and fungal communities in both fertilizer and soil were assessed by high-throughput sequencing of ribosomal markers at different times after fertilizer application. Additionally, indicators for soil fertility such as basal respiration, plant yield and soil physicochemical properties were analyzed. Results showed that the application of BSFL residues influenced the soil microbial communities, and especially fungi, stronger than CC fertilizers. These effects on the microbial community structure could partly be attributed to a potential introduction of microbes to the soil by BSFL residues (e.g., members of genus Bacillus) since untreated and sterilized BSFL residues promoted different microbial communities. With respect to the abiotic effects, we emphasize a potential driving role of particular classes of organic matter like fiber and chitin. Indeed, especially taxa associated with decomposition of organic matter (e.g., members of the fungal genus Mortierella) were promoted by the application of BSFL residues. Soil fertility with respect to plant yield (+17% increase compared to unamended control) and basal respiration (+16% increase compared to unamended control) tended to be improved with the addition of BSFL residues. Findings underline the versatile opportunities for soil fertility arising from the application of BSFL residues in plant production and point to further research on quantification of the described effects

Preserving the longevity of long-lasting family businesses:a multilevel model

Prior research lacks an understanding of how decision makers preserve longevity within family businesses. This study examines longevity under a microfoundational lens, through an interpretive qualitative research design. The selected cases are nine long-established Australian family wineries. The outcome is a multilevel grounded model of the preservation of family firm longevity that integrates the dual firm-family relationship with the individual level of decision makers. The model shows the role played by interactions among multiple levels of analysis — namely, the individual, the family and the firm — in preserving the longevity of the family business

“Sentire la Pietra”: the economic and cultural role of ornamental stones in Piedmont region (Italy)

Today cultural heritage is no longer considered like an historical, artistic and architectural object of interest, but also an evidence of economic, cultural and social activities of a country. An ornamental stone is one of these evidences and could be consider “Cultural heritage”. In Piedmont region (Italy) there are few local museums that illustrate the material and immaterial value of the stone, like usage and processing. They are called eco-museums and their aim is to preserve, protect and show frameworks of traditional society, in order to pass on the traditions of local country people. They are generally financed by the city council, and their maintenance is mainly based on local people’s charity and availability. In Piedmont region there are some museums that preserve the historical memory, furthermore the whole city of Turin is an “open museum”, where anyone can admire 150 kinds of ornamental stones, all quarried out in Piedmont. The ornamental stones perfectly describe the town’s identity and are historical and artistically precious. The aim of this project is to create a stone path through the streets of Turin, with information panels, where citizens, tourists and even children, can appreciate the historical description of the building and of the ornamental materials too. This path could be part of a wider project including a stone museum called “Museo della pietra”. The main idea is based on a scientific museum, where technical and scientific information (i.e. extraction process, petrographic characteristics, transport and installing methods) are shown the historical ones, by the exposition of historical pictures and video of craftsmen daily life. The project called “Sentire la Pietra” could be a network composed by the stone city path, the Eco museums and a main museum where reconstructing the local social life, telling the story of ornamentals stone in Piedmont, for both foreign tourists and citizens