https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/2062 2026-10-30T01:47:07Z 2026-10-30T01:47:07Z Cuschieri, S. Camilleri Ballucci, N. Bajada, Therese Scheiber, Sarah https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/150576 2026-10-28T15:18:18Z 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Mapping urban obesity : spatial patterns of adiposity and green space accessibility in Malta Authors: Cuschieri, S.; Camilleri Ballucci, N.; Bajada, Therese; Scheiber, Sarah Abstract: Obesity is a major public health challenge in high-density urban settings. Built-environment characteristics, including access to open and green spaces, may influence weight-related outcomes. This study examined whether obesity and abdominal adiposity cluster geographically in relation to proximity to open and green spaces within Malta’s Principal Urban Areas (PUAs).

2026-01-01T00:00:00Z Kisser, Johannes Wirth, Maria De Gusseme, Bart Van Eekert, Miriam Zeeman, Grietje Schoenborn, Andreas Vinnerås, Björn Finger, David C. Kolbl Repinc, Sabina Griessler Bulc, Tjaša Banik, Aida Pavlova, Dolja Staicu, Lucian C. Atasoy, Merve Cetecioglu, Zeynep Kokko, Marika Haznedaroglu, Berat Z. Hansen, Joachim Istenič, Darja Canga, Eriona Malamis, Simos Camilleri Fenech, Margaret Beesley, Luke https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/150389 2026-10-23T08:49:06Z 2020-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: A review of nature-based solutions for resource recovery in cities Authors: Kisser, Johannes; Wirth, Maria; De Gusseme, Bart; Van Eekert, Miriam; Zeeman, Grietje; Schoenborn, Andreas; Vinnerås, Björn; Finger, David C.; Kolbl Repinc, Sabina; Griessler Bulc, Tjaša; Banik, Aida; Pavlova, Dolja; Staicu, Lucian C.; Atasoy, Merve; Cetecioglu, Zeynep; Kokko, Marika; Haznedaroglu, Berat Z.; Hansen, Joachim; Istenič, Darja; Canga, Eriona; Malamis, Simos; Camilleri Fenech, Margaret; Beesley, Luke Abstract: Our modern cities are resource sinks designed on the current linear economic model which recovers very little of the original input. As the current model is not sustainable, a viable solution is to recover and reuse parts of the input. In this context, resource recovery using nature-based solutions (NBS) is gaining popularity worldwide. In this specific review, we focus on NBS as technologies that bring nature into cities and those that are derived from nature, using (micro)organisms as principal agents, provided they enable resource recovery. The findings presented in this work are based on an extensive literature review, as well as on original results of recent innovation projects across Europe. The case studies were collected by participants of the COST Action Circular City, which includes a portfolio of more than 92 projects. The present review article focuses on urban wastewater, industrial wastewater, municipal solid waste and gaseous effluents, the recoverable products (e.g., nutrients, nanoparticles, energy), as well as the implications of source separation and circularity by design. The analysis also includes assessment of the maturity of different technologies (technology readiness level) and the barriers that need to be overcome to accelerate the transition to resilient, self-sustainable cities of the future.

2020-01-01T00:00:00Z Satariano, Bernadine Bajada, Therese Mariotti, Ilaria https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/149729 2026-10-06T10:06:38Z 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: The paradox of digital nomadism, social isolation, and mental health within an island context, Malta Authors: Satariano, Bernadine; Bajada, Therese; Mariotti, Ilaria Abstract: The rise of digital nomadism (DN) represents a fundamental shift in the modern labour landscape, as the pursuit of professional, spatial and personal freedom (Reichenberger, 2017). Digital technologies can collapse the boundary between working in an office and working while travelling, consequently, nomads disrupted the idea of traditional labour structures through radical flexibility (Green, 2020). Yet, this emancipatory aspiration is inextricably entangled with global capitalist dynamics. Beneath the aesthetic of laptops on beaches lies a complex socio-psychological landscape marked by feelings of vulnerability and profound isolation. [excerpt]

2026-01-01T00:00:00Z Vella, Adriana Vella, Noel Bajada, Therese https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/148576 2026-08-20T09:38:07Z 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Editorial : Innovations and research applications for marine conservation and maritime sustainability Authors: Vella, Adriana; Vella, Noel; Bajada, Therese Abstract: The global marine environment faces a compounding Triple Planetary Crisis of climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss, pushing ecosystems to, and frequently beyond, their carrying capacities (Halpern et al., 2015; IPCC, 2019). Human-caused stressors are rapidly degrading our oceans, yet international policies remain fragmented, merely descriptive, and too slow to action (Rockström et al., 2009; Lubchenco and Grorud-Colvert, 2015). This gap between scientific monitoring and active management leaves marine environments highly vulnerable, as reactive regulations cannot keep pace with discoveries, innovations and technological advancements. [excerpt]

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