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Industrial energy systems are increasingly required to reduce operating costs and CO2 emissions while integrating variable renewable energy sources. Managing these objectives under uncertainty requires advanced optimization strategies capable of delivering reliable and real-time decisions. To address these challenges, this study focuses on the short-term operational planning of an industrial energy supply system using the rolling horizon approach (RHA). The RHA offers an effective framework to handle uncertainties by repeatedly updating forecasts and re-optimizing over a moving time window, thereby enabling adaptive and responsive energy management. To solve the resulting nonlinear and constrained optimization problem at each RHA iteration, we propose a novel hybrid algorithm that combines Bayesian optimization (BO) with the Interior Point OPTimizer (IPOPT). While global deterministic and stochastic optimization methods are frequently used in practice, they often suffer from high computational costs and slow convergence, particularly when applied to large-scale, nonlinear problems with complex constraints. To overcome these limitations, we employ the BO–IPOPT, integrating the global search capabilities of BO with the efficient local convergence and constraint fulfillment of the IPOPT. Applied to a large-scale real-world case study of a food and cosmetic industry in Germany, the proposed BO–IPOPT method outperformed state-of-the-art solvers in both solution quality and robustness, achieving up to 97.25%-better objective function values at the same CPU time. Additionally, the influence of key parameters, such as forecast uncertainty, optimization horizon length, and computational effort per RHA iteration, was analyzed to assess their impact on system performance and decision quality.

In the literature, circular economy (CE) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) are increasingly interconnected concepts. Turon at al. (2016) consider CE the guidelines of conduct for designing and developing good CSR strategies. In particular, the corporate management philosophy needs to be translated into mandatory CSR reports that better frames circular economy objectives by identifying and communicating actions to achieve sustainable development goals. The purpose of this paper is to explore a number of CSR reports in order to understand if cosmetic multinationals’ (MNC) nonfinancial reporting is focused on the concept of circular economy and if CSR reports ensure an adequate level of disclosure to circular strategies. Moreover, the paper highlights the advantages that arise by converging the concepts of CSR and CE. The originality of this paper lies on providing evidence on “how” MNC are implementing a circular model. This paper contributes to our understanding on the relation between CSR and CE; it assesses the state of the art of circular strategies in MNC and proposes a consolidation of the concept of CE in terms of sustainable strategic and managerial practices communicated to the market by CSR reports. Moreover, it brings MNC to a better understanding of the ways to communicate their new circular business model. The analysis reveals a good level of attention by MNC to circularity in drafting their CSR reports that in many cases are able to describe objectives and actions that embrace multiple dimensions.

Globalization and economic restructuring have decimated formal jobs in developing countries, pushing many women into informal employment such as direct selling of cosmetics, perfume, and other personal care products as a way to make up the difference between household income and expenses. In Ecuador, with its persistent economic crisis and few opportunities for financially and personally rewarding work, women increasingly choose direct selling as a way to earn income by activating their social networks. While few women earn the cars and trips that are iconic prizes in the direct selling organization, many use direct selling as part of a set of household survival strategies. In this first in-depth study of a cosmetics direct selling organization in Latin America, Erynn Masi de Casanova explores womens identities as workers, including their juggling of paid work and domestic responsibilities, their ideas about professional appearance, and their strategies for collecting money from customers. Focusing on women who work for the countrys leading direct selling organization, she offers fascinating portraits of the everyday lives of women selling personal care products in Ecuadors largest city, Guayaquil. Addressing gender relations (including a look at mens direct and indirect involvement), the importance of image, and the social and economic context of direct selling, Casanova challenges assumptions that this kind of flexible employment resolves womens work/home conflicts and offers an important new perspective on womens work in developing countries.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are components of the innate immune system in many species of animals. Their diverse spectrum of activity against microbial pathogens, both as innate defense molecules and immunomodulators, makes them attractive candidates for the development of a new generation of antibiotics. Although the potential immunogenicity of AMPs means they are not suitable for injection and their susceptibility to digestive peptidases is likely to reduce their oral efficacy, they are ideal for topical formulations such as lotions, creams, shampoos, and wound dressings and could therefore be valuable products for the cosmetic industry. In this context, short AMPs (<20 amino acids) lacking disulfide bonds combine optimal antimicrobial activity with inexpensive chemical synthesis and are therefore more compatible with large-scale production and the modifications required to ensure stability, low toxicity, and microbial specificity. Proof-of-concept for the application of AMPs as novel anti-infectives has already been provided in clinical trials. This perspective considers the anti-infective properties of short AMPs lacking disulfide bonds, which are active against dermatologically important microflora. We consider the challenges that need to be addressed to facilitate the prophylactic application of AMPs in personal care products.

In recent years, the sustainability of cosmetic products has received growing interest from the cosmetic industry and consumers due to the recommendation of the implementation of the circular economy and the European Green Deal. The sustainable development strategy takes into account the reduction of waste and energy consumption, and covers all processes of producing and using cosmetics, starting from the method of obtaining raw materials, through to the process of producing cosmetics bulk, to the selection of packaging. Particularly, the selection of raw materials has a large impact on sustainability of cosmetic emulsion. One way of resource recovery is the use of agro-food by-products and discarded waste to produce cosmetic raw materials, because most of them possess value-added bioactive compounds, such as enzymes and nutrients with high functionality. Their recovery may be performed by more sustainable extraction processes, leading to natural oils, extracts, polymers, phytosterols, vitamins, minerals, and unsaturated fatty acids. A relatively new and innovative form of designing sustainable and bioavailable cosmetic raw materials is fermentation, where bioferments are obtained from plant-based and food waste raw materials. In addition, optimization of the emulsification process by applying low-energy methods is a crucial step in obtaining sustainable cosmetics. This allows not only a reduction in the carbon footprint, but also the preservation of the valuable properties of the used raw materials. The following paper discusses methods of creating sustainable cosmetic emulsions with energy-saving procedures and by using raw materials from food waste and the fermentation process.

Energy is a crucial factor for urban development. Cities have a crucial role in climate change, as they use 2/3 of the world’s energy, producing 70% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In order to reduce the large ecological footprint of the utilization of conversional energy sources (coal, gas, and oil) and enhance a nation’s energy independence (security), it is crucial to find alternative fuels. Biomass residues are characterized as a sustainable and carbon-neutral energy source. Hence, this review describes a critical assessment of not only the quality characteristics of several waste and biomass residues for bioenergy production and biofuels but also the value-added products that could be produced from wastes to enhance industry (e.g., pharmaceutical, cosmetics, packaging industry, etc.). Furthermore, the challenges and potential solutions of waste utilization for bioenergy production and the transformation of value-added products for urban sustainability are also explored. Despite the high-quality characteristics and the availability of these wastes, several critical factors should be taken into account. Biomass residues could contribute to sustainable development goals (SDG), such as sustainable cities and communities, clean energy, responsible consumption and production, the economic growth of a country, and, as a result, urban development.

People's health awareness has extended from the food industry to the personal beauty industry. Consumers have increased their interest in natural ingredients, sustainable packaging, and other green elements of cosmetics. This research explores consumer attitudes toward green cosmetics. Data were collected through qualitative research instruments (focus groups) since the research aimed to discover in-depth consumer attitudes and feelings. There were 30 British females who agreed to be respondents in five focus groups. They were divided into five focus groups. The key findings of this research were the prevailing neutral attitudes toward green cosmetics due to the lack of knowledge and confusing market standards. The majority of respondents viewed price and performance as the most important factors when choosing cosmetics instead of green elements. However, given the growing awareness of natural and organic ingredients and green production, most respondents admitted the potential change of present neutral attitudes to be more supportive in the future. Green cosmetics is a new trend in the personal beauty industry. This study ascertains the consumer attitudes toward green cosmetics and calls for clearer green standards and regulations in the industry as well as advanced biotechnology to extract natural ingredients.

The recent lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson have raised the issue of what and when talcum powder manufacturers knew about the presence of asbestos in their products and what they did or did not do to protect the public. Low-level exposure to asbestos in talc is said to result in either mesothelioma or ovarian cancer. Johnson & Johnson has claimed that there was “no detectable asbestos” in their products and that any possible incidental presence was too small to act as a carcinogen. But what exactly does “nondetected” mean? Here, we examine the historical development of the argument that asbestos in talcum powder was “nondetected.” We use a unique set of historical documents from the early 1970s, when low-level pollution of talc with asbestos consumed the cosmetics industry. We trace the debate over the Food and Drug Administration’s efforts to guarantee that talc was up to 99.99% free of chrysotile and 99.9% free of amphibole asbestos. Cosmetic talc powder manufacturers, through their trade association, pressed for a less stringent methodology and adopted the term “nondetected” rather than “asbestos-free” as a term of art.

Antimicrobial peptides/proteins (AMPs) are biologically active molecules with diverse structural properties that are produced by mammals, plants, insects, ticks, and microorganisms. They have a range of antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and even anticancer activities, and their biological properties could therefore be exploited for therapeutic and prophylactic applications. Cancer and cancer drug resistance are significant current health challenges, so the development of innovative cancer drugs with minimal toxicity toward normal cells and novel modes of action that can evade resistance may provide a new direction for anticancer therapy. The skin is the first line of defense against heat, sunlight, injury, and infection, and skin cancer is thus the most common type of cancer. The skin that has been exposed to sunlight is particularly susceptible, but lesions can occur anywhere on the body. Skin cancer awareness and self-efficacy are necessary to improve sun protection behavior, but more effective preventative approaches are also required. AMPs may offer a new prophylactic approach against skin cancer. In this mini review, we draw attention to the potential use of insect AMPs for the prevention and treatment of skin cancer.

A decade ago, AJPH published a special supplement on environmental justice (https://ajph.aphapublications. org/toc/ajph/101/S1), with dozens of articles addressing themes such as residential proximity to hazardous facilities, expanded risk assessment frameworks that acknowledged cumulative exposures and differential vulnerability, and perspectives on community engagement, empowerment, and capacity building.Much has changed over the past decade. The escalating burden of climate change, growing recognition of the insidiousness of racism, and political extremism have had profound influences on public health and environmental justice. Given this, we put out a call for papers on \"New Frontiers of Environmental Justice,\" soliciting articles that address novel topics, utilize innovative methods, and reflect on approaches for addressing environmental justice in the future. In the current and subsequent issues of AJPH, we present articles that grapple with some of these complex questions.This special section features complementary framing and research articles that beckon more inclusive understandings of oppression and action-oriented processes to pursue justice. For instance, Goldsmith and Bell (p. 79) explore how environmental exposures disproportionately affect the LGBTQ + (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, and others) population while Collins et al. (p. 54) and Gaard (p. 57) discuss the implications of an intersectional approach within environmental justice research and policy. Relatedly, McDonald etal. (p. 50) expose toxic disparities in beauty products marketed toward people of color, including LGBTQ+ members, and call for regulatory changes within the cosmetics industry.