Regional Formation and Development Studies

In recent years, inter-municipal cooperation in solving various common problems has become more popular in Europe, and has become an important part of European regional policy. These trends can also be observed in Lithuania. However, after a few generally agreed on success projects, there have not been many more successful municipal cooperation projects. Lithuania has been regulating cooperation between state institutions through legislation since 2000, which was supposed to stimulate regional growth and reduce interregional disparities. Providing municipalities with the necessary legal powers to provide public management and public services, and providing financial incentives, including European Union (EU) funds, to promote cooperation can achieve good results. In waste management in the regions and in organising public transport in the Tauragė and Klaipėda regions, EU support helped municipalities to agree on cooperation, and the same cooperation remained after the end of the EU support, and also a higher standard of public management and public services for all the municipalities that participated in these projects. This article aims to analyze recent changes in public administration regulation in Lithuania, which are likely to complicate cooperation between municipalities and, accordingly, high-quality public governance and the provision of public services in regions, and increase the gap between regional municipalities.

This study assesses the role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) by reviewing 39 recent significant studies. The theoretical foundation of the reviewed studies serves as the basis for the research instrument designed to assess CSR practices and their impact on the competitive advantage of SMEs. A pilot study involving 102 Latvian SME respondents was conducted to validate the research instrument’s reliability across four scales: competitive advantage, reputation and financial performance, CSR domains and impact, and CSR challenges. The results indicate very good or excellent internal consistency, with Cronbach’s alpha values between 0.846 and 0.923. The findings demonstrate that SMEs continue to adopt CSR practices, recognising their strategic benefits which include innovation, operational efficiency and improved reputation. However, challenges such as resource limitations and stakeholder pressures remain important. This validated instrument establishes a foundation for further large-scale studies to explore CSR’s influence on the sustainability and competitiveness of SMEs, emphasising the need for tailored strategies, government support, and effective tools for evaluating CSR impact.

The article analyzes the experiences of Lithuanian and Swedish preschool teachers in multicultural education in educating preschool children. The content, methods and tools of multicultural education of preschool children are revealed. Used research methods: analysis of scientific literature and documents, comparative analysis, qualitative research, semi-structured interviews, and qualitative content analysis. The following aspects of multicultural education emerged: preschool teachers in both countries believe that multicultural education enriches children,

On 11 March 2020 the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the global pandemic, and governments were forced to initiate non-pharmaceutical intervention (NPI) and disease containment measures. Governments had to come up with viable fiscal support measures and respective fiscal aid packages for the health and economic sectors, thus creating a unique opportunity to compare the quality of institutions and government effectiveness to manage, mitigate and lessen an economic crisis and a fall GDP, and measure the possibility of reaching the pre-crisis level of GDP. The analysis raised several issues, because in some countries the change in GDP in 2020 and the speed of recovery from the crisis and the attainment of the pre-crisis level of GDP of 2019 was slower, and at

The Lithuanian Progress Strategy 2030 and related educational policies emphasise the need to prepare students for a dynamic world filled with challenges and opportunities. This necessitates the improvement of educational content through a competency-based approach that transcends traditional subject boundaries. Implementing interdisciplinary integration requires a holistic combination of knowledge, aligned with student interests and societal needs. Teachers are granted autonomy to design and adapt subject content to meet educational objectives, although this demands both time and specific competencies. Effective interdisciplinary teaching depends on collaborative practices that deepen understanding and enhance skills. Characteristics of transformational leadership, such as trust based on shared values and leading by example, are crucial for improving the quality of education. These values underpin the Agile project management model, which is designed for goal-oriented collaboration amid uncertainty. However, the Agile methodology is not yet widely applied in Lithuania’s education system. This study aims to explore the potential of Agile methodology for facilitating interdisciplinary integration in a gymnasium.

The research aim is to identify the key factors influencing patient engagement and, after analysing strategies for patient engagement used worldwide, to assess their suitability for involving patients in the Ga East Municipality, Ghana. Employing a qualitative desk review approach, the study examined existing literature. It analysed global patient engagement frameworks across 20 studies conducted over the last ten years, based on the subcategories of trust, education, leadership and shared understanding. While the review highlighted several implications for health outcomes and patient satisfaction related to patient engagement, it also revealed that various