Academic Search Alumni Edition

This article examines the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in the public sector, highlighting its transformative potential and associated challenges. AI has the capacity to revolutionize public admin- istration by enhancing service delivery, decision-making, and operational efficiency through advanced data analysis, predictive analytics, and automation. Despite these opportunities, the adoption of AI in government faces significant obstacles, including technical limitations, ethical concerns, legal constraints, and organizational resistance. Key issues such as data privacy, system security, algorithmic bias, and accountability for AI-driven decisions are explored. This study employs a theoretical framework based on literature analysis, document review, and value interpretation. The article also discusses the varying levels of AI deployment, from simple automation to fully autonomous systems, and the strategic approaches needed for successful implementation. The research objectives are to identify the principal challenges and opportunities associated with AI integration in public administration and to answer key questions regarding effective governance, ethical management, and policy formulation. The study also aims to contribute to both academic discourse and policy practice by proposing actionable recommendations for optimizing AI deployment in the public sector. It emphasizes the need for robust governance frameworks, ethical guidelines, and international cooperation to ensure AI technologies enhance public value while preserving trust and democratic principles. The findings underscore the importance of a balanced approach to AI integration, promoting innovation while safeguarding societal interests.

An essential component of supporting sustainable development is the expansion of distributed renewable energy source generation. The purpose of this work is to identify the key areas of influence of state authorities in support of the formation of distributed energy generation. The example of Ukraine revealed the potential of their use in conditions of military threats. The methodological basis of the study encompasses tools of institutional, historical, genetic, structural, comparative, and complementary analysis. Instruments of state regulation of the development of decentralized power generation are presented. The potential for regulating the development of renewable energy generation through artificial intelligenceis shown. Attention is focused on the contradictory influence of scaling effects on the stimulation of its development.

Digital transformation and data policy are no longer peripheral concerns but strategic imperatives at the heart of the European Union’s (EU) digital agenda. More than a technological shift, this transformation signals a fundamental change in governance logic—one where data-driven decision-making, cross-sectoral innovation, and inclusive design shape the contours of public service delivery. Anchored in the European Digital Strategy (EDS), the EU’s vision for a digitally resilient society is not merely a regulato-ry framework but a multidimensional blueprint that connects digital infrastructure with civic value. This article examines how such ambitions materialize on the ground through a case study of Vilnius City Municipality’s Smart City initiative, focusing on its Mobility Map project. Through the integration of anonymized real-time mobility data, the platform exemplifies the practical application of EDS principles: transparency, responsiveness, and citizen-centered governance. It also underscores the role of municipalities not as passive implementers but as strategic agents in shaping Europe’s digital transformation. Yet, the research highlights persistent asymmetries in local capacity, infrastructural readiness, and policy coherence. The EU’s digital vision often collides with on-the-ground realities, from fragmented data systems to ethical dilemmas surrounding automation. The study argues that sustainable and equitable digital transformation demands not only technical profi-ciency but also institutional reflexivity, ethical safeguards, and adaptive leadership. Vilnius emerges as a microcosm of both the potential and the complexity embedded in Europe’s digital future.

The factors contributing to political and institutional trust in Europe are under-researched. This study aims to explore the links between political and institutional trust, subjective well-being, and satisfaction with the economy, national government, and democracy by applying data from the 11th round of the European Social Survey, conducted in 2023–2024. The age of the participants (n = 22,039) ranged from 15 to 90 (M = 51.88, SD = 18.728). The results reveal that in European countries, trust in politicians and political parties is consistently lower than trust in institutions such as the police, the legal system, and international organizations like the United Nations. The findings show that subjective well-being is significantly correlated with all forms of political and institutional trust, including trust in the country’s parliament, legal system, politicians, political parties, the European Parliament, and the United Nations, suggesting that institutional trust is a foundational component of societal well-being. However, the strongest correlation is observed between trust in the police and subjective well-being. Satisfaction with the economy, national government, and democracy show the strongest correlations with trust in the country’s parliament and politicians, positing that economic conditions and governmental performance are the primary determinants of political trust. Structural equation modeling reveals that subjective well-being does not directly translate into political and institutional trust, but political and economic satisfaction acts as a critical mediating variable. High levels of life satisfaction and happiness can enhance positive perceptions of economic and governmental performance, which in turn foster political and institutional trust.

Family support is a crucial component affecting the functioning of parents of children with disabilities within society. Sufficient services that cater to both child support and the parents’ quality of life are required, or else the state labor market runs the risk of losing able-bodied citizens who are responsible for raising children with disabilities. Thus, the research has twofold aim: to review the system of public services for families raising children with disabilities in Lithuania, and to analyze the availability of services from the perspective of managers of service-providing institutions. A structured interviews was conducted to collect information from eighteen experts who are heads of education, health and social services departments of municipalities and subordinate institutions, responsible for decision-making in the organization and provision of services to families raising children with disabilities in the Alytus region. According to research findings, the Alytus region has the potential to provide education, healthcare, and social services following legal provisions. However, the current range of services is inadequate in practice. Typically, most services are available only upon parental request for children with disabilities, with certain services not being available for numerous reasons. Based on the research findings, the insufficient provision of services in the Alytus region is mainly attributable to a shortage of service staff and limited financial resources. At the same time, the study highlights a slow responsiveness of the municipalities and their subordinate entities towards communicating and collaborating, as well as with parents of disabled children.

This article underlines how a transparent and unambiguously understood legal system is an integral part of a sustainable state. The analysis begins with the central thesis that unambiguous legislation not only contributes to the smooth enforcement of the law, but also strengthens citizens’ confidence in rule of law institutions. The article discusses a few key aspects, including the importance of clarity in the language of legislation and specific drafting principles that show how clarity contributes to the achievement of the sustainable development goals. It also emphasizes that clarity should not only be seen as a technical aspect of legislation, but also as a strategic aspect of governance, promoting legal awareness and empowering the public to actively participate in public governance. It is also stressed that clearly formulated legislation is essential for effective, accountable, and transparent governance, and that legislation must be equally understood by all sections of society. Finally, the article touches on the concept of a sustainable state, with a transparent and efficient legal system that can respond quickly to social, economic, and environmental challenges, ensuring the full well-being and stability of its citizens. The themes of the article cover several key areas: the principle of legal certainty, the protection of citizens’ rights and freedoms, economic development, the transparency of the legislative process, and the uniformity of the interpretation and application of law.

The aim of this article is to review the problems of strategic management in Lithuanian and Ukrainian municipalities. The article examines the factors that, in the authors' opinion, do not allow municipalities to take full advantage of strategic management, and attempts to distinguish between competitive (win/lose) and balanced (win/win) strategies. The long-term strategic development plans of the five largest Lithuanian and Ukrainian city municipalities are studied, assessing the balance of indicators of their strategic provisions in relation to four different balanced scorecard perspectives. Currently, the strategic management plans drawn up in Lithuanian and Ukrainian municipalities are not characterized by a balance of indicators. Moreover, the sets of selected indicators do not reflect all aspects of the municipality's activities and strategic plans of municipalities, at least in the case of large Lithuanian and Ukrainian cities. These indicators are also not detailed down to units at the lowest level and to individual employees, and at the same time cannot become strategic action plans or effective communication tools.

While research has focused on self-concept before or after marriage dissolution, very little research has investigated how individuals understand and evaluate themselves during the longer-lasting and usually highly conflictual divorce process. Qualitative interview data with Lithuanians 6 months or more into their divorce processes suggest that divorcees experience marital dissolution as an interchange of three main processes: losing valued self-parts, a (re)birth of a more valued self, and hanging-self as being stuck in ongoing uncertainty with a need to protect valued parts of oneself. The theoretical and practical implications of these research findings are discussed.

The purpose of this review article is to consider the role of the European Union’s rural development financial instruments in preserving biodiversity in the agrarian landscape. This article is important in that there are not many works published on such a topic, and this problem is currently relevant. The main focus of the article is on analyzing and evaluating the impact of the European Union’s financial instruments on the conservation of biodiversity in the agrarian landscape. The article analyzes the application of the European Union’s financial mechanisms during three periods in Lithuania: 2000–2006, 2007–2013 and 2014–2020. Rural development had specific objectives, measures and activities during each period, with different impacts on biodiversity. In the absence of relevant legislation from the Lithuanian Ministry of Agriculture under SAPARD (the Special Accession Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development), biodiversity measures were not implemented in the first period (2000–2003), and this reduced the effectiveness of implementation in the second period. The second period included measures to protect biodiversity, but farmers and other land users chose measures and activities according to implementation options and compensation payments. In the third period, more measures and activities were implemented than in the second. There were also specific activities to preserve endangered bird species. It should be noted that more funds were allocated to the conservation of biological diversity. The activities of farmers and other land users were different during each period. It was found that the measures and activities were not only selected on the basis of the level of financial compensation, but also on the possibility of their implementation. This research is based on analysis and evaluation via methods such as descriptive and comparative data analysis in different periods. The article is relevant for agrarian researchers, agricultural specialists and scientists in the field of biodiversity conservation.

This article presents a brief analysis of the current state of the scientific and technolog- ical spheres in the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of Lithuania. Based on the analysis of the conceptual apparatus and the study of scientific literature, approaches to the analysis of the scientific and technological spheres are presented. The article considers and analyzes the size of intramural R&D expenditures in Kazakhstan and Lithuania in 2016–2020, as well as their relation to gross do- mestic product. It is noted that the accounting of intramural R&D expenditures in Kazakhstan and Lithuania is carried out in full compliance with internationally recognized OECD standards – first of all, following the FRASCATI Manual, the main provisions of which are reflected in the legislation of the OECD countries regulating the implementation and development of scientific and technological policy. Information is provided on indirect tax incentives used in practice in Kazakhstan and Lithua- nia, the purpose of which is to increase the motivation of the business environment to implement and carry out R&D projects. The calculation of the growth of the level of intramural R&D expenditure in relation to GDP is carried out in this paper. Its performance will ensure the size of the indicator under consideration at the strategic levels in Kazakhstan and Lithuania. The authors’ proposals, the implementation of which will ensure the effective development of scientific and technological policy in Kazakhstan and Lithuania, are also formulated and supplemented.