In the transition and developing countries the use of surplus real property might be a good response to the acute need for local sources of revenues provided the requirements of the new public management regarding efficiency, effectiveness and quality of public services are carefully observed. The research has focused on the case of Romanian cities' real properties, aiming to reveal the problems of the existing municipal real property (MRP) management system in relation to both overall city conditions and the characteristics of the institutional and organizational framework. A questionnairebased survey followed by nonparametric statistical tests have been employed in this respect, confirming the working hypothesis which points to the importance of the existence of an MRP plan, an MRP strategy and an MRP unit at municipality level for the effective use of these assets. A series of viable solutions to the problems identified have been also formulated. Points for practitionersThe article emphasizes the decisive role of the strategic approach and corresponding instruments for effective MRP management, putting forward valuable recommendations for making MRP an important source of revenue for municipal governments. They are derived from the findings obtained within the EU-funded project entitled 'Municipal Property Management in South-East European Cities' (PROMISE) by the Bucharest University of Economic Studies team, one of the 13 partners involved. Its contribution has been nominated by the International Project Management Association among the

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Our paper tackles the development of media reporting during the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on the January - November 2020 time span, in France, Germany, Romania, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. We aim to make media reporting transparent on two dimensions: the coverage of COVID-19-related topics and the negativity of the COVID-19 media reporting. To achieve this goal, we analysed a large news dataset with 841,415 pieces of news—including 202,608 COVID-19 media reports—on an LSTM neural network. The news sentiment data and the corresponding coverage are set in relation to the WHO data on COVID-19 and to Google Trends. This compares the reality, that is WHO data, the perceived and reported reality, that is news data, and the actions based on the perceived and the actual reality, that is Google Trends. The results show that media reporting on COVID-19 is unprecedented in terms of coverage and negativity. Furthermore, the study quantifies how far media reporting detached from the facts after the first wave of COVID-19 and how an Infodemic spread across Europe.<br>

In the present paper we put forward a clear assessment of the Romanian rural tourism, from a regional perspective. Based on data for 2016, using principal component analysis for mixed data and cluster analysis, we outline an accurate image of the Romanian rural tourism at NUTS level 3, focusing on its main determinants and key regional poles of development. The novelty of the paper lays in developing one of the first composite indices measuring the rural tourism sector, in the Romanian scientific literature, which allows to rank the counties based on their performance and in providing a mapping of rural tourism, highlighting the counties with promising potential for developing activities in this sector. With high practical value, our empirical results may represent an important starting point in developing coherent policies meant at supporting and promoting rural tourism which can become an important generator of wealth and growth in the rural areas of Romania.Analysing the potential of rural tourism at county level in Romania in 2016, based on our composite index, the main poles of development are the counties of Suceava, Harghita, Brasov, Arges, Mures, Sibiu, and Cluj, with values of the index greater than 80 points. Referring to the NUTS level 2, the Center region is, by far, the leader in terms of potential for rural tourism; four out of the seven identified poles belong to this region, respectively Harghita, Brasov, Mures, and Sibiu. At the other end of the spectrum, there are counties like Botosani, Calarasi, Giurgiu, Ialomita, Olt, and Teleorman characterized by a very low potential for developing rural tourism activities. (Figure no. 5) 866 Amfiteatru Economic Figure no. 6: The empirical results of cluster analysis Contemporary Approaches and Challenges of Tourism Sustainability AE

PurposeWithin a Europe highly concerned about becoming a zero net greenhouse gas emission continent, and where the circular economy is strongly promoted as a proper lever in this sense, the present paper aims to raise awareness regarding best practices towards a “green” food retail sector in Romania. In a more specific regard, the “green” practices implemented by the main food retailers acting on the Romanian market are analysed, focusing on what these practices are, how they are measured and how transparent they are.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on desk research consisting in the identification and content analysis of the “green”-related information outlined on the food retailers' websites and in their published sustainability reports.FindingsFood retailers are concerned about becoming carbon neutral, implementing the “green” measures outlined in the paper through the lenses of waste management, minimising/eradicating plastic, reducing/eliminating food waste, energy efficiency/saving, water consumption efficiency, protecting biodiversity, transportation efficiency and compliance with standards/obtained certifications/adherence to pacts. In addition to actions, food retailers are concerned about their proper, continuous monitorization, tackling key indicators in four directions: overall impact on the environment, impact on resources, waste impact and transportation impact.Originality/valueThe paper provides a novel, exhaustive best practices guide to encourage the transition to a “greener” activity in the Romanian food retail sector, highlighting both action measures and key assessment indicators.