Intersectoral actions in the sport-for-development field constitute a pre-condition for the implementation of sport-based interventions. At an operational level, the multi-professional group is the tool through which intersectoral collaboration may successfully achieve its aims. Despite the prominent role of the group, this topic is under-researched in terms of understanding intersectoral actions in the sport-for-development field. By applying a psycho-sociological perspective, our research explores the role of the multi-professional group as a limit/resource for sport-for-development workers that operate with vulnerable youth. Following a phenomenological interpretive approach, 12 practitioners (six sport workers and six social workers) participated in semi-structured interviews to explore the role of multi-professional groups as a resource/limit in working with socially vulnerable youth through sport. The results indicate that, in the participants’ experience, belonging to a multi-professional group is a meaningful resource to trigger reflexivity, promote collaboration and integrate their different professions. The interviews highlighted the positive potential of this tool to address the challenges that emerge when working with socially vulnerable youth, including the management of negative emotions, unexpected events and the relationship with young people. Some interviews also suggested that the presence of multiple professions, under certain circumstances, may be a risk when working with youth. These findings have significant value for programme design, strategy and management as they show the value of trans-disciplinary practices as an agenda for social inclusion through sport.

Social inclusion is broadly recognized as a priority to accomplish at an international level. While the influence of sport toward this social mission has been largely debated, literature lacks contributions capturing the challenges of sport when promoting social inclusion. Based in case study methodology, the investigation explores the impact of a multi-stakeholder sport initiative developing social inclusion for socially vulnerable youth and the related challenges of the intervention through in-depth interviews with diverse program stakeholders. The main findings indicated the emergence of four challenges: limited transferability of program outcomes for youth in living conditions of severe vulnerability; drop-out of youth in living conditions of severe vulnerability; limited sustainability of program social workers; lack of sports club management skills. The work highlights some limits of sport-based programs for social inclusion and discusses some implications for practice to maximize the societal impact of such interventions.

In this work, a preliminary numerical assessment on the application of an additive manufactured hybrid metal/composite shock absorber panels to a military seat ejection system, has been carried out. The innovative character of the shock absorber concept investigated is that the absorbing system has a thickness of only 6 mm and is composed of a pyramid-shaped lattice core that, due to its small size, can only be achieved by additive manufacturing. The mechanical behaviour of these shock absorber panels has been examined by measuring their ability to absorb and dissipate the energy generated during the ejection phase into plastic deformations, thus reducing the loads acting on pilots. In this paper the effectiveness of a system composed of five hybrid shock absorbers, with very thin thickness in order to be easily integrated between the seat and the aircraft floor, has been numerically studied by assessing their ability to absorb the energy generated during the primary ejection phase. To accomplish this, a numerical simulation of the explosion has been performed and the energy absorbed by the shock-absorbing mechanism has been assessed. The performed analysis demonstrated that the panels can absorb more than 60% of the energy generated during the explosion event while increasing the total mass of the pilot-seat system by just 0.8%.

Purpose The purpose of this manuscript is twofold. First, this manuscript explores how dialogic evaluation (DE), as a participatory evaluation tool, develops inter-organizational learning (IOL). Second, based on empirical analysis, the work provides pragmatic insights to support practitioners in implementing a facilitative framework grounded in DE for the increased uptake of IOL. Design/methodology/approach Two cases of multi-stakeholder partnerships in sport for development and peace (SDP) in Italy were analyzed and compared to explore whether and how the implementation of DE supported the development of IOL. Findings In both cases, applying a three-phase DE process supported several IOL outcomes, such as common knowledge, new innovative solutions development and transfer of new acquisitions. Indeed, DE promoted three key IOL objectives: the emergence of latent relational dimensions and issues to bridge multiple levels; intra- and inter-redefinition and intersection of boundaries; awareness of relevance and usefulness of what was accomplished during the partnership. This paper also discusses some practical insights for DE methodology implementation to activate IOL. Originality/value This research contributes to the understanding of an effective IOL by developing synergies from network interactions. Moreover, the researcher applied a novel methodology, DE, in IOL’s research domain, focusing on a different context and setting such as SDP.