Search results for "Sustainability organizations"
showing 10 items of 27 documents
Four Perspectives of Applied Sustainability: Research Implications and Possible Integrations
2017
How is applied sustainability being understood and implemented in academics’ and practitioners’ circles? Participants to the workshop “Sustainability Performance Assessment” within the ICCSA 2017 conference are confronted with this overarching question, which they address from their specific backgrounds and theoretical standpoints.
New Challenges for Sustainable Organizations in Light of Agenda 2030 for Sustainability
2021
Sustainability is one of humanity’s most daunting issues at present. Increasing popula- tion, escalation of anthropogenic activities, industrialization, modern agricultural practices that pollute water, air, and soil around the world, and ever-increasing greenhouse gas emissions mean that sustainability is now in doubt [1]. In response to these critical concerns, the world has come up with several initiatives including Agenda 2030. Agenda 2030 is a commitment to eradicate poverty and achieve sustainable development worldwide, ensuring that no one is left behind by 2030. Its adoption was a landmark achievement, providing a shared vision towards sustainable development for all. Its 17 Sustain…
Sustainability of Pension Systems in the Baltic States
2016
Objective: The objective of the paper is to identify how the concept of sustainability is understood and ensured in the pension systems of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania; and what implications it brings to the performance of pension schemes. Research Design & Methods: Analysis of various conceptual and methodological approaches to the notion of sustainability of pension systems. Comparative analysis of present pension legislation, as well as preceding stage of pension reforms, accompanied by a number of numerical models. Findings: The understanding of sustainability is limited by narrow ‘fiscal’ meaning in Latvia, compared to more a multifaceted concept that includes the principle of socia…
Assessing Sustainability: Research Directions and Relevant Issues
2016
The growing research debate concerning sustainability and its applications in interdisciplinary domain represents a conjunction point where basic and applied science (scientific computation and applications in all areas of sciences, engineering, technology, industry, economics, life sciences and social sciences), but also qualified practitioners, compare and discuss advances in order to substance what we consider a the future perspective: “applied sustainability”. A relevant issue in order to compare and benchmark different position is the “sustainability performance assessment”. It means to discuss in a general view critical aspects and general issues in order to propose research direction…
Assessing the sustainability of water companies: A synthetic indicator approach
2016
Performance indicators (PIs) are essential in the benchmarking process used to rate and rank water companies. However, a set of individual PIs does not provide a holistic assessment of company performance from multiple perspectives. A multidimensional evaluation of the performance of water companies can be achieved by aggregating the PIs into a synthetic indicator. Although the concept of sustainability involves economic, environmental and social criteria, most of the previous studies have not considered these three dimensions simultaneously. This paper discusses a process of indicator aggregation using two approaches based on multi-criteria decision analysis to evaluate and compare the sus…
Sustainability Reporting in Central and Eastern European Companies: Results of an International and Empirical Study
2017
Reporting on corporate social, environmental and economic responsibility has broadened widely within the last decade. The European Union is the most active region in the world in terms of sustainability reporting, largely on a voluntary basis. Most of the empirical research related to sustainability reporting in Europe has been conducted in Western European countries. In Central and Eastern Europe, only a small number of studies have focused on sustainability reporting. Little, however, is known whether how and why companies in CEE report about their corporate sustainable activities. The aim of the research project is to describe the status quo of SR in CEE, to explain some noteworthy diffe…
An interpretive framework for assessing and monitoring the sustainability of school gardens
2016
School gardens are, increasingly, an integral part of projects aiming to promote nutritional education and environmental sustainability in many countries throughout the world. In the late 1950s, FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) and UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund) had already developed projects to improve the dietary intake and behavior through school and community gardens. However, notwithstanding decades of experience, real proof of how these programs contribute to improving sustainability has not been well-documented, and reported findings have mostly been anecdotal. Therefore, it is important to begin a process of collecting and monitoring data to quantify the results and …
Evaluating the Sustainability in Complex Agri-Food Systems: The SAEMETH Framework
2015
During the last few years, the definition of sustainability and the translation of its general principles into practical and operative tasks have come into the foreground of scientific research and political agendas throughout the world. The understanding and the evaluation of the environmental, social and economic performances of complex agricultural food systems is probably the real challenge, and the design of more sustainable alternatives has been recognized as necessary for a correct territorial management. This study’s primary goal is the proposition of an interpretive structure “Sustainable Agri-Food Evaluation Methodology” (SAEMETH), able to guide the evaluation of the sustainabilit…
Towards a broader perspective on the forms of eco-industrial networks
2014
Abstract This paper explores various forms of eco-industrial networks in advancing environmental sustainability. Prior research on environmental sustainability primarily identifies industrial actors as autonomous entities or considers the role of networks in advancing environmental sustainability from a rather narrow perspective. However, the networks of ties in which industrial firms are embedded profoundly impacts not only their own performance, but also the natural environment in which they operate. Based on a systematic literature review, we identify four forms of eco-industrial networks that have the potential to advance environmental sustainability: 1) symbiosis networks, 2) sustainab…
Sustainability issues in sheet metal forming processes: an overview
2011
Abstract Environmental sustainability in manufacturing is nowadays an urgent and remarkable issue and the main concerns are related to more efficient use of materials and energy. In sheet metal forming processes there is still a lack of knowledge in this field mainly due to the need of a proper modelling of sustainability issues and factors to be taken into account. The aim of this paper is mainly to underline the state of the art from a forming point of view about the sustainability contributions offered in any phase of a product life cycle. Actually, a lack in terms of comprehensive contributions is present in the technical literature, thus, the authors try to give a sort of holistic visi…