Search results

This chapter suggests that enhancing sustainable development in the age of technologies requires reflection about the relationship between business practice and sustainable development, as well as clarification of the relationship between sustainability and sustainable development. At the core of business activity is the definition of sustainable development defined by Brundtland (1987) as ‘meet[ing] the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’. Although that captures only one aspect of the sustainability story and its relationship to sustainable development, it nonetheless shapes business approach in research and in sustainability practices. To illustrate the contradictions and tensions in practice so far, this chapter uses three lenses: measurement in environmental, social and governance (ESG) investment, the problem of scalability and the challenge of bias in artificial intelligence (AI). It is not clear that we need a paradigm shift, but a shift in mindsets around sustainability business practice will be needed if sustainable development is to be enhanced in the age of technologies.

Nowadays, sustainable, clean, inclusive, innovative, and smart mobility in addition to urban transformation is required to achieve sustainable development as a path to preserve the world for future concerns and improve quality of life at the present, even to be kept up with growing citizens' needs. Mobility as an infrastructure component plays fundamental roles in urban transformation, and economic development. In this chapter, and based on the 5^th wave theory, related theories, models, and concepts, modern, clean, and inclusive mobility founded on high future of 4th technologies (which is called 5th technologies), digitalization, smartness, sustainability, and CSR 2.0 strategies is declared as proper clean mobility technologies to create sustainable and smart cities. Such smart cities are able to deal with challenges made by rapid, unplanned urbanization and globalization to achieve sustainable development. In this research, roles of inclusive and smart mobility systems as path to create modern and sustainable urban areas to make the world more sustainable and livable for living are declared. Literature reviews, case studies, interviews, and questionaries are applied as main methods to recognize inclusive and modern mobility and its roles in urban transformation to achieve sustainable development. This chapter is based on know-how and do-how of the author Prof. Hamid Doost on sustainability such as cooperating with Danish Sustainable Platforms Company, working with Erasmus Plus as an academic leader in Germany since 2017, cooperating with Copenhagen's former mayor and researching on sustainability. In this chapter, impact of sustainable mobility, sustainable buildings, and smart cities on CSR 2.0 and social responsibility, how these parameters improve sustainable development and sustainability in social responsibility, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and how social responsibility could influence humanities are explored.

This study aims to explore the potential dynamics between performance measurement at the organisational level and emerging urban development projects at the macro-institutional field level of sustainability governance and accountability.

Using a theoretical triangulation between three theories, namely contingency theory, institutional theory and social cognitive theory, this study investigates not only the macro-micro dynamics, but also the (recursive) micro-macro dynamics between performance measurement and urban development. Using an Egyptian public sector urban development organisation and its sustainable energy project as an empirical example, interviews, documents and observations were collected.

The dynamics emerged between field urban development projects and the (unintended) organisational implementation of the performance measurement system, the sustainability key performance indicators (KPIs) reporting system. Contributing to previous literature, these dynamics have been institutionalised through (three) interrelated levels: the (macro-field) urban development contingencies and pressures for sustainability KPIs reporting, the (organisational) institutionalisation of the urban development performance measurement system and then the (micro-organisational) cognitive role of sustainability KPIs reports in (re)making political urban development decisions.

This study faced some limitations that paved the way for future research axes. For political and security reasons, difficulties were encountered in conducting interviews with government actors in the sustainable energy project under study. Also, due to the practical separation of the environmental sustainability system from the sustainability KPIs reporting system in this case study, environmental sustainability is outside the scope.

Sustainability reports may influence public sector decision-making processes in a specific urban development context. These KPIs reports may also increase public sector management opportunities for urban auditing, transparency, accountability and sustainability governance. These KPIs may also guide public sector management to lower prices in poor villages to increase smart energy consumption and improve community health.

Sustainability reports may increase decision-makers' understanding of consumer behaviours and societal changes. This may help in making appropriate political decisions to improve their welfare and regular smart energy consumption. Not only urban citizens, but this social advantage may also extend to urban development employees through employees' promotion, training and access to government-funded academic and professional scholarships.

This study is an attempt to develop current public sector performance measurement analyses in the emerging urban development field using a triadic analytical approach. This study also fed the literature with an extended case study that clarified the (multi-level) and (two-way) dynamics between performance measurement and urban development.

This study investigates the crucial link between sustainable practices and organizational development, focusing on sustainable knowledge management (SKM), green innovation (GI) and corporate sustainable development (CSD) in diverse Pakistani organizations.

This study employs a comprehensive research methodology involving advanced statistical techniques, such as confirmatory factor analysis, structural equation modeling and hierarchical linear modeling. These methods are instrumental in exploring the complex interrelationships between SKM, GI, moderating factors and CSD.

This research generates significant findings and actively contributes to sustainable development. The following sections (Sections 4 and 5) delve into the specific findings and in-depth discussions, shedding light on how industry regulation, organizational sustainability priorities, workplace culture collaboration and alignment between green culture and knowledge management practices influence the relationships between SKM, GI and CSD. These findings provide valuable insights for the research community and organizations striving for sustainability.

The study’s findings have practical implications for organizations seeking to enhance their sustainability efforts and embrace a socially and environmentally conscious approach to organizational growth.

This study contributes to the literature on sustainable practices and organizational development. Researchers and business people can learn a lot from it because it uses advanced econometric models in new ways and focuses on the link between knowledge management, GI and sustainable corporate development.

The primary objective of this research is to chronicle how the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other United States Federal Government Agencies (USFGA) agencies have played a role in shaping the trajectory of financial reporting for sustainability, with a particular emphasis on triple bottom line (TBL). This exploration extends to other indexes reporting sustainability data encompassed within financial, social and environmental reporting.

This study adopts an illustrative methodology, utilizing data sourced from governmental, business and international organizational documents.

Sustainability accounting predominantly finds its place within the framework of TBL. However, it is crucial to note that sustainability reporting remains voluntary rather than mandatory. Nevertheless, accounting firms and professional accounting societies have embraced it as a supplementary facet of financial accounting reporting.

The research highlights the historical evolution of sustainability within the USFGA and corporate entities. Corporations’ interest in accounting for sustainability performances has significantly contributed to the emergence of voluntary sustainability accounting rules, as embodied by the TBL.

Academic institutions have the power to generate positive change by implementing sustainable development initiatives. This study aims to make a holistic assessment of the universities’ sustainability practices by explicitly focusing on equality and communication and by providing a general model for a university sustainability structure. In this context, the following questions were taken as references: How are the sustainability management mechanisms of universities? What are universities’ practices regarding “gender equality and equal opportunities”? How do universities integrate education, training, R&D and community development activities into their systems to be sustainable and how do they manage sustainability communication? This study aims to present an exemplary model for universities planning to develop a sustainability system and integrate the sustainable development goals (SDGs) into their ordinary work structures. It draws an exhaustive picture of what a sustainable structure and equality practices for universities look like by providing data about basic development areas regarding sustainability and social development.

This paper examines universities’ general sustainability system from a holistic standpoint to illustrate the implementation of sustainability practices within the universities’ plans and structure. In this qualitative research, the descriptive case study method is used. For this purpose, purposive sampling method is used where Jaume I University (Universitat Jaume I [UJI]) is selected as the sample due to its higher rankings despite its young age and its commitment to sustainability and equality. UJI is a public higher education and research university established in 1991 and is located in Castellón de la Plana in Valencia region of Spain. Its vision is to be a leading institution contributing to the social, cultural and economic aspects of sustainable development and to promote innovation, entrepreneurism, internationalization and social responsibility. It also has an non-governmental organization (NGO) working on equality. Three main data collection methods of descriptive research are used: (1) analysis of academic literature on sustainability in higher education institutions (HEIs); (2) document review: this review includes the systematic analysis of the case study university’s documents such as strategic plans, workflow charts, procedures and protocols of the related units. These documents were analyzed in a multidimensional way, and all related reports were examined comparatively. (3) Observation and semistructured interview notes: The interviews were conducted with nine unit managers and some academics working on this issue to obtain details surrounding the collected data. With this method, it became possible to obtain detailed data about the strategy and practices of the institution and identify the relationship between them. The research was conducted between April 2022 and September 2022.

According to the data, the main topics within the sustainability structure can be classified as (1) “sustainability in teaching system”, (2) “sustainability in research, development and innovation research, development and innovation (R&D&I) activities”, (3) “sustainability in management structure”, (3.1) governance, (3.2) ethics, (3.3) equality, (3.4) social responsibility and sustainability management and (3.5.) “networks and collaborations”, (4) “sustainability communication” and (5) “community development.” Each main heading includes subitems. In this context, 12 s subheadings and a total of 51 indicators under them have emerged. In addition to these, additional recommendations have been developed as a result of the analysis. This study’s findings reveal that sustainability is related to each unit of the university and that every unit engages in practices for sustainability. However, for holistic sustainability management, all practices should be coordinated and integrated according to a strategic goal. The current situation and strategic goals related to sustainability should also be defined in line with the university’s priority issues and stakeholders. Moreover, to achieve greater success and visibility, effective communication plays an important role. As such, alongside the conventional communication systems of academic units, it is crucial to establish a dedicated sustainability communication system as a distinct department.

This research is based on a case study method and is limited to the case of Jaume I University.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this research is an original study designed in line with the in-depth analysis of all systems of a university and also the data obtained through face-to-face interview methods.

Several studies have attempted to explain the integration of sustainable development in business school curricula. However, little is known about who (male students vs female students), at which age (under 21, 21–25 and 26–30) and at which stage of their undergraduate education (freshman, junior or senior) can attain and retain an adequate understanding of sustainability in accounting education. For this reason, the present study aims to investigate the students' interest in sustainability in accounting with respect to their demographic factors.

The study used a quantitative research design where data were collected at a single point in time. Further, an independent sample t-test, one-way ANOVA and factorial design were performed on 132 responses conveniently collected from accounting students in the College of Business Administration (COBA) at Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University (PMU) in Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia.

The study found no differences between the attitudes of male and female students toward sustainability in accounting education. Similarly, no statistical differences were found in the three age categories identified in this study. However, significant results were found throughout the different academic classifications (seniority): freshman students, junior students and senior students. Further, differences in the mean scores for freshman and junior accounting students were different between the male and female students, indicating that both male and female senior students' attitudes toward sustainability in accounting education were higher than those of male and female freshman and junior accounting students. The study concluded that students achieve an adequate understanding of sustainability in accounting education related to the relativism category of the Perry model of intellectual development.

Literature on attitude of students toward sustainability in education, specifically accounting education, is questionable and needs further exploration. This is due to the fact that only a small number of accounting students have been exposed to sustainable accounting education. Similarly, a recent study found a significant deficiency in sustainable accounting education in four Saudi Arabian universities, with only 4.5% of respondents knowing the comprehensive definition of sustainable development and 88% respondents having very low to low familiarity with the term sustainability.

One of the characteristics of our age is urbanization and the increase in the population of cities and the development of small and large cities. In fact, the sustainable development of a city, which in its general sense means all-round growth and expansion without contradiction, with two main goals: (1) improving the quality of life in terms of the capacity of the environment and (2) responding to the needs of the present generation without restrictions for the future ones. But according to the fifth wave theory, entering the first edge of the future from 2020 to 2030, with the development of urbanization, we are witnessing instability in recent decades. Depletion of forests, thinning of the ozone layer, accumulation of greenhouse gases, noise pollution, threatening air pollution in cities are among these indicators in urban areas. Other important indicators also show the social and economic instability of the world community. The increase in poverty, economic growth without job creation, increase the gap between developed and developing countries, social disintegration, and the sense of citizenship of the residents of local communities and the class gap are among these indicators. Therefore, since 1970, with the advancement of technologies, today the realization of urban development depends on attention to the factors of innovation, digitalization, and intelligentization. In the concept of development, aspects, domains, and scales become important. This improvement of the current situation will be realized when it brings all-round intelligence without conflict and contradiction in meeting the tangible and intangible needs of this society. Growth in material and spiritual aspects, from local to global scales and in different economic, cultural, educational, social, technological, and even political fields. Therefore, paying attention to the quality makes the concept of development more effective. These qualities are aligned with the concept of sustainability. In this chapter, U-city, smart sustainable mobility through 5th Wave, i-Sustainability Plus, and doost cultural theory (DCT) will be probed as a new concept of urban living for blue-green smart city and mobility. In addition, challenges made some countries not to prefer to utilize smartness and ubiquitous idea as a tool for their problems, will be explored.

This study aims to understand the sustainable development of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), analysing their current practices in the social, environmental and economic domain.

To fulfil this objective, an exploratory, qualitative approach was adopted, using the multiple case study methodology and focusing on eight cases (SMEs) in Portugal. Data were collected through interviews, since this technique allows proximity and interaction with decision makers and those responsible for firms’ sustainability.

From content analysis of the interviews held, the results show that SMEs are aware of and committed to sustainability and that the external context and some of its particularities have a significant impact on their sustainable development. These SMEs undertake various practices of a social, environmental and economic nature, highlighting especially environmental ones such as efficient resource consumption, using more sustainable resources, recycling waste and waste management.

This study contributes greater knowledge of the phenomenon of SMEs’ sustainable development and identifies practical examples that could increase this firm segment’s awareness of the importance of sustainable practices associated with developing their business.

In this study, new and innovative sustainability practices are presented in the SMEs. The authors can underline that this study contributes to reinforcing the theory about the topic investigated by adding knowledge about sustainable development in the SME context. It deepens knowledge in this scientific area, which can be spread in the scientific community and among SMEs.

The purpose of this study is to get a clearer knowledge of the reasons for, approaches to and challenges associated with integrating sustainable development concerns into pipeline construction projects in New Zealand. To achieve this, this study delves deeply into sustainable construction to understand the reasons behind and incorporate sustainable development trials into their newly established product management and development procedure. As a result, this study looks at identifying key elements of sustainable construction practices and various interpretations of sustainability in the construction industry; offering a strategy for incorporating sustainable construction practices into the pipeline construction project in New Zealand; and benefits and difficulties that the construction industry encounters when implementing sustainable construction. Finally, a framework is developed to help in understanding the issues and potential solutions for integrating sustainable building methods into the pipeline construction project in New Zealand.

This study followed a four-step method (Figure 1), beginning with the identification of the data, continuing with the first screening of the data, determining eligibility and, finally, including the data. This data collection is being done to provide knowledge and direction for further research. Data were collected from various websites on the Web of Science and from Scopus databases. Additionally, data were gathered with the assistance of aggregator databases such as Scopus (scopus.com) and publishing databases such as Elsevier (sciencedirect.com), Inderscience, Taylor and Francis (tandfonline.com), Emerald Insight (emeraldinsight.com) and Google Scholar. These databases have been considered by a number of scholars to be reputable databases.

This research provided a thorough description of the key justifications for sustainable construction. This study demonstrated how the idea worked in practice by reviewing the literature on the relevance and analysis of sustainability in construction. This body of research identified crucial components of sustainable construction techniques and varied interpretations of sustainability in the construction industry. To better grasp the current application considerations in the construction sector, it also offered literature on sustainable construction methods. To determine the most effective strategy to make certain adjustments to the current construction processes, the literature also includes a wide range of sustainability-related topics in both developed and developing country contexts. This study also demonstrated the many perspectives and strategies for sustainable behaviors. Because the purpose of this study was to develop a strategy for implementing sustainable construction in New Zealand, it was of the utmost importance to shed light on the most well-known and prominent sustainable construction applications from across the world. The output of this aim provided the literature on construction practices to acquire insight into the ongoing conversations on sustainable practices and systems in the construction industry. This was done to obtain insight into the existing talks.

This research's contribution to the body of knowledge is demonstrated by the fact that this study has led to a better understanding of sustainable construction practices in the construction industry as well as the identification of the most significant challenges that businesses, organizations, educators and policymakers must face to improve their ability to put these strategies into practice. This research has provided a solid foundation for future research that aims to advance knowledge in this field by providing options for future research to evaluate the influence that the approach has had on enhancing the implementation of sustainable construction. Additionally, this study presents options for future research to evaluate the influence the approach has had on improving the implementation of sustainable construction. The successful completion of the research aim in the more traditional forms of higher education in the built environment can contribute to a better representation of new trends in the practice area associated with expanding and improving the construction industry sustainably.