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1 – 10 of 145An increasing number of environmental threats towards tourism landmarks have significantly raised public concerns about tourists being environmentally responsible. Negative…
Abstract
An increasing number of environmental threats towards tourism landmarks have significantly raised public concerns about tourists being environmentally responsible. Negative ecological consequences from tourism-related activities have triggered the growing usage of environmental-focused events such as Earth Hour as a means to promote pro-environmental behaviour. Despite their size, increasing holiday behaviour and their marketplace dominance within the next decade, students’ environmental beliefs and their interest in participating in environmental-focused events such as Earth Hour is relatively unknown. This academic limitation and potential theoretical and practical implications provide the impetus for this study. Based on a sample of 410 students, three environment belief factors of students were determined. Further, students’ concerns for the environment were derived from the environmental vulnerability factor. Students’ beliefs do not directly impact their decision to participate in environmental-focused events or their awareness of the theme of Earth Hour. However, environment vulnerability influenced students’ intention to participate in future Earth Hour events. Recommendations are made, while future research opportunities are also outlined.
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Jeffery Houghton, Christopher Neck and Kenneth Cooper
The purpose of this paper is to suggest that nutritious food intake is a somewhat overlooked yet essential aspect of corporate wellness that has the potential to help provide…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to suggest that nutritious food intake is a somewhat overlooked yet essential aspect of corporate wellness that has the potential to help provide organizations with a sustainable competitive advantage.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper first discusses the resource‐based view, identifying ways in which nutritious food intake across an organization may serve to create rare and inimitable organizational resources leading to a competitive advantage. It then presents a basic overview of the fundamentals of nutritious food intake. It proceeds to review the transtheoretical stages of change model in the context of tailored nutrition interventions in organizations, providing a detailed overview of key individual behavior focused and environmental focused change strategies along with a discussion of types of technical delivery systems.
Findings
The paper suggests that an organization may be able to use a tailored stage‐based nutrition intervention as part of a comprehensive wellness program in order to help create a sustainable competitive advantage based on the nutritious food intake of its members.
Research limitations/implications
Future researchers should continue to examine the effectiveness of stage‐based computer tailored nutrition interventions and their delivery systems, particularly in the context of comprehensive corporate wellness plans and the extent to which this serves to create a competitive advantage through lower direct healthcare costs and higher worker productivity.
Practical implications
Organizational leaders should carefully consider the strategies and methodologies presented in this paper when designing and implementing nutrition interventions as part of a broad corporate wellness program.
Originality/value
This paper makes a valuable contribution to the organizational literature by recognizing the potential for the application of the transtheoretical stages of change model from the field of nutrition education within the context of the resource‐based view of organizations.
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Peter R. Elson and Peter V. Hall
The purpose of this research is to measure the economic and social/environmental/cultural activity of the social enterprise sector at a provincial level in Canada.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this research is to measure the economic and social/environmental/cultural activity of the social enterprise sector at a provincial level in Canada.
Design/methodology/approach
The research was implemented in three phases. In phase one, the structure and content of the mapping instrument was developed and tested. In phase two, the survey was circulated to all verified social enterprises in the sample frame to achieve a large and fully representative probability sample of social enterprises in both provinces. Data were subsequently collected for cleaning, entry, and analysis. Phase three involved the circulation of the survey results to social enterprise‐related networks in both provinces through both participant feedback and de‐briefing workshops.
Findings
Social enterprises surveyed had a number of non‐exclusive purposes. Eight (22 percent) Alberta (AB) social enterprises focused on employment and related activities while 51 (51 percent) of social enterprises in British Columbia (BC) had a similar focus. A total of 39 percent in AB and 47 percent of social enterprises in BC generated income for their parent organization. The highest percentage of social enterprises in both provinces (92 percent in AB/71 percent in BC) described themselves as having a social mission while 25 percent of social enterprises in AB and 35 percent in BC had a cultural mission. Environmental activities were pursued by 22 percent social enterprises in AB and 38 percent in BC.
Research limitations/implications
Notwithstanding the inclusion of the non‐profit corporate form in the paper's definition, social enterprise organizational form and legal structure tell us little about the activities or the impact of the organization. This is a tentative finding; it is indicative perhaps of the current, “pre‐institutionalized”, phase of social enterprise development, but more research needs to be conducted to fully examine and to elaborate on this proposition.
Practical implications
Measuring the size, strength and scope of social enterprises contributes to the important constellation of evidence, policy options, and political will that is necessary to put a policy on the political agenda. In BC, the survey results provided policy advocates with the first empirical evidence of the scope, size, and capacity of social enterprises in the province. This, together with existing anecdotal information, case stories, and stakeholder events, helped to convince policy makers that social enterprises are a viable and legitimate entity, worthy of serious policy support.
Social implications
The aim of this research was to provide relevant and timely information, not to define social enterprises as an end in itself. The operational definition of social enterprise was thus developed with the explicit purpose of conducting this investigation and as such, the authors are confident that it served its purpose. To this end, the authors trust that this survey, and its embedded structural‐functional definition, will contribute to the ongoing exploration of the number and nature of social enterprises in Canada and elsewhere.
Originality/value
This research set out to take stock of the structure, purpose, and operational activity of social enterprises in BC and AB. This was undertaken using a structural‐functional definition of social enterprise as “a business venture, owned or operated by a non‐profit organization that continuously sells goods or provides services in the market for the purpose of creating a blended return on investment; financial, social, environmental, and cultural”.
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Rashid Zaman, Muhammad Nadeem and Mariela Carvajal
This paper aims to provide exploratory evidence on corporate governance (CG) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) interfaces. Although there remains a voluminous literature…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to provide exploratory evidence on corporate governance (CG) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) interfaces. Although there remains a voluminous literature on CG and CSR, very little effort has been put forward to explore the nature of this relationship.
Design/methodology/approach
Using interviews with Senior Executives of New Zealand Stock Exchange listed firms, this research assesses CG and CSR practices, identifies barriers for CG and CSR adoption and investigates the nature of the relationship between CG and CSR.
Findings
The results indicate a moderate level of CG and CSR practices, with a lack of resources and cost-time balance as common barriers for CG and CSR adoption. However, despite these barriers, we note that the majority of executives appreciate the increasing convergence between CG and CSR, and believe that a more robust CG framework will lead to more sustainable CSR practices.
Originality/value
These findings have important implications for managers and policymakers interested in understanding the CG-CSR nexus and promoting responsible business practices.
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Civic engagement means more than formal participation in the political process. Students can experience civic life across campus in ways that may not jump off the page as being…
Abstract
Civic engagement means more than formal participation in the political process. Students can experience civic life across campus in ways that may not jump off the page as being relevant on first reading. Whether in the classroom through intentionally designed curricular experiences or through participating in a student organization focused on civic engagement, higher education should be helping develop students as active, participatory citizens. This chapter aims to provide the first look at how students across the United States are organizing on college campuses to participate in the political process.
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Sarah Jayne Briggs, Zoe P. Robinson, Rachel Louise Hadley and Rebecca Laycock Pedersen
This paper aims to explore a single-institution case study of partnership working between students, the University and Students’ Union, through four student-led sustainability…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore a single-institution case study of partnership working between students, the University and Students’ Union, through four student-led sustainability projects. The paper analyses the role and value of these partnerships and provides advice for other institutions on effective partnership working between these stakeholders.
Design/methodology/approach
A single case study of partnership working with multiple embedded units of analysis (four projects) is presented based on reflections of practitioners involved in the projects who have different roles within the University and Students’ Union.
Findings
The longevity and effectiveness of student-led projects, and disciplinary-breadth of students engaged, can be enhanced by greater collaboration with, and integration into, University and Students’ Union systems. Partnership working between different stakeholders is key to overcoming challenges and the success of student-led projects, helped by key staff “enablers”. These projects provide myriad learning opportunities for developing change agency skills, even where projects are relatively short-lived and could be seen as failures in terms of longevity.
Research limitations/implications
This analysis is based solely on practitioner reflections, with limited direct quantification or qualitative data on the projects’ impacts on the students themselves.
Originality/value
This paper draws together the experiences and reflections of four practitioners with different roles within the University and Students’ Union across four different projects and provides advice to generate student-led sustainability projects which have longevity and impact for wider student populations and future generations of cohorts.
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Jun Guo, Sungsoo Kim, Yang Yu and Jung Yeun (June) Kim
The study aims to understand the role of accountant in corporate social responsibility (CSR) practice.
Abstract
Purpose
The study aims to understand the role of accountant in corporate social responsibility (CSR) practice.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, the authors examine whether and how chief financial officer (CFO) accounting expertise and previous work experience influence voluntary CSR disclosure, using textual analysis and natural language processing (NLP) techniques. The authors find that firms' CFOs with accounting expertise disclose more CSR issues in their 10-K reports. Overall, this study provides evidence of the impact of CFOs' professional and personal attributes on voluntary CSR disclosure in corporate annual reports. This study has important implications to investors and policy makers in the context of CSR disclosure regulations in annual reports.
Findings
Overall, this study provides evidence of the impact of CFOs' professional and personal attributes on voluntary CSR disclosure in corporate annual reports. This study has important implications to practitioners and policy makers in the context of CSR disclosure regulations in annual reports.
Research limitations/implications
There is an inherent limitation of textual analysis as the tool tries to read key words from the text.
Practical implications
This finding is useful for policy maker and investors as CSR is known to have impact on the share price.
Originality/value
This paper is the first attempt to find out accountants' role in CSR activities, which has not been examined in the prior literature.
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Rachel Dodds, Brittany Jenkins, Wayne Smith and Robert E. Pitts
Sales and purchases of socially and environmentally responsible festival clothing are a way for festival attendees to engage in ethical consumption and for event organizers to…
Abstract
Sales and purchases of socially and environmentally responsible festival clothing are a way for festival attendees to engage in ethical consumption and for event organizers to undertake sustainable procurement. Although there have been a number of studies examining willingness-to-pay (WTP), few of them examine this in a festival setting, and there is a gap in existing research regarding the determination of actual behavior. The goal of this study is therefore to explore participants’ willingness-to-pay for apparel based on more external motivations (visible environmental messages) and then ascertain whether this behavior was actually replicated in a natural field setting. This study first collected surveys from 427 festival-goers in 2015, then used a natural field experiment in 2016 to investigate whether attendees at the Mariposa Folk Festival in Ontario, Canada, would actually be prepared to pay a premium for ethical festival T-shirts over a conventional alternative. The findings reveal that attendees not only showed a willingness-to-pay but they also did actually pay a premium for such T-shirts.
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