scholarly journals Student-led environmental management system in Chiba University

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (8) ◽  
pp. 1358-1375
Author(s):  
Sakiko Okayama

Purpose This paper aims to explain the student-led environmental management system (EMS) based on ISO14001 which Chiba University has continued for 15 years. It describes its structure “Chiba University Method”, the students’ activities and their collaboration with companies. It also analyzes the advantages and the issues. Readers can reconsider these mechanisms and results to examine whether they could introduce the student-led EMS in their own university. Design/methodology/approach Four critical points are explained concerning the “Chiba University Method”. The advantages are analyzed by the data and the questionnaire survey. Findings It has been found that student-led EMS has an effect of practical education on the students and an improvement of social evaluation on the university, as well as a reduction of environmental burdens. For students, in addition to the direct merit of obtaining credits, they receive a sense of accomplishment through gaining practical experience, thereby realizing improvements in business skills and making friends through activities. These are good incentives to participating in various activities. However, there are also problems that occur due to student-led EMS, and it is necessary for faculties to be aware and correspond with them. Research limitations/implications This paper is based on the experience of one Japanese University. Social implications As this case falls under the practical case of active learning, it is expected that other universities could also introduce this system. Originality/value It is rare that the students manage the EMS based on ISO14001 with educational effects included in the results. At Chiba University, moreover, students are making environmental contributions to local communities through collaboration with companies.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Federica Murmura ◽  
Laura Bravi ◽  
Gilberto Santos

PurposeThe study provides an overview of the Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) standard and its potential in helping a company to improve its environmental performance. The work aims to investigate a company's perception towards the implementation of the EMAS environmental management system with the benefits and the critical areas derived from it, the overall assessment of the certification and its possible future developments.Design/methodology/approachThe study develops an empirical analysis of Italian EMAS III certified companies, through the administration of a questionnaire to all those Italian companies that were EMAS certified and that provided a valid e-mail address on the EMAS register. Overall, 231 Italian companies took part in the survey.FindingsThe results confirm the heterogeneous effects of an Environmental Management System depending on the company profile and highlight the positive influence of certification on environmental management. It emerges how the EMAS certification is approached more for internal reasons, and therefore gives more internal benefits to companies that implement it. Moreover, the time from which companies have been certified turns out to be a relevant factor for obtaining environmental and organizational benefits connected with EMAS certification.Originality/valueThe recent decrease in EMAS registrations has not been sufficiently studied, leaving unsolved questions for scholars, practitioners and policy-makers. Previous studies used a negativist perspective, identifying the barriers that led to the non-renewal of the certification. The present study aims to focus on the positive factors, which have led still active companies to renew the certification.


2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (6) ◽  
pp. 1233-1253 ◽  
Author(s):  
Azilah Kasim

Purpose – The paper aims to discuss the link or relationship between environmental management system (EMS) adoptions with organization learning (OL). It postulates that EMS adoption has the potential to catalyze organizational learning in hotels to make them more dynamic and competitive. Design/methodology/approach – The paper reviewed the literature to link the purpose and steps involved in an EMS adoption with the benefit of managing organizational knowledge and OL. It also uses the literature to identify phases of learning in EMS adoption and the level of employees exposed to the learning. Findings – There are two reasons why more hotels should not be hesitant to adopt EMS: flexibility – EMS does not dictate the level of environmental performance a firm should achieve, thus giving hotel firms the flexibility to determine the level of sophistication of their environmental management; and the building of company’s dynamism – EMS facilitates organizational learning, leading to enhanced organizational performance. Research limitations/implications – The proposed link between EMS implementation with OL in this paper can only be proven by means of empirical studies. Practical implications – Understanding the OL value of EMS adoption may persuade more hotel practitioners to adopt it. Originality/value – This paper proposes a link between a systematic approach to managing environmental responsibility with knowledge management in hotels.


2017 ◽  
Vol 40 (12) ◽  
pp. 1316-1335 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fan Yang ◽  
Xiongfei Zhang

Purpose This paper aims to identify the most influential barriers for environmental management system (EMS) adoption and determine the interactions of these factors in the context of Chinese textile and apparel industries. Design/methodology/approach The study has conducted two different research phases, namely, the identification of 13 barriers from the extensive literature available and expert panel discussion and using interpretive structural modeling (ISM) to investigate the complex relationships among these barriers and partition the barriers into a hierarchical structure to facilitate strategic analysis. Findings The obtained result demonstrates that insufficient information about customer’s demand is the most influential barrier. Furthermore, by analyzing the interrelationships among the barriers, management will become more aware of the barriers’ relative importance and focus on the barriers with stronger influence. Originality/value This work may help practitioners, academicians and regulators to focus their efforts toward implementation of EMS on various levels in business, especially for these textile and apparel companies operating in China.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Olugbenga Timo Oladinrin ◽  
Lekan Damilola Ojo

PurposeThe detrimental impacts of the construction industry activities, namely, toxicity of cement and concrete to the health of construction workers and the general public, have been reported in previous studies. Several environmental management measures were put in place by international organisations to reduce these impacts on humans and the entire ecosystem. Sadly, such environmental management measures are not widely embraced in the construction industry of developing countries. This contributes to the poor quality of life of construction stakeholders, amongst other outcomes. Therefore, this study investigated the drivers to facilitate an environmental management system (EMS) in the Nigerian construction industry (NCI).Design/methodology/approachquestionnaires retrieved from construction professionals in the micro, small, medium and large enterprises were used to conduct both descriptive and inferential statistics, namely, mean score, standard deviation, Kruskal–Wallis H test, post hoc test and factor analysis.FindingsThe analyses show that the drivers of EMS implementation in the NCI could be grouped into intellectual enhancement strategies, documentation and cultural strategies, and motivation and tracking strategies. The study concluded that training and education of relevant stakeholders, tracking compliance levels of organisations and recognising firms acting in compliance with stipulated “environmental” policy are essential. It was recommended that the collaboration of all construction stakeholders be upheld to aid EMS implementation in the NCI.Originality/valueThis paper investigated the drivers of EMS with the opinions of construction professionals in the mainstream of the NCI through survey using to ensure wide coverage of respondents. Investigating the view of construction professionals in the micro, small, medium and large enterprises helped determine possible significant differences. Thus, practical implications of the study were also provided in a systematic manner.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Thais Coutinho Gonçalves Silva ◽  
Rosley Anholon ◽  
Izabela Simon Rampasso ◽  
Osvaldo Luiz Gonçalves Quelhas ◽  
Walter Leal Filho ◽  
...  

PurposeThis article aims to evaluate the integration level of a quality management system (QMS) and an environmental management system (EMS) in a tire manufacturer and propose a guide to evaluate the integration of these systems in companies.Design/methodology/approachThe methodological strategies used in this research were literature review; and case study, with interviews to verify professionals' perception about benefits from integration. Data from interviews were analyzed through Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS).FindingsThe results showed that the studied company has a simple level of integration, observing only some low intensity benefits. Thus, it was recommended that the company partially integrate its management systems (MSs) before evolving into something more complex. The literature and the findings of case study were used as basis for proposing a guide to evaluate MS integration.Originality/valueLessons learned throughout the study and the suggested guide can support other companies to assess the integration level of their QMS and EMS. Thus, the findings presented here can be useful for researchers and managers.


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