Understanding the Role of the Corporation in Sustainability Transitions

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 87-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Magali A. Delmas ◽  
Thomas P. Lyon ◽  
John W. Maxwell
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Systemic Change ◽  
Coalition Building ◽  
Sustainability Transitions ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Responsible Investing ◽  
Information Strategies ◽  
Wide Range

The state of the planet calls for large-scale sustainability transitions involving systemic adoption of markedly better environmental and social practices. The objective of this symposium is to better understand the role of corporations in promoting such systemic change. We present four case studies—representing diverse industries and change mechanisms—-to investigate corporate leadership in sustainability transitions. The cases examine a wide range of mechanisms used by corporations to progress toward sustainability, such as political coalition building and information strategies through eco-labels, socially responsible investing, and the public statements of CEOs. In this introduction, we discuss the challenges associated with both achieving and studying systemic change, explain the rationale for a case study approach, describe the findings from the case studies, and draw some general conclusions on the mechanisms by which firms may be able to lead, or at least participate in, systemic change in the different phases of sustainability transitions.

Events in Northern Africa and Middle East: Causes and Consequences

2011 ◽  
pp. 11-25
Author(s):  
I. Labinskaya
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Arab Countries ◽  
Northern Africa ◽  
External Factors ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Oriental Studies

Political developments in North Africa and the Middle East that have begun in January 2011 are gaining strength and involve an increasing number of Arab countries. The participants of the Roundtable – experts from IMEMO, Institute of Oriental Studies (RAS), Institute of the USA and Canada (RAS) and Mrs. E. Suponina from “Moscow News” newspaper analyzed a wide range of issues associated with these events. Among them are: 1) the reasons for such a large-scale explosion, 2) the nature of the discussed developments (revolutions, riots?) and who are the subjects of the current “Arab drama”, 3) the role of Islam and political Islamism, 4) the role of external factors.

scholarly journals The role of airborne volcanic ash for the surface ocean biogeochemical iron-cycle: a review

2009 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 6441-6489 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Duggen ◽  
N. Olgun ◽  
P. Croot ◽  
L. Hoffmann ◽  
H. Dietze ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Volcanic Ash ◽  
Volcanic Eruptions ◽  
Research Field ◽  
Ash Deposition ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Iron Cycle ◽  
Surface Ocean ◽  
Wide Range

Abstract. Iron is a key micronutrient for phytoplankton growth in the surface ocean. Yet the significance of volcanism for the marine biogeochemical iron-cycle is poorly constrained. Recent studies, however, suggest that offshore deposition of airborne ash from volcanic eruptions is a way to inject significant amounts of bio-available iron into the surface ocean. Volcanic ash may be transported up to several tens of kilometres high into the atmosphere during large-scale eruptions and fine ash may encircle the globe for years, thereby reaching even the remotest and most iron-starved oceanic areas. Scientific ocean drilling demonstrates that volcanic ash layers and dispersed ash particles are frequently found in marine sediments and that therefore volcanic ash deposition and iron-injection into the oceans took place throughout much of the Earth's history. The data from geochemical and biological experiments, natural evidence and satellite techniques now available suggest that volcanic ash is a so far underestimated source for iron in the surface ocean, possibly of similar importance as aeolian dust. Here we summarise the development of and the knowledge in this fairly young research field. The paper covers a wide range of chemical and biological issues and we make recommendations for future directions in these areas. The review paper may thus be helpful to improve our understanding of the role of volcanic ash for the marine biogeochemical iron-cycle, marine primary productivity and the ocean-atmosphere exchange of CO2 and other gases relevant for climate throughout the Earth's history.

scholarly journals Charity flea markets – an amalgamation of product philanthropy and volunteering

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-224
Author(s):  
Sandra Stötzer ◽  
René C. Andeßner ◽  
Sarah Scheichl
Keyword(s):  
Resource Management ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Case Study Approach ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Unique Event ◽  
Flea Markets ◽  
Flea Market

AbstractThis paper offers one of the first efforts at exploring the role of charity flea markets as a fundraising practice used by nonprofits to mobilize various resources like individual and corporate in-kind giving and volunteering in an unique event setting. With the support of volunteers, nonprofits generate cash by reselling product donations and by catering. As an innovative contribution to the so far limited research on flea markets and in-kind giving, our study uses an explorative case study approach based on guided interviews with Austrian flea market operators. The purpose of the case studies is to examine the specifics, benefits, challenges, and prospects of this underexplored funding instrument. Our findings contribute to an enhanced understanding of both charity flea markets and nonprofits̕ resource management and can assist charities in processing in-kind donations effectively and sustainably.

scholarly journals Composite Enclaves: Towards Disaggregated Trusted Execution

2021 ◽  
pp. 630-656
Author(s):  
Moritz Schneider ◽  
Aritra Dhar ◽  
Ivan Puddu ◽  
Kari Kostiainen ◽  
Srdjan Čapkun
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Trusted Computing ◽  
Design Time ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Trusted Computing Base ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Configurable Hardware ◽  
Low Performance ◽  
Specialized Hardware

The ever-rising computation demand is forcing the move from the CPU to heterogeneous specialized hardware, which is readily available across modern datacenters through disaggregated infrastructure. On the other hand, trusted execution environments (TEEs), one of the most promising recent developments in hardware security, can only protect code confined in the CPU, limiting TEEs’ potential and applicability to a handful of applications. We observe that the TEEs’ hardware trusted computing base (TCB) is fixed at design time, which in practice leads to using untrusted software to employ peripherals in TEEs. Based on this observation, we propose composite enclaves with a configurable hardware and software TCB, allowing enclaves access to multiple computing and IO resources. Finally, we present two case studies of composite enclaves: i) an FPGA platform based on RISC-V Keystone connected to emulated peripherals and sensors, and ii) a large-scale accelerator. These case studies showcase a flexible but small TCB (2.5 KLoC for IO peripherals and drivers), with a low-performance overhead (only around 220 additional cycles for a context switch), thus demonstrating the feasibility of our approach and showing that it can work with a wide range of specialized hardware.

scholarly journals Communities in Fukushima and Chernobyl—Enabling and Inhibiting Factors for Recovery in Nuclear Disaster Areas

2020 ◽  
pp. 211-232
Author(s):  
Tetsuya Okada ◽  
Serhii Cholii ◽  
Dávid Karácsonyi ◽  
Michimasa Matsumoto
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Power Relations ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Recovery Process ◽  
Traumatic Experiences ◽  
Nuclear Disaster ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Compare And Contrast

Abstract This chapter provides case studies on disaster recovery in the context of community participation. It presents two cases that explore, compare and contrast the nuclear disasters in Chernobyl and Fukushima. Despite differences in the socio-economic circumstances between the Soviet Union (Soviet–Ukraine) in 1986 and Japan in 2011, the Chernobyl and Fukushima disasters provide an opportunity to discuss power relations in disaster management and the role of local communities. These large-scale nuclear disasters are amongst the most traumatic experiences for the disaster-impacted communities worldwide. This chapter discusses the implementation of relocation and resettlement measures with socio-political power relations within and between the stakeholders. The combination of these is shown to significantly affect the everyday lives of those within the communities throughout the recovery process. Along with government documentation, the interviews with evacuees, community leaders and decision-makers conducted between 2012 and 2016 form the basis of the case studies discussed in this chapter.

Western Asia

2020 ◽  
pp. 513-539
Author(s):  
Carolyn Routledge
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Ancient Egypt ◽  
The State ◽  
Academic Disciplines ◽  
Theoretical Approaches ◽  
Western Asia ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
History Of ◽  
Selection Of

Since Flinders Petrie, the importance of Western Asia to the history and development of culture in ancient Egypt has been recognized by scholars and has also been a significant driver in shaping Egyptological methodology and theoretical approaches. The study of relations between Western Asia and Egypt encompasses a wide range of specialisms given the broad range of evidence, the geographical breadth, and the academic disciplines involved. This chapter reviews the history of the study of relations between Western Asia and Egypt pointing to a selection of challenges scholars face in undertaking their research, and examines two case studies: theories concerning the role of Western Asia in the rise of the state, and the assessment of Egypt’s New Kingdom Empire in Canaan to illustrate the ways in which scholarly challenges are met and the resulting historical conclusions.

scholarly journals ‘Rural’ rhetoric in 1930s unemployment relief schemes

Rural History ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronan O’Donnell ◽  
David Petts
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Specific Context ◽  
North East ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Unemployment Problem

AbstractThis article examines the role of particular ideas of the countryside in unemployment relief schemes. While interwar thinking on the countryside has received attention, it has not been examined in the specific context of unemployment relief. This article uses four case studies from North East England, namely the Team Valley Trading Estate (Gateshead), Hamsterley Forest Instructional Centre (Durham), Swarland model village (Northumberland) and Heartbreak Hill (Cleveland). All four projects took different approaches to the unemployment problem, but all used some form of rural rhetoric. The ways in which the projects deployed images of the countryside creatively recombined a wide range of ideas to suit their needs rather than being rigidly confined by particular schools of thought.

scholarly journals Hierarchical Porous Polyamide 6 by Solution Foaming: Synthesis, Characterization and Properties

Polymers ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1310 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liang Wang ◽  
Yu-Ke Wu ◽  
Fang-Fang Ai ◽  
Jie Fan ◽  
Zhao-Peng Xia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Polyamide 6 ◽  
Solution Concentration ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Foaming Agent ◽  
Hierarchical Porous ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Novel Strategy

Porous polym er materials have received great interest in both academic and industrial fields due to their wide range of applications. In this work, a porous polyamide 6 (PA6) material was prepared by a facile solution foaming strategy. In this approach, a sodium carbonate (SC) aqueous solution acted as the foaming agent that reacted with formic acid (FA), generating CO2 and causing phase separation of polyamide (PA). The influence of the PA/FA solution concentration and Na2CO3 concentration on the microstructures and physical properties of prepared PA foams were investigated, respectively. PA foams showed a hierarchical porous structure along the foaming direction. The mean pore dimension ranged from hundreds of nanometers to several microns. Low amounts of sodium salt generated from a neutralization reaction played an important role of heterogeneous nucleation, which increased the crystalline degree of PA foams. The porous PA materials exhibited low thermal conductivity, high crystallinity and good mechanical properties. The novel strategy in this work could produce PA foams on a large scale for potential engineering applications.

The evolving path of CSR: toward business and society relationship

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kuldeep Singh ◽  
Madhvendra Misra
Keyword(s):  
Business And Society ◽  
Society Business ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Key Stakeholders ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Managerial Implications ◽  
Future Direction ◽  
Corporate Social

PurposeThis paper takes a critical look at the meaning of corporate social responsibility (CSR) based on the available literature on the subject matter. As CSR is an evolving concept both in meaning and practice, this study aims to highlight CSR actions of the world's six largest organizations (Google, Twitter, Amazon, Apple, ExxonMobil and Walmart). The purpose of choosing these organizations and their CSR adoption was to examine the business-society relationship and the role of key stakeholders in establishing this association.Design/methodology/approachThis study examined CSR through the case study approach and provides valuable insights by showing that CSR is a connecting link between business and society. Specifically, the authors took a crucial look at various contentious, often ambiguous definitions, theoretical framework, brief historical development, issues and controversies surrounding it, the role of CSR in community development and summing it up with the future direction and managerial implications.FindingsThis study observed that there are some developmental strategies taking place today which are relevant to the issue at stake, such as: contributing to the world economy, corporations donating or engaging in a wide range of philanthropic gestures now than ever and contributing to the beauty of the society by meeting rising community expectations.Originality/valueBy analyzing the worlds' 6 largest companies' CSR initiatives, this study provides valuable insights by showing that CSR is a connecting link between business and society and is based on win-win collaborations between civil society, business, investors and government. These companies' CSR initiatives have been mostly unexplored in past studies.

A Within-Study Approach to Evaluating the Role of Moderators of Impact in Limiting Generalizations from “Large to Small”

2021 ◽  
pp. 109821402110305
Author(s):  
Andrew P. Jaciw ◽  
Fatih Unlu ◽  
Thanh Nguyen
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Evaluation ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Educational Programs ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Causal Effects ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Average Impact ◽  
Local Decision ◽  
Local Decision Makers

There is a burgeoning body of evidence on the average impacts of educational programs. Yet, for many local decision makers, because impacts can vary across sites, the question of whether a certain program will work in their particular district or school remains. This article addresses the question of the generalizability of large-scale average causal effects to specific locales, that is, from “large to small.” Our method evaluates whether impacts measured on the large-scale generalize to individual sites and whether adjusting for variation among sites in their characteristics accounts for impact heterogeneity that limits generalization. Our application to a multisite experimental evaluation in education shows that the average impact does not readily generalize to sites, with discrepancies between 0.17 and 0.38 standard deviations, and that characteristics of sites account only minimally for this variation. This emphasizes need for caution by local decision makers in accepting average impact findings as generalizable to their specific locales.

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