scholarly journals The Effect of Product Diversification on Corporate Social Performance in the Non-Renewable Energy Industry: Exploring the moderating effects of host country development and the Sustainable Development Goals

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 69-95
Author(s):  
Renske Jongsma ◽  
Bart Jan (Bartjan) Pennink

Aim: Building upon stakeholder and institutional theory, this paper investigates the relationship between product diversification and corporate social performance (CSP), thereby attempting to make essential contributions to the current literature. Based on an extensive literature review, it was expected that related, unrelated and total product diversification are positively related to CSP. Moreover, it was hypothesized that the exposure to weak institutional host country environments negatively affects the relationship between diversification and CSP, and that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have a positive effect on the relationship. Design / Research methods: The sample selected for this research is the non-renewable energy industry, since the industry shows great divergence in terms of corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance. In addition, the industry is highly susceptible to regulatory changes, while the Sustainable Development Goals have an enormous focus on the reliability and sustainability of energy, making it a highly relevant industry to study. This study analyzed 40 a 40 non-renewable energy firms over a time frame of seven years, by using OLS regression. Conclusions / findings: The results reveal that unrelated diversification is positively related to CSP, while the other forms of diversification show insignificant results. Contrary to expectations, the Sustainable Development Goals negatively affect the relationship between product diversification and CSP, while the moderating effect of exposure to weak institutional environments is insignificant. Originality / value of the article: Research on the relationship between product diversification on corporate financial performance is well-established, but the way in which product diversification influences a firm’s behavior towards stakeholder demands and social concerns remains largely unexplored. Accordingly, the results of this study challenge existing theories while adding more context to the existing relationship, and in turn provide promising avenues for future research.

Author(s):  
Nur Farhah Mahadi ◽  
Nor Razinah Mohd. Zain ◽  
Shamsuddeen Muhammad Ahmad

The purpose of this study is to explore the role of Islamic social finance towards realising financial inclusion in achieving nine of the seventeen goals of sustainable development goals (SDGs) which are SDG1, SDG2, SDG3, SDG4, SDG5, SDG8, SDG9, SDG10, and SDG17 in the 2030 agenda for SDGs, as propagated by United Nations Member States in 2015. Then, a critical analysis is made to explain the possible contribution of Islamic social finance in achieving financial inclusion which is aligned with SDGs that brings balanced to the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual of the community in supporting overall economic growth which finally combats the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Further research and empirical studies can be conducted to explore the relationship between Islamic social finance, financial inclusion, and SDGs which in tandem with Maqᾱṣid al-Sharῑ῾ah to equip ourselves in unpredictable economic hiccups during COVID-19. The results may also motivate the financial industries to promote Islamic social finance products and corporate social responsibilities as well as enhance the development of Islamic social finance towards achieving financial inclusion in fulfilling SDGs which soon will provide significant social impacts as the results will enable new initiatives by industries and policy makers to develop Islamic social finance in attaining financial inclusion to achieve SDGs which is seen as being parallel with Maqᾱṣid al-Sharῑ῾ah especially in resolving economic issues of COVID-19.


Author(s):  
Andrew Harmer ◽  
Jonathan Kennedy

This chapter explores the relationship between international development and global health. Contrary to the view that development implies ‘good change’, this chapter argues that the discourse of development masks the destructive and exploitative practices of wealthy countries at the expense of poorer ones. These practices, and the unregulated capitalist economic system that they are part of, have created massive inequalities between and within countries, and potentially catastrophic climate change. Both of these outcomes are detrimental to global health and the millennium development goals and sustainable development goals do not challenge these dynamics. While the Sustainable Development Goals acknowledge that inequality and climate change are serious threats to the future of humanity, they fail to address the economic system that created them. Notwithstanding, it is possible that the enormity and proximity of the threat posed by inequality and global warming will energise a counter movement to create what Kate Raworth terms ‘an ecologically safe and socially just space’ for the global population while there is still time.


2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 510-524 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacob D Rendtorff

This paper analyses the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations in the 2030 ‘Transforming the World’ Agenda, from 2015, as a contribution to business ethics and ethical economy. The Sustainable Development Goals combine political aims with visions of economic development and social justice and are therefore important for business ethics and corporate social responsibility. Thus, the Sustainable Development Goals constitute a driver for ethical economic development and social change. However, there is a need for critical analysis of the possibilities of Sustainable Development Goals of functioning as a vision and a strategic tool for management and governance. The aim of the paper is to investigate these possibilities of the Sustainable Development Goals of contributing to business ethics and ethical economy with mobilization of business, public institutions and organizations, and non-governmental organizations. After presenting the Sustainable Development Goals, the paper critically discusses their scope and potential for corporate social responsibility, business ethics and corporate sustainability. This involves the problem of how the Sustainable Development Goals can contribute to a transformation towards another economy. As a contribution to business ethics, the paper elaborates on partnerships for Sustainable Development Goals, sustainable performance management systems and the Sustainable Development Goal Compass with the aim of interpreting Sustainable Development Goals as a basis for progressive business ethics models.


2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan J. Buonocore ◽  
Ernani Choma ◽  
Aleyda H. Villavicencio ◽  
John D. Spengler ◽  
Dinah A. Koehler ◽  
...  

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 86-105
Author(s):  
Nojeem Amodu

The fact that Africa is one of the worst performing regions in global audits about long-term development trends is longer news. The continent has repeatedly missed targets set by the United Nations and there are concerns it might just be left behind in the attainment of the latest 2030 Agenda Sustainable Development set by world leaders in 2015. With a view to complementing states’ responsibilities towards the provision of public goods and social services useful to actualize the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Africa, this article interrogates the nature of multinational corporations (MNCs) and juxtaposing the non-state actor responsibilities within wider societal contexts with state duties in advancing the SDGs. The article not only sets the tone for a “new corporate social responsibility” in terms of improved pursuit of sustainability within business communities in corporate Africa, it also recommends workable measures, integrating progressive roles for both the state and MNCs towards the realization of the SDGs on the continent. Keywords: Corporate Responsibility; MNCs; SDGs in Africa; New CSR Roles; Regional Integration.


Author(s):  
Débora de Macêdo Medeiros ◽  
Rodrigo Guimarães de Carvalho

Thinking about sustainable development is increasingly necessary for the continuity of all species in the biosphere. Over time, natural resources become scarcer, enabling conflicts and wars to be generated. Thus, this study aims to show the relevance of conservation units as territories that are necessary and supported by Law 9,985/2000 for the promotion of a sustainable culture in the country. But also, the aim was to prove the relationship of conservation units with the Sustainable Development Goals, proposed by the United Nations in 2015. For this study, the bibliographic and documentary research technique was used. At the end of the analysis, we can observe that the existence of conservation units and knowledge about them stimulates economic development linked to environmental care, facilitating the maintenance of social homeostasis and ecosystems. In addition to being directly linked to the SDGs and the concern for current and future generations.


2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 693-712 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carole-Anne Sénit

Spaces for civil society participation within intergovernmental negotiations on sustainability have multiplied since the 1992 Earth Summit. Such participatory spaces are often uncritically accepted as a remedy for an assumed democratic deficit of intergovernmental policymaking. I argue, however, that civil society’s capacity to democratize global sustainability governance is constrained by the limited influence of these spaces on policymaking. The article explores the relationship between the format of participatory spaces and their influence on the negotiations of the Sustainable Development Goals. It finds that civil society is more likely to influence within informal and exclusive participatory spaces, and when these spaces are provided early in the negotiating process, at international and national level. This reveals a democracy–influence paradox, as the actors with the capacities to engage repeatedly and informally with negotiators are seldom those that are most representative of global civil society.


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