| 1. |
- Alfredsson, Eva, 1963-, et al.
(författare)
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Why achieving the Paris Agreement requires reduced overall consumption and production
- 2018
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Ingår i: Sustainability. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1548-7733. ; 14
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Technological solutions to the challenge of dangerous climate change are urgent and necessary but to be effective they need to be accompanied by reductions in the total level of consumption and production of goods and services. This is for three reasons. First, private consumption and its associated production are among the key drivers of greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions, especially among highly emitting industrialized economies. There is no evidence that decoupling of the economy from GHG emissions is possible at the scale and speed needed. Second, investments in more sustainable infrastructure, including renewable energy, needed in coming decades will require extensive amounts of energy, largely from fossil sources, which will use up a significant share of the two-degree carbon budget. Third, improving the standard of living of the world’s poor will consume a major portion of the available carbon allowance. The scholarly community has a responsibility to put the issue of consumption and the associated production on the research and policy agenda.
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| 2. |
- Boström, Magnus, 1972-
(författare)
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A Missing Pillar? Challenges in theorizing and practicing social sustainability : introductory article in the special issue
- 2012
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Ingår i: Sustainability. - : ProQuest. - 1548-7733. ; 8:1, s. 3-14
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Since publication of the Brundtland Report in 1987, the notion of sustainable developmenthas come to guide the pursuit of environmental reform by both public and private organizations and to facilitate communication among actors from different societal spheres. It is customary to characterize sustainable development in a familiar typology comprising three pillars: environmental, economic, and social. The relationships among these dimensions are generally assumed to be compatible and mutually supportive. However, previous research has found that when policy makers endorse sustainable development, the social dimension garners less attention and is particularly difficult to realize and operationalize. Recent years though have seen notable efforts among standard setters, planners, and practitioners in various sectors to address the often neglected social aspects of sustainability. Likewise, during the past decade, there have been efforts to develop theoretical frameworks to define and study social sustainability and to empirically investigate it in relation to “sustainability projects,” “sustainability practice,” and “sustainability initiatives.” This introductory article presents the topic and explains some of the challenges of incorporating social sustainability into a broad framework of sustainable development. Also considered is the potential of the social sustainability concept for sustainability projects and planning. This analysis is predicated on the work represented in this special issue and on related initiatives that explicitly discuss the social pillar of sustainable development and its relationship to the other dimensions.
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| 3. |
- Boström, Magnus, et al.
(författare)
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How to achieve sustainable procurement for “peripheral” products with significant environmental impacts
- 2015
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Ingår i: Sustainability. - : Taylor & Francis. - 1548-7733. ; 11:1, s. 21-31
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Departing from previous theoretical and empirical studies on sustainable supply-chain management, we investigate organizational commitment (drivers and motivations) and capabilities (resources, structures, and policy instruments) in sustainable procurement of “noncore” products. By focusing on chemicals in textiles, the article explores the activi-ties of differently sized organizations and discusses the potentials and limitations of sustainable procurement measures. The study is based on a qualitative and comparative approach, with empirical findings from 26 case stud-ies of Swedish public and private procurement organizations. These organizations operate in the sectors of hotels/ conference venues, transport, cinema, interior design, and hospitals/daycare. While this work demonstrates major challenges for buyers to take into account peripheral items in sustainable procurement, it also identifies constructive measures for moving forward. A general sustainability/environmental focus can, as an effect, spill over to areas per-ceived as peripheral. © 2014 Boström et al.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Brand, Ralf, et al.
(författare)
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The ecosystem of expertise : complementary knowledges for sustainable development
- 2007
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Ingår i: Sustainability. - 1548-7733. ; 3:1, s. 21-31
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This article critically examines the approach of technical experts, including engineers, natural scientists, architects, planners, and other practitioners, who are attempting to create more sustainable forms of economic development, environmental protection, and social equity. The authors identify four principal characteristics of expertise–ontological assumptions, epistemological approaches, power inequalities, and practical issues–and employ this framework to test the capability of traditional experts to deliver sustainable development. The authors then provide four alternatives to conventional forms of expertise: the outreach expert who communicates effectively to non-experts, the interdisciplinary expert who understands the overlaps of neighboring technical disciplines, the meta-expert who brokers the multiple claims of relevance between different forms of expertise, and the civic expert who engages in democratic discourse with non-experts and experts alike. All of these alternative forms are needed to manage the often-competing demands of sustainable development projects and they can be described collectively as an “ecosystem of expertise.”
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| 6. |
- Brydges, Taylor, et al.
(författare)
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Selling sustainability : investigating how Swedish fashion brands communicate sustainability to consumers
- 2022
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Ingår i: Sustainability. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1548-7733. ; 18:1, s. 357-370
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Over the last thirty years, sustainability has become a growing concern in the fashion industry. While there is agreement among a growing range of actors regarding the need to engage with the social and environmental challenges created by the fashion industry, there is less consent regarding what sustainability entails. Although “sustainability” may be intuitively understood, it has different meanings, depending on how it is applied, and who it is applied by. Without a clear-cut definition, sustainability becomes subjective. In this context, there is a need for research at the intersection of brand-sustainability initiatives and their communication to consumers, who play a vital role in this transition. Drawing on a case study of the Swedish fashion industry, we explore how evolving industrial business models and emerging best practices are informed by a robust understanding of sustainability. We evaluate how brands communicate sustainability to consumers across three key sites: brand websites (including corporate social responsibility reports), social media platforms, and in-store campaigns. We found that not only do brands use a range of practices to define sustainability differently, but furthermore, these definitions vary depending on the context. Considering the industry’s ongoing history with greenwashing, it is vital to address and confront this issue head on. We argue that there is a need to determine what constitutes sustainability in the fashion industry and, in turn, hold businesses to that standard. As COVID-19 has only magnified and intensified these challenges, the article explores the implications of a more robust approach for both theory and practice.
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| 7. |
- Brydges, Taylor, et al.
(författare)
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Will COVID-19 support the transition to a more sustainable fashion industry?
- 2020
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Ingår i: Sustainability. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1548-7733. ; 16:1, s. 298-308
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this policy brief, we examine the impact of COVID-19 on sustainability initiatives in the fashion industry. We ask whether COVID-19 is likely to support the transition to a more sustainable fashion industry. In answering this question, we utilize a framework for examining sustainability along the fashion-supply chain, highlighting the opportunities and challenges for a sustainable transition with respect to design, production, retail, consumption, and end-of-life. At each step, we also consider socioeconomic dimensions with regard to social impacts, employment, and gender. In doing so, we argue that any meaningful shift toward sustainability and a just transition must recognize social and environmental challenges as interconnected, addressing structural inequalities.
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| 8. |
- Callmer, Åsa, et al.
(författare)
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In search of sufficiency politics : the case of Sweden
- 2021
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Ingår i: Sustainability. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1548-7733. ; 17:1, s. 194-208
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In transitions toward more sustainable and just societies, there is an urgent need to address overconsumption and to include a sufficiency perspective. This article contributes to previous research by exploring what a framework for a politics of sufficiency might entail and how such a framework can be used to analyze existing public policy. Our case analysis is the policy field of sustainable consumption and waste prevention in the context of Sweden. Based on interviews with public officials and civil society representatives, we identify key areas to address when aiming for a sufficiency orientation. Our results suggest that local and regional governments that strive for a commitment to sufficiency should formulate clear goals that serve to set environmental limits, for instance, in the form of carbon budgets, and then steer toward well-being for the inhabitants within these limits. Efforts should be made to secure stable funding for work within sustainable consumption and waste prevention, especially for projects with synergies in terms of reducing consumption and strengthening non-market relations. Using public procurement is another key tool. In the absence of an overall national politics of sufficiency, the above-mentioned strategies can be and already are to some degree, used by authorities in Sweden.
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| 9. |
- Casciani, Daria, et al.
(författare)
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Exploring the nature of digital transformation in the fashion industry: opportunities for supply chains, business models, and sustainability-oriented innovations
- 2022
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Ingår i: Sustainability. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1548-7733. ; 18:1, s. 773-795
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This article provides a comprehensive overview of the digital transformation of the fashion industry and describes the opportunities and influences on supply chains, business models, and sustainability-oriented innovations that it offers. Desk research was performed to review emerging cases of companies that engage actively in using 3-dimensional virtual and digital (3DVD) technologies, such as 3D modeling, virtual and augmented reality (VR and AR), 2- and 3-dimensional (2D/3D) scanning, and digital twinning (DT). The analysis shows how the adoption of digital technologies provides opportunities to dematerialize the traditional fashion supply-chain model of garment production and distribution and maps the innovative shifts occurring in the fashion industry's processes, products, and services. The adoption of 3DVD technologies by fashion companies unleashes new opportunities with respect to innovation in products/services and optimization of operational processes to streamline activities, shorten the lead time for designing, prototyping, manufacturing, marketing and retailing, and reorganizing the working phases. These capabilities also drive multicentred business-model innovations and thus affect value creation and delivery and capture changes. In addition, the analysis shows that digital transformation affects the four dimensions of sustainability that are interconnected intrinsically across supply-chain processes. Cultural sustainability is paramount, as fashion is a complex cultural system that is able to create products/services that influence the environment, economy, and society. In particular, 3DVD technologies promote cultural transformation of design processes to achieve a remix of skills and open knowledge, a behavioral shift from the consumer perspective in terms of diversity and self-expression, and a change in the organizational culture of companies that drive the digital transformation.
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| 10. |
- Casula Vifell, Åsa, et al.
(författare)
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Organizing for social sustainability : Governance through bureaucratization in meta-organizations
- 2012
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Ingår i: Sustainability. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1548-7733. ; 8:1, s. 50-58
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The difficulties nation states face when attempting to use traditional legal means to cope with transnational phenom-ena such as environmental degradation, international labor conditions, and global trade have created an opportunity for the emergence of new types of regulations. These rules are often issued by organizations that produce voluntary measures such as standards and action plans to influence the behavior of individuals and institutions. These are in many cases meta-organizations that have other organizations rather than individuals as members. They are important links in the process of creating and diffusing dominant definitions in the “ideoscape” of influential policy concepts such as sustainable development. This article explores how two meta-organizations, Fairtrade International (FLO) and Organic Forum, shape the concepts of fair trade and organic food by providing ideas and content to the ideoscape of sustainable development. We argue that this process takes place by governance through bureaucratization in which fair trade and organic food become formalized, precisely defined, and made visible. This in turn determines how—or even if—the social dimension of sustainability can be made into policy. Furthermore, we find explanations in these processes as to why the social dimension of sustainability tends to be the most underdeveloped. We conclude that bureaucratization is also a form of politics, although not one that is as easily recognizable as an open power struggle.
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