Organic and sustainable

The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, spawned 252 new nonprofit organizations. We know little about these organizations, including how they emerged, formalized, met constituents' expectations for immediate performance, and ultimately survived. This article explores these issues through a case study of one successful organization, the Windows of Hope Family Relief Fund. Using concepts from disaster, organizational ecology, and entrepreneurship research, the analysis identifies six propositions that link these literatures, notably the role of resource acquisition in formalization and the role of legitimacy in both fund development and organizational endurance. The study contributes new knowledge about the role of collaboration in acquiring capacity to enhance responsiveness. The findings suggest potential parallels to the evolution of new nonprofit organizations in other contexts.     

Creating culturally sustainable agri-environmental schemes

Evidence is emerging from across Europe that contemporary agri-environmental schemes are having only limited, if any, influence on farmers’ long-term attitudes towards the environment. In this theoretical paper we argue that these approaches are not ‘culturally sustainable’, i.e. the actions are not becoming embedded within farming cultures as part of conventional ‘good farming’ practice. We propose (following Bourdieu) that, in order to culturally embed the environmental values, beliefs and knowledges that underlie such schemes, policy-makers need to devise approaches that allow the creation of cultural and social capital within farming communities - rather than simply compensating for economic capital lost. We outline the theoretical basis of our position and discuss how the contemporary agri-environmental approach of paying for specified environmental management services restricts the ability of such schemes to generate cultural and, thereby, social capital. Finally, we outline two possible ways of accounting for cultural capital in scheme creation: either through the development of measures of cultural capital that enable its incorporation into contemporary economic models or through a major revision to the way we construct and apply agri-environmental schemes.     

The search for sustainable communities

Community Voices: Creating Sustainable Spaces, edited by Sally Paulin. Crawley: University of Western Australia Press, 2006. 256 pp., $35.95 paper.     

Endogenous preferences and sustainable development

This paper focuses on the relevance of endogenous preferences for the explanation of consumer behavior and its role for sustainable development. The demand side has received far less attention in the sustainability discussion than the production side. There seems, however, little doubt that consumption is equally as important for achieving sustainability (e.g., F. Duchin, G.-M. Lange, The Future of the Environment: Ecological Economics and Technological Change, Oxford University Press, New York, 1994). While the influence of social interaction of preferences has been pointed out by economists for centuries, this link is generally submerged in the standard economic assumption of individual interest maximizing behavior. With reference to a specific type of local food market (community supported agriculture groups, CSA), this paper investigates consumer behavior and its relevance for sustainable development. Several studies have investigated CSAs’ contributions to different aspects of sustainable development and barriers to their expansion. One aspect usually left out is the change in preferences after interaction with the farmer/s and other market participants for several years. This learning aspect may, however, prove crucial to identify paths towards sustainable development.     

Regional and local sustainable development

Twenty years after the Rio Conference of 1992 the issue of sustainability is still at the core of considerations in regard to the future of humankind. As a step forward in 1997 the Kyoto Protocol was agreed to, although the main actors have not been part of it. Since then all international congresses on the issue have failed. A new approach seems to be necessary, which steps aside of the international and national levels. The regional and local levels are definitely more appropriate, because direct participation of citizens and institutional actors is more feasible. Also for the regional and local levels labour is the main actor, as the production and distribution are the central areas for action for sustainability. That does not mean that consumption or finance have to be neglected. The trade unions in the past have often been reluctant to commit themselves for sustainability, as it seemed to endanger jobs. Slowly this attitude has been changed, and they fully engage now, e.g. with Attac and other similar movements.     

水环境与城市可持续发展

一、水环境与城市可持续发展的关系水环境是以人类为主体的水生态系统,是水的自然因素和社会因素的统一体,也是人类赖以生存和发展的稀缺资源。水环境与水资源既密不可分又有不同的含义。如水取之于环境,作为资源用于发电,其中的一部分,在利用之后又回到了环境中,经过环境—资源—环境的循环,成为资源的水和环境的水,虽然自然形态相同,但经济意义不同:水资源在经济活动内部被当做经济财富利用,而水环境作为经济活动的基础,是间接的经济财富。当作为资源的水受到污染或因浪费而枯竭时,水环境又成为环境破坏或公害问题。水环境是历史的结晶,是…     

Ranking policy options for sustainable development

Sustainable development calls for choices among alternative policy options. It is a common view that such choices can be justified by appealing to an evaluative ranking of the options with respect to how their consequences affect a broad range of prudential and moral values. Three philosophically motivated proposals for analysing evaluative rankings are discussed: the measured merits model (e.g. Chang), the ordered values model (e.g. Griffin), and the permissible preference orderings model (Rabinowicz). The analysis focuses on the models’ potential for making transparent how an evaluative ranking can contribute to a justified choice among options, particularly in situations that involve diverse values as typically found in debates on sustainable development. Such transparency plays a crucial role when policy rankings are going to be used as arguments in political decision processes. The measured merits model is found to have questionable consequences for the concept of sustainability, while the ordered values model calls for an axiological framework that cannot plausibly be spelled out for sustainability. The permissible preference orderings model is more promising. Its formal structure and its ability to deal with value-pluralism provide an interesting re-structuring of the problem of justifying choices in sustainability issues.     

Stakeholder participation for sustainable waste management

Inadequate environmental sanitation in many cities is a major cause of diseases and is a drain on the economy by way of lost workdays, cost of treatment and cleanup activities. Municipal authorities and policymakers need to act fast to address this issue. Sustainable waste management provides a comprehensive inter-disciplinary framework for addressing the problems of managing urban solid waste, in the resource constrained developing countries where quality of such services are poor and costs are high often with no effective means of recovering them. Upgrading the coverage of waste management and services and increasing their efficiency is a precondition for improving the environmental quality of cities. This paper highlights the fact that the involvement and participation of all the stakeholders such as the waste generators, waste processors, formal and informal agencies, non-governmental organisations and financing institutions is a key factor for the sustainable waste management.     

An axiomatic approach to sustainable development

The paper proposes two axioms that capture the idea of sustainable development and derives the welfare criterion that they imply. The axioms require that neither the present nor the future should play a dictatorial role.Theorem 1 shows there exist sustainable preferences, which satisfy these axioms. They exhibit sensitivity to the present and to the long-run future, and specify trade-offs between them. It examines other welfare criteria which are generally utilized: discounted utility, lim inf. long run averages, overtaking and catching-up criteria, Ramsey's criterion, Rawlsian rules, and the criterion of satisfaction of basic needs, and finds that none satisfies the axioms for sustainability.Theorem 2 gives a characterization of all continuous independent sustainable preferences. Theorem 3 shows that in general sustainable growth paths cannot be approximated by paths which approximate discounted optima. Proposition 1 shows that paths which maximize the present value under a standard price system may fail to reach optimal sustainable welfare levels, and Example 4 that the two criteria can give rise to different value systems.This paper was prepared for a presentation on Reconsideration of Values at the Stanford Institute for Theoretical Economics, organized by K.J. Arrow in July 1993. It was also presented at Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Seminar in Montreux, Switzerland, March 1994, at a Seminar on Inconmensurability and Values at Château du Baffy, Normandy, April 1994, and at the Graduate School of Business of Stanford University in May 1994. e mail gc@columbia.edu.     

Towards sustainable hybrid relationships in cash-for-care systems

Welfare state services are currently challenged by a key contemporary issue relating to citizens’ independence. But very little attention has been paid to how this affects the relationships between providers and receivers of welfare services. As the objective of cash-for-care systems is to enhance users’ independence by giving them the role of an employer in relation to their care workers, this article focuses on the implications of this system for user–care-worker relationships. Based on the findings of a qualitative cross-national study in Norway and the United Kingdom, the article suggests that the British system tends to foster one of two kinds of relationships – a master–servant type of relationship or a strong solidarity/emotionally-based relationship – while the Norwegian system rather tends to encourage a more professional type of relationship. In everyday practice, however, relationships can be mixed types or they can even resist the direction more usually taken within the particular cash-for-care system.     

An eco-centric approach to sustainable community development

This reflections piece challenges community development workersto engage, in more systematic ways, with environmental issuesat a local, national and global level. It argues that only byadopting an eco-centric rationale will community developmentachieve the goals of sustainable communities and social justice.     

A sustainable urban regeneration project to protect biodiversity

Urban Ecosystems - The sustainable urban redevelopment project to protect biodiversity was developed to regenerate the external spaces of an ancient rural farmhouse, Villa Framarino, in the...     

Activity at work, innovation and sustainable development

The aim of this paper is to present and discuss a French-Brazilian project (CAPES-COFECUB) centered on the relations between sustainable development, innovation and changes in work activities that accompany these innovations for sustainable development. Sustainable development calls for an integrated approach of three dimensions: social equity, economic viability and environmental sustainability. In order to achieve this integration, considerable innovations efforts are required. However, the work, understood as a productive act, is deeply lacking in the current researches. Starting from the idea that work is a "fundamental need" the goal of this project is to propose innovative methods that can be used for designing production systems from the perspective of sustainable development.     

Structural funds and sustainable development the SQM approach

The question of how to achieve greater levels of sustainable development is intrinsically linked with the discussion concerning new forms of governance. Structural funds have become most influential in promoting sustainable development and appropriate forms of governance across the EU. They have been very important in introducing new innovative forms of co‐ordination in many countries and have encouraged the mobilization of new political actors. Structural Funds can be considered as a most interesting laboratory for the development of new governance patterns, which are urgently needed for coping with accelerated change and increasing complexity. Multi‐level governance in the spirit of subsidiarity will not be possible without flexible objective‐oriented management approaches instead of the rigid attribution of competences. This requires new conceptual approaches, procedures, and instruments. ‘SQM—Sustainable Quality Management®’ is a coherent system for the conception, support, monitoring and evaluation of sustainable development processes. A series of pilot projects in the last five years have shown its potential and utility. The SQM system includes concepts, methods and operational tools that have proved to be applicable and comprehensible in different European cultures. Internet‐based SQM software tools support every step in the policy cycle. Sustainable development is conceived as an overarching principle that governs the management of processes and covers all policy principles postulated by the EU. In the use of a common framework over the whole policy cycle and the coherent implementation of basic principles there is the promise of achieving better orientation towards sustainable development and considerable efficiency gains.     

Shippers and freight operators perceptions of sustainable initiatives

The purpose of this paper is to document the extent to which Brazilian companies in retail channels have committed to adopting environmental sustainability measures, goals and strategies for waste disposal in the evaluation and planning of sustainable transportation. This paper also aims to examine the different viewpoints of sustainability issues and the preventive actions taken by companies in terms of controlling carbon dioxide emissions and proper disposal of tires, lubricant oils, accessories and spare parts. Finally, taking the perspective of these companies, this paper examines their difficulties in meeting environmental regulations. The research involved a survey completed by 185 representatives of different types of companies, including shippers (represented by manufacturers), LSPs (logistics service providers) and carriers. The non-linear canonical correlation was calculated to verify the opinions of these representatives from different companies regarding issues that impact on the environment, the preventive actions they adopt to reduce their environmental impact and their difficulties in meeting environmental regulations. The results show that shippers and LSPs have the same perceptions regarding these sustainability issues and preventive actions. In addition, the companies perceive high costs and the lack of training for their partners as the major challenges experienced in addressing these issues and undertaking preventive actions. Therefore they need to plan their transportation activities.     

Defining elements of sustainable work systems--a system-oriented approach

Based on a system-theoretic discussion of sustainability, this paper aims to develop a conceptual model of a sustainable work system which is consistent with the definition of ergonomics by the IEA in 2000 (but also with earlier definitions) as well as with the triple bottom line understanding of sustainable development - comprising the management of human, social, ecological and economic capital in a balanced manner.     

Toward an interactional approach to sustainable community development

During the 1980s, the concept of sustainable development emerged as a popular solution to the problem of meeting the material needs of a rapidly growing population while minimizing environmental damage. Rather than pitting economic growth against environmental protection, proponents of sustainability focus on development which meets the needs of both present and future generations. This new legitimacy has prompted scholars to broaden the range of issues to which sustainability can be applied. A potentially important development along these lines has been the growing body of literature surrounding the concept of sustainable community development. In this paper, we delineate the central features of the sustainable community, assess obstacles to achieving sustainable communities, and present a conceptual framework for sustainable community development based on an interactional approach to community.