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Social Sustainability within the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development
No full textA common criticism of the sustainability field is that definitions are vague and that the vast amount of different tools, methods and concepts leads to confusion. In response to this challenge, for the past 25 years a group of scientists has explored the possibility to develop an overarching and unifying framework that would allow for a structured overview of other concepts, methods and tools and therefore allow for concrete, strategic planning for sustainability. Over this 25-year period the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development (FSSD) has been tested in learning loops between scientists and practitioners and has continuously been developed. The aim of this research is to contribute specifically to the social sustainability definition of this framework, which has been found lacking both in theory and practice. The research first establishes exactly in which ways the social dimension is underdeveloped, both from a theoretical and from a practitioner’s perspective. In addition, the research explores the general field of social sustainability in order to understand the larger field, but also to gather inspiration and understand similar approaches. This exploration leads to the conclusion that also the larger field of social sustainability is also under-developed and underscores the importance of this research. Based on this conclusion, a new approach to social sustainability within the FSSD is created based on a systems approach to the social system. Various aspects of the social system are identified to be essential for sustainability, namely trust, common meaning, diversity, capacity for learning and capacity for self-organization. Then, overriding mechanisms by which these aspects of the social system can be degraded are identified. Based on the understanding of the essential aspects of the social system and the identified overriding mechanisms of degradation of these, a hypothesis for a definition of social sustainability by basic principles is presented. The proposed principles are, that in a socially sustainable society, people are not subject to structural obstacles to: (1) health, (2) influence, (3) competence, (4) impartiality and (5) meaning-making. These aim to function as exclusion criteria for re-design for social sustainability. The research then presents two evaluations of this new approach, one based on workshops and interviews with FSSD practitioners and one via an FSSD-analysis of ISO 26000. Both evaluations support this new approach as useful and workable, and also contribute to suggestions for further improvement. Overall, the research contributes with a hypothesis for a definition of social sustainability, which is general enough to be applied irrespective of spatial and temporal constraints, but concrete enough to guide decision-making and monitoring. This is a contribution to systems science in the sustainability field, and it is a step towards creating an enhanced support for strategic planning and innovation for sustainability
The Social Dimension of Strategic Sustainable Development
No full textSustainable development most prominently entered the global political arena in
1987 in a report from the United Nations Commission on Environment and
Development, also known as the Brundtland report. In response to the concept of
sustainable development, a vast array of ideas, concepts, methods and tools to
aid organizations and governments in addressing the socio-ecological problems
has been developed. Though helpful in many contexts, the multitude of such
support also risks creating confusion, not the least since there is no
generally endorsed overriding and operational definition of sustainability.
Thus, there is a growing need for such a definition and for an understanding of
how these ideas, concepts, methods and tools relate to sustainability and to
each other. A framework for strategic sustainable development (FSSD) has been
developed over the last 20 years to create such a unifying structure. The aim
of this research is to contribute specifically to the social sustainability
definition of this framework.
The research follows the Design Research Methodology. First, the social
dimension of the FSSD as it stands currently was examined and described as was
the general field of social sustainability. Then, a new approach to the social
side of the FSSD was created.
The studies revealed that the field of social sustainability, in general, is
vastly under-theorized and under-developed, and that a clear framework is
important and desired. They also laid out in which ways specifically the
structure of the FSSD could be used to further develop the social dimension of
strategic planning and innovation, and that currently this aspect of the FSSD
is relatively under-developed. This assessment was followed by a first attempt
at a clearer definition of social sustainability.
Based on these explorations, this research suggests five principles as a
hypothesis to be used as a definition of social sustainability, the key-terms
of which being ’integrity’, ‘influence’, ‘competence’, ‘impartiality’ and
‘meaning’. For validity purposes the results were cross-checked with other
approaches and theories. The validity check shows that similar key-terms have
been found by other researchers.
In conclusion, this research contributes with a hypothesis for a clearer
definition of social sustainability, which is general enough to be applied
irrespective of spatial and temporal constraints, but concrete enough to guide
decision-making. This is a contribution to systems science in the
sustainability field and it is a step to creating an enhanced support for
strategic planning and innovation for sustainability. Further testing and
refinement of this theoretical foundation, and bringing it into practical use,
will be the subject of the continued studies
The Social Dimension of Strategic Sustainable Development [Elektronisk resurs]
No full textSustainable development most prominently entered the global political arena in 1987 in a report from the United Nations Commission on Environment and Development, also known as the Brundtland report. In response to the concept of sustainable development, a vast array of ideas, concepts, methods and tools to aid organizations and governments in addressing the socio-ecological problems has been developed. Though helpful in many contexts, the multitude of such support also risks creating confusion, not the least since there is no generally endorsed overriding and operational definition of sustainability. Thus, there is a growing need for such a definition and for an understanding of how these ideas, concepts, methods and tools relate to sustainability and to each other. A framework for strategic sustainable development (FSSD) has been developed over the last 20 years to create such a unifying structure. The aim of this research is to contribute specifically to the social sustainability definition of this framework. The research follows the Design Research Methodology. First, the social dimension of the FSSD as it stands currently was examined and described as was the general field of social sustainability. Then, a new approach to the social side of the FSSD was created. The studies revealed that the field of social sustainability, in general, is vastly under-theorized and under-developed, and that a clear framework is important and desired. They also laid out in which ways specifically the structure of the FSSD could be used to further develop the social dimension of strategic planning and innovation, and that currently this aspect of the FSSD is relatively under-developed. This assessment was followed by a first attempt at a clearer definition of social sustainability. Based on these explorations, this research suggests five principles as a hypothesis to be used as a definition of social sustainability, the key-terms of which being ’integrity’, ‘influence’, ‘competence’, ‘impartiality’ and ‘meaning’. For validity purposes the results were cross-checked with other approaches and theories. The validity check shows that similar key-terms have been found by other researchers. In conclusion, this research contributes with a hypothesis for a clearer definition of social sustainability, which is general enough to be applied irrespective of spatial and temporal constraints, but concrete enough to guide decision-making. This is a contribution to systems science in the sustainability field and it is a step to creating an enhanced support for strategic planning and innovation for sustainability. Further testing and refinement of this theoretical foundation, and bringing it into practical use, will be the subject of the continued studies.</p
Pedagogical Approaches and Design Aspects To Enable Leadership for Sustainable Development
Get PDFVarious sets of skills for dealing with sustainability and the complexity of
the modern world have been put forward by different actors in the field of
Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). In connection with these skills,
pedagogical methods such as lifelong learning, social learning, problem-based
learning, dialogue education, and empowerment for ESD have been discussed. This
paper looks at how these theories and methods can be put into practice by
examining a real-world example of a sustainability master’s program at Blekinge
Institute of Technology (BTH) in Sweden. In 2004, BTH launched the
international transdisciplinary master’s program Strategic Leadership towards
Sustainability, which aims to develop leaders who will be able to address the
ever-increasing sustainability challenge. The program combines a robust
scientific framework for planning and decision making toward sustainability,
with the leadership skills needed to energize large-scale societal change. In
2009, the Engineering Education for Sustainable Development (EESD) observatory
awarded BTH the ranking of No. 1 in Sweden and third in Europe for
demonstrating success in EESD. This paper describes the specific pedagogical
approaches and design elements that were implemented to train and develop the
skills and expertise surrounding leadership for sustainable development. It
further presents and analyzes survey data taken from program alumni reflecting
on the success of the program. The results of the survey clearly show that
while there is room for improvement, overall the program design is extremely
successful in equipping its graduates with the skills necessary to address the
sustainability challenge. Finally, the authors offer reflections on the lessons
learned after six years of continual improvements
Supporting engineering students in analyzing social sustainability of a product : lessons learned
No full textThough many engineering schools are integrating sustainability in the curriculum, most are still struggling, especially with social sustainability. The aim with this study was to test a process created to help students work systematically with these issues. Results show that students in the study did indeed benefit from structured process support as their general knowledge level of social sustainability issues as well as their understanding of how to integrate them in a product assessment was very low. Reflections from teaching staff on how to further develop such a process are also shared.open access</p
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
A typology of approaches to social sustainability integration in product development organizations
No full textProduct development companies can play a key role in society’s transition toward sustainability. However, previous research points to the lack of such a systemic and strategic perspective in dealing with sustainability aspects in product development and the neglect of the social sustainability. This paper builds on a prior empirical paper and together with insights from Sustainable Product Development and Corporate Sustainability literature propose a typology of social sustainability approaches in product development organizations. The typology presented is a result of an iterative five-step process: defining purpose, reviewing literature, defining relevant dimensions and attributes, reviewing empirical cases and finally creating the typology and its types. The resulting typology presents three types – the insular, the connected and the systemic - across four dimensions: System boundaries, how success is defined, what guides strategic decisions, and how the work is structured within the organization. Each dimension is further broken down into three to four attributes. The typology suggested serves as an analytical tool by bringing clarity to important elements that differentiate social sustainability approaches. These differences, taken together, determine when an approach adopted by a product development organization has the potential to strategically contribute to social sustainability and when it cannot. In terms of product design and development activities, the differences in the system boundaries and success dimensions of our three proposed types also determine the constraints that product developers work with when pursuing social sustainability goals. In this sense, the typology is promising also in terms of its practical application as it should be helpful in framing discussions and providing direction for product development organizations who wish to truly progress in their sustainability journey
A typology of approaches to social sustainability integration in product development organizations
No full textProduct development companies can play a key role in society’s transition toward sustainability. However, previous research points to the lack of such a systemic and strategic perspective in dealing with sustainability aspects in product development and the neglect of the social sustainability. This paper builds on a prior empirical paper and together with insights from Sustainable Product Development and Corporate Sustainability literature propose a typology of social sustainability approaches in product development organizations. The typology presented is a result of an iterative five-step process: defining purpose, reviewing literature, defining relevant dimensions and attributes, reviewing empirical cases and finally creating the typology and its types. The resulting typology presents three types – the insular, the connected and the systemic - across four dimensions: System boundaries, how success is defined, what guides strategic decisions, and how the work is structured within the organization. Each dimension is further broken down into three to four attributes. The typology suggested serves as an analytical tool by bringing clarity to important elements that differentiate social sustainability approaches. These differences, taken together, determine when an approach adopted by a product development organization has the potential to strategically contribute to social sustainability and when it cannot. In terms of product design and development activities, the differences in the system boundaries and success dimensions of our three proposed types also determine the constraints that product developers work with when pursuing social sustainability goals. In this sense, the typology is promising also in terms of its practical application as it should be helpful in framing discussions and providing direction for product development organizations who wish to truly progress in their sustainability journey
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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