scholarly journals Minimizing the Gap between Expectation and Ability: Strategies for SMEs to Implement Social Sustainability Practices

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (16) ◽  
pp. 6408 ◽  
Author(s):  
Priyabrata Chowdhury ◽  
Rezaul Shumon
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Human Capital ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Institutional Support ◽  
Social Sustainability ◽  
Mismatch Problem ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Sustainability Practices ◽  
Capital Intensive

Traditionally, it is believed that small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) do not have enough ability to adopt and persistently practice social sustainability. This is because SMEs are not capital-intensive companies and neither are their returns nor skills. At the same time, the wellbeing of the employees in SMEs cannot be ensured and sustainable development goals cannot be achieved without making SMEs socially sustainable, as they account for the majority of world businesses. Moreover, the expectation of the stakeholders and subsequent pressure on SMEs to practicing social sustainability remains. Such pressure from the stakeholders creates a “mismatch problem” between stakeholders’ expectations and SMEs’ abilities to adopt socially sustainable practices. This study aims to explore what factors are responsible for this “mismatch problem”, and how SMEs can handle this mismatch to be socially sustainable firms. Based on a rigorous literature review, this study reveals that both internal issues, such as a lack of resources and awareness, and external issues, such as the non-existence of a tailored social sustainability standard for SMEs and lack of institutional support, are responsible for this gap. This study develops several propositions that highlight the requirements in various situations and provides strategies outlining the implications for SMEs and their stakeholders to make SMEs socially sustainable. Overall, this study discloses that cooperative support from stakeholders, especially during a disruption such as the COVID-19 pandemic, a finance mechanism, the development of awareness and human capital in SMEs, and a unified standard for SMEs are likely to improve social sustainability practices in SMEs.

scholarly journals Multiple Criteria Decision Making for the Achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals: A Systematic Literature Review and a Research Agenda

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 4129
Author(s):  
Manuel Sousa ◽  
Maria Fatima Almeida ◽  
Rodrigo Calili
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Systematic Literature Review ◽  
Research Agenda ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Multiple Criteria Decision Making ◽  
Multiple Criteria ◽  
2030 Agenda ◽  
Development Goals

Multiple-criteria decision making (MCDM) methods have been widely employed in various fields and disciplines, including decision problems regarding Sustainable Development (SD) issues. The main objective of this paper is to present a systematic literature review (SLR) on MCDM methods supporting decisions focusing on the achievement of UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in regional, national, or local contexts. In this regard, 143 published scientific articles from 2016 to 2020 were retrieved from the Scopus database, selected and reviewed. They were categorized according to the decision problem associated with SDGs issues, the MCDM methodological approach, including the use (or not) of fuzzy set theory, sensitivity analysis, and multistakeholder approaches, the context of MCDM applications, and the MCDM classification (if utility-based, compromise, multi-objective, outranking, or other MCDM methods). The widespread adoption of MCDM methods in complex contexts confirms that they can help decision-makers solve multidimensional problems associated with key issues within the 2030 Agenda framework. Besides, the state-of-art review provides an improved understanding of this research field and directions for building a research agenda for those interested in advancing the research on MCDM applications in issues associated with the 2030 Agenda framework.

scholarly journals Representing “University Education” in the Horizon of the Concept of Sustainable Development and Security Discourse

2021 ◽  
Vol 295 ◽  
pp. 05003
Author(s):  
Konstantin Maltsev ◽  
Larisa Binkovskaya ◽  
Anni Maltseva
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Human Capital ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Global Perspective ◽  
University Education ◽  
Economic Paradigm ◽  
Security Discourse ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The University

The relevance of linking the concept of sustainable development and the security discourse reveals the possibility of believing that education is a prerequisite for ensuring that “sustainable development” goals become a reality. The university has a twofold task: first, to produce knowledge that meets the demands of our time, i.e. technical knowledge, and second, to form human capital, to train specialists capable of the practical application of instrumental knowledge. The initial orientation of the concept of “sustainable development” towards a global perspective: the representation of reality in an economic paradigm, i.e., totally determined by the “logic of capital”, “monocausal economic logic”, determines the criteria by which the quality of human capital, its price, and efficiency of production of a standardized product are evaluated, the production of which is undertaken by the university-corporation that has replaced the classical “university of reason”, whose ontic foundations - the “Hegelian science”, the romantic “education of humanity” - are no longer valid in what is called modernity. The article demonstrates how modernity, constituted concerning a certain self-representation of the New European subject and presented in the liberal economic paradigm, predetermines both the goal-setting in determined by its representation of the development and the content and methods of the reform of the university. It is concluded that “sustainable development”, “security” and “university-corporation” are essentially connected with the representation of reality in the liberal version of the economic paradigm.

Sustainable tourism and the role of stakeholders in North Cyprus: a literature review

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shiva Ilkhanizadeh
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Sustainable Tourism ◽  
Content Type ◽  
North Cyprus ◽  
Development Goals

Purpose This paper aims to identify the main stakeholders and the extent of their collaboration in the management of sustainable tourism policy planning practices in North Cyprus. Design/methodology/approach This paper provides a literature review of previous work. Findings This study recommends that the main stakeholder – national government – should actively involve a wider group of stakeholders in a collaborative effort to attain long-term sustainable development goals. Originality/value This is the first study to review the literature on sustainable development and the role of different stakeholders in North Cyprus.

scholarly journals ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY INDEX (ESSI)

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amna Faisal ◽  
Bahadir Tunaboylu ◽  
Ismail Koyuncu
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Environmental Performance ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Social Sustainability ◽  
Social Progress ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Sustainability Index ◽  
Environmental Performance Index ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Developed Nations

Sustainable development and globalization are becoming important subjects for policy makers to formulate the worldwide strategies and rubrics for ensuring simultaneous adoption of its components and monitoring of its consequences. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) published by United Nations are the guidelines to incorporate the assurance of sustainable development and its globalization. This study analyzes the sustainability from the perspective of not just the environment and the ecosystem of globe but also from the health and social aspects of humans. Indexes such as Environmental Performance Index (EPI) and Social progress Imperative (SPI) measure the performance of different countries based on the environment and the ecosystem by following Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and social goals, separately. However, the parameters used in those indices have significant limitations. In this work, the proposed Environmental and Social Sustainability Index (ESSI) offers a new model whereby new relevant sustainability parameters including social progress indicators are used to measure the performance of countries based on SDGs by using reliable data from international organizations. Finally, countries are categorized according to sustainable development goals that highlight the importance and significance of each sustainability parameter especially for developing and under developed nations.

scholarly journals Megatrends and Disruptors and Their Postulated Impact on Organizations

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (20) ◽  
pp. 8740
Author(s):  
Julie Linthorst ◽  
André de Waal
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
The Other ◽  
Decent Work ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The One

The coming decades are expected to be extremely challenging for organizations. On the one hand, there are the United Nations Sustainable Development goals to end poverty, protect the planet and improve the lives and prospects of everyone. On the other hand, organizations are expected to have to deal with an increasing number of megatrends and disruptors, many of which are already having an impact. To help organizations in their priority setting and decision-making so they can contribute to the development goals (specifically Goal 8: decent work and economic growth), a descriptive literature review was undertaken to identify which megatrends and disruptors will impact the future of organizations and in what ways they are expected do this. From the literature, thirteen megatrends and one disruptor emerged, and for each of these their postulated impact and consequences for organizations as described in the literature were gathered. The study reveals that there is ample attention given to megatrends in the academic literature but that not much can be found about dealing with disruptors. As a consequence, academic literature currently falls short in suggesting ways in which organizations can deal with disruptors. Managerial literature offers more suggestions in this respect.

Advocating for Library and Information Services by National Library Associations of Africa in the Context of Sustainable Development Goals

2019 ◽  
pp. 219-237
Author(s):  
Josiline Phiri Chigwada ◽  
Rosemary Maturure
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
International Federation ◽  
Information Services ◽  
National Library ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Library Associations ◽  
Development Goals

The chapter documents the role that is played by national library associations in advocating for the development of library and information services for the attainment of the United Nations (UN) 2030 Agenda in Africa. A structured records review and literature review was done to solicit information on how national library associations are taking part in achieving the sustainable development goals. Websites of associations were looked at and participants were drawn from national library associations in Africa, Standing Conference of Eastern, Central and Southern Africa Library and Information Associations (SCECSAL), African Library and Information Association and Institution (AfLIA), and the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA). The results indicated that national library associations are facing challenges in their advocacy work and there is a need to offer training to library staff and improve communication between librarians and policymakers.

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