This research examined the technical and economic feasibility of harnessing flare gas emissions from oil fields. The outcome would provide the basis for a substantial re-utilization of this waste energy due to the current practice of flaring and use it alternatively as energy for powering oil fields, rural electrification and desalination. Nigeria is used as a case study. Burning fossil fuels have grave environmental impact, amidst increasing global concerns over harmful emissions. This research addresses resource decline and suggests divestment as a partial cure. The gas turbine is subject to degradation of its components as it is used. Though several methods of assessing gas turbine degradation have been developed with varying degrees of success, no one method has addressed issues pertaining to associated gas and its effects on degradation with divestment. Simulation of two single shaft, heavy duty industrial gas turbines; and three aero-derivative industrial gas turbines of the heavy medium and light capacity ranges were carried out for varying operating conditions, to ascertain the effects of degradation when run on associated gas. Thereafter, optimizations for the best power plant engine mix and the least cost of electricity were carried out. Genetic algorithm was used to assess a population of 10,000 individuals over 500 generations; convergence was achieved for different configurations of the five study engines at discount rates of 5% and 10%, over three power ranges. The divestment pattern starts with the lightest aero-derivative industrial gas turbine; the best power plant selection was limited to the two lightest aero-derivatives in the fleet, completely ignoring the heavy engines. A techno-economic, environmental and risk assessment model comprising performance, emission, economics and risk modules was successfully developed to assess gas turbine degradation with divestment. Using this tool, it was confirmed that associated gas usage resulted in degradation of gas turbine performance, an increase in gas collection as well as operation and maintenance costs. Also there was increasingly higher creep life consumption during slow, medium and fast degradation scenarios for both engine sets. The novel technical contribution of the research work therefore is the influence of degradation on the economic use of associated gas as fuel in gas turbine power generation; and the implementation of divestment in the face of fuel decline.

More and more SME’s, which create entrepreneurial spirit and innovation, which are primarily responsible for wealth and economic growth, are internationalizing. This increases their probability of business closure due to the increased risk they face from operating in foreign markets. Much of the world blames the U.S. financial excesses for these business closures, but at the same time there are also SME’s withdrawing activities from foreign markets in economic stable times. This indicates that there are more and other reasons for de-internationalization and raises the problem of how do SME’s close their businesses in foreign markets. The purpose of this study is to explore how the drivers and determinants of deinternationalization affect the form and the paths of de-internationalization for SME’s. The aim is to provide and contribute to a better understanding of deinternationalization. This was studied through developing four case studies with Dutch SME’s with a qualitative research approach. For empirical data collection interviews were conducted with the persons closely involved with the de-internationalization of the SME’s. This in combination with the developed theoretical framework, based on a theory discussion and synthesis, provided more insight into the de-internationalization topic. The findings of this study show that a unique combination of drivers and determinants of de-internationalization is present in each case study and the relative influence of them differs. Most of the de-internationalization took place in a voluntary way, due to the nature and predictability of the occurring drivers. Moreover, it was found that the drivers of de-internationalization combined with the determinants influence the form in which de-internationalization can take place. It was also found that the form of deinternationalization, which SME’s have chosen, determines the two paths of deinternationalization, which are partial divestment and full market exit. This study contributes to the better understanding of de-internationalization, by identifying the forms and paths which SME’s can choose when withdrawing activities in foreign markets. Moreover, the main drivers and determinants have been identified and it was analysed how they affect the different forms and paths of de-internationalization and this was conceptualized in a model. The recommendations are, that deinternationalization should be seen as a strategic option SME’s have and should be considered in corporate strategies. Therefore, the associations with this phenomenon could be seen (more) positive.

In the last ten years, the fossil fuel divestment movement at higher education institutions has emerged as a key component of the global climate movement. It has also posed a challenge to the dominant paradigm of sustainability in higher education by calling on institutions to help incite outward systemic change to ensure justice for those most impacted by environmental problems, rather than simple efforts to green the campus. As the movement sees a resurgent escalation in the U.S., this study uses data from active and inactive campaigns across the country to assess the key characteristics of institutions and campaigns that have been involved. Records from an organization involved in national coordination of the movement, campaign Facebook pages, and an online survey distributed to campaigns were used to obtain data. The results provide an overview of the current state of active campaigns and divested institutions, where divestment activity occurs and at what type of institutions, the types of groups leading campaigns and their goals, how campaigns construct their arguments, and the barriers and drivers faced by campaigns. The study offers valuable insight into the nature of the movement during its first ten years with implications for both higher education institutions and activist participants. Institutions should embrace divestment as a necessary direction for sustainability in a time of societal crisis and work to break down barriers faced by campaigns that attempt to initiate this process. The movement, though robust in the Northeast and on the West Coast, may need to work to expand, particularly into areas in the South and western half of the country that have had very few campaigns. In addition, though justice has been heralded as a key tenet of the movement, campaigns were found to be limited in their conception and application of this principle by often employing it in the abstract rather than in regards to recognition of specific populations impacted by injustice or action to mitigate such injustices. This could be further developed in the movement, for example, through more focus on solidarity with frontline communities or targeting communities in need for reinvestment.

The fossil fuel divestment movement is a directed-network campaign that strategically uses economic and ethical arguments to challenge the social license of the fossil fuel industry. Fossil fuel divestment campaigns have become an induction point for the youth climate movement in North America (Grady-Benson & Sarathy, 2015; Rowe et. al., 2016). The analytical and operational approaches to social change employed by the fossil fuel divestment movement are having a ripple effect on the political orientation of a new generation of activists and environmental leaders. This thesis explores concepts and practices of climate justice in the fossil fuel divestment movement on Canadian university campuses, as a flashpoint in the shifting terrain of environmentalism. The research uses qualitative methods to analyze three case study campaigns, as well as supplemental interviews from additional campaign members and national coordinating organizations like 350.org and the Canadian Youth Climate Coalition. This project contributes to a growing body of literature concerned with applied political theory (Rowe et. al., 2016; Schifeling & Hoffman, 2017) and the social impacts of fossil fuel divestment (Bratman et al, 2016; Grady-Benson & Sarathy, 2015; Mangat et al., 2018), providing new insight into the potential of divestment organizing to disrupt dominant narratives of mainstream environmentalism. Fossil fuel divestment organizers are articulating climate justice analysis that calls for transformative system change, including critiques of neoliberal capitalism that are predominantly grounded in climate justice approaches. / Graduate

Η αποεπένδυση αποτελεί αναπόσπαστο κομμάτι μιας διεθνικής. Αν και από πολλούς αντιμετωπίζεται ως αποτυχία της θυγατρικής, θα πρέπει πλέον να θεωρείται αποτέλεσμα της διαδικασίας διαρκούς εξέλιξης και προσαρμογής στο περιβάλλον έτσι ώστε αυτή να παραμένει κερδοφόρα και ανταγωνιστική. Οι λόγοι που οδηγούν στην αποεπένδυση είναι πολλοί. Εκτός από την οικονομική πορεία της μονάδας όπως πολλοί μπορεί να φαντάζονται ως κυρίαρχο λόγο αποεπένδυσης, υπάρχουν και στρατηγικοί λόγοι. Αξίζει να σημειωθεί ότι όσο σημαντικό κομμάτι μιας επιχείρησης αποτελούν οι επενδύσεις για την εξέλιξη και τη μεγέθυνση της, τόσο σημαντικές είναι και οι αποφάσεις αποεπένδυσης, η επιλογή της σωστής χρονικής στιγμής, η επιλογή του μοντέλου εξόδου καθώς και η επιλογή της περιοχής μεταφοράς των δραστηριοτήτων. Θα πρέπει εξάλλου πριν από κάθε μελλοντική επένδυση να μελετώνται διάφοροι παράγοντες, που έχουν να κάνουν τόσο με το εσωτερικό όσο και με το εξωτερικό περιβάλλον της επιχείρησης, έτσι ώστε να ελαχιστοποιούνται οι πιθανότητες μελλοντικής αποεπένδυσης. Ειδικά στις σημερινές συνθήκες, όπου η παρούσα παγκόσμια κρίση, η πιο βαθιά τα τελευταία χρόνια, επιτάσσει προσεκτικές στρατηγικές κινήσεις από την πλευρά των διεθνικών, το θέμα των αποεπενδύσεων είναι ζωτικής σημασίας. Όσον αφορά στη άποψη της κοινής γνώμης, οι αποεπενδύσεις αντιμετωπίζονται με καχυποψία αφού συνήθως έχουν εκτεταμένες και σοβαρές συνέπειες γι αυτούς που εμπλέκονται, ειδικά γι αυτούς που χάνουν τις δουλειές τους και για τις περιοχές που χάνουν πολύτιμες θέσεις εργασίας. Στην εργασία αυτή μελετούνται αρχικά οι έννοιες της επιβίωσης μιας θυγατρικής, της επιτυχίας και της αποτυχίας. Στη συνέχεια αναλύεται η έννοια της αποεπένδυσης, οι διάφορες θεωρητικές προσεγγίσεις στο φαινόμενο αυτό καθώς και τα διάφορα μοντέλα εξόδου μιας διεθνικής από μία αγορά. Σημαντικό κομμάτι της βιβλιογραφίας αποτελούν και διάφοροι παράγοντες και η σχέση τους με την επιβίωση και συνακόλουθα με την αποεπένδυση. Στο δεύτερο μέρος της εργασίας αυτής μελετάται η περίπτωση της πολυεθνικής της Frigoglass και αναλύονται οι σημαντικότερες αποεπένδύσεις αυτής. / Divestment is an integral part of foreign affiliates. Even though many face divestment as failure of the company, it has to be considered as a result of the continuing evolving process and its trial to adapt to the environment so as to be profitable and competitive. The reasons that lead to divestment are many. Apart from the economic situation of the affiliate as many can imagine as the prevalent reason, there are also strategic reasons. It is noticeable that as much important the decision of investing for a company is for the evolution and its growth, so important are also the decisions for divestment, the choice of the suitable timing, the exit mode and at last the place of relocation. Besides they have to be studied many factors before investing, that they have to do with the internal and external environment of the company, in order the possibilities of divesting to be minimized. Especially now, that the worldwide economic crisis, the deepest of the last years, needs careful strategic steps, the issue of divestment is of vital importance. As for the public opinion, divestments are often faced with suspicion, as they have to do with serious effects especially for those who concern, those who lose their jobs . In this paper, they are studied the concepts of the survival of the affiliate, of the success and the failure. Also, it is analyzed the phenomenon of divestment, its theoretical approaches and the different exit modes. Moreover, an important part of this study has to do with the factors of the survival and of divestment. In the second part is studied the case of the multinational Frigoglass and they are analyzed its most important cases of divestments.

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The purpose of this thesis is to provide the reader with a deeper understanding of what impact external factors could have on international active Swedish SME’s. Since these factors influence the firm throughout the internationalization process we will investigate how firms mitigates the impact of external factors at later stages in the internationalization process. Furthermore, we will investigate how companies prepare themselves when it comes to external factors. To conduct this research, we have decided to use a qualitative research approach so that we as researcher can receive a deeper understanding of the international business environment. The thesis will use the abductive research approach since we match the theory regarding external factors with the empirical findings.   The Literature review has been conducted to conclude theroies regarding external factors, internationalization, export performance and finally a theory regarding divestment. This has resulted in a conceptual framework, which show how the theories are linked to each other. The conceptual framework has later been used to analyze the empirical data. The empirical data has been gathered through four case companies, which has been presented in the chapther empirical findings.   The analysis includes a discussion that compares the differnces and similarities between the theoretical framework and the empirical findings. It also includes the differences and similarities between our respondents and their experience from external factors and its impact. The final chapter concludes the thesis with results from our resource questions and further includes implications, recommendations, limitations and suggestions for further research in this subject. The main theoretical implication is the filling of the research gap regarding external factors and their impatcs for Swedish SMEs. Furthermore, the thesis concluded that it would be beneficial for companies to develop a strategy to overcome the obstacles that come from external factors when a company is internationalized. Our thesis has concluded that it is better to be proactive to external changes rather than be reactive on the international market.

We adopt a Penrosean perspective to study the effect of rapid international expansion on the subsequent divestment of international operations. We draw on regional strategy theory and differentiate Penrosean managerial resources by their geographical fungibility to argue that the effect of rapid international expansion on the divestment of international operations varies with the regional patterns of firms' international expansion and international experience. We test our hypotheses using two-stage least squares (2SLS) estimation on data that capture the international expansion and divestment of retailers over the period 2003-2012.

Large institutional actors in the financial arena are moving their capital in a sustainable direction. This implies a change of the institutional norms and rules regarding sustainable investing. One of the problematic aspects of sustainable investing is how investors use different strategies to influence their holdings and what implications this choice might have on a sector level. The purpose of this paper is to empirically examine how the strategies from institutional investors are an expression of the current norms and rules in the field of sustainable investing. It also intends to illustrate how institutional pressures influence the strategies of investors and their holdings. By interviewing respondents from eleven institutional investors, we present data regarding norms and rules for sustainable investing and the consequences of the investor’s strategies. Our findings indicate there has been an immense increase in demand for sustainable products in recent years, resulting in institutional pressures that have influenced both the investors and their holdings. This exposes the field to selection processes which may force organizations to the point of adapt or die. Finally, our conclusion provides practical implications on what role institutional investors have in the quest for sustainable development.

Communication practitioners are failing to engage publics and generate sufficient political will for decisive and timely action on climate change. Despite recent progress in climate communications research, a research-practice gap means evidenced-based approaches are not being adopted by practitioners. This degree project seeks to generate practical knowledge to support the campaigning group Fossil Free Berlin (FFB), of which I am a member, and climate communicators more broadly. FFB is part of the global Divestment Movement – a decentralised, grassroots campaign which aims to stigmatise the fossil fuel industry to mitigate climate change. Using Insider Action Research, I collaborated with the group to develop the following research question: “How can FFB positively and effectively engage audiences to act on climate change, in particular target audiences for our upcoming campaign (MP and the general public).” We found that values and frames, appropriate messengers and social norms can be leveraged to reach traditionally sceptical or inactive centre-right audiences. Positive storytelling, and relatable messaging can also bring the problem closer to home, empowering audiences to act – if communicated in conjunction with viable routes to change. As both the primary researcher and a member of the group, I use autoethnography and personal narrative to address issues of subjectivism and representation and communicate findings in an engaging, accessible way. This study is consciously written in the first person using broadly accessible language, and reflects on my feelings and experiences.