The climate crisis and the consequences that follow have forced humanity to explore the collective actions that must be taken to curb global warming. As a way to reduce ones carbon footprint, many choose to consume with greater care for the environment, and the interest for sustainable clothing has therefore significantly increased. With a rising interest in sustainable shopping, businesses need to adapt to meet the new customer demands. A sub-genre within the apparel industry that differ from the grand average regarding their sustainability communication is the outdoor brands, where environmental awareness plays a significant role in the brand identity. The outdoor brands clear evidence of sustainable communication and their dependance on consumption creates an interesting paradox that this essay intends to investigate further. This essay intends to investigate how a Swedish outdoor brand with a strong sustainable identity, Klättermusen, exercises sustainable communication through Instagram. The purpose of this essay is more specifically to explore how Klättermusen uses Instagram to create and maintain a sustainable brand identity. To help us do so, we present the following research questions: - How does the brand Klättermusen create a sustainable identity on Instagram?- What discourses can be discerned in Klättermusens marketing via Instagram and how has sustainable communication taken shape within these over time? The theoretical framework for our essay consists out of four theories, including Bauman’s theory about the consumer society, Ulrich Beck’s theory about risk society and reflexive modernity, strategic communications theory and greenwashing. These theories enable an analysis of how and why sustainable communication is conducted in a specific way and what consequences that follow. The essay is carried out methodically through a multimodal critical discourse analysis, that enables both a deep and more comprehensive analysis of the linguistic and semiotic resources used in Klättermusens marketing through Instagram.The result of our analysis presents how Klättermusen with linguistic and semiotic resources creates the eco-friendly identity that they are known for. Through both word choices and visual framing that connotes sustainability Klättermusen places themselves in a green context that goes well along with their core values. The material contains both examples of clear and indistinct sustainable communication, along with occasional elements of strong commercial character that make it possible to question the authenticity of Klättermusen’s true devotion to sustainability. The conclusion of our analysis is that the brand Klättermusen by small semiotic and linguistic measures successfully put themselves in a green context and create a sense of corporate social responsibility with the consumer. We do not believe that Klättermusen need to take drastic measures to maintain their sustainable image in reference to their other well-known environmental efforts. The conclusion further argues that the mix of strong sales marketing and a clear sustainable communication sheds light on the difficulties combining a consumption dependent business with an advocation for minimal environmental impact. Regardless of the challenges a sustainable identity comes with, we want to establish that Klättermusens way of maintaining a sustainable image is a response to a growing interest for environmental issues that also reproduces a general perception of how a brand should communicate to gain the consumers trust and how to be perceived as a brand that values social responsibility.

Bakgrund: Hållbarhet har länge varit ett omdiskuterat ämne och grundar sig i att vi inte har tagit hand om jordens resurser på ett ansvarsfullt sätt. Konsumtionen som sker idag är långt ifrån hållbar. I dagens ohållbara samhälle står livsmedelsindustrin för en stor del av den negativa klimatpåverkan. Konsumenter ser det som viktigt med hållbarhet inom livsmedelsindustrin. Detta har lett till att konsumenterna ställer högre krav och efterfrågar mer information om företagens hållbarhetsarbete. Företagen har svarat på konsumenternas krav genom att inkludera hållbarhet i sin marknadsföring.  Genomförandet: Studien fokuserar på tänkbara orsaker till att det finns ett gap mellan konsumenters attityd och beteende när det kommer till att de har en avsikt att konsumera hållbart samtidigt som deras beteende blir att konsumera ohållbart. Teori om planerat beteende är en teori om varför en konsument agerar på ett visst sätt och vad som ligger till grund för det beteendet. Utöver teorin om planerat beteende inkluderar studiens analysmodell hållbar marknadsföring, hållbar marknadskommunikation, greenwashing, certifieringar, konsumentbeteende samt köpprocessen för att svara på studiens syfte. Syftet: Syftet med studien är att bidra med en ökad förståelse om hur hållbar marknadsföring kan ha en inverkan på konsumenters köpbeteende inom livsmedelsindustrin. Därmed blir studiens frågeställning ”Hur upplever konsumenter att hållbar marknadsföring har inverkan på deras köpbeteende inom livsmedelsindustrin?” Metod: Studien utgår från en kvalitativ metod i form av tre strukturerade fokusgruppsintervjuer med konsumenter inom livsmedelsindustrin.  Slutsatser: Studien indikerar att konsumenterna upplever brist på kommunikation om företagens hållbarhetsarbete samt att de inte uppfattar all information om företagens hållbarhetsarbete som trovärdig. Studien uttrycker även att pris, trovärdighet och sociala faktorer påverkar konsumenterna när det kommer till deras hållbarhetskonsumtion.

Denna uppsats ifrågasätter diskurs om grönytor på kommunal nivå. Empirin analyseras med kritisk diskursanalys för att framhäva underliggande meningar och visa på vad som värdesätts i den kommunala planeringen. Genom undersökningen av Helsingborgs stads framställning av grönytor synliggörs hur grönområden porträtteras i förhållande till värde och nytta. Resultatet visar att beslut och formuleringar i Helsingborgs stads kommunala planeringsdiskurs om grönytor, med utgångspunkt i grönplanering, har ekonomiska motiv. Planeringen av grönytor i Helsingborgs stad kan ses som greenwashing. / This thesis questions municipal discourse about green spaces. Critical discourse analysis applies empiricism to showcase meaning and worth in municipal planning. By studying Helsingborgs city’s description of green spaces, it is possible to analyse how worth and value is portrayed. In conclusion, Helsingborgs city’s municipal planning discourse about green spaces has revealed economic motives in their green structure planning. Helsingborgs city’s planning of green spaces could be considered greenwashing.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka och redovisa hur ett antal företag inom olika branscher i Sverige arbetar med frågor som rör social, miljömässig och ekonomisk hållbarhet: vanligtvis kallat corporate sustainability och CSR. Begreppen sammanfattar företagens strävan att uppnå långsiktig hållbarhet i sin verksamhet, till exempel genom att hushålla med naturresurser. Uppsatsen bygger på casestudier, med tillhörande djupintervjuer, av sex olika företag. Den grundläggande frågeställningen är hur företagens arbetat med sin organisationsutveckling för att implementera CSR i verksamheten och till exempel bli ett ”grönare” företag. Slutsatserna i studien är att företagen i studien tar ett tydligt samhällsansvar i någon form och samtidigt avfärdar den klassiska ekonomiska teoribildningen kring vinstmaximering som förlegad.  Uppsatsen skulle även kunna utgöra ett instrumentellt dokument för företag som vill lära sig mer om eller utveckla sitt CSR-arbete. Den berör även de negativa konsekvenser som riskerar följa av ett CSR-arbete som inte är tillräckligt dedikerat, används i egen-syfte (greenwashing) eller inte får något utrymme alls.

The aim of this master's thesis is to find out whether there is a conflict between marketing communications and sustainability or if these can benefit from each other and how to apply this synergy in business reality. Firstly, overall impact of marketing communications on sustainable development is analyzed, mainly in terms of communications' content, and a potential role of marketing communications in achieving sustainable development is outlined. In the second part, sustainability is regarded as an opportunity for marketing incl. communications and sustainable marketing is introduced as a suitable reaction to this opportunity. A short analysis of current situation in Czech Republic follows. A great deal of the thesis is devoted to specific recommendations for businesses practicing sustainable marketing, be it on the product, brand or company level. These recommendations are then demonstrated on selected print advertisements. Finally, the thesis presents three ways in which marketing communications can help sustainable development, according to the author: (1) informing consumers about sustainable product and company choices, (2) normalizing sustainable behavior and usage of innovative products and (3) educating consumers.

Submitted by Auxiliadora Costa (aucydj@gmail.com) on 2018-11-09T19:52:32Z No. of bitstreams: 1 SÍLVIO JOSÉ MACIEL MACÊDO – DISSERTAÇÃO PPGSA PROFISSIONAL 2018.pdf: 768975 bytes, checksum: c1c9a2d4b5e89f46160d4c34b73de5f3 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-11-09T19:52:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 SÍLVIO JOSÉ MACIEL MACÊDO – DISSERTAÇÃO PPGSA PROFISSIONAL 2018.pdf: 768975 bytes, checksum: c1c9a2d4b5e89f46160d4c34b73de5f3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-08-14 / Capes / O trabalho parte da premissa de que um meio ambiente equilibrado é direito intergeracional. Para tanto, é dever da sociedade, sobretudo, das empresas, cuidar deste valoroso bem. O consumidor tem se mostrado consciente ao optar por produtos ecologicamente corretos, todavia, parcela das empresas têm usado a consciência ecológica do consumidor para se beneficiar através da falsa consciência ecológica, o denominado Greenwashing ou “lavagem verde”. Justifica-se a pesquisa pela necessidade de fazer uma abordagem sobre este fenômeno verificando as consequências advindas desta prática fraudulenta para o consumidor e as possíveis punições às empresas que fazem uso do marketing verde para se autopromover. O objetivo principal é analisar a viabilidade de criação de legislação especifica sobre a matéria. No que tange a metodologia foi utilizada na fase de abordagem a pesquisa teórica de caráter exploratório e no procedimento fez uso do método bibliográfico. Empregou-se a técnica de pesquisa bibliográfica através de coleta do referencial teórico em artigos, revistas científicas, doutrinas, relatórios, leis, pareceres e decisões judiciárias. Assim, constata-se que no ordenamento jurídico não há um mecanismo plenamente eficaz para coibir tal conduta devido as dificuldades em detectar e fiscalizar este fenômeno. / The work part of the premise that a balanced environment is intergenerational law .To this end, it is the duty of the society, especially, businesses care this valuable right.The consumer has shown to be aware by choosing eco-friendly products, however, share of companies have used the ecological consciousness of the consumer to benefit through the false consciousness, called Greenwashing or"lavagem verde". The research is justified by the need to make an approach to this phenomenon by checking the consequences arising from this fraudulent practice for the consumer and the possible punishments on companies that make use of green marketing to promote themselves. The main objective is to analyze the specifies creating legislation feasibility . When it comes the methodology was used in theoretical research approach phase of exploratory character and made use of the bibliographical method procedure. It was the technique of bibliographical research through collection of theoretical papers, journals, reports, laws, doctrines, opinions and court decisions . Thus, it appears that the legal system there is no fully effective mechanism to restrain such conduct because of the difficulties in detecting and monitor this phenomenon.

The thesis acquaints readers with the basic ideas of a new trend in marketing -- green marketing. It points out its particularities, historical evolution and potential application, including warning about common mistakes. The thesis aspires to bring an overview of the topic.

The main purpose of this thesis is to explore the relationship between best practice adherence and the ownership status of an eco-labeling organization. The research question that is aiming to answer is what key factors most often explain differences in the level of credibility between for-profit carbon management eco-labels and not-for-profit carbon management eco-labels in transnational environmental governance. The case studies of interest are the two certification agencies Verra and The Carbon Reduction Institute. The issue of credibility of eco-labeling schemes will be looked through a Green IR theoretical perspective and debunked with Neoliberal IR theory. The methods which will be used are Small-N comparison and Qualitative Content Analysis conducted through Index for Best Practices. The data for the study is acquired from the online platforms of the two case studies for investigation.

Creating a competitive advantage is often contextualized as the finding the Holy Grail of strategy. This study examines how Nordic sports businesses incorporate sustainability and how it can be used as a strategy to create a competitive advantage. The climate change debate, and increased consumer environmental consciousness has compelled companies to endeavor for a sustainable development. The sport industry has in general lacking behind in the green transition. However, they are now progressively trying to reconstruct their businesses model to a more sustainable approach. Consequently, more companies are today trying to market their brands to be perceived as sustainable. Although, the challenge is to how position a brand as sustainable without being accused for greenwashing. The thesis structure is based on three segments. Corporate sustainability, sustainability marketing and corporate transformation. The study was based on a qualitative research method, based from six case study interviews with companies from Sweden and Finland. The main research findings was that sustainability has become an increasingly important issue for Nordic sports businesses. The driving force behind the sustainable development is three different stakeholder. Customers, policy makers and employees at the own organization. The Agenda 2030 can be seen as a powerful and tangible set of framework, used to better implement sustainability. Another finding is that sustainability is mostly communicated on product level rather than on corporate level because of the fear of greenwashing accusation. Finally, creating a competitive advantage through corporate sustainability is the main objectives. In order to accomplish that desired outcome, the strategy have to been based on sound businesses practices which depends on how the company is using, and absorbing both internal and external resources and capabilities.

This study deals with the critical analysis of sustainable investments and, therefore, ESG practices on financial performance during the year 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic hit the financial market. The analysis examines sustainable investments in terms of their actual sustainability, risk, and earnings potential. For an improved tangibility of the findings, the overall market of the developed countries is represented by the two sample indices MSCI World and its sustainable benchmark MSCI World SRI. The analysis focuses on performance, volatility, and gross returns. Additionally, the knowledge of three financial experts supplements the analysis and connects the findings with their professional experience. The interview questions focused on the transparency and traceability of a sustainable investment product, the movement from shareholder-value to the stakeholder approach, the risk of sustainable investments, and the return analysis. The analysis shows that the Covid-19 pandemic has influenced the behavior of investors through the increasing importance of social and environmental topics. The analysis determines that intransparency and greenwashing of sustainable investments pose a danger to investors and are favored by a lack of legal framework conditions. Furthermore, the results reveal that ESG engagement reduces the agency problem and can be considered a stakeholder issue. An examination of market data shows that sustainable investments have a lower extreme risk and are thus subject to lower fluctuations in value during the year of the pandemic. In addition, sustainable investments show an abovemarket average development of value growth and gross returns. The conclusion is that sustainable investments are still in the development stage and need quickly binding legal regulations. Nevertheless, the lower risk, the above-market average performance, and the increasing demand point to a long-term establishment of sustainable investments in the market.