This research project explores factors affecting sustainability initiatives within educational institutions. Using grounded theory and mixed-methods, the project evaluates the experiences and perspective of nineteen individuals involved with sustainability initiatives in schools. Twelve research participants are from one school community while the other seven are sustainability programme coordinators at a range of educational institutions. Results indicate that significant life experiences and situational factors both have an impact on an individual’s perspective on sustainability. The success of sustainability initiatives relies heavily on keen advocates for sustainability within the community and the support ascribed to sustainability by the institution. Providing engaging, hands-on experiences, supporting individuals and groups, and encouraging role modeling can foster an ethic of sustainability across the community. The outcome of this research project is a framework designed to help individuals and institutions in their efforts to support and implement sustainability initiatives. Keywords: Sustainability, education, barriers, environment

Landfills in British Columbia are reaching capacity; this has sparked renewed efforts to curb the output of household waste. Extending previous quantitative studies, I use a qualitative grounded theory approach to explore what influences the perception of waste and activates the intention to recycle and compost. Participants from Ucluelet, British Columbia, accumulated their refuse, recyclables, and compost during a four week period; simultaneously, I interviewed them about the meanings and feelings they associated with the process. My results suggest that participants' attitudes about waste are strongly influenced by what they see. Because garbage is regularly hauled away and dumped out of sight, participants were relatively unaware of how much they produce and its environmental impact. Increasing awareness appears to be a key factor in changing waste diversion intentions; incorporating small pro-environmental changes may lead to further changes. This reaffirms previous findings that adopting one environmental behaviour can empower further change.

This research addresses the following questions: how do successful professionals cultivate boundary-spanning relationships to develop professional goods; and what lessons can be drawn from their successes? This study uses grounded theory to interpret qualitative interview data from four expert networkers to help demonstrate how successful people in various industries build relationships — and what characteristics these successful networkers have in common. Using grounded theory, five key themes emerged: uncertainty reduction, ingratiation, reciprocity, mentoring relationships and the importance of follow-up. The study of networks has a well-developed body of surrounding literature; however, the current research does little to address how individual actors successfully build the relationships upon which networks are based. Therefore, this qualitative research into the characteristics shared by successful networkers is a positive contribution to the body of knowledge concerning social network theory — and will serve as a guide for those wishing to expand their personal and business networks.

This study explored the current opinions of Chinese citizens on environmental sustainability in China, while inquiring about the role of the Chinese government in shaping public consciousness on environmentalism. This case study was a qualitative analysis that was informed by both grounded theory and ethnographic content analysis (ECA) conducted through fifteen open-ended interviews with Chinese citizens and content analysis of government documents and media coverage that pertain to environmentalism. During the data collection and analysis process, the researcher considered the cultural landscape of China and reflected on how the media, Chinese spirituality, and communication patterns affect the conceptualization of environmentalism by citizens. This research found that public awareness of environmental sustainability is influenced by a social hierarchy of needs, philosophical legacies, allegiance to authority, and China‟s global position. Consequently, this research uncovered the importance of cultivating cultural awareness when non-Chinese citizens approach the topic of environmentalism in China. Keywords: Chinese Government, Environmentalism, Public Opinion, Grounded Theory