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In my PhD thesis I investigate the relationship between corporates' financial and environmental performances. The concept of quantitative environmental performance measures was introduced to enable to compare and analyse environmental impacts of different socio­economic units e.g. companies, countries, regions. In my dissertation, I use environmental performance measures to examine their effect on the financial performance of different companies. In the first chapter, I apply a meta­analysis to examine the results of the previous studies which investigate the impact of firms' environmental performance on their financial performance. The outcomes propose that it is important to account for the omitted variable bias such as unobserved firm heterogeneity. The results suggest that it takes time for the environmental regulation to materialize into the financial performance, too. In the subsequent two chapters I study Czech firms over 2004­2008. First I study the intertemporal effects of corporates' environmental performance on financial ...

In my PhD thesis I investigate the relationship between corporates' financial and environmental performances. The concept of quantitative environmental performance measures was introduced to enable to compare and analyse environmental impacts of different socio­economic units e.g. companies, countries, regions. In my dissertation, I use environmental performance measures to examine their effect on the financial performance of different companies. In the first chapter, I apply a meta­analysis to examine the results of the previous studies which investigate the impact of firms' environmental performance on their financial performance. The outcomes propose that it is important to account for the omitted variable bias such as unobserved firm heterogeneity. The results suggest that it takes time for the environmental regulation to materialize into the financial performance, too. In the subsequent two chapters I study Czech firms over 2004­2008. First I study the intertemporal effects of corporates' environmental performance on financial ...

Municipal solid waste management (MSWM) is a global challenge and the situation is worse in urban areas of developing countries due to ineffective disposal systems. In many industrialised countries, waste minimisation and recycling/reuse policies have been introduced to reduce the amount of waste generated, and increasingly, alternative waste management practices to waste disposal on land have been implemented to reduce the environmental impacts of MSWM. Nevertheless, research and MSWM in most developing countries have largely concentrated on waste collection. This doctoral study investigates how planning and decision-making for MSW disposal in developing countries with similar circumstances and MSW problems to Ghana can be improved, using the Wa Municipality as a case study. It established the baseline scenario of MSW disposal and examined MSW disposal management and operational performances. The methodology and research design for the study was a descriptive and interpretive case study that was analysed through both qualitative and quantitative research methods. The key research findings indicate that the current state of MSW disposal management performance in Ghana does not present an enabling environment for effective MSW disposal. Also, the present MSW disposal practices in the case study area and Ghana in general consist of some waste collection, transportation and open dumping, where the entire amount of waste is open dumped without pre-treatment. Evaluation of MSW disposal operational performance through modelling and scenario analysis showed that open dumping/landfilling of waste creates copious health effects (0.0001519 lbs/year on average), whereas, MSW disposal in an integrated solid waste management (ISWM) system optimises the minimisation of health effects (-0.0005812 lbs/year on average). The study developed and validated a framework for the improvement of planning and decision-making for MSW disposal, which can easily be applied in the context of developing countries. Also, the developed framework provides a theoretical standpoint for the concept of MSW disposal in ISWM. Appropriate MSW disposal treatment technologies based on the developed framework could be applied to ameliorate the impacts of MSW disposal in Ghana and other developing countries.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:53:13Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 RafaelaMRP.pdf: 1153352 bytes, checksum: e2b6b2805582038d2fbbbcf7fc97714e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006-05-19 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cient?fico e Tecnol?gico / This research refers to the production of green buildings, defined, mainly, based on the use of sources of alternative energies, smaller emission of pollutant, use of recyclable materials, systems of recycling of the waters, maximization of the natural illumination, preservation of green areas or native, and appropriate quality of the internal air. From the conception of those buildings, it appears the needs of evaluating them, creating the methodologies for the evaluation of environmental performance of buildings. In that way, this work can be divided in two moments: the first one when it identifies the methodologies for the evaluation of environmental performance for buildings existents in the literature, defining their categories, criteria and sub-criteria to be appropriate to the reality of the Brazilian Northeast; and the second one when starting from the analysis of the systems of existent evaluation. It defines a methodological base and it generates a new evaluation system, denominated MEDACNE (Methodology of Evaluation of Environmental Acting for Construction in the Northeast). In that moment, the process of framing of the section of the building site is verified under the maintainable optics, stimulated mainly by the pressures of the society - conferences, protocols and agreements. Finally, the proposed methodology was applied in a case study, a residential building, called Maria Jos? Gurgel , located in Natal-RN, Brazil, for its validation. This methodological proposition should increase the patterns environmental places for the production of new buildings, and it will be a reference guide for architects, engineers and planners to develop their constructions considering the criteria of the sustainability. This study made use of bibliographical research in books and specialized magazines and the analysis of the data was realized in an interpretative way / Esta pesquisa refere-se ? produ??o de edif?cios ecologicamente corretos, definidos, principalmente, a partir da utiliza??o de fontes de energias alternativas, menor emiss?o de poluentes, uso de materiais recicl?veis, sistemas de reciclagem das ?guas, maximiza??o da ilumina??o natural, preserva??o de ?reas verdes ou nativas, e adequada qualidade do ar interno. A partir da concep??o desses empreendimentos, surge a necessidade de avali?-los, dando origem ?s metodologias de avalia??o de desempenho ambiental em edif?cios. Dessa forma, este trabalho pode ser dividido em dois momentos: o primeiro quando identifica as metodologias de avalia??o de desempenho ambiental em edif?cios existentes na literatura, definindo as categorias, crit?rios e sub-crit?rios a serem adequados ? realidade do Nordeste brasileiro; e o segundo quando a partir da an?lise dos sistemas de avalia??o existentes, define uma base metodol?gica e gera um novo sistema de avalia??o, denominado de MEDACNE (Metodologia de Avalia??o de Desempenho Ambiental para Constru??o no Nordeste). Neste momento, ? verificado o processo de enquadramento do setor da constru??o civil nos padr?es de sustentabilidade, estimulado principalmente pelas press?es da sociedade confer?ncias, protocolos e acordos. Por fim, a metodologia proposta foi aplicada em um estudo de caso, um edif?cio residencial denominado Maria Jos? Gurgel, dentro de uma empresa de Constru??o Civil, localizada em Natal-RN, para valida??o do sistema. Esta proposi??o metodol?gica dever? aumentar os padr?es ambientais locais para a produ??o de novos empreendimentos, e ser? um guia de refer?ncia para arquitetos, engenheiros e projetistas desenvolverem suas edifica??es considerando os crit?rios da sustentabilidade. Este estudo fez uso de pesquisa bibliogr?fica em livros e revistas especializadas e a an?lise dos dados foi realizada de forma interpretativa

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The aim of the doctoral thesis is to design and verify a model measuring complex corporate performance integrating environmental, social, economic and Corporate Governance performance in a selected sector of CZ – NACE. The model was constructed in six steps. A basic set of key performance indicators was designed by a synthesis of findings from preliminary research and analysis of approaches of international institutions that deal with the issue of corporate sustainability. Through a questionnaire survey a relevance of a proposed basic set of key performance indicators was verified. Key performance indicators were verified on a group of companies which have more than 250 employees and belong to a CZ – NACE 27.1 Manufacture of electric motors, generators, transformers and electricity distribution and control apparatus. Subsequently, a reduction of a number of key performance indicators was done by statistical methods so that the explanatory power of the model has been retained as much as possible. In order to model reflect a reality, weights that express an influence of key performance indicators on corporate performance and sustainability were assigned to key performance indicators. Through a literature research a benchmarks for a reduced set of key performance indicators were determined in order to quantify a performance gap. Key performance indicators were aggregated into a single aggregate indicator measuring complex corporate performance by an additive method.