With the general global decline in the popularity and profitability of traditional orchestras, ways to build new audiences, develop new repertoires and create new networks and business partnerships are being explored. The aim of this thesis is to analyse the various elements of a proposed Orchestral Sustainability Framework and determine if and how these elements contribute to an increased audience connection with the music performance experience. Three main elements are explored in this Orchestral Sustainability Framework: 1. Social aspects of audience connection such as performer/audience interaction and ways of emotional engagement 2. Artistic aspects of audience connection such as the impact of poly-stylistic genres, blend of instruments and sounds and the importance of inter-sensory perception using visuals, theatre and music 3. Economic aspects of audience connection such as networking with business partnerships, impact of branding and marketing and the importance of distribution channels Audience reactions are central to this approach. Audiences from a variety of existing orchestral models have been researched through case studies, interviews, surveys, focus groups and participant observation. An orchestra, formed specifically for this project, performed to selected audiences and at the Brisbane Festival of Arts in 2006 and is now achieving commercialisation. The style of this orchestra is characterised by audience and performer interactivity, theatrical staging, visuals, spontaneity and less formality. Research has been conducted on this orchestral model, with contributions from the musicians, directors, producers, promoters and audiences. The research hypothesis proposes that a greater connectivity with the audience results in a more sustainable product, where sustainability is indicated by the orchestras’ ability to generate a sufficient amount of box office revenue and sponsorship. A variety of different models are considered which demonstrate orchestras that can achieve their mission of satisfying their audience, while being financial viable. The findings from the literature and the case studies clearly demonstrate the importance of many elements in the sustainability framework to achieve a greater level of audience connection with the orchestra.

This project was inspired by a declaration made by built environment professionals at the World Summit on Sustainable Development (GABS, 2002), of the need for a common framework to improve decision making for sustainable development. Priori theorising indicated the suitability of governance as a topic of consideration and the possibility that a governance framework offered a potential solution. The research question was therefore: “would a governance framework for the built environment sector provide a framework in which decision making for sustainable development could be improved for all built environment stakeholders?” With an added dimension of testing for developed and developing countries, the research project was constructed on the case study methodology using the built environment sectors of the UK and Ghana. The project commenced with a review of literature which confirmed that governance is a core component of sustainable development and of increasing relevance to built environment stakeholders in both developed and developing countries. A significant gap in the literature concerning governance and the built environment sector was identified. Through analysis of literature a governance framework was constructed to act as the theoretical framework for testing. A comparative analysis of the current governance arrangements impacting on the built environment sectors in each of the case studies provided data to test the theoretical framework. A contingency valuation carried out with built environment policy makers and practitioners in Ghana provided data to further test the acceptability and applicability of the theoretical governance framework. It was concluded that a governance framework provided a robust framework in which decision making for sustainable development could be analysed and improved. Furthermore, evidence indicates that the completeness of a sector’s governance framework is a key indicator of performance for sustainable development in the built environment sector. The framework developed in this project has been used to analyse performance in Ghana’s built environment sector and the resulting policy guidance has informed the development of policy and institutional reforms in Ghana.

Today there is a lack of official environmental labels for mobile phones. In addition, at the moment it does not necessarily mean that a product is more sustainable because it is marketed as green or as environmentally friendly. It has to be easier for consumers to evaluate and pit “green” products against each other, as well as create a picture of which model is the most environmentally adopted and within which issues the biggest environmental benefits lay. The aim of this study is to analyse a selection of smartphones, which are sold by TDC SE, through a lifecycle perspective. The selection will be limited to the major suppliers and their most commonly sold phones by TDC. The purpose of the analysis is to classify the selected models based on their environmental and social impacts in their different lifecycle stages, and to present the results to the customers so they can consider that in their decisions. The following models were assessed in the study: iPhone 5s, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s from Apple; Lumia 550, Lumia 650 and Lumia 950 from Microsoft; Galaxy A3 2016, Galaxy Xcover3 and Galaxy S6 from Samsung; as well as Xperia Z5, Xperia M4 Aqua and Xperia M5 from Sony. The study has developed a tool for analysing and characterizing the Smartphones’ sustainability performance. Several sustainability categories was developed, which each consists of a set of sustainability criterions, in order to analyse the models sustainability performances. The analysis has considered key issues, problem areas and impacts reading the smartphones sustainability performance. The characterization applies a scoring system in regards to how the models perform within the selected criteria compared to the industry’s average performance level (representing industry standard) as well as best practice examples. The assessed sustainability criterions are then additionally analysed through a multi-criteria analysis (MCA). In the MCA the criterions relevance are weighted and combined to an overall sustainability score of the models performance in each category. The study also examines the possibility for consumers to weight the different sustainability categories into an overall sustainability score for each model. This enable the customers to rank the models sustainability performance based on their preference (which categories that is more or less important to them). Regarding the models characterised sustainability performance it is clear that Samsung Galaxy S6 overall performs the highest of the studied models. In addition, all the Samsung models preformed high in general (except that Galaxy Xcover3 and A3 preformed the lowest of all the models in regards to environmentally preferable alternatives). Microsoft generally performed quite high and especially high in regards to life prolonging features and the use phase (were Lumia 950 scored especially high). Although, Microsoft performed quite low in regards to environmentally preferable alternatives as well as lifecycle thinking. Apple preformed high (scored higher than the other suppliers) in regards to environmentally preferable alternatives. However, in general Apple performed quite low, especially regarding life prolonging features and iPhone 5s also scored the lowest of all models in regards to substances of concern. Sony preformed very high in regards to I lifecycle thinking and the use phase and in general quite high in most categories (expect that the Xperia M5 model preformed among the lowest in regards to transportation). The result of the study has been highly affected by the degree of available information concerning the different models and suppliers. It is also interesting that models from different suppliers (with similar degree of available information) ranked differently relative to each other depending on the weighting (preference) between the different sustainability categories. Moreover, the study had to consider and find a balance between available information and desirable information. This mainly refers to the development and definition of industry standards and best practice levels. The study had to consider and decide what could be expected and measured/evaluated in regards to the independent demands, criticism and issues which the industry face. After concluding the study it is clear that the result has been greatly affected by the degree of available information for the studied models. It is also clear that today there is a great lack of model specific information and data. The study also found that it is important with feedback and follow-up communication with the suppliers, in order to correct misunderstandings and provide clarifications. In conclusion, the result of the study can be used as a decision basis for customers who wish to consider the smartphones’ sustainability performance is their choice. / Pris och funktion är fortfarande de avgörande faktorerna vid köp, men miljön håller mer och mer på att bli ett avgörande kriterium och intresset för ”grön” IT ökar. De officiella miljömärkningarna och oberoende granskningarna av elektronikföretag kan hjälpa konsumenter att göra bra val bland butikernas utbud. I Sverige finns det dock endast en officiell miljömörkning för mobiltelefoner, TCO certifieringen. Det blir dock mer och mer vanligt med eco-ratings, till exempel Eco Rating 2.0 och certifiering enligt UL 110 standarden för mobiltelefoner. Idag finns det alltså en brist på officiella miljömärkningar för mobiltelefoner och för tillfället så betyder det inte nödvändigtvis att en produkt är mer miljövänlig bara för att den marknadsförs som grön eller som miljöanpassad. Därför måste det bli enklare för konsumenter att utvärdera och ställa gröna produkter mot varandra samt att bilda sig en bild över vilken modell som tar mest hänsyn till miljön och inom vilka frågor som den största miljönyttan ligger. Målet med studien har varit att analysera ett urval av smartelefoner som säljs av TDC utifrån ett livscykelperspektiv. Urvalet har begränsats till de största leverantörerna och deras telefoner som vanligtvis säljs mest av TDC. Syftet med analysen har varit att klassificera de utvalda modellerna baserat på deras miljömässiga och sociala påverkan i deras olika livscykelfaser, samt att presentera resultatet till kunderna så de kan ta hänsyn till detta i deras val. De följande modellerna utvärderade i studien: iPhone 5s, iPhone 6 och iPhone 6s från Apple; Lumia 550, Lumia 650 och Lumia 950 från Microsoft; Galaxy A3 2016, Galaxy Xcover3 and Galaxy S6 from Samsung; samt Xperia Z5, Xperia M4 Aqua och Xperia M5 från Sony. Studien har utvecklat ett verktyg för att analysera och karakterisera smarttelefonernas hållbarhetsprestanda. Flera hållbarhetskategorier utvecklade och tog fram, som i sin tur består av ett flertal hållbarhetskriterier, för att kunna analysera modellernas hållbarhetsprestanda. Analysen har tagit hänsyn till nyckelfrågor, problemområden och påverkan rörande smarttelefonernas hållbarhetsprestanda. Hållbarhetskriterierna har valts ut baserat på informationen som samlats in i screeningen, käraktaren hos de data som erhållits från leverantörerna samt tillgängliga mått och möjligheten att utvärdera de valda kriterierna. I karakteriseringen så tillämpas ett betygsystem relaterat till hur modellerna presterar inom de vala kriterierna jämfört med industrins genomsnittliga prestationsnivå (representerar industristandard) och best praxis exempels. Där den högsta nivån innebär att hållbarhetskriteriet behandlas utöver industristandard (representerar best practice). Den mellersta nivån innebär att hållbarhetskriteriet behandlas på samma nivå som industristandarden. Och den lägsta nivån innebär att hållbarhetskriteriet inte finns tillgänglig för allmänheten. De utvärderade hållbarhetskriterierna blir sen ytterligare analyserade med hjälp av en Multi- kriterium analys (MCA), där kriterierna viktas baserats på deras relevans och kombineras till ett övergripande poäng av modellens prestation i varje kategori. Viktningen tar även hänsyn till hur (progressiv) svårt det är att uppnå best practice nivån jämfört med industristandarden samt att uppnå industristandarden. Studien undersöker även möjligheten för kunderna att vikta de olika hållbarhetskategorierna till ett övergripande poäng för varje modell. Detta görs för att kunna ranka modellernas hållbarhetsprestanda basrat på kundernas preferens (vilka kategoriers som är mer eller mindre viktiga för dem). <img src="file:///page6image25648" /> Baserat på modellernas karakteriserade hållbarhetsprestanda är det klart att Samsung Galaxy S6 på det hela taget presterade högst av alla de studerade modellerna. Alla Samsungs modeller presterar också generellt väldigt högt (bortsett från att Galaxy Xcover3 and A3 presterade lägst III av alla modeller med hänsyn till miljövänliga alternativ). Mikrosoft presterade generellt ganska högt och speciellt högt med hänseende till livsförlängande funktioner och användarfasen (där Lumia 950 presterade speciellt högt). Dock så presterade Microsoft ganska lågt inom miljövänliga alternativ samt livscykeltänkande. Apple presterade högt (fick högre poäng än de andra leverantörerna) inom miljövänliga alternativ. Dock så presterade Apple generellt ganska lågt, speciellt med hänsyn till livsförlängande funktioner och iPhone 5s presterade också lägst av alla modeller inom potentiellt farliga ämnen. Sony presterade väldigt högt med hänsyn till livscykeltänkande och användarfasen, samt ganska högt in de flesta kategorierna (förutom att Xperia M5 modellen presterade bland de lägst inom transporter). Studiens resultat har till stor del påverkats av de olika graderna av tillgänglig information för de olika modellerna. Det är också väldigt intressant att modeller från olika leverantörer (med liknande grad av tillgänglig information) rankades olika relaterat till varandra beroende på viktningen (preferensen) mellan de olika hållbarhetskategorierna. Studien har också till stor del behövt ta hänsyn till och hitta en balans mellan tillgänglig information och önskad information. Detta referera främst till framtagningen och definitionen av industristandards och best practice nivåerna. Studien har behövt betrakta och bestämma vad som kan förväntas, mätas och utvärderas relaterat till de oberoende krav, kritik och frågor som industrin står inför. Efter att studien slutförts är det klart att resultatet till stor del har påverkats av de olika graderna av tillgänglig information för de studerade modellerna. Det är även klart att der finns en stor brist på modellspecifik information för de studerade modellerna. Studien kom fram till att det är viktigt med återkoppling och uppföljande kommunikation med leverantörerna, för att rätta till missförstånd och tillhandahålla klargöranden. Avslutningsvis så kan studiens resultat användas som beslutsunderlagg för kunder som vill ta hänsyns till smarttelefonernas hållbarhetsprestanda i sitt val.

The attention on green building is driven by the desire to reduce a building’s running cost over its entire life cycle. However, with the use of sustainable technologies and more environmentally friendly products in the building sector, the construction industry contributes significantly to sustainable actions of our society. Different certification systems have entered the market with the aim to measure a building’s sustainability. However, each system uses its own set of criteria for the purpose of rating. The primary goal of this study is to identify a comprehensive set of criteria for the measurement of building sustainability, and therefore to facilitate the comparison of existing rating methods. The collection and analysis of the criteria, identified through a comprehensive literature review, has led to the establishment of two additional categories besides the 3 pillars of sustainability. The comparative analyses presented in this thesis reveal strengths and weaknesses of the chosen green building certification systems - LEED, BREEAM, and DGNB.

The major themes of the research are how well sustainability reporting reflects sustainability performance and 13 companies were assessed over three years on their sustainability reporting as reflected in their sustainability reports as well as 10 in-depth interviews. For both positive and negative reasons the reports are not always a fare reflection of sustainability performance and those companies well-endowed with accolades in sustainability reporting are not necessarily leaders in performance. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

Thesis (M.COM. (Accounting)) -- University of Limpopo, 2019 / This study examines the effect of board characteristics on environmental and social sustainability performance. Companies‟ sustainability performance is affected by many factors such as board composition of companies, lack of knowledge, policies and resources of companies, competition from other companies and market trends. The King IV Code of Corporate Governance recommends that the governing body should comprise a balance of diversity being race and gender and independence. Moreover, the Code states that the board of directors of companies should have a balance of both independent members and non-independent members who should act in the best interest of the companies. The study used a quantitative approach, and secondary data from Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), Socially Responsible Index (SRI) listed banking and retail companies for 11 years from 2007-2017. The study tests the relationship between board characteristics (the number of females on board of directors); firm size (market capitalisation); board independence; and environmental (energy usage) and social (skills development expenditure) sustainability of JSE SRI listed firms. Results show that there is a negative and insignificant relationship between females on board and energy usage. A positive and a significant relationship between energy usage and board independence a positive and an insignificant relationship between firm size (market capitalisation) and energy usage. There is also a positive but an insignificant relationship between skills development expenditure and female board members and a positive and significant relationship between skills development expenditure and board independence and a positive and an insignificant relationship between skills development and firm size (market capitalisation). The study suggests that for companies improve their sustainable business practices; they should consider increasing the number of v | P a ge females on their board since they have a positive influence on sustainability performance. / Risk and Vulnerability Science Centre of the University of Limpopo

Sammanfattning Titel: Prestationsmätning av Corporate social responsibility (CSR) för den interna styrningen – En kvalitativ studie Nivå: Examensarbete på grundnivå (kandidatexamen) i ämnet företagsekonomi Författare: Josefine Walfridsson och Iman Yassin Handledare: Tomas Källquist och Pär Vilhelmson Datum: 2019 - januari Syfte: Syftet är att skapa förståelse för hur verksamheter arbetar med att föra in CSR i sina interna prestationsmätningar. Metod: Studien utgår från en hermeneutisk forskningstradition med en abduktiv ansats. Den teoretiska referensramen har byggts upp utifrån tidigare forskning. Det empiriska materialet har samlats in utifrån tio kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer. Både teorin och empirin diskuteras sedan i en tematisk analys som följs av studiens resultat och bidrag. Resultat: Prestationsmätningar av CSR används inte genomtänkt för den interna styrningen utan främst för att kunna rapportera CSR-prestationer externt som ett sätt att skapa transparens mot externa intressenter. Studien har visat att prestationsmätningar av CSR används för den interna styrningen i ett fåtal verksamheter men begränsat i majoriteten av de studerade verksamheterna. Studiens bidrag: Studien bidrar med praktisk insikt kring prestationsmätningar av CSR i den interna styrningen, där det visar sig att fokus främst ligger på extern rapportering i praktiken. Den tidigare forskningen kring ämnet präglas av normativa studier. Där prestationsmätningar av CSR tycks gynna verksamheters interna styrning. En del tidigare forskningen indikerar att verksamheters fokus kring prestationsmätningar av CSR ligger på extern rapportering, vilket vår empiriska studie stödjer. Förslag till vidare forskning: Förslag till vidare forskning är att göra flera kvaliativa studier kring prestationsmätningar av CSR i den interna styrningen eftersom det finns begränsat med studier inom området. Ett annat förslag är att forska kring hur verksamheter arbetar med att föra in CSR i sitt prestationsmätningssystem, som den tidigare forskningen benämner som SPMS. Nyckelord: Performance measurement, Corporate social responsibility (CSR), Management accounting, Sustainability performance measurement system (SPMS) / Abstract Title: Performance measurement of Corporate social responsibility (CSR) for internal control – A qualitative study Level: Final assignment for Bachelor Degree in Business Administration Authors: Josefine Walfridsson and Iman Yassin Supervisor: Tomas Källquist and Pär Vilhelmson Date: 2019 – January   Aim: The aim of this study is to create an understanding of how operations are working to introduce CSR into their internal performance measurements. Method: The study is based on a hermenuetic research tradtition with an abductive approach. The theoretical framework has been built based on previous research. The empirical material has been collected based on ten qualitative semi-structured interviews. Both the theory and the empirics are then discussed in a thematic analysis that led to the study's results and contributions.   Results: Performance measurement of CSR is not used for management accounting purpose, but is primarily used for external reporting of CSR performance as a way of creating transparency towards external stakeholders. The study has indicated that performance measurement of CSR is used for management accounting purpose in few operations but limited in the majority of the operations studied.   Contribution of the thesis: The study contributes with practical insight into the performance measurements of CSR in operations management accounting, where it turns out that focus is mainly on external reporting in practice. The previous research on the subject is characterized by normative studies. Where performance measurements of CSR is described as very useful in the management accounting of operations. Furthermore the previous research indicates that performance measurements of CSR in operations mainly focus on external reporting, which our empirical study supports.   Suggestions for future research: Suggestions for future research is to do more empirical studies on performance measurements of CSR in the management accounting of operations, since there is few studies made in this area. Another suggestion is to do research in how operations work to bring CSR into their performance measurement system, as in the previous research is termed SPMS. Keywords: Performance measurement, Corporate social responsibility (CSR), Management accounting, Sustainability performance measurement system (SPMS)

An increasing pressure is found on public sector organisations both to be efficient and innovative. Recently ambidexterity has found its ground in the public sector showing significant impact on firm performance. Combined with the increasing pressure from society for conducting sustainable business, we aimed at investigating how structural ambidexterity in regard to sustainability relates to sustainability performance, and how this relationship is moderated by centralisation and connectedness. A quantitative method has been used where the Swedish municipal housing organisations were surveyed. 141 different municipal housing organisations participated in the survey. A content analysis was also done with the help of the TBL to measure the organisations sustainability performance. The results from the dissertation showed that ambidextrous sustainability leads to sustainability performance. No moderating effect from centralisation and connectedness was found on the relationship between ambidextrous sustainability and sustainability performance. This dissertation sets the ground for a new concept of ambidextrous sustainability. Furthermore, contributing to strategic public management as well as further expanding on the stakeholder approach and the moderating effect of stakeholders. The dissertation also contributes methodologically by measuring sustainability performance with the TBL through a content analysis as well as how to measure ambidextrous sustainability.

Sustainable manufacturing is becoming increasingly important due to scarcity of natural resources, stricter regulations and increasing customer demand for sustainable products. Sustainable manufacturing involves the use of sustainable processes and systems to produce more sustainable products. In order to meet these demands for sustainable products, manufacturing companies have to adopt numerous strategies to achieve sustainable manufacturing. The approach for evaluating sustainable products and processes have been investigated in previous work where product/process sustainability indices were proposed. However, no comprehensive methods are available for sustainable manufacturing performance evaluation at the system level. This work aims to develop two alternate methods for evaluating sustainable manufacturing performance at enterprise, plant and production line levels. First, requirements for a sustainability metrics framework are identified through studying and reviewing existing literature where the three pillars of sustainability, total life-cycle stages, and 6R concepts are concurrently addressed. Then index-and value-based methods are proposed to evaluate sustainable manufacturing performance by conducting assessment on economic, environmental and societal aspects. Finally, the application of these two methods is illustrated for a representative enterprise producing consumer electronics at the enterprise level; a case study for a satellite television dish production is used to demonstrate the application of these methods at the production line level. Results obtained from these two methods are compared and analyzed at the enterprise level. The proposed methods can provide information to a company to identify improvement strategies and for decision making for sustainable development.

Purpose The purpose of the thesis is to contribute toward establishing the relationship between the concepts of sustainability reporting, sustainability performance, and sustainability reputation.This will be done by investigating the causal relationships between these concepts and whether those relationships are negative or positive. Methodology The study is based on a positivistic philosophy with a deductive approach. By using a quantitative method and a longitudinal design, the causal influences from the independent variables in 2019 to the dependent variables in 2020 could be investigated in a sample of 99 companies. This was done by 297 firm-year observations for measuring sustainability performance, and by 198 firm-year observations for measuring sustainability reputation and sustainability reporting respectively. Secondary data from the agency SB Insight together with primary data from companies’ sustainability reports and annual reports were mainly tested by a multiple linear regression model. Findings The findings show that sustainability reporting is negatively affected by sustainability performance and indicate that the causality is unilateral from sustainability performance tosustainability reporting. Sustainability reputation is positively affected by sustainability reporting, but sustainability reporting is in addition positively affected by sustainability reputation, indicating a bidirectional relationship where the causality remains unsolved. The findings show no significant association between sustainability performance and sustainability reputation. Furthermore, the thesis suggests a new concept to the research field, namely the reporting-reputation-spiral. Theoretical Perspectives The study analyzed the results through the legitimacy theory, the stakeholder theory, the voluntary disclosure theory, and the signal theory