The role of Universities in building a sustainable society is paramount. It is therefore essential for Universities to adopt and apply tools such as EMS in creating a culture of sustainability which is vital in creating awareness for students as they graduate to fulfil the needs of society.The purpose of this thesis was to investigate what was required of a University in handling this challenge; to start up and be successful with implementation of an Environmental Management System.To do this an environmental review has been performed using the University of Borås as a case study. Indirect and direct aspects of the University have been identified and will be evaluated. The result of the review is based on information from interviews, questionnaires and meetings and will serve as the foundation for the University of Borås‟ further work with EMS.By comparing four Swedish Universities and their work with EMS, factors to be considered during the development and implementation an EMS have been found. An in depth-interview of key personal together with published and unpublished data from the four Universities have been used for the study. The drivers which prompted the EMS work as well as factors for a successful implementation were identified. Using a prioritization matrix, management commitment, Approach to the process, training and communication have found to be the most important success factors. Other factors worth considering during implementation of EMS in Universities have been found to be duration of the system, timing of success factors, and handling of barriers specific for academia and keeping a simple system.Using a performance excellence diagram, the different level of commitment to each of the contributing factors for a successful EMS implementation has been established and used in performing a gap- analysis for University of Borås. Based on the outcome of the gap-analysis, appropriate recommendations for EMS work have been given.

As normas de gestão ambiental têm por objetivo prover as organizações dos elementos necessários para implantação de Sistemas da Gestão Ambiental (SGA) que possam ser integrados a outros requisitos da gestão, e auxiliá-las a alcançar seus objetivos ambientais e econômicos. A Unidade de Produção de Hexafluoreto de Urânio USEXA, do Centro Tecnológico da Marinha em São Paulo - CTMSP, será a primeira planta industrial da etapa de conversão do ciclo do combustível nuclear (produção de hexafluoreto de urânio UF6) do Brasil, permitindo que seja agregado valor ao minério de urânio. Neste trabalho, o SGA proposto para a USEXA, permite disciplinar suas interfaces com o meio ambiente, uma vez que as Normas da CNEN Comissão Nacional de Energia Nuclear e da AIEA Agência Internacional de Energia Atômica para instalações nucleares, na sua grande maioria, visam a atender a critérios de segurança para o público e o meio ambiente, apenas nos quesitos envolvendo radiações ionizantes. O modelo de SGA desenvolvido preenche as lacunas das normas da CNEN e da AIEA, por considerar os impactos ambientais decorrentes do uso de substâncias químicas no processo de fabricação de UF6 e os aspectos gerais de sustentabilidade. Isso pode ser considerado uma contribuição original dentro das complexas atividades que abrangem o processamento de urânio no ciclo do combustível nuclear. Como resultado, esta pesquisa propõe, para avaliação de impactos ambientais, a adoção de um filtro de significância, relacionado à localização do empreendimento, apresenta um Manual do Sistema de Gestão para a USEXA e sugere modelos de treinamentos em gestão de pessoal, como o coaching e a programação neurolinguística, e que poderão ser aplicados em qualquer Sistema de Gestão. Os treinamentos podem ser considerados como uma ação preventiva, por contribuírem para diminuir os incidentes relacionados à manutenção de equipamentos e consequentemente a ocorrência de impactos ambientais. / The environmental management standards are intended to provide to the organizations the elements needed for the implementation of an Environmental Management System (EMS) that can be effectively integrated to another management requirements and assist them to achieve their environmental and economic goals. The Uranium Hexafluoride Production Unit - USEXA, located at the Navy Technological Center in São Paulo, will be the first Brazilian industrial plant responsible for the conversion stage in the nuclear fuel cycle (production of uranium hexafluoride UF6), allowing added-value to the uranium ore. The EMS proposed to USEXA in this project allows to regulate its interfaces with the environment, since the Standards of CNEN - National Commission of Nuclear Energy and of the IAEA - International Atomic Energy Agency for Nuclear Installations, aim, mostly, to attend the security criteria for the population and the environment, concerning ionizing radiation. This model of EMS fills the gaps in standards of IAEA and CNEN, since it takes into account the environmental impacts from the use of chemicals in the manufacturing process of UF6, and general aspects of sustainability. It can be considered an original contribution within the complex activities that includes the uranium processing in the nuclear fuel cycle. This research proposes, as result, the use of a filter of significance to evaluate the environmental impacts depending on the installation location. It is also presented the Management System Manual for USEXA and models for training in personnel management are suggested, such as coaching and neurolinguistic programing, which can be applied to any Management System. The trainings can be considered a preventive action as they considerably decreased incidents related to equipments maintenance and thus the occurrence of environmental impacts.

The increasing environmental problems have today become global and changes are dras-tically needed in all levels of society. Customers’ buying behaviour can play a big partand it is possible to both contribute to a more sustainable world and add economic valueto a business, but new sustainable business models are needed. In this research projectThe Lobby, a new innovative marketplace owned by AMF Fastigheter, has been usedas a case study to find the key areas in retail business where change is most important.Furthermore, a life cycle assessment has been conducted to see where in a T-shirt’s lifecycle the most CO2equivalents are released and what the difference between a T-shirtbought at a physical store and e-commerce is. This research project has found that themost important area to focus on if sustainability is to be integrated successfully in aretail business is the company management. The commitment and attitude the companymanagement mediates to their employees is crucial for success. For The Lobby it is alsoimportant to evaluate which retailers they choose to approve due to the fact that its in-directly affecting their sustainability. The Lobby should also try to be more transparentand informative. By promoting their sustainability actions they can attract both cus-tomers and future retailers. But the research and knowledge in the field of influencingand changing customers’ behaviour is still limited and more research is needed. / De ökade miljöproblemen har blivit globala och drastiska förändringar måste ske på allanivåer i samhället. Konsumenters köpbeteende kan ha stor inverkan och det är möjligatt både bidra till en mer hållbar värd och öka företagets ekonomiska tillväxt. Men nyaföretagsmodeller behövs. I detta examensarbete har The Lobby, en ny innovativ han-delsplats som ägs av AMF Fastigheter, använts i en fallstudie för att hitta de områdendär hållbarhet kan integreras. En livscykelanalys har även blivit utförd där en T-shirtsCO2ekvivalenter blev beräknade för att se skillnader om T-shirten köps via e-handeleller i en butik. Examensarbetet har hittat att de viktigaste områdena att fokusera påför en lyckad integration av hållbarhet är företagets ledningsgrupp. Engagemanget ochinställning som ledningen förmedlar till sina anställda är den viktigaste faktorn för attlyckas. För The Lobby är det även viktigt att utvärdera de företag de väljer att expon-era i The Lobby då det indirekt påverkar deras hållbarhet. The Lobby borde även blimer transparenta och ge mer information. Genom att förmedla vilka hållbara val de görkan de attrahera både nya konsumenter och företag. Men kunskapen om hur man bästinfluerar och påverkar kunders beteende är begränsad och mer forskning inom områdetbehövs.

<p>The purpose with this article is to give examples how to remain and in a long run develop a higher interest in maintenance activities and knowledge. First reason is the changed age-distribution with more number of older employees among maintenance personnel staff and second reason is demand for education due the increasing demand in environmental responsibility.</p><p>In spite of there is a lot of knowledge of maintenance in national organizations of interests it will not be used in a sufficient extent in many companies. This knowledge is an important base to use to re-built the missing or loosed skills in companies. The national organization UTEK is involved in European projects to validate knowledge of maintenance. Lost of or bad maintenance activities will always affect on the environment.</p><p>Establish a network between companies is a good way to exchange information in their common business areas. If the existing maintenance department in companies have difficulties to manifest itself, an alternative organization as a personnel co-operative organization can be a solution. That will be lead to better productivity and higher engagement in the personnel. To evaluate the maintenance skills for personnel to a good basic level will in most case lead that they further will search for more information and cause demand for increased efforts of education from educational institutions.</p>

Thesis (M. Environmental Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.

The purpose of this study is to explore the influence of national culture on corporate greening with specific focus on motivations that drive companies to respond to environmental issues and strategies that companies develop in this regard. The existing literature indicates that the research on motivational and strategic aspects of corporate greening is limited from cultural perspective. Thus, a qualitative study of Swedish and Belarusian companies was conducted to illustrate what induces firms to go green and to describe what environmental strategies are implemented by them. The analysis of received empirical data was concentrated on aligning national culture features with the motivations for environmental initiatives and relevant elements of green strategies. The findings demonstrate the connection between national culture and environmental strategy through green motivations. Finally, some implications for further research as well as practitioners are presented.

South Africa is one of the world's foremost mining nations and mining and its associated industries continue to form the cornerstone of the country's economy. However, the mining industry has, by its very nature, the potential to endanger human health and safety, as well as the physical environment. Consequently, mining will always contend with major environmental challenges and remain under constant public pressure to demonstrate its commitment to responsible environmental management. The key to effective environmental management is the use of a systematic approach to plan, control and improve environmental efforts. An Environmental Management System (EMS) employs such an approach and allows organisations to address environmental concerns in an orderly and consistent manner. Such a system allows organisations to anticipate and meet their environmental objectives and to ensure ongoing compliance with national and/or international requirements. An organisation with no existing EMS should, initially, establish its current position with regard to the environment by means of an initial review process. The aim should be to consider all environmental aspects of the organisation as a basis for establishing the EMS. Although a few gold mines in South Africa have implemented an EMS, the question of which significant environmental aspects need to be managed in such a system at a deep level gold mine shaft, remains largely unanswered. This study endeavoured to provide answers to this question and develop a generic model for the initial review process of a deep level gold mine shaft. The development of such a model should facilitate the development and implementation of an EMS at such shafts, thereby contributing to reduce the environmental impact of gold mines. The research consisted of a literature review of national and international literature on the topic and a comparative empirical study, which evaluated the mining operations of two deep level gold mine shafts. Data collection and analysis was done according to the IS0 14015 guideline on the environmental assessment of sites and organisations. Other techniques used included business process analysis, the use of modified Leopoldt matrices and risk analysis to determine the significance of the environmental impacts and aspects. This study contributed to a generic model for the initial environmental review process that precedes the development of an EMS at deep level gold mine shafts through: developing a generic sub-model that can be used to determine the scope of any deep level gold mine shaft; identifying some of the significant environmental impacts and aspects of deep level gold mine shafts, as well as identifying some generic business activities that are potentially destructive and carry a high risk of causing significant negative environmental impacts. / Thesis (M. Environmental Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.

This master’s final paper contains a research for problematical aspects of Environmental management system in action in a construction company. The conceptual part introduces the Environmental management system (EMAS) on the whole, EMAS principals, main requirements, conceptual model and environmental policy. The analytic part contains an “Environmental Manual” and also discusses the Environmental management system in action while presenting the ISO 14000 in personnel’s estimation. The conclusions and recommendations are presented at the end of the present paper. Various scientific literature, standards, company’s documentation and data recourses have been used while writing this work.

Auditing has evolved from the basic third party verification of business accounts to broader checks on behalf of stakeholders of the three imperatives of conduct, these being the social, environmental as well as the economic activities of organisations. Auditing is not just about accounting anymore, and may focus on completely different fields such as social and environmental management systems. In this triangulation study, experienced auditors from eight different countries were interviewed and asked to share their perspectives and some experiences from their auditing work. The auditing standards encountered in the interviews covered areas including environmental management systems, corporate social responsibility and social compliance. The interviews revealed that time issues were generally the greatest challenge to most auditors, but that there were also many other issues over and above the issues related to the three imperatives of conduct.

ISO 14001 is the specification and guideline providing the framework for the establishment of the EMS. It was first published in September 1996 and updated in November 2004. It was developed by ISO, a Geneva-based NGO that promotes the development and implementation of international standards (Darnall, 2001:2). EMS is part of the organisation’s management system used to develop and implement its environmental policy and manage its environmental impacts (ISO 14001, 2004:2). In South Africa there is no legal requirement for EMSs to be put into place, other than where it may have been made a condition of a permit or licence application. All Underground Platinum Mines are required to develop, document, implement, maintain and review their EMS, which should be certified toISO14001:2004 (AEW, 2009:13). The problem is that the implementation of an EMS is associated with a number of shortcomings and may be seen as a paper exercise to satisfy the needs of external auditors during audits with no particular value accruing to the organisation. The aim of the research was to determine the operational value of the ISO 14001 EMS at selected Underground Platinum Mines. A structured survey-based research study was conducted among employees in three different operations within Underground Platinum Mine. This included literature and case studies review, interviews with key EMS implementers and distribution of questionnaires to those employees involved with the EMS implementation. The main aim of the research has been achieved and all the research sub-questions were answered. The study concludes that the ISO 14001 EMS as implemented at Underground Platinum Mine is not merely a paper exercise but has an operational value. / Thesis (M. Environmental Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.