This project stemmed from the idea of abandoned buildings prevalent in the City of Pretoria. It also responds to the increasing eff ect of environmental damage becoming evident worldwide. As part of the solution, this dissertation explores the adaptive reuse of the existing Agrivaal Building in Pretoria, South Africa. The early Modern, Art Deco infl uenced Agrivaal Building has been left dormant for a number of years, with the intention of being renovated and brought to life. However political and sensitive debate has hindered the progress of the abandoned building. This project envisions the revival of the building, through an intervention that is mindful of pertinent environmental issues, as well as respecting existing cultural heritage. The investigation includes principles of heritage and environmental sustainability, as main design informants of the proposed new headquarters of The European Commission in South Africa. This will entail research on the existing building and ways it can be appropriated to mitigate issues of environmental damage. The proposed intervention will also respond to the identity of the European Commission in a South African context. / Dissertation (MArch(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Architecture / unrestricted

Background: The fashion industry has been extensively regarded as one of the most environmentally harmful industries. There is an increasing market for fast fashion and short lifespan, resulting in the fact that environmental impact is a growing concern. Micro, small- and medium-sized enterprises currently stand for 70% of the global pollution. Further, in Sweden, this category is not as regulated as large companies regarding environmental sustainability activities.  Problem: With the fashion industry being a major factor for global environmental impact, discussions regarding the sector have emerged. Attention on companies’ environmental sustainability has increased in past years and more companies have adopted new operations. Although studies regarding motives have been done in other countries, generalization cannot be made across different nationalities, sizes and sectors. Purpose: The purpose of the study is to investigate the influence of motives to adopt environmental sustainability within micro, small- and medium-sized businesses in the Swedish fashion industry. It aims at using previously found theories and findings to explore and create an overview of company motivations.  Method: This research was performed by a qualitative research design and 6 semi-structured interviews were conducted.  Results: The findings present the influence of several different motives. Among those were ethics and societal pressure more common than financial performance, competitiveness and brand image. There are different motives to engage in environmental operations. The ones found and presented in the theoretical summary all seemed to have a significance to some degree to the various interviewed companies.

El texto completo de este trabajo no está disponible en el Repositorio Académico UPC por restricciones de la casa editorial donde ha sido publicado. / Currently, due to the existing potential regarding technology in the provision of services, the Peruvian government has developed solutions for its inhabitants. A survey conducted by the United Nations in 2016 endorses this fact, showing a high rate of technological development with respect to e-government. However, the same publication showed the low rate of citizen participation about it. These results show how, although there are many government technological services, these do not focus on the citizen or in their active participation, but mainly on technological development. In the present study, an adoption model is proposed, extending the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) incorporating public value, specifically environmental sustainability, as an external variable. The validation of the proposal was made through a validated survey with experts in the environmental field and applied to citizens of the Peruvian capital. Our results show that environmental sustainability is a factor that positively affects the adoption of e-government in Peru and that should be considered by the authorities as an enhancer of citizen participation about it.

Purpose: Low citizen adoption rates jeopardize the success and proliferation of e-government systems. This study aims to understand how the perception of environmental sustainability (ES) can influence a citizen’s intention to use e-government systems. Design/methodology/approach: In a case study in Peru, the technology acceptance model (TAM) adoption model is extended with the construct of ES and evaluated with structural equation modeling. An 18-element, in-person survey was constructed and administered to citizens of Lima, Peru who had prior exposure to e-government systems. Findings: The results show that citizens can be positively influenced to adopt e-government systems if they perceive that doing so will contribute to ES. Research limitations/implications: As this was a preliminary study, further research should focus on specific, as opposed to general, e-government systems, as well as encompassing a broader cross section of the population. Practical implications: Administrators of e-government initiatives can consider public-interest factors, alongside of the common self-interest factors, when looking to improve adoption rates of e-government systems. Originality/value: This is the first time that TAM has been extended with the construct of ES.

Although more people are transitioning into environmental sustainability careers, there is still a demand. This presents an opportunity for undergraduate engineering students to satisfy the demand for environmental sustainability professionals. The purpose of this qualitative exploratory study was to explore environmental sustainability learning experiences, from small in-class experiences to internships, and future career choices. By utilizing the social cognitive theory (SCCT) as a theoretical lens, this study explored participants' environmental sustainability interests, learning experiences related to environmental sustainability and their interest in pursuing a future career in environmental sustainability. This research addresses a gap in the existing literature by exploring how undergraduate engineering students' environmental sustainability learning experiences impact their decisions to pursue careers in this field, framed by the SCCT. The perspectives of twenty-five undergraduate engineering students in various engineering disciplines at Virginia Tech, an R1 public university in Blacksburg, Virginia. The participants were enrolled in ENGR3124, Introduction to Green Engineering, during the Fall 2022 semester and were interviewed for the study. Semi-structured online interviews were conducted via Zoom, allowing students to provide detailed information about their learning experiences and future career plans. Data was analyzed to (1) identify students' interest in pursuing a career in environmental sustainability (2) determine if students' interests have changed since they began their undergraduate studies (3) explore how learning experiences have impacted the students' future career choice. The findings discover that exposure to environmental sustainability learning experiences plays a meaningful role in impacting students' interests in pursuing careers in sustainability. Results reveal that factors such as personal values and salary considerations inspire career choices. Outcomes from this research suggest that promoting a connection between engineering education and environmental sustainability can inspire future engineers to actively pursue environmental sustainability careers and find solutions to sustainability issues. This underscores the significance of integrating sustainability experiences, such as a current events discussion in class or projects with an environmental sustainability element, into undergraduate engineering education. This research contributes to addressing the growing demand for people to address environmental sustainability issues, highlighting the role of learning experiences in shaping students' career interests. Further research in this area will be necessary for further developing strategies to encourage students to pursue sustainability-related careers and contribute to environmental sustainability initiatives. / Doctor of Philosophy / Experts are transitioning into environmental sustainability careers, though a gap exists between supply and demand. This presents an opportunity for undergraduate engineering students to fulfill the demand as environmental sustainability professionals. This qualitative exploratory study investigated environmental sustainability learning experiences and future career interests in environmental sustainability. The social cognitive theory (SCCT) was utilized as a theoretical lens, exploring participants' environmental sustainability interests, associated learning experiences and their interest in pursuing a future career in environmental sustainability. Twenty-five undergraduate engineering students in various engineering disciplines were interviewed for this study. Data was analyzed to (1) identify students' interest in pursuing a career in environmental sustainability (2) determine if students' interests have changed since they began their undergraduate studies (3) discover how learning experiences have impacted the students' future career choice. The findings conclude that exposure to environmental sustainability learning experiences is impactful and plays an important role, impacting students' interests in pursuing careers in sustainability. Results unveil that elements such as personal beliefs and salary considerations inspire career choices. This research contributes to addressing the demand for people to tackle environmental sustainability issues, emphasizing the role of learning experiences in shaping students' career interests.

No description available.

Yes / Despite the growing research on the influence of stakeholder integration on organizational outcomes, our understanding of the specific firm-level conditions that may mediate the relationship between stakeholder integration and financial performance is lacking. Using primary data gathered from 233 small and medium-sized enterprises in Ghana, we found empirical support for our contention that the link between stakeholder integration and financial performance is mediated by a firm’s environmental sustainability orientation. In addition, our study demonstrated that competitive intensity moderates the indirect relationship between stakeholder integration and financial performance in such a way that the indirect effect through environmental sustainability orientation is stronger for higher levels of industry competition. We discuss theoretical and managerial implications of these findings.

Yes / Using panel data of 1,080 multinational corporations (MNCs) from the United States, we examine the effects of environmental sustainability practices on the degree of firms’ offshoring activities. In addition, we disaggregate offshoring activities into their core components depending on whether or not the firm buys (inputs) or sells (outputs) and/or owns assets in a given country and examine the extent to which sustainability practices influence the different components of offshoring decisions. The results indicate that sustainability practices significantly affect offshoring activities of MNCs. In particular, we found that sustainable business practices matter when the firm sells goods or owns assets in the given host nation. Additionally, the results show that the sustainability–degree of the internationalization relationship is crucial for MNCs that have offshoring activities in advanced economies relative to those firms that have activities in emerging markets. Our results are robust to alternative explanations.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore how a multinational company in the automotive industry manages its suppliers in order to increase the environmental sustainability performance of its supply chain. To fulfill this purpose, a research question has been established: 1. How can a manufacturer manage its suppliers in order to increase the environmental sustainability performance of its supply chain? Method: The thesis is conducted using a qualitative research approach which utilizes the method of a single case study, including multiple interviews. All interviews conducted are semi-structured using an interview guide and ethical considerations. Additionally, the empirical findings were supported by organizational documents. Findings: The findings discuss five supplier management approaches that are used frequently in order to increase environmental sustainability within the supply chain. The five approaches consist of sourcing, supplier code of conduct (including standards and certificates), assessment, collaboration, and organizational culture. The different approaches are used strategically, starting off with the importance of sourcing capable suppliers from the beginning, where assessing them within relevant areas is vital. Continuously assessing the suppliers in order to keep track of their performance and improvement is useful to make sure that the performance exceeds the basic requirements and identify areas to improve. Collaborating on different aspects is then conducted in order to improve and develop the identified areas. Lastly, organizational culture is proven to have a strong influence on how the environmental sustainability performance within an organization is doing. Implications: The research did not contribute to any new theories but did, however, increase the overall knowledge of how supplier management is used to increase the environmental sustainability within a supply chain. It showed the strong connection between theory and how it is done in practice, as well as areas in need of implementation in practice. Moreover, the research shows that management approaches should be used holistically and simultaneously in order to reach the best results. Limitations: The study is a single case study where a limited number of interviews have been conducted. In order to increase the credibility, a multiple-cases study with more interviews could have been conducted.

Achieving low unemployment in an environment of weak growth is a major policy challenge; a more egalitarian distribution of hours worked could be the key to solving it. Whether worksharing actually increases employment, however, has been debated controversially. In this article we present stylized facts on the distribution of hours worked and discuss the role of work-sharing for a sustainable economy. Building on recent developments in labor market theory we review the determinants of working long hours and its effect on well-being. Finally, we survey work-sharing reforms in the past. While there seems to be a consensus that worksharing in the Great Depression in the U.S. and in the Great Recession in Europe was successful in reducing employment losses, perceptions of the work-sharing reforms implemented between the 1980s and early 2000s are more ambivalent. However, even the most critical evaluations of these reforms provide no credible evidence of negative employment effects; instead, the overall success of the policy seems to depend on the economic and institutional setting, as well as the specific details of its implementation. (authors' abstract) / Series: Ecological Economic Papers