Abstract Sustainability has been one of the most discussed topics among the business world and society for the last decade. The globally growing concern about sustainability related issues has led to businesses and non-businesses meet the demand of their stakeholders by producing a sustainability report to demonstrate their work and development in sustainability and how they have measured it. There has been a fast-growing trend of sustainability reporting in few years and there are a number of different initiatives and requirements that define what kind of sustainability reports are produced. From the different sustainability initiatives, the largest principle-based initiative is the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) with almost 13 000 signatories and the largest reporting-based initiative is the Global reporting initiative (GRI). These two initiatives entered in to a partnership in 2010 with the aim of the GRI providing guidance for the signatories on how to disclose information from different areas in sustainability in their sustainability reports. There has been previous research that criticized the UNGC to be too broad and the principles difficult to translate in to sustainability reporting despite the existing partnership with the GRI. These previous studies expressed the lack of qualitative studies about the subject especially from the signatories’ perspective and the importance of approaching the topic from a practical point of view. The purpose of our research study was to create an understanding of the practicalities in UNGC signatories’ sustainability reporting, the challenges they face in the progress and how are they approaching those challenges. The thesis focuses on the Nordic region and the two research questions are:   How are the UNGC signatories practically translating the 10 principles into their sustainability reporting? What challenges do UNGC signatories find in sustainability reporting in general and how have they approached these challenges?   To answer these research questions the authors conducted a qualitative study by semi-structured interviews with company representatives from different Nordic UNGC signatories. The research study identified how do they practically identify what to report about the principles which is determined by materiality assessment provided by the GRI framework. This determines what is material for the company and its industry and focus on those areas in their sustainability report. Legal requirements, internal regulations and other commitments were also identified guiding sustainability reporting. The main challenges related to the sustainability reporting were mainly about data related issues, satisfying the stakeholders and the high number of different frameworks and regulations that are not necessarily interrelated. Majority of the participants approached these challenges by carrying out the materiality assessment as accurate and clear as possible in order to avoid data related difficulties. Some participants offer their different stakeholders with sustainability related information by different forms in order to make the sustainability reporting easier to read and understand. For the high number of frameworks and regulations, the participants have expectations for alignment among them in the future in order to make the reporting easier for everyone involved with sustainability reporting. The results of our findings were supported by theories and concepts such as the stakeholder’s theory, signalling theory and the CSR concept. Previous studies about sustainability reporting and UNGC were also compared to our findings in the analysis.

I takt med att hållbarhetsfrågor blivit allt viktigare har regeringen, efter EU-direktiv, infört en lag som kräver att större företag från och med räkenskapsåret 2017 måste upprätta en hållbarhetsredovisning. Den här kandidatuppsatsen tydliggör med hjälp av en kvalitativ studie hur det nya lagkravet om hållbarhetsredovisning påverkat företags hållbarhetsarbete. Syftet är att ge en bild av hur företagens hållbarhetsredovisning har förändrats i samband med lagkravet samt analysera och förklara hur en förändrad hållbarhetsredovisning påverkat företagens arbete med hållbarhetsfrågor. Studien har genomförts med ett hermeneutiskt perspektiv och en abduktiv ansats. Relevanta teorier och tidigare forskning kring ämnet har tillsammans med semistrukturerade intervjuer med fem större företag samt granskning av tio företags årsredovisningar, legat till grund för analys. Resultatet visade framförallt en positiv inställning till lagkravet, både från företag som arbetat med det länge och de företagen som inte haft så stor erfarenhet kring ämnet sedan tidigare. De fria ramarna i lagkravet har gjort att företagen själva kunnat välja hur hållbarhetsredovisningen kring social, miljömässig och ekonomisk hållbarhet ska vara utformad. Tyvärr har det även försvårat jämförbarheten mellan företag trots att lagkravet delvis syftade till att underlätta denna jämförelse.

À la lumière des perspectives critiques sur les théories et les pratiques comptables, « la comptabilité pour la durabilité » a émergé comme une discipline relativement nouvelle. Par rapport aux différents modèles développés dans le cadre de l’idéologie néolibérale, certains modèles alternatifs avec des stratégies « plus fortes » de conservation des capitaux, notamment la « Triple Ligne d’Amortissement » (TLA) (Richard, 2012; Rambaud et Richard, 2013), semblent avoir beaucoup des potentiels de faire quelques changements fondamentaux. Cette thèse est une enquête sur les conditions nécessaires et les résistances possibles rencontrées par la mise en place du modèle TLA. Le secteur agricole de la République populaire de Chine est choisi comme le terrain de recherche en vue d’étudier le contexte institutionnel et historique. L’enquête sur le contexte chinois est effectuée en référence aux théories de l’économie politique institutionnaliste, inspiré par Karl Polanyi (2002[1944]), Mancur Olson (1965), and Chang Ha-Joon (1994, 2002). / In the light of critical perspectives on accounting theories and practices, sustainability accounting (SA) as a relatively new discipline has emerged. Compared to various SA models developed under the mainstream neoliberal ideology, some alternative models with “stronger” capital conservation strategies, notably the “Triple Deprecation Line” (TDL) (Richard, 2012; Rambaud & Richard, 2013), seem to have a lot of potentials to make some fundamental changes. This dissertation is essentially an investigation of necessary conditions and possible resistances faced by the establishment of the TDL model. The agriculture sector of the People’s Republic of China is chosen as the field of research in order to study the institutional environment and historical context in real-world settings. The investigation on the Chinese context is conducted with reference to theories of institutionalist political economy, inspired by Karl Polanyi (2002[1944]), Mancur Olson (1965), and Chang Ha-Joon (1994, 2002).

The thesis analyses the trend of value-added distribution over a span of 10 years, from 2011 to 2021, in the international supply chain of fast fashion products between manufacturers in Bangladesh and multinational fast fashion retailers in Sweden. Bangladesh has grown economically thanks to its ready-made garment sector and favorable policies for businesses and foreign investments. Meanwhile, fast fashion global brands profit by providing affordable clothing to consumers in Europe while allocating garment production to low-wage countries and imposing tight production timeframes. The purpose of the thesis is to analyze the value-added distribution in the international supply chain of fast fashion products between manufacturers in Bangladesh, multinational fast fashion retailers in Sweden and their workers as key stakeholders. Through this thesis, it is possible to notice the inequality between the wealth generated and the remuneration of the parties involved in the supply chain. The methodology involves multiple case studies and value-added analysis. The thesis has three case studies. In each one of them is included a Swedish retail company and a Bangladeshi garment manufacturer. The value-added analysis is carried out on the selected case study companies’ financial reports from 2011 to 2021. Analyzing the distribution of value-added is key from a social sustainability perspective as it directly impacts poverty levels, countries’ growth, health aspects and living conditions of a large part of the population. The results of the thesis are based on the value-added statement elaborations which entail data processing of the profit and loss statement of the annual reports of the companies selected over a span of ten years. The data collected includes an analysis of a total of 60 annual reports. The findings point to the stark inequality between the average monthly salary costs per worker between Swedish and Bangladeshi workers. The value-added distributed to workers in Bangladesh is slowly increasing however it might take a decade to significantly reduce the difference in remuneration between Swedish and Bangladeshi workers. The core point of the findings has proved that multinational companies’ margins are not significantly impacted if they were to factor in higher salary costs of supply chain workers in Bangladesh to ensure a higher living standard than the current one which is not sufficient for a decent standard of living. To conclude the thesis argues about the current lack of disclosure that fast fashion retailers provide to members of society in their sustainability reports and companies’ sustainability strategies. This is because there is an underlying lack of relevant, faithful, verifiable, understandable, and comparable information provided by companies.

Till följd av en växande medvetenhet om vikten av att agera hållbart, har det allmänna intresset för hållbarhet ökat över tid. Som en effekt av detta har företag drivits till att redovisa sitt arbete med hållbarhetsfrågor och sin påverkan på samhället, denna information sammanställs i så kallade hållbarhetsrapporter. Under år 2016 ändrades årsredovisningslagen (SFS 1995:1554) och kompletterandes med obligatorisk hållbarhetsrapportering för större företag (SFS 2016:947). Syftet med lagen var att ställa tydliga krav på vad en hållbarhetsrapport ska innehålla, vilket kan bidra till att innehållets variation minskar. Denna uppsats tar avstamp i ämnet hållbarhets-rapportering och berör den möjliga homogenitet som kan identifieras i bolags hållbar-hetsrapporter mellan åren 2008. 2015 och 2019. Företagen som uppsatsen utgår ifrån är SCA, Holmen och Sveaskog, vilka alla verkar inom den svenska skogsindustrin. Branschen har en betydande roll för Sveriges ekonomi och industrin har historiskt sett och än idag har en stor miljöpåverkan. Problemet angreps med hjälp av innehållsanalysen, vilken är en form av dokumentanalys som i det här sammanhanget hör till den kvalitativa metodologin. Vid analysen tillämpades teoretiska ramverk i form av legitimitetsskapande och institutionell teori för att stödja tolkningarna. Även ram- och regelverk, samt tidigare forskning inom ämne användes under analysprocessen. Granskningen av hållbarhetsrapporterna är avgränsat till avsnitten om miljömässigt-, socialt- och ekonomiskt ansvar, samt en mer övergripande bild över rapporterna. De teman som speciellt tagits i beaktning samman-ställdes i ett kodningsschema som går att finna i empirikapitlet. Slutsatserna som undersökningen mynnade ut i visar sig vara att företagen i stor utsträckning tycks ta efter varandras sätt att formge hållbarhetsrapporter. Den homogenitet som identifierats utifrån de kategorier som har behandlats i denna uppsats är att företagen över tid valt att sammanfoga sina rapporter, samt att samtliga företag övergått till att applicera GRI standarderna på Core nivå. Hållbarhetsrapporterna har även successivt gått från att vara mer självkritiska, till att bli mindre självkritiska. Vad som också är gemensamt för de olika företagens rapporter är att liknande aktuella samhällsämnen beskrivs, vilket kan förklaras genom företagens syn på legitimitet. / As a result of a growing awareness of the importance of acting sustainably, the general interest in sustainability has increased over time. As an effect of this, companies have been driven to report their work on sustainability issues and its impact on society, this information is compiled in so-called sustainability reports. During 2016, the Annual Accounts Act (SFS 1995: 1554) was amended and supplemented with mandatory sustainability reporting for larger companies (SFS 2016: 947). The purpose of the law was to set clear requirements for what a sustainability report must contain, which can contribute to reducing the variation in the content. This essay is based on the subject of sustainability reporting and possible homogeneity in different companies’ sustainability reports. The companies used as examples are SCA, Holmen and Sveaskog, all of which operate in the Swedish forest industry. The industry can be considered suitable as the forest industry has a significant role for Sweden's economy, at the same time as the industry has historically and even today has a major environmental impact. The problem is tackled with the help of the content analysis, which is a form of document analysis that, in this context, belongs to the qualitative methodology. During the analysis, theoretical frameworks were applied in the form of legitimacy creation and institutional theory to support the interpretations. Frameworks and regulations, as well as previous research in the subject, were also of great importance during the analysis process. The review of the sustainability reports is limited to the sections on environ-mental, social, and economic responsibility, as well as a more comprehensive picture of the reports. The themes that were especially considered were compiled in a coding scheme that can be found at the end of the essay in the form of an appendix. The conclusions that the survey led turned out to be that the companies to a certain extent seem to follow each other's ways of shaping sustainability reports. The homogeneity identified on the basis of the categories addressed in this thesis are that over time, companies have chosen to merge their reports, and that all companies move to applying the GRI standards at Core level. The sustainability reports have also gradually gone from being more self-critical, to becoming less self-critical. What is also common to the various companies 'reports is that similar current social topics are described, which can be explained by the companies' views on legitimacy.

The aim of the study is to analyze how Swedish large fashion companies' sustainability reports quality has been changed 2016-2019. The study wants to create a deeper understanding of the legislative change initiated by the EU that Sweden introduced in 2017. Quality is declared to consist of the three categories of credibility, content and communication. The study's issue was: “How has the quality of fashion companies' sustainability reports been affected when they became statutory to be produced?”. The sample consisted of 14 companies. Some of the companies prepared joint sustainability reports which led to the number of sustainability reports that the study analyzed being 10 reports per year 2016–2019. An additional report was added for 2019 when a company chose to prepare a report separately from the parent company. A qualitative content analysis was used as a method to study the selected 41 sustainability reports. The theories and concepts used in the study for analysis were triple bottom line, institutional theory, stakeholder theory, signal theory and GRI. The results showed that companies' quality of sustainability reports have changed both in accordance with the EU Directive 2014/95/EU, but largely due to surrounding factors. The study has provided a deeper understanding of companies' sustainability reporting and shown that there is no unambiguous change in quality when sustainability reporting for larger companies became mandatory by law.

This study aims to analyze and evaluate three non-profit organizations regarding how their sustainability accounting reports have changed and developed between year 2017 and year 2019. The study analyzes how parameters in the sustainability index have been taken into consideration to perceive which parameters are the three non-profits organization’s focal points. In addition, the study will analyze how sustainability accounting reports meet the stakeholder's information needs. Given the prevailing issues and purpose of the study, a qualitative method is relevant to this study. The selection of organizations is based on organizations' availability of sustainability reports for the assessment period. In this study, non-probability selection was chosen, where the selection was made through a preliminary investigation. The study is based on a secondary data method which is a flexible and appropriate approach.   This thesis consists of empirical studies that will help strengthen the quality of the study. The data collected in the empirical data have been analyzed on the basis of the theoretical frame of reference. Frame of reference in this thesis is based on sustainable development, sustainability accounting, Venn diagram of sustainable development, triple bottom line and stakeholder theory. The empirical data in this thesis consists of Red Cross Sweden, Save the Children Sweden and WWF.   Based on the result of this thesis, the parameters under dimensions, environmental responsibility, social responsibility and financial responsibility in each organization have similarities. For example, the environmental requirements for purchasing and procurement are seen in both the Red Cross' and Save the Children's sustainability reports. Another example of similarity that can be seen in all three organizations' sustainability reports is gender equality and diversity. The organization's focus for different parameters in sustainability reports depends on the type of business they have. The development of each organization's sustainability reports in 2017 has been remarkable. Prior to 2017, Save the Children was a pioneer in presenting sustainability reports. While the Red Cross and WWF began to present sustainability reports in 2017. According to their stakeholder analysis, all three respective organizations have included all parameters that are important to their stakeholders. Through their dialogues with both internal and external stakeholders, the respective organizations meet the stakeholders' need for information. / Syfte: Denna studie syftar till att analysera och utvärdera tre ideella organisationer och hur deras hållbarhetsredovisning rapporter har förändrats och utvecklats mellan åren 2017 och2019. Studien analyserar hur parametrar i hållbarhetsredovisning rapporter har beaktats. Studien kommer också att analysera hur hållbarhetsredovisning rapporter möter intressenternas informationsbehov.   Metod: Med hänsyn till uppsatsens syftet och frågeställningar har studien en kvalitativ ansats. Studien utgår ifrån en sekundärdata metod som är ett flexibelt och lämpligt tillvägagångssätt. Studien består också av empiriska studier som kommer att bidra till att stärka studiens kvalitet. Den insamlade datan i empirin har analyserats med underlag av den teoretiska referensramen. Teoretiska perspektiv: Den teoretiska referensram som uppsatsen bygger på är hållbarutveckling, hållbarhetsredovisning, triple bottom line och intressentteori.  Empiri: De tre ideella organisationer som har undersökts i denna uppsats är Röda Korset, Rädda barnen och WWF.  Resultat: Parametrarna under dimensioner, miljöansvar, socialt ansvar och ekonomiskt ansvar i respektive organisation har likheter. Till exempel ses miljökraven för inköp och upphandling i både Röda korsets och i Rädda barnens hållbarhetsrapporter. Ett annat exempel på likhet som kan ses i alla de tre organisationernas hållbarhetsrapporter är jämställdhet och mångfald. Organisationens fokus för olika parametrar i hållbarhetsrapporter beror på vilken typ av verksamhet de har. Utvecklingen av respektive organisations hållbarhetsrapporter under 2017har varit anmärkningsvärt. Före 2017 var Rädda barnen en pionjär när det gäller att presenterahållbarhetsrapporter. Medan Röda Korset och WWF började presentera hållbarhetsrapporter först år 2017. Alla de tre respektive organisationerna har enligt sin intressentanalys inkluderat alla parametrar som är viktiga för deras intressenter. De respektive organisationerna försöker genom sina dialoger med både interna och externa intressenter möter intressenternas behov av information.

Intresset för hållbarhetsfrågor har sedan 1990-talet ökat kraftigt i samhället och genom detta har även hållbarhetsredovisning blivit av allt större betydelse. Detta har påverkat företag, vilka alltmer hamnat under press att ta ansvar för verksamhetens sociala och miljömässiga konsekvenser. Genom hållbarhetsredovisning har företag möjlighet att kommunicera sitt hållbarhetsarbete till sina intressenter. För att säkerställa att hållbarhetsinformationen är tillförlitlig behöver denna granskas. Hållbarhetsredovisning är dock ett område under utveckling och vid bestyrkande av informationen finns många utmaningar, vilka granskaren måste hantera för att skapa komfort genom granskningsprocessen. I studien används begreppet granskare som ett samlingsbegrepp för revisorer, miljörevisorer hållbarhetskonsulter och hållbarhetsspecialister som utför granskning av hållbarhetsredovisning. Syftet är att utforska vilka utmaningar en granskare möter vid granskning av hållbarhetsredovisning samt vad det är som gör denne komfortabel i granskningsarbetet. Studien utgår från komfortteorin och en litteraturöversikt som identifierade tre huvudsakliga utmaningar i form av kvalitativ information, kunskap och kompetens samt tolkningsproblematik. Dessa ställs sedan mot studiens empiri som har samlats in genom nio semistrukturerade intervjuer. Respondenterna är revisorer, miljörevisorer, hållbarhetskonsulter och hållbarhetsspecialister med erfarenhet av att granska hållbarhetsredovisning. Studiens slutsatser är att de huvudsakliga utmaningarna granskaren möter vid granskning av hållbarhetsredovisning är kvalitativ information och tolkningsproblematik. Angående utmaningen om kunskap och kompetens fanns det åsiktsskillnader om utmaningens storlek och resultatet indikerar att den drivande faktorn för dessa skillnader är huruvida respondenten i fråga har en utbildningsbakgrund inom hållbarhet eller ekonomi. Vidare är studiens slutsats att komfort uppnås genom att granskaren samlar in bevis för att styrka hållbarhetsinformationen och på detta vis blir trygg i granskningen, vilken således är färdig när granskaren är komfortabel. / Interest in sustainability issues has increased vastly in society since the 1990s, and through this, sustainability reporting has also become increasingly important. This has affected companies, which are under increased pressure to take responsibility for the social and environmental consequences of their business. Through sustainability accounting, companies have the opportunity to communicate their sustainability work to their stakeholders. To ensure that the sustainability information is reliable, assurance is needed. However, sustainability accounting is an area under development where there are several challenges in assurance engagements, which reviewer must handle in order to create comfort through the assurance processes. In this study the word reviewer is used as a collective name for auditors, sustainability auditors, sustainability consultants and sustainability specialists who performs sustainability accounting assurance. The purpose of this study is to explore what challenges the reviewers face in sustainability accounting assurance, as well as how the reviewer produces comfort in the assurance process. The study is based on the comfort theory and a literature review that identifies three main challenges in the form of qualitative information, knowledge and competence as well as interpretation issues. These are compared to the empirical data of the study, collected through nine semi-structured interviews. The respondents are auditors, environmental auditors, sustainability consultants and sustainability specialists with experience in sustainability accounting assurance. The conclusions of the study are that the main challenges the reviewer faces in sustainability accounting assurance are qualitative information and interpretation issues. Regarding the challenge of knowledge and competence, there were differences of opinion about the extent of this challenge and it is indicated by the results that the driving factor for these differences of opinions is whether the respondents in question have an educational background in sustainability or economics. Furthermore the conclusions of the study shows that comfort is achieved through obtaining audit evidence which confirms the sustainability information and makes the reviewer secure. Thus the assurance is complete when the reviewer is comfortable.

Purpose This paper aims to propose and apply a novel risk-based approach to explore whether socio-political theories explain the level of corporate environmental disclosures given inconclusive evidence on the relation between environmental disclosure and environmental performance. Design/methodology/approach Based on content analysis of corporate risk reporting, the paper develops measures of environmental risk to proxy for a firm’s exposure to public pressure in regard to environmental concerns that should be positively associated with the level of corporate environmental disclosures according to socio-political theories. Multiple regressions are used to test the predictions of socio-political theories for US Standards and Poor’s 500 constituents from polluting sectors. Findings The level of environmental disclosures is found to be positively associated with a firm’s environmental risk while unrelated to its environmental performance. The findings suggest that firms tend to provide higher levels of environmental disclosures in response to greater exposure to public pressure as depicted by broad environmental indicators. The results are robust to alternative measures of environmental disclosures, environmental risk and environmental performance, alternative specifications of the economic model and additional sensitivity checks. Research limitations/implications This study is limited to US firms in polluting sectors. The risk-based approach proposed may not be appropriate to cover sectors where corporate risk reporting is less likely to address environmental risk, but it could potentially be adopted in other countries with advanced risk reporting regulation or practice. Practical implications Findings are important to understand a firm’s incentives to disclose environmental information. Cross-sectional differences found in environmental disclosures, risk and performance, highlight the importance of considering industry affiliation when analyzing environmental data. Originality/value This paper is the first to use firm-level environmental risk variables to explain the level of corporate environmental disclosures. The risk-based approach taken suggests opportunities for research at the multi-country level and in countries where corporate environmental performance data are not publicly available.

<a>Global trends and factors, such as the increased level of globalization, climate change, resource scarcity, and awareness of social and environmental responsibilities, as well as fiercer competition and lower profit margins in all industries, force organizations to act to retain, regain, or sustain their competitive advantages for long-term survival. These trends and factors are historically known to bring about innovations that drive the evolution of industries. Sustainability is considered to be such an innovation to achieve fiscally sound, environmentally conscious, and socially progressive organizations and supply chains. Sustainable Development and Sustainability notions are among trending topics of 21st century. Elevated sustainability concerns of various stakeholders have been forcing members of all industries to evolve into their more environmentally and socially responsible versions. This study was initiated through a comprehensive literature review phase that reviewed 477 articles published in five major databases from 1990 to 2018. The purpose of this review was to assess the current state-of-the art on the subject of lean-driven sustainability. Based on descriptive and contextual analysis, synergies, divergences, and the extent of two-way permeability of lean and sustainability concepts from the perspective of intra- and inter-organizational operations were identified along with future research opportunities. Fundamental strengths and weaknesses of both concepts, existing strong synergies and untapped potential, along with their key contributors, the potential-use cases of lean tools to derive sustainable solutions are highlighted in this review. Next, based on the findings of systematic literature review, an innovative, holistic, versatile and scalable tool was developed to assess and benchmark sustainability performance of organizations and supply chains. The proposed framework was established upon trivet structure of Triple Bottom Line philosophy and fueled by Lean, Six-Sigma and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodologies for accurate and effective measurement of sustainability performance. Completeness of the framework was ensured through development of first-generation Key Performance Indicator (KPI) pool with 33 indicators, a unique work environment assessment mechanism for safety and environmental protection issues in terms of 11 risk categories and by construction of an ownership structure for ease of framework deployment. Proposed framework is expected to help with true sustainability performance improvement and benchmarking objectives at a range of business levels from facility to sectoral operations. Upon completion of the development phase, the Sustainability Benchmarking Tool (SBT) Framework was validated at the facility level within the context of value-added wood products manufacturing. Strengths and weaknesses of the system were identified within the scope of Bronze Frontier maturity level of the framework and tackled through a six-step analytical and quantitative reasoning methodology. The secondary objective of the validation phase was to document how value-added wood products industries can take advantage of natural properties of wood to become frontiers of sustainability innovation. In the end, True Sustainability performance of the target facility was improved by 2.37 base points, while economic and environmental performance was increased from being a system weakness to achieving an acceptable index score benchmark of 8.41 and system strength level of 9.31, respectively. Social sustainability score increased by 2.02 base points as a function of better gender bias ratio. The financial performance of the system improved from a 33% loss to 46.23% profit in the post-improvement state. Reductions in CO₂ emissions (55.16%), energy consumption (50.31%), solid waste generation (72.03%), non-value-added-time (89.30%) and cost performance (64.77%) were other significant achievements of the study. In the end, SBT Framework was successfully validated at the facility level and target facility evolved into its leaner, cleaner and more responsible version of itself. Furthermore, manufacturing industries of all sorts are key stakeholders, which rely on universities to satisfy the demand for competent workforce. Society also expects universities to educate youth and contribute to their self-development by achieving both, scientific and intellectual knowledge saturation. To expand the contribution of the study to the body of knowledge in the fields of Sustainability and Modern Management techniques, an undergraduate level course curriculum that integrates modern management techniques and sustainability concepts with wood products industry dynamics was developed. Students’ pre- and post-education awareness of, and familiarity with sustainability, potential consequences of ignored sustainability issues, modern management techniques, global trends, innovation waves, and industry evolution were compared through a seventeen-question survey. Results showed that course content was successful at increasing sustainability awareness at both overall and individual sustainability pillar levels, At the end, 100% of students were able to develop complete understanding of various modern management techniques and stated that they felt confident to apply learnt skills to real life issues within their profession upon graduation. Overall, this study empirically documented how synergies between Lean, Sustainability, Six-Sigma and Life Cycle Assessment concepts outweigh their divergences, demonstrated viability of SBT Framework and presented a proven example of modern management techniques powered transdisciplinary sustainability curriculum.</a>