Browsing by Subject "Sustainable business"

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    Leadership for Thriving: A Framework to Lead the Business Community to Sustainable Behaviors
    (2023-04-25) Olivares, Magdalena
    Climate change is a complex problem whose solution is still far from being on track. Although we have advanced a lot in terms of knowledge and awareness of the problem, we are struggling to transition to sustainable actions. Corporations have the key to unleash a substantial potential contribution to facing this challenge moving forward. Developing new business models that move their operations away from current environmental damage is needed. Their potential to leverage their connections with consumers and other stakeholders, educating and influencing them to be part of the solution, and joining efforts to adjust lifestyles and preferences for sustainable consumption also presents a huge opportunity. For these challenges, corporations need to face the transition from a technical to an adaptative approach. But corporations are not prepared to run this challenge on their own; integrating the environmental impact in the business model requires the support of environmental experts. This research is based on the hypothesis that there is an opportunity to enhance sustainable behavior transformation by improving communication and collaboration between business and environmental professionals. With this purpose, the research was done through a qualitative comparative analysis that looks to contrast the perspective and resources those professionals have with respect to climate change, looking for the interconnection of joint possibilities that can be approached in a more collaborative manner. The ecological self maturity, nature experience, and knowledge of environmental professionals make them the best candidates to support corporate change. But there is a learning challenge for environmental professionals as well, since technical acumen is not enough to lead such large and complex adaptative changes in human systems in the corporate world. This framework aims at providing a tool for environmental professionals to effectively hone their skills to lead and communicate with corporate audiences and guide them towards effective actions to tackle environmental change. Leadership for Thriving combines this perspective of leadership and inspiring storytelling with the optimistic approach of the breakthrough movement of thriving, which inspires the examples and reflections of this proposal.
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    On-Site Organic Waste Diversion in the U.S. Hospitality Industry
    (2019-04-18) Quintal, Sarah
    Waste is playing a larger role in public consciousness driven, in part, by the ubiquity of anti-plastics pollution campaigns, alongside zero-waste commitments from multinational corporations and major urban centers. By volume, organic waste—including food waste—is the largest component of all waste sent to landfills. The hospitality industry plays a significant role in producing food waste. When food decomposes in a landfill, it converts to methane, which has 25 times more global warming potential than carbon dioxide. To mitigate organic waste, source reduction strategies can be implemented along the food supply chain that result in less waste, and waste that is produced can be repurposed, recycled, or diverted from the landfill by other means. This project assesses the opportunities and challenges associated with developing on-site, organic waste diversion strategies in the U.S. hospitality industry through literature review and analysis of four case studies from urban hotels with anaerobic digesters. Key findings suggest food waste mitigation within the hospitality industry is attainable and cost-effective; that mitigation strategies will benefit from internal collaboration among key stakeholders and increased consumer awareness; that policy changes will drive an increase in organic waste mitigation; and that there is need for more research on waste diversion within the U.S. hospitality industry and regarding stand-alone anaerobic digesters. These findings support informed development of organic waste diversion strategies at similar private businesses.