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a b s t r a c tGiven the rising emphasis on environmental disclosures and the expressed importance of 'good' governance in determining the extent of information disclosure in general, we examine the relation between specific aspects of governance and media coverage and the quality of voluntary environmental disclosure (VED). Using a sample of 127 firms over a 6-year period (2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005), we empirically test characteristics of governance and media in relation to VED. Our results suggest that VED quality is positively associated with environmental media coverage, negative environmental media and board attributes of independence, diversity, and expertise. Results from supplemental analysis suggest that institutional investors exert influence over managerial decisions on environmental reporting only in the face of negative environmental media. Additionally, results from longitudinal analyses indicate that the quality of environmental disclosures increases over time. Our conclusion discusses the implications of these findings.Published by Elsevier Inc.

Industry transformation related to environmental stewardship proceeds through multiple stages, and there is as of yet no clear understanding of the importance of certain drivers of transformation at different stages. We bring together previous environmental management research regarding individual-and institutional-level drivers of environmental stewardship to develop a model and series of questions regarding proactive environmental behavior in the US wine industry. A qualitative research method, including interviews and focus groups, is used to test the model. At the early stage of environmental transformation in the wine industry, we find that managerial attitudes and norms, existing regulations, employee welfare and competitive pressures are all strong drivers of proactive environmental behavior. However, our multilevel analysis suggests that drivers of environmentalism vary in relevance and relative importance and that future environmental management research needs to consider the relationship between drivers of environmentalism and the stage of an industry's environmental transformation.

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energy conservation, environmental management systems, recycling, small and medium enterprises, stakeholder pressures, Theory of Planned Behavior,