The Sustainability of "Sustainability" — A Study Into the Conceptual Foundations of the Notion of "Sustainability"

Abstract

The new challenge for organisations is to deal with the complex issue of sustainability. However, the confusion surrounding "sustainability" hinders its implementation. This article formulates a framework consisting of three aspects to analyse the conceptual developments that underlie "sustainability": the artefact ("what"), goal orientation ("relative versus absolute") and (behavioural) interaction ("static versus dynamic"). The study of conceptual foundations underpins the framework. Contributions in both the theoretical (definitions) and the practical (indicators) spheres are analysed. The discussion about sustainability takes place in firms. Therefore, organisational developments are used as a reference timeline. Based on observations and analyses, this article suggests a new course for the sustainability discussion and its implications for the organisational context: a knowledge approach focussing on transparency and dialogue. This also implies that the emphasis in the sustainability discussion is changing from a merely environmental to an organisational and societal perspective.

Sustainable internationalization in South Korean higher education: Languages and cultures in a foreign professor’s course

“…One of the intriguing findings of this study is that the sustainability of internationalization was not a product of given factors-such as an FP or English-medium instruction-but was instead a dynamic and ongoing process in which sustainability is constructed through continuous interactions among people (Faber et al 2005). Although misinterpreting others' cultural practices can sometimes cause tensions, the interactions between people with different cultural and language backgrounds in the FP's course yielded novelty, openmindedness, and productive understanding, which led to successful subject learning in the end.…”

“…Scholars argue that sustainability must be understood as a continuing and developmental process that requires the recognition of context, histories, and relational elements rather than as a set goal to be achieved (Faber et al 2005;Wals and Jickling 2002). In this regard, I view this event as momentum for sustainable internationalization because it was not an impromptu reaction but instead was developed through prolonged interactions and mutual understanding between Prof. Dave and his Korean students.…”

A gestão de ti e o valor de uso dos ERP’s em sua perspectiva de pós implementação

“…Nestes termos, quanto mais próximo a organização estiver deste patamar, maiores serão os benefícios do uso do ERP, já que os usuários não só utilizarão toda a capacidade da ferramenta, como também a aproveitarão para novas demandas informacionais derivadas do dinamismo do negócio,aproximando-se mais do conceito de sustentabilidade dinâmica citada por Faber, Jorna, Engelen (2005). Baseado nestes argumentos, a qualidade do uso do sistema ERP na fase de pós implementação configura-se como uma importante competência necessária para a aquisição de valor de uso dos sistemas ERP.…”

A conceptual systemic framework proposal for sustainable technology development: incorporating future studies within a co-evolutionary approach

“…Then the scope was broadened to cover interactions between two evolving systems including social and ecological systems (Norgaard 1984(Norgaard , 1995. Faber et al (2005), in their study to determine conceptual foundations conclude that both theoretical (definitions) and practical (operationalisations) contributions to the concept of sustainability evolved from being static/absolute to dynamic/relative. The static conceptualisation assumes no change over time within the subject artefact itself and between other artefacts in its environment.…”