In reflecting on Dutch Christmas shoppers, this article will discuss environmental Kuznets curve (EKC), postmaterialist values hypothesis, and ecological modernization theory. According to the EKC hypothesis, while at the initial stages of industrialization material resources are often used unsustainably, …

This article reflects on implications of presenting nature as a social construction, and of commodification of nature. The social construction of nature tends to limit significance of nature to human perception of it. Commodification presents nature in strict instrumental terms as ‘natural resources’, …

The implementation of innovative sustainability technologies often requires far reaching changes of the macro environment in which the innovating firms operate. Strategic management literature describes that firms who want to commercialize an innovative technology can collaborate in networks or industry …

The nation-state had a long history of success, but today it is failing its citizens on a global scale. Over the last hundred years, nation-states focussed on maximizing internal unity and jurisdictional sovereignty. Benjamin R. Barber’s ‘If Mayors Ruled The World’ is the central source of this thesis …

There is growing realisation amongst local communities that the organizations and societies within which they live and work need to become more sustainable in order to secure their social, environmental and economic futures (Coyle 2011, Müller et al. 2011). The underlying motivations vary but are often …

Corporate Social Responsibility is an emerging term often used in the globalizing world. The concept CSR has many definitions. The general idea is that companies involved in CSR improve their activities on economic, social and environmental level. This theory is called the Triple Bottom Line. Thus, a …

SMEs within the rural Dutch municipality of Utrechtse Heuvelrug (UHG) are becoming increasingly aware of the need for sustainable ‘green’ business. Their sense of sustainability is strongly defined by the ‘green’ environment in which they live and work. They were seeking an entrepreneurial approach to …

HU University of Applied Sciences Utrecht (HU) initiated a sustainability program in 2010. A compelling vision, collaboration with external partners, interdisciplinary research and interweavement of research and education are important elements in this program. The scope of this paper is sustainability …

From the article: The higher educational environment in Europe is changing and for the Netherlands this means that the dual educational system (universities and insti-tutes for higher professional education) will disappear. However this is not the only driver of change. Many European countries face …