‘How corporate social responsibility can be integrated into corporate sustainability: a theoretical review of their relationships’

The notion that corporations are expected to have social and environmental performance standards and practices while meeting their financial and legal obligations is commonly referred to as corporate social responsibility (CSR) or corporate sustainability (CS). Previous studies have discussed whether the two terms are converging or should be used as stand-alone concepts. After reviewing the trends in development of CSR and CS, and the various viewpoints on the relationships between the two, we propose a relationship model to better understand how CSR can be integrated into CS as either a transitional stage or ultimate goal for a corporation. This study aims to provide researchers and practitioners with further insights on the adoption of CSR and CS. The model is intended to provide a plausible view of the relationships between CSR and CS to help to lessen the confusion and ease the communication both between and within these fields.     

突发环境事件应对中信息公开制度的完善

近年来我国突发环境事件频发,给经济社会带来了严重影响。对突发环境事件的应对,暴露出信息公开不及时、不充分,对谣言回应不及时等不足。此外,谣言的广泛存在与传播,使得突发环境事件应对效果难以实现最大化。产生这种情况是因为突发环境事件应对中,信息公开法律规定与实践不足、信息传播不对称与集体行为等。对此,体系化的信息公开法律制度建设与完善显得尤为重要。为减少突发环境事件中因信息公开不足及谣言产生的危害,我们一方面需要通过扩大信息公开主体范围、明确信息公开程序、对象等措施强化信息公开制度建设,另一方面需要开展谣言与集体行为方面的研究,为突发环境事件的应对提供有效支撑。     

Private and public interests in water and energy

Based on empirical evidence from developed, transition and developing countries, the article looks at how the introduction of private operators’ interests into the water supply/sanitation and energy sectors may conflict with public interests in socio‐economic, environmental and political dimensions. Case studies are used to illustrate the dynamics of these interactions, covering phenomena such as unsolicited proposals, misrepresentation and corruption; the exploitation of established positions by taking advantage of asymmetry of information and negotiating capacity in relation to public authorities; and exit from contracts or concessions when acceptable profitability cannot be attained. This experience indicates that the introduction of private companies into these sectors creates the permanent possibility of conflict between private and public interests. The services are too vital both socially and economically to rely on corporate self‐regulation, and countries lack effective capacity to regulate such corporations. The authors conclude that policies relying on corporate activity in these sectors are unnecessarily risky, and that policy development should focus on building strong public sector institutions to provide these services.     

深圳市环境信息公开和公众参与管理实践与对策

环境信息公开和公众参与已经成为一种重要的环境管理辅助手段,深圳市立足城市之先,在立法和执法方面开展了一系列实践工作,并积累了一定的经验和教训。在研究深圳市环境信息公开和公众参与管理现状的基础上,结合实践中存在的焦点和难点问题,以提高公民环境知情权和参与权的落实水平为目标,从观念、立法、技术指引和参与形式等方面提出政策建议,为深圳市环境信息公开与公众参与管理实践提供了较好的理论和实践探索。     

企业对环境信息公开的响应研究——以常熟市为例

企业环境信息公开通过加强市场和公众等利益相关者对企业环境行为的激励作用,促进企业改善其环境绩效。文章以常熟市参与环境行为评级和信息公开的企业为研究对象,分析了企业参与信息公开后总体环境绩效及具体环境行为的变化情况。同时,基于企业微观数据,构建了企业环境绩效变化与环境行为历史评级结果的关系模型,分析企业对环境行为评级与公开的响应程度。结果表明:历史环境评级结果差、有外资投入的企业对环境信息公开更能产生积极的响应;不同规模和行业类型的企业的响应程度没有显著的差异。进一步的研究发现,历史评级结果较差的企业感受到最大的压力变化来源于政府部门的监察,而有外商投资的企业则明显感到来自下游企业和投资者的压力。     

Disclosure of stigmatized identities at work: An interdisciplinary review and agenda for future research

This review focuses on the disclosure decisions faced by employees with concealable stigmatized identities—one of the most challenging decisions these individuals must make on a day-to-day basis. Indeed, multiple theoretical frameworks have provided a foundation for understanding the antecedents and outcomes associated with the decision to disclose or not to disclose a stigmatized identity. What is less clear, however, is the extent to which these frameworks have been empirically supported. This systematic review serves to unify the extant literature and prompt continued research related to employees with concealable stigmatized identities. Specifically, we draw upon multiple fields of study, including applied psychology, management, social psychology, and occupational health as a means to systematically synthesize the existing empirical research related to disclosure of stigmatized identities at work. In addition to advancing the scholarly knowledge of disclosure, this review also provides practical utility to organizations as they continue to create work environments that foster inclusion of all stigmatized and nonstigmatized employees.     

中国环境信息公开的时空演化特征及其影响因素

环境信息公开是大数据信息时代环境治理的新型工具,我国在立法和实践上取得了重要进展,准确把握其发展脉络、现实状况和驱动因素,是有效推动环境信息公开和发挥其治理效果的先决条件。基于2008—2017年120个城市的PITI指数,采用空间数据探索分析和动态空间面板模型方法,分析了我国环境信息公开的时空演化特征和影响因素。研究发现:①我国环境信息公开正处于向中等水平过渡阶段,表现出明显的区域不平衡现象,呈现“沿海-内陆”梯度递减特征。②我国环境信息公开表现出较强的空间集聚特征,呈现显著的空间“俱乐部”分布格局,区域内部空间溢出效应显著,区域间辐射带动作用较弱。③较高的经济发展水平和环保投入强度表现出显著的促进作用,而良好的企业绩效和教育水平、较高的社会舆论和环保监督压力并没有发挥应有的促增效应;较差的空气质量和较高的工业污染表现出显著的抑制效应,而提高外资引入和环保执法力度则表现出较弱的负向作用。沿海城市和智慧城市的促进作用相对较高,资源型城市则较低。④环境信息公开在时间、空间和时空维度上分别表现出叠加效应、同群效应和示范效应。因此,应逐步完善环境信息公开的体制机制,加快环保基础设施建设,推进企业环保信用评价,提高公众互动参与和监督,强化环保指导帮扶和监管执法,构建环境信息公开的长效机制。     

美国核电厂辐射环境监测与信息公开及其借鉴

综述了美国核电厂辐射环境监测管理体系和环境信息公开制度及法制化管理模式,对比分析了我国辐射环境监测与信息发布实际开展情况及存在问题,提出需借鉴美国核管理委员会(NRC,以下简称NRC)的管理经验,进一步完善我国辐射环境监测标准体系,建立辐射环境监测数据公开制度,加强公众参与制度建设,明确核电厂辐射环境监测管理边界等建议。     

Sustainable Development and Corporate Environmental Responsibility: Evidence from Chinese Corporations

China is currently experiencing rapid economic growth. The price of this, however, is environment pollution. Many Chinese corporations are lacking in corporate environmental responsibility (CER). Therefore, this study employs data from Chinese and multinational corporations to identify why Chinese corporations seldom engage in CER by investigating their motivations and stakeholders. The results show that the most important reason why Chinese corporations do not engage in CER is the fact that their competitive strategy of cost cutting makes them limited in resources, such as money, employees, information, or added value. Further study implies that Chinese corporations face more survival pressure, though they are willing to take environmental responsibilities as multinational corporations do. The results also imply that government and social surroundings can play an important role to arouse CER consciousness of Chinese corporations in all stakeholders. Consequently, Chinese government has a heavy duty to promote corporations to respond to their CER in the long run.     

Environmental strategy and performance in small firms: a resource-based perspective

In spite of the widespread recognition of the important roles that small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) play in most economies, limited research has focused on their impacts on the natural environment and the strategies such enterprises adopt to reduce these impacts. It is usually assumed that SMEs lack the resources to implement proactive environmental strategies that go beyond minimum regulatory compliance. In this study of 108 SMEs in the automotive repair sector in Southern Spain, we found that SMEs undertake a range of environmental strategies from reactive regulatory compliance to proactive pollution prevention and environmental leadership. These strategies are associated with three organizational capabilities: shared vision, stakeholder management, and strategic proactivity, hypothesized based on the unique strategic characteristics of SMEs--shorter lines of communication and closer interaction within the SMEs, the presence of a founder's vision, flexibility in managing external relationships, and an entrepreneurial orientation. We also found that firms with the most proactive practices exhibited a significantly positive financial performance.