Jennifer Lynes

Going Green: Motivations for Environmental Commitment in the Airline Industry. A Case Study of Scandinavian Airlines

Many commentators have examined the airline industry’s impacts on the environment but not the internal management processes used to develop company environmental policies. This paper argues that environmental management tools need to take into consideration the complex, value-laden setting in which corporate environmental policy-making occurs if such tools are to be socially and politically legitimated. A case study of Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) examines an airline’s decision-motivations for environmental commitment. An in-depth analysis of the drivers identified by both Scandinavian Airlines and related industry officials shows that attitudes, values and beliefs generated both internally and externally have a critical impact on the airline’s environmental policy-making. Although there are numerous influences that drive SAS’s level of environmental commitment, three ‘motivators’ are found particularly noteworthy. Firstly, this research demonstrates that eco-efficiencies, in various forms, are a strong motive at SAS. Secondly, Scandinavian culture also plays an influential role in the value SAS puts on the environment at a strategic level. Thirdly, it was found that internal leadership, in the form of environmental champions in senior management positions, played a key role in the positive outcomes of the airline’s environmental performance. Given the current growth in benchmarking and eco-labelling activity across tourism, this research enhances understandings about what motivates airlines to develop environmental policy in this increasingly competitive and volatile sector.

Institutional Motivations and Barriers to the Construction of Green Buildings on Campus: A Case Study of the University of Waterloo, Ontario.

Purpose – To explore the barriers and motivations to the construction of green buildings at the University of Waterloo (UW) by documenting and analysing the UW building process.Design/methodology/approach – The authors conducted 13 semi‐structured in‐depth interviews with key UW individuals as well as analyzing numerous internal reports in order to document UWs building process. Based on the literature, a set of key ingredients for successful green building projects is developed as a basis from which to evaluate UWs current practices.Findings – Based on the four key ingredients needs for successful green building projects at Institutions of Higher Education (IHE), UW was found to have weaknesses in all four areas including: a lack internal leadership amongst stakeholders with decision‐making power, a lack of quantifiable sustainability targets, an operational structure that does not reward building designs with lower energy costs, and lack of communication between professional designers, facilities mana...

The Use of Message Framing in the Promotion of Environmentally Sustainable Behaviors

The use of message framing, a technique that shapes perceptions of the outcomes of the promoted behavior, in combination with a specific target audience can substantially enhance the success of social marketing campaigns. Although the persuasive effects of message framing have been widely publicized in the field of social and cognitive psychology, there is a surprising dearth in the literature regarding the role of message framing as a strategy within the context of social marketing to influence environmentally sustainable behaviors. This article provides an overview of the main principles of message framing, including gain and loss framing as well as social and physical threat. The most effective combination of frame and threat may in fact depend on the measure used to assess its influence on behavior. In particular, the literature suggests that the effect of frame and threat interaction may be most prominent in changing attitudes toward the behavior. Four factors should be considered in the use of framing and threat in message design, including: (1) level of risk involved in uptake of the behaviour, (2) degree of self-referencing or self-other referencing in the message, (3) level of experience and knowledge of the target audience and stage of change of the target audience, and (4) gender of target audience. Thus, proper segmentation of the population should be carried out before designing messages with frame/threat factors. Further research on the influence of message framing and the role of audience segmentation in behavioral change strategies is needed to deepen our understanding of its effectiveness in designing social marketing campaigns that focus on environmentally sustainable behaviors.

A model for developing and assessing youth-based environmental engagement programmes

In this paper, we argue that a fundamental cultural shift is needed to effectively address anthropogenic causes of climate change. Evidence suggests that youth are well positioned to create such transformation. While various studies have contributed empirical evidence to numerous youth-based non-formal environmental engagement programmes, what is missing in the environmental education literature is discussion of a systematic approach to the development and evaluation of these programs. In this paper, we draw on the youth civic engagement literature to propose a framework that can be used as a basis to guide further development of evidence-based practices. Five major components are described as follows: (1) the engagement activity; (2) the engagement process; (3) initiating and sustaining factors; (4) mediators and moderators; and (5) outcomes. This approach to youth engagement can inform both researchers trying to study effective ways of creating change and practitioners developing environmental programmes that aspire towards a culture of sustainability.

Developing benchmark criteria for assessing community-based social marketing programs

Purpose – This article aims to propose that increased guidance on the implementation of social marketing principles for sustainability issues can advance both implementation and empirical evaluation. The primary goal of this paper is to ignite further empirical investigation of social marketing for sustainability by first presenting benchmark criteria for one social marketing model – community-based social marketing (CBSM) – and second, applying this framework to the case study of musician Jack Johnson’s “All at Once” (AAO) campaign. Design/methodology/approach – The research design is twofold. First, based on Doug McKenzie-Mohr’s CBSM model, a series of 21 benchmarks for assessing the key components of an effective CBSM initiative was developed. Second, this tool was applied to information gathered from Jack Johnson’s extensive outreach promoting AAO initiatives including reports, videos as well as interviews and in-person meetings with the Jack Johnson team. Findings – Application of the benchmark crite...

Corporate social responsibility in tourism and hospitality

Abstract The past decade has seen significant growth in the tourism and hospitality literature on corporate social responsibility (CSR). Indeed, over 70% of the articles on this topic have been published in the past five years. Through the application of a stakeholder lens, this paper explores how CSR has developed within the extant literature, paying particular attention to current gaps and highlighting the contributions of the research in this special issue. This emerging research on CSR in the context of tourism and hospitality is pushing past the boundaries of early approaches to corporate sustainability by providing empirical evidence to support the importance of integrating a range of stakeholder perspectives and needs throughout the planning, implementation, and evaluation of CSR initiatives. We observe that while there is ample research on certain stakeholder groups such as management, employees, shareholders, and consumers, there is less emphasis on the role of communities and ecosystems as stakeholders and very little related to suppliers, NGOs, and government. Although tourism and hospitality firms may not be subject to the same pressures as other industries, there remain important opportunities to both document and engage these external stakeholders in the journey towards sustainability.

Is local produce more expensive? Challenging perceptions of price in local food systems

ABSTRACT This research examines price in local food systems to identify whether the perception that local is more expensive is justified. This study seeks to contribute to the field by addressing the dearth of quantitative price and availability research and building upon existing empirical research by considering a broader range of distribution channels and organic produce. Without a stronger understanding of pricing structures and distribution models, local food initiatives are based on assumptions rather than evidence. Using a case-study approach of the Region of Waterloo (Ontario, Canada), price and product data were collected at 11 outlets over a 6-month period. The study involved regression analysis of six locally produced fruits and vegetables based on local, Ontario, and organic attributes associated with the products and comparison with consumer willingness-to-pay research. Results show that local produce in the case study is not consistently more expensive than the non-local option. Both price discounts and premiums are found, depending on the product. These findings challenge the “local is more expensive” assumption and support suggestions that local food systems can be spaces for social inclusion. The organic attribute is associated with a price premium in all cases and may create confusion among consumers given frequent overlap between the local and organic attributes. Proponents of local food can use the results of this study to inform programme and policy development. Most notably, the study suggests that education around the distinction between local and organic as well as challenges to the price perception could be of benefit.