Paradigm shift in the management of environmental and social challenges

Abstract

Objective: Despite the various approaches that have been adopted to control the negative consequences of environmental and social challenges, these consequences have persisted. Studies that have critiqued these challenges and the proffered solutions with the intent of offering a more encompassing and result oriented solutions are rare in the literature. Thus, based on the unprecedented dimensions the challenges have assumed, this study seeks to propose a holistic and more encompassing approach for managing the challenges.

Research Design & Methods: The study adopts a research methodology that is based on a critical review and analysis of 25 related papers. The keywords employed to select the papers that were published between 1980 and 2020 are environmental challenges, social challenges and strategic development goals.

Findings: The approaches adopted so far to manage environmental and social challenges have not yielded the desired results. This is because: all the stakeholders are not involved in the formulation and implementation of the approaches; the approaches are formulated and implemented as though environmental and social challenges are not interrelated; the approaches vary among the different institutions, countries and regions; in some areas, the level of implementation is partial, while in others it is full.

Contribution & Value Added: Environmental and social challenges are interrelated. As such the Environmental and Social Responsibility Network (ESRN) is proposed as a more encompassing approach since it will bring together all those who are directly and indirectly affected by the challenges.

Keywords

environmental entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibility, social innovation, NGO

Author Biography

Kenneth Chukwujioke Agbim

Doctoral candidate in the Department of Management, University of Nigeria, Enugu, Nigeria. He has M.Sc. in Development Studies, MBA in Management and M.Sc. in Management. His research interests are in the areas of strategic entrepreneurship, family business development and business ethics.

References

1. Agbim, K.C. (2018). Effect of ethical leadership on corporate governance, performance and social responsibility: A study of selected deposit money banks on Benue State, Nigeria. Informing Science: International Journal of Community Development & Management Studies, 2, 19-35.
2. Anand, S.V. (2013). Global environmental issues. Open Access Scientific Reports, 2(2), 1-9. doi:10.4172/scientificreports.632
3. Armocida, B., Formenti, B., Ussai, S., Palestra, F., & Missoni, E. (2020). The Italian health system and the COVID-19 challenge. Lancet Public Health, 1. doi:10.1016/S2468-2667(20)30074-8
4. Baker, W.E. (2000). Achieving success through social capital: Tapping the hidden resources in your personal and business networks. Jossey-Bass.
5. Bierbaum, R., Cowie, A., Barra, R., Ratner, B., Sims, R., Stocking, M., Durón, G., Leonard, S., & Whaley, C. (2018). Integration: To solve complex environmental problems. Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel to the Global Environment Facility. UN.
6. Carlson, A.E. (2001). Recycling norms. California Law Review, 89, 1231-1300.
7. Choi, D.Y., & Gray, E.R. (2008). The venture development processes of “sustainable” entrepre-neurs. Management Research News, 31(8), 558-569.
8. Christakis, N.A., & Fowler, J.H. (2009). Connected: The surprising power of our social networks and how they shape our lives. Little, Brown and Company.
9. Dilys, R., David, T., Jessica, S., Matt, W., & Joanna, E. (2011). Biodiversity and poverty: Ten fre-quently asked questions – Ten policy implications. International Institute of Environment and Development.
10. Dugarova, E., & Gülasan, N. (2017). Challenges and opportunities in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. United Nations Development Programme and United Na-tions Research Institute for Social Development.
11. El Ebrashi, R. (2013). Social entrepreneurship theory and sustainable social impact. Social Respon-sibility Journal, 9(2), 188-209. doi.:10.1108/SRJ-07-2011-0013
12. FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) (2015). FAO and the 17 Sustaina-ble Development Goals. FAO.
13. FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) (2016). Global forest resources assessment 2015: How are the world’s forests changing? FAO.
14. Flower, L. (2006). Environmental challenges in the 21st century. AU J.T., 9(4), 248-252.
15. Fujii, T., & Shintani, D. (2008). Asian CSR and Japanese CSR. JUSE-press.
16. Gelsdorf, K. (2010). Global challenges and their impact on international humanitarian action. UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). Occasional Policy Briefing Series No. 1. Policy Development and Studies Branch (PDSB). Retrieved December 10, 2018 from https://docs.unocha.org/sites/dms/Documents/Global_Challenges_Policy_Brief_Jan10.pdf
17. Go, K., Suzuki, M., & Qu, X.X. (2018). Trial by fire: A Chinese NGO’s work on environmental health litigation in China. Retrieved December 10, 2018 from https://www.wilsoncenter.org/publication/trial-fire-chinese-ngos-work- environmental-health-litigation-china.
18. Gript (2020, March 31). 60 minutes: Wuhan whistle-blower Dr Ai Fen “has disappeared”. Gript. Retrieved November 25, 2020 from gript.ie/60-minutes-wuhan-whistle-blower-dr-ai-fen-has-disappeared/ on 15 June 2020.
19. Hargreaves, S., Kumar, B. N., McKee, M., Jones, L., & Veizis (2020). Europe’s migrant containment policies threaten the response to covid-19. Business Management Journal, 368, 1-2. doi: 10.1136/bmj.m1213
20. House of Lords (2011). Behaviour change. House of Lords, Science and Technology Select Commit-tee. HL Paper, No. 179.
21. Human Rights Watch (2020). Human rights dimensions of COVID-19 response. Retrieved Novem-ber 25, 2020 from https://www.hrw.org/news
22. Ibimilua, F.O., & Ibimilua, A.F. (2014). Environmental challenges in Nigeria: Typology, spatial distribution, repercussions and way forward. American International Journal of Social Science, 3(2), 246-253.
23. IPCC (2015). Climate change 2014: Impacts, adaptation and vulnerability (part A). Global and sec-torial aspects. Contribution of working group II to the fifth assessment report of the intergov-ernmental panel on climate change. Cambridge University Press.
24. Karaduman, I.C. (2014). Global challenges for the world. Obronność Zeszyty Naukowe, 2(10), 45-58.
25. Khan, M.I., & Chang, Y. (2018). Environmental challenges and current practices in China: A thor-ough analysis. Sustainability, 10(2547), 1-20. doi: 10.3390/su10072547
26. Laffoley, D., & Baxter, J.M. (Eds.) (2016). Explaining ocean warming: Causes, scale, effects and consequences. International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.
27. Mbebeb, F.E., & Songwe, O. (2011, Dec. 5-8). Promoting ecopreneurship behaviours in sustainable resources exploitation: Greening youths for green business in Cameroon [Conference session]. International Conference on Sustainable Development of Natural Resources in Africa, UNU-INRA, Accra, Ghana.
28. McFarlane, C. (2011). Learning the city: Knowledge and translocal assemblage. John Wiley and Sons.
29. McGann, J., & Johnstone, M. (2006). The power shift and the NGO credibility crisis. International Journal of Not-for-Profit Law, 8(2), 65-77.
30. Menon, R.B. (2017). Students’ attitude towards ecopreneurship. Commerce Spectrum, 4(2), 1-3.
31. Moses, C.L., & Olokundun, M.A. (2014). Social entrepreneurship: An effective tool for meeting social challenges and sustainable development. Entrepreneurship and Innovation Manage-ment Journal, 2(3), 158-169.
32. Mostashari, A. (2005). An introduction to non-governmental organizations (NGO) management. Iranian Studies Group at MIT.
33. Nikkhah, H.A., & Redzuan, M.B. (2010). The role of NGOs in promoting empowerment for sustain-able community development. Journal of Human Ecology, 30(2), 85-92.
34. OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) (2011). Divided we stand: Why inequality keeps rising. OECD.
35. Ogionwo, T. (2016). Social problems and the rise of terrorism in Nigeria: Implications for interna-tional social work practice. Thesis submitted to Department of Social Work and Psychology, University of Gavle.
36. Prahalad, C.K., & Hart, S.L. (2002). The fortune at the bottom of the pyramid. Strategy+Business, 26, (1), 1-14.
37. Rosenthal, D. M., Ucci, M., Heys, M., Hayward, A., & Lakhanpaul, M. (2020). Impacts of COVID-19 on vulnerable children in temporary accommodation in the UK. Lancet Public Health, 1-2. doi: 10.1016/S2468-2667(20)30080-3
38. Shane, S., & Venkataraman, S. (2000). The promise of entrepreneurship as a field of research. Academy of Management Review, 25(1), 217-226.
39. Shintani, D. (2011). The role of business actor for social innovation from CSR perspectives. In OECD, Fostering innovation to address social challenges, workshop proceedings (pp. 65-68). OECD.
40. Singh, A., & Panackal, N. (2014). Youth ecopreneurship: A key for success of first generation entre-preneurs. Annual Research Journal of SCMS, Pune, 2(1), 1-13.
41. Sweeney, L., & Coughlan, J. (2008). Do different industries report corporate social responsibility differently? An investigation through the lens of stakeholder theory. Journal of Marketing Communication, 14(2), 113-124.
42. UN (2015a). We can end poverty: Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and beyond2015. Re-trieved November 10, 2018 from http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/
43. UN (2015b). The Millennium Development Goals Report 2015: Regional backgrounder: Western Asia. DPI/2594/5 E. UN Department of Public Information.
44. UN (2015c). Transforming our world: The 2030 agenda for Sustainable Development (A/RES/70/1). UN.
45. UNEP (United Nations Environmental Programme) (2011). Towards a green economy: Pathways to sustainable development and poverty eradication - A synthesis for policy makers. Retrieved June 15, 2018 from http://www.unep.org/greeneconomy
46. UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme) (2015). Sustainable consumption and production: A handbook for policymakers: Global edition. UNEP.
47. United Nations Millennium Project (2015). Who they are. Retrieved November 11, 2018 from http://www.unmillenniumproject.org/goals/
48. UNRISD (United Nations Research Institute for Social Development) (2012). Social dimensions of green economy. UNRISD Research and Policy Brief 12. Geneva: UNRISD.
49. UNRISD (United Nations Research Institute for Social Development) (2016). Policy innovations for transformative change: Implementing the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. UN-RISD.
50. WCED (World Commission on Environment and Development) (1987). Our common future. Oxford University Press.
51. Weber, M. (2008). The business case for corporate social responsibility: A company-level meas-urement approach for CSR. European Management Journal, 26(4), 247-261. doi.: 10.1016/j.emj.2008.01.006
52. Weir, K. (2020). Seven crucial research findings that can help people deal with COVID-19. Re-trieved November 25, 2020 from apa.org/news/apa/2020/03/covid-19-research-findings
53. WESS (2013). Sustainable development challenges. Retrieved December 10, 2018 from http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/policy/wess/wess_current/wess2013/WESS2013
54. WHO (World Health Organization) (2015). Health in 2015: From MDGs, Millennium Goals to SDGs, Sustainable Development Goals. WHO.
55. WHO (World Health Organization) (2016). Ebola Situation Report: March 30, 2016. WHO. Re-trieved December 10, 2018 from http://apps.who.int/ebola/current-situation/ebola-situation-report-30-march-2016
56. Wilson, S. (2017). China’s NGO regulations and uneven civil society development. Retrieved De-cember 10, 2018 from http://theasiadialogue.com/2017/02/15/chinas-ngo-regulations-and-uneven-civil-society- development/
57. World Bank Group (2016). Global Monitoring Report 2015/2016: Development Goals in an era of demographic change. World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund.
58. World Health Organization (WHO) (2020). Coronavirus. Retrieved November 25, 2020 from https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus#tab=tab_1