Environment, Enterprise and Development

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This is the collection for the University of Waterloo's School of Environment, Enterprise and Development.

Research outputs are organized by type (eg. Master Thesis, Article, Conference Paper).

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Now showing 1 - 7 of 7

Cross-Sector Partnerships as an Implementation Strategy in Achieving Net-Zero Greenhouse Gas Emissions
(University of Waterloo, 2024-10-17) Isabu, Ebosetale; Clarke, Amelia
Following the emphasis on the need for cross-sector partnerships (CSPs) during the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, CSP approaches have gained recognition internationally and have been integrated into development agendas such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). CSPs enable expertise mobilization, adoption of technology, and leveraging of funding to support the achievement of the SDGs. Local partners engaging in CSPs can make significant progress toward achieving their local sustainability goals while contributing to the global SDGs. In recent years, empirical studies have identified CSPs as a strategy for achieving deep decarbonization, including at the local level. Furthermore, existing literature highlights a positive correlation between partnership structural features and sustainability progress (i.e., plan outcomes), particularly regarding climate action. However, the potential relationship between the size and design of local CSPs working on achieving net-zero climate plans remains understudied. Additionally, the documentation of best practices of partnerships allows for replication within similar contexts. Thus, this research identifies the similarities and differences in the structural features of small and large CSPs that contribute to mitigating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The research uses a qualitative cross-case comparison approach, involving two cases: one small CSP in the City of Markham (3 partners) and one large CSP in the City of Montreal (over 100 partners). The cases are focused on climate mitigation, involve the city, were in the implementation or completion phase, and were selected based on detailed selection criteria following recommendations from the Municipal Net-Zero Action-Research Partnership (NZAP). Data were collected from archival documents and interviews with partners and dedicated staff of the partnerships to get broader insights into the nuances of the partnerships. Analysis was done using a deductive analytical framework on partnership structures and outcomes, and an inductive analysis on partner and partnership’s perspectives about the implications of their structure on outcomes. The results show that to achieve community-wide action, a large CSP is needed, but to achieve a focused project, a small CSP is ideal. The design of the partnership’s decision-making, coordination, communication, multi-level integration, monitoring & reporting, financing, and partner engagement are all critical structural features to consider in ensuring the partnership can achieve its climate goals, regardless of size, but the size will influence the design. The findings of this research are significant for organizations focused on local climate mitigation, including private, public, and civil society organizations. The thesis contributes to future cities' research area by conducting an empirical investigation to advance the literature on the role of cross-sector partnerships in advancing the implementation of climate action plans in municipalities. The findings will also be useful to academic researchers focusing on net-zero climate action, climate change, sustainable economy, CSPs, and local climate action plans.
Deep Decarbonization in Cities: Greenhouse Gas Emissions Measurement, Monitoring, and Reporting
(University of Waterloo, 2023-04-18) Neveroff, Collin; Clarke, Amelia
Municipalities have a significant role in reducing global emissions to net-zero by 2050. Local climate action has immense potential for driving the required emissions reductions, but the practices involved in measuring, target setting, monitoring, and reporting progress remain inconsistent and understudied. As a first step in improving these processes in Canadian municipalities, this study aims to develop an understanding of the current and historical state of measurement, target setting, monitoring, and reporting in the local climate action processes of Canadian municipalities and uncover insights into the best practices associated with higher emissions reductions. Qualitative data was collected from existing reports and documents from the Partners for Climate Protection (PCP) Program, developed and managed by ICLEI Canada and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. Reports consisted of emission inventories, climate commitments, implementation updates, and other relevant documentation with information on measurement, target setting, monitoring, and reporting practices submitted as part of the PCP milestone review process. An evaluation framework was developed from the relevant literature on the topics and used to determine if the empirical results from Canadian municipalities validate or extend the literature on measurement, target setting, monitoring, and reporting. Through content analysis, this study contributed to several areas of the literature by validating previous findings and extending the literature to incorporate new findings on reporting levels, scope 3 emissions, and carbon sinks and storage. The results also extended the literature by identifying the involvement of council members and community-wide entities in monitoring procedures, the use of various reporting channels in sharing information, and the inclusion of monitoring procedure details in reporting, as additional key variables associated with high emissions reductions. These results will help inform the practices and strategies of municipal practitioners and provide information to government decision-makers to help identify policy opportunities. Finally, the evaluation framework from this study and the dataset developed in summarizing the empirical data can be used for triangulation, further analysis, or as a baseline comparison by future studies.
Deep decarbonization pathways, strategies, governance, actors and roadblocks in cities: Climate change mitigation perspectives from selected Sub-Saharan African Cities
(University of Waterloo, 2023-03-30) Akomolafe, Bayode; Clarke, Amelia
The complex and multidimensional effect of climate change, coupled with low socioeconomic development in sub-Saharan Africa, makes the region vulnerable to changing climate and threatens its inhabitants' survival, livelihood and health. Subnational actions have been widely acclaimed as an effective way to combat climate change due to their nearness to the epicenter of global warming – urban centers. This is because over 70% of global GHG emissions occur in urban areas. To reduce GHG emissions, local governments in sub-Saharan Africa have been developing and implementing climate action plans. This research aims to extend the understanding of global decarbonization dynamics by studying four major African megacities' climate plans and actions. This research compares the strategies and governance structures recommended for local climate mitigation action in academic and grey literature to those described in the deep decarbonization plans of leading local governments to identify innovative implementation strategies and governance approaches for urban deep decarbonization in developing nations. This presents a new perspective in the quest for decarbonization to reduce anthropogenic global warming through the exploration of the concepts and visions of deep decarbonization pathways and examining the strategies toward reducing GHG emission in “uncharted territories” - selected African cities. The research is based on the case study of pathways, strategies, governance mechanisms, and actors for deep decarbonization in four leading cities in sub-Sahara Africa using the qualitative research method. The four case cities are Accra (Ghana), Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), Lagos (Nigeria) and Nairobi (Kenya). The study’s methods included exploring the climate action plans of the case cities and reviewing data in the Climate Disclosure Protocol (CDP) and other city-specific deep decarbonization documents. Interviews were also conducted with the city officials involved in sustainability and climate change activities within the case cities. This was done mainly to get answers to gaps in document analysis and triangulate some of the empirical findings. The study also compared the emerged patterns from the case cities to typical cities in the global north to gain practical intricacies into the difference in climate change mitigation practices, governance and management across the divide. The contributions of this study to the body of literature on decarbonization frameworks are in seven major areas through the extension of literature to include the innovative approaches being deployed by cities in sub-Saharan Africa to mitigate Climate change. This study contributes new insight into the following areas: decarbonization of energy and waste management, increasing local carbon sinks, climate action coordination structure, vertical integration approaches, self-regulating governance mode, the role of traditional institutions and major barriers to decarbonization efforts at the city level. Given that it identifies emerging best practices, the study's findings can be helpful to practitioners pursuing local deep decarbonization and international organization working on deep decarbonization at the city level.
Impact of Youth Service Program Design on Youth Engagement, Communities and Organizations
(University of Waterloo, 2021-09-02) Spasevski, Aleksandra; Clarke, Amelia
Youth service and volunteerism support healthy development and financial prosperity for youth while providing solutions to community issues. Previous studies have highlighted that engaging youth in intergenerational collaboration is valuable for providing unique and innovative organizational solutions. Fostering intergenerational collaboration within organizations can lead to capacity building and increase the efficacy of their sustainability solutions. However, many organizations and programs overlook potential contributions that youth could provide in enhancing the overall impact on communities and the organizations themselves. Furthermore, there is little understanding on how to improve intergenerational collaboration in organizations that host youth service programs. The purpose of this study is to explore youth (15 - 30 years) participation within social and environmental service projects in Canada. More specifically, this thesis will answer the following questions: (1) how does youth service program design affect youth engagement in youth service programs, in the context of intergenerational collaboration; (2) what are impacts of youth engagement in youth service programs on secondary organizations and communities; (3) What factors improve the impact of youth engagement in youth service programs on communities? To explore these questions, a survey was created to evaluate established youth service programs. Organizations who host youth service programs and who participated in this study include Ocean Wise, Canadian Wildlife Federation and YMCA of Greater Toronto. Of the youth service program design strategies selected, youth who created meaningful projects, engaged in autonomy and youth empowerment significantly impacted the level of youth engagement. Other design strategies such as skill building, critical thinking, and mentorship did not show to have a significant relationship with youth engagement. Empirical evidence also suggests that youth participants may not be properly engaged within the youth service programs and thus won’t benefit from youth engagement and intergenerational collaboration. Finally, overall youth engagement did not have a significant impact on organizations and communities. Empirical evidence also suggested that youth service programs inherently have a positive impact on communities and organizations regardless of how engaged youth participants were. This thesis made contributions to the intergenerational theory, where further strategies were explored to support relationships. Additionally, it made contributions to the theory of knowledge sharing, where organizations play an important role in supporting youth and properly engaging in meaningful projects. Further research is needed in understanding how the relationship between youth participants and adults further influence the impact of youth service programs on communities and organizations.
Problematizing eurocentric sustainability within the context of business management and exploring the pluriversality of sustainability
(University of Waterloo, 2024-04-18) Patara, Saveena; Clarke, Amelia
Business is held responsible for much of the world’s unsustainability and despite over 50 years of sustainable development and corporate social responsibility (CSR) discourse and practice, the state of sustainability continues to deteriorate. This is because businesses within a capitalistic system tend to approach sustainability the same way they do business, bastioned by ideals of profit maximization and the commodification of nature. Additionally, sustainability discourse and practice are largely based on Western values, judgment, and epistemology, which determines the construction, framing, and understanding of sustainability problems and responses. This study refers to this as eurocentric sustainability whereby the mindset that created the problem, is the same mindset used to solve it. As such, there is an imperative to understand and pursue sustainability in pluralistic ways, which includes not only the perspectives of people who have traditionally been excluded from the discourse (plurality) but also approaches to knowledge and meaning beyond the limited parameters of Western epistemology and hermeneutics (pluriversality). Thus, the central aims of this dissertation are to problematize eurocentric sustainability and explore the pluriversality of sustainability through three separate but interconnected studies. The first study is a systematic literature review of eurocentrism and Just Sustainabilities (JS) within business management and the implications for sustainability and corporate social responsibility, by understanding what characterizations of eurocentrism and Just Sustainabilities are presented in business management literature. The findings suggest four key features of eurocentrism - the superiority of Western people, countries, ideas, knowledge, and values, which are expressed through the domination and oppression of people and nature, universalism, particularly of knowledge and culture, and modernity. These characteristics are also reflected in the broader eurocentrism scholarship and serve as the lens for this dissertation. JS is one approach for conducting plurality research that centers on sustainability injustices, largely created by the consequences of eurocentrism. The study illuminates the importance of problematizing eurocentrism within the sustainability discourse which continues to promote the superiority and universality of Western knowledge and epistemology that serves to exacerbate sustainability issues and maintain inequities. Next through an empirical inquiry using semi-structured interviews, the second study examines how the climate and sustainability discourses are perceived by owner-managers of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and what influence spirituality has on these understandings. Eight discourses emerged, each illuminating a distinct way of thinking and speaking about climate and sustainability. The four discourses of interdependency, social, longevity, and responsibility present a collectivist framing. Whereas the four discourses of superiority, power, paradoxical, and pessimism speak to perceptions of and reactions to eurocentric sustainability, which may be the cause of inaction by some participants. However, this inaction should not be mistaken as a lack of motivation, knowledge, or resources as it is more likely to do with not wanting to engage in eurocentric sustainability given the maladaptive outcomes it produces and/or their high costs. Further, many spoke of sustainability through ideas of totality, interdependency, equilibrium, and harmony; and that nature is intertwined with spirituality, which is also conveyed through themes of interdependency and equilibrium, revealing common threads between sustainability and spirituality. A key contribution of the second study is that it empirically demonstrates sustainability means different things to different people and also suggests that sustainability leaders and experts avoid viewing themselves as the only knowledge holders. The third study examines what motivates, supports, and limits participants in pursuing climate and environmental action using thematic analysis of the same dataset. The findings demonstrate that most respondents show deep concern for sustainability issues and see their role as minimizing environmental harm; often grounded by a culture of ‘no waste’. Outwardly, the biggest enablers and barriers are related to financial considerations. However, a deeper examination reveals that the inauthenticity of sustainability and CSR practices also creates cynicism and distrust, shaping attitudes and engagement in environmental action. This is a noteworthy finding as extant studies show the engagement of SMEs in environmental action is largely influenced by owner-managers’ values. This dissertation makes several scholarly, empirical, and practical contributions to sustainability management scholarship, including novel associations as a result of integrating data points from euroentrism, business management, SME, spirituality, and collectivism-individualism scholarship to create or strengthen relationships among these discourses through a problem-focused approach. As pluriversality studies are relatively nascent in most academic domains, this research also serves to trailblaze a path for empirical pluriversality studies examining sustainability in business management.
Waste Diversion and Reduction in a Green Office Building: A Social Practice Theory Lens
(University of Waterloo, 2023-09-13) Moges, Haimanot; Clarke, Amelia
A workplace, as an organisational setting, offers a suitable environment for reorienting employees’ daily routines toward the practice of environmental sustainability. This study addresses three central research questions: What discernible patterns exist in waste diversion and reduction practices over time within a workplace setting, both at the building-wide and tenant-specific levels? Does positive change in waste diversion practices within a workplace lead to a spillover effect, influencing employees' waste practices at home? How can shifts in waste diversion and reduction practices within a green office building be comprehensively conceptualized using the framework of social practice theory? Recognizing the importance of scale, this study employs a case study design to investigate the temporal evolution of waste diversion and reduction practices within a high-performance green building workplace context. By focusing on a specific case, the study examines how temporal shifts in these practices unfold, encompassing both tenant and building scales. Data collection methods encompass surveys to gather employee perspectives on waste diversion practices, waste assessments to analyse waste composition and generate quantitative insights, and daily monitoring of waste disposal activities to track and measure changes over time. Triangulating data from these sources ensures a comprehensive investigation. The findings reveal a positive trend in waste diversion practices at the building scale over time. At the tenant organizational scale, specific tenants exhibit significant improvements in both waste diversion and reduction practices, while others do not follow a similar positive trajectory. Moreover, this study underscores the workplace's role as a catalyst for sustainability beyond its boundaries. Positive changes in waste diversion practices at work can lead to a spillover effect, influencing employees to adopt similar practices at home. However, this effect is not immediate, with changes in home waste diversion practices showing a delayed response compared to the workplace. This research has significant implications for scholars and practitioners, emphasizing the importance of considering different scales, conducting temporal analyses, applying social practice theory, and recognizing the workplace as a catalyst for sustainability. Interdisciplinary collaboration and long-term impact assessments are essential for advancing sustainability practices within workplace environments. In summary, this study offers a comprehensive analysis of waste diversion and reduction practices in a workplace setting, shedding light on positive trends and variations across organizational scales. It underscores the workplace's potential to drive sustainability beyond its confines and provides valuable insights for scholars and practitioners seeking to promote environmental sustainability.
Youth Service Program Participants in Canada: Perceptions on Motivations for Volunteering, Level of Engagement, and Level of Impact
(University of Waterloo, 2022-06-17) Arora, Divya; Clarke, Amelia
Encouraging young people to be active in their communities and understanding of and responsive to the issues around them, especially through volunteer and service programs, allows these young people to be healthy and empowered citizens, while also generates positive social change for their community and the causes they advocate for. Given that youth volunteerism and youth service have such benefits, the sector has experienced a boost in activities that seek to meaningfully engage youth and create impact. Likewise, research has also adapted to provide a stream of current, science-based strategies, opportunities, and reflections to the program designers, funders, policymakers, etc., who guide the sector. However, young people and their experiences are still comparably excluded from the discourse. This thesis seeks to amplify the youth perspective by focusing on their motivations, interactions with program design qualities, and self-perceived impact. These objectives are explored through the following research questions: (1) why are young people in Canada participating in youth service programs; (2) what characteristics of the youth service programs are reflective of the young people’s personal motivations to apply; (3) how is the affinity between reasons for service and chosen programs significant for the young participants’ self-assessment of impact across different levels; and, (4) are there any patterns between personal motivations and program qualities? Youth perspectives were explored via responses to a survey and interview obtained from participants of current youth service programs in Canada after they had completed their respective program. The research methodology and partners, namely Canadian Wildlife Federation, Ocean Wise, and YMCA Canada, who administered the six youth service programs that were studied in this thesis, were adopted from the University of Waterloo’s Youth and Innovation Project. A total of 11 motivations to volunteer are discussed, with ‘advance personally and/or professionally’ and ‘engage in social connections’ identified as the top two motivations within this dataset. Out of the 10 literature-based program design components, ‘high degree of youth involvement’ is found to be the prominent across the six service programs. Using a four-pronged scale to measure impact across four levels, i.e., on the volunteer, on the organization, on the community, and on the issue, ‘extremely positive’ and ‘somewhat positive’ are the most applicable ratings on the community level and individual and issue level, respectively. This thesis reimagines several existing concepts within the literature of youth volunteerism by bringing together motivations, program design, and impact in one study, synthesizing primary, secondary, and inductive motivations, and using a simplistic rating system to examine impact. While the main objective of this thesis is to highlight youth experience in the discussion, this study also aims to meet several literary and practical gaps by generating ideas for future areas of studies and a set of recommendations for providers of service programs.

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Browsing Environment, Enterprise and Development by Author "Clarke, Amelia"