Bold ambition, blunted agency? Examining top management perspectives on a circular economy transition in Finland

The circular economy is proposed as a company-driven means to further sustainability transitions. Top managers have a critical role in fostering the circular economy as they are responsible for shaping and implementing a company's sustainability strategy and performance. In this paper, we adopt a microfoundations perspective to enhance our understanding of the influence of top managers as agents of the sustainability transition to the circular economy. In a qualitative research study, we interviewed 34 top managers of Finnish companies that are actively pursuing the circular economy. The main implication of our study is in exploring the role of top managers, as they engage in actively structuring a new, circular regime. To this end, our paper provides salient insights into the prevailing debate on the structure-agency question in the sustainability transitions literature. We find that power is a key characteristic of how top managers exercise their agency. Our findings imply that while top managers are perceived as the most powerful members of a company, their agency is often limited by structural constraints on multiple levels within their companies, in the industry, and in the broader regime. Furthermore, we find that top managers' power and agency towards the transition is heavily dependent on their abilities to secure business profitability. </p

Framing sustainable lifestyles : organic consumption in a women's magazine

Forms of sustainable lifestyles and more responsible ways to consume have become more popular in recent years. This is reflected also in that mainstream media discusses about sustainability. Similarly, there is a growing interest on organic produce, the organic market has grown steadily from the turn of the century. Due to the growing popularity of sustainability, the way media communicates about the issue, is of interest. This thesis studied how women’s magazines communicate about sustainable lifestyles, and sustainability in general. Especially, how the use of organic goods is reasoned and presented in a magazine is studied. The aim of the thesis was to uncover the frames, which the magazine used to communicate their view on organics. The study was conducted as a qualitative document analysis with a longitudinal approach. The theoretical framework was built on the concepts of sustainable lifestyle and analysed by the frame analysis method. Particularly, the frame devices presented by Robert Entman were utilised in analysing the data. Research data was derived from a Finnish women’s magazine MeNaiset. The data presented a mainstream media outlet, reflecting the views of the Finnish society. The results suggest that organics are associated with health, ethics, trends and presented also as options. The findings support a common view that women’s magazines mostly focus on promoting sustainable lifestyles by means of green consumerism. Their motives rise from the need to support the current status quo i.e. society’s support of consumer culture. This study contributes to the knowledge that currently women’s magazines tend to maintain the status quo and fail to communicate sustainability in a way, which would be more sustainable in long term

Sairaanhoitaja transsukupuolisen henkilön sukupuoli-identiteettiä tukevan hoidon toteuttajana

Opinnäytetyössä selvitettiin sairaanhoitajan näkökulmasta transsukupuolisten henkilöiden sukupuoli-identiteettiä tukevaa hoitotyötä. Opinnäytetyötä voidaan hyödyntää perehdytettäessä sairaanhoitajia transsukupuolisten henkilöiden hoidosta ja tuettaessa transsukupuolisten henkilöiden sukupuoli-identiteettiä terveydenhuollossa. Opinnäytetyössä kerrotaan, miten sairaanhoitaja tukee transsukupuolista henkilöä hänenä itsenään terveydenhuollossa. Opinnäytetyö toteutettiin kuvailevana kirjallisuuskatsauksena. Eri tietokannoista tehdyillä hauilla löydettiin tieteellisiä kansainvälisiä aineistoja. Suomalaisia aineistoja löydettiin manuaalisia hakuja tekemällä. Löydetyistä aineistoista saatiin hyvin tietoa opinnäytetyöhön. Sairaanhoitajilla on puutteelliset valmiudet hoitaa ja kohdata transsukupuolisia potilaita. Koulutuksen aikana sairaanhoitajat ovat saaneet vain vähän tai eivät ollenkaan opetusta transsukupuolisten potilaiden hoidosta. Transsukupuoliset henkilöt kokevat usein syrjintää terveydenhuollossa, mikä on johtanut siihen, etteivät he välttämättä uskalla hakeutua terveydenhuollon palveluiden piiriin. Transsukupuolisten henkilöiden hoidon huono laatu voi johtaa moniin erilaisiin terveysongelmiin. Sairaanhoitajien valmiuksia transsukupuolisten henkilöiden hoitoon tulee parantaa koulutuksen avulla, jotta voidaan vähentää transsukupuolisten henkilöiden kokemia huonoja kokemuksia terveydenhuollossa. Sekä lisätä transsukupuolisten potilaiden luottoa terveydenhuoltoa kohtaan.The purpose of this thesis was to gather information about gender-affirming healthcare for transgender individuals from a nurse’s perspective. The aim was that the thesis could be used as a study or educational material. This thesis was done as a descriptive literature review where the materials were gathered from different scientific databases. These databases included PubMed, ProQuest, Medline and CINAHL. In addition to these databases manual searches were made. The results frequently indicate that nurses are poorly equipped to treat and encounter transgender patients. Nurses receive inadequate training during school about the specific medical needs of transgender patients. Transgender individuals frequently experience discrimination in healthcare settings and because of that they might not even dare to apply for healthcare services. In conclusion, it can be stated that the preparation of nurses when caring for transgender patients should be improved in order to reduce the transgender people’s negative experiences in healthcare. Transgender patients have such unique healthcare needs that they should be added to the nursing curriculum

A systematic literature review of the transition to the circular economy in business organizations : Obstacles, catalysts and ambivalences

There is a need for a transition from unsustainable linear business models to a more sustainable circular approach, called the circular economy. To promote this need, a deeper understanding of which issues hinder organizations’ transition to the circular economy and which ones catalyse it is needed. A systematic literature review was performed on the business implementation of the circular economy and 69 articles covering the topic were found. The review identifies different types of catalyst, obstacles and ambivalent factors influencing circular economy implementation in business. This study contributes to research on circular economy implementation at business organizations by providing understanding on the role of these factors in supporting or hindering the change. This study also opens discussion on ambivalent factors that in certain contexts can act as a catalyst to and in others as a hindrance to circular economy. This understanding further enables identification of the origins of these different types of factors, especially concerning their intraorganizational or interorganizational role. The study further identifies gaps to be studied in future research.peerReviewe

Organisational Drivers and Challenges in Circular Economy Implementation : An Issue Life Cycle Approach

Business is a significant cause of various global sustainability challenges addressed by the Circular Economy (CE), making companies instrumental in the transition from a linear economic model to a circular one. While drivers and challenges in corporate CE implementation have been researched on an organisational level, a more detailed understanding is needed regarding their contextual nature and interplay with the evolution of CE implementation in a company. Utilising issue life cycle theory, this study contributes to the literature on CE implementation in business by displaying differences in corporate CE implementation drivers and challenges, relating to the time since starting, and the degree of corporate CE implementation. Moreover, it makes a significant contribution to issue life cycle theory by demonstrating how drivers and challenges can shape the progression of a corporate response to an issue. This understanding is crucial in identifying the right support mechanisms for companies in different phases of CE implementation.peerReviewe

Meaningfulness, satisfaction, and frustration: The importance of emotions for sustainability change agency

Changes in business strategies are necessary to increase sustainability within business organisations, and change agents are key to bringing about and shaping change. Sustainability change agency involves constant reflection on change agents’ roles in complex contexts, a process that arouses emotions for those agents. In this study, we assume a contextual view of change to understand how sustainability change agency develops during change processes and the role of emotions in agency behind strategic changes, such as the implementation of a circular economy. The study is based on interviews with 51 circular economy professionals in Finnish business organisations. By analysing key events and emotions in sustainability change agent (SCA) work, the study contributes to the existing research by showing that initiating and managing sustainability strategies consists of multiple unplanned and unexpected emotional events and experiences. These events and experiences shape SCA’s ability and motivation to act for change, leading to continual individual-level reflection by SCAs, manifesting as ideological, reassuring, and fragmenting processes within the larger change process. Such reflection maintains, paralyses, enforces, or reshapes their agency, depending on the context

Transitioning to the circular economy : Shifting from a technical to a cultural perspective

This chapter adopts a cultural perspective to the circular economy (CE) by exploring the role of cultural factors in the CE transitions. We consider the concept of culture to be a key factor affecting the shift to the CE. However, culture is a multidimensional concept and takes on different meanings depending on the context. In this chapter, cultural perspective refers to human interactions in a society. Based on 68 interviews, we reach three conclusions. First, a change in values in general towards the CE is necessary. Second, the change in attitude seems to be emerging slowly; therefore, raising awareness about the CE is a key priority for stakeholders who need more information to enable their culture’s movement toward the CE. Finally, cooperation and solidarity are key success factors in the shift to the CE. Our book chapter contributes to understandings of the cultural aspects of the CE by identifying the individual decision maker’s role; however, it is vital to keep in mind that these individuals are operating within a complex policy environment and that the CE transitions require the inclusion of wider groups of actors than is acknowledged in the current, rather polarised CE transition.peerReviewe

Consumption and planetary well-being

This chapter considers sustainable marketing and consumption from the perspective of planetary well-being (PW). While marketing is commonly associated with unsustainability, sustainable marketing can create, communicate, and deliver value to consumers in ways that ensure and restore the urgent needs of nature. Sustainable consumption at the acceptable threshold of disturbance on needs satisfaction globally requires critical reflection on the current norms and practices alongside thoughtful solutions for guiding action. The firstpart of the chapter presents the problematization of marketing and consumption against sustainability from the PW angle. It critically discusses the drivers of and barriers to sustainable consumption from the corporate and consumer perspectives. The secondpart presents sustainable-consumption solutions that respect nonhuman needs. We address the question of how marketing and consumption can be transformed so that they can promote PW while providing goods and services to humans. Circular economy, sustainable consumption, consumer information, and digitalized consumption, including the use of artificial intelligence, are cited as intriguing consumption solutions with respect to nonhuman-system needs. The potential of these solutions to influence PW varies as they imply different degrees of change in practices and behaviours. The chapter concludes with an overview of practical solutions to sustainable consumption for PW.peerReviewe

Toward a typology of circular economy agency

Agency, in its many forms, is identified as a critical factor enabling sustainability transitions. All the while, the role of agency vis-à-vis the CE transition remains poorly recognised. This chapter explores the agency of individuals and organisations driving the circular transition. The research approach used in this chapter is abductive, building upon the interdisciplinary research team's theoretical and empirical insights in the study of CE agency in 2015–2022. This chapter 1) introduces the concept of CE agency and 2) develops a typology of CE actors and their active and relational agency at the individual, organisational, and inter-organisational levels of analysis. Theoretically, this chapter finds that the struggles experienced by active CE actors are embedded in an ongoing negotiation between agency and the surrounding structures; and therefore, views circular transitions as structuration processes amid an ongoing tension between agency and structure. Where agency is active and relational, it bears the potential to shift prevailing linear-economy-biased structures toward circularity. In closing, the researchers argue that all actors have the potential to become CE catalysts, depending on the extent to which they recognise and exercise their CE agency.Peer reviewe

Planetary well-being and sustainable business : A work in progress

Businesses have a significant impact on global environmental and social sustainability. To address the related issues, the concept of sustainable business has been introduced, which refers to the practices that businesses can adopt to minimize their negative economic, environmental, and social impacts. This chapter presents a critical analysis of selected sustainable business concepts and practices using planetary well-being as a conceptual framework. In terms of conceptual approaches, the chapter discusses circular economy (circulation of resources without creating waste), degrowth (shrinking of production and consumption to respect planetary boundaries), and sustainability transition (radical changes in production and consumption). Regarding practical approaches, this chapter focuses on sustainable business models (how companies are organized to promote sustainability) and on the role of employees as change agents. The findings suggest that these concepts and practices have several shortcomings from the point of view of planetary well-being, as they are based on the logic of economic growth. The conclusion is that sustainable business requires radically different approaches and new ways of thinking to promote planetary well-being. However, this chapter has an optimistic view that the application of a planetary well-being perspective can provide valuable avenues for an environmentally and socially responsible future for sustainable business.peerReviewe