Sustainable development activities in chemical companies in Poland : links between SDGs and ESG

Purpose: The main aim of the article is to explore sustainable development activities undertaken by the chemical companies in Poland. Three research objectives were established: (1) identification of key Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for chemical companies, (2) identification of activities related to each of the three ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) elements in chemical companies, and (3) linking specific SDGs and ESG elements in the case of the chemical industry. Design/methodology/approach: To achieve the aim of the article, the content analysis was used. Documents of chemical companies regarding sustainable development were analyzed, i.e. strategies, policies and reports. Findings: Firstly, the analysis of strategies and policies allowed to identify 13 key SDGs for the Polish chemical companies. Secondly, analysis of the reports, allowed the discovery of numerous activities of the chemical companies in the environmental, social and governance areas. Finally, the links between specific SDGs and ESG elements in the chemical sector were presented. Practical implications: The paper contributes to the better understanding of the chemical companies’ sustainable development activities. In terms of practical implications, the results could guide chemical companies in the development of their ESG strategies. Originality/value: The review of the literature has shown that problems such as SDGs and ESG in the context of the chemical industry have rarely been addressed so far. The links between SDGs and ESG in the chemical industry have also not been studied. To the best knowledge of the author, this is one of the first known studies to investigate the SDGs and ESG issues in chemical companies in Poland. The article is intended for researchers and practitioners interested in the sustainable development issues

Internal quality assurance systems in Polish higher education institutions in the light of the ESG 2015

W artykule omówiono standardy i wskazówki dotyczące zapewniania jakości w Europejskim Obszarze Szkolnictwa Wyższego (ESG 2015) w kontekście poprzedniej wersji dokumentu ESG. Ponadto przedstawiono stan adaptacji ESG w polskich uczelniach, oceniony jako dobry, oraz zwrócono uwagę na problemy wynikające z wdrażania ESG. Problemy te mogą się stać wyzwaniem dla uczelni w dostosowaniu się do zapisów dokumentu ESG 2015.The article discusses the Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area (ESG 2015) in the context of the previous ESG and explores the status of adaptation of the ESG by the Polish higher education institutions. This status of adaptation is rather good, however there are still some problems with its implementation, presented in the article. These problems might become great challenges for HEIs in adapting of the ESG 2015

Crowdfunding projects of the academic community

The goals of the paper are: (1) to examine to what extent is the academic community involved in creating their own or supporting other crowdfunding projects and (2) indicate the types of educational or scientific projects that are the most suitable for crowdfunding financing. The diagnostic survey method was applied. Questionnaires were completed by 314 full-time students and 34 academic teachers of the Institute of Economics, Finance and Management, of the Faculty of Management and Social Communication, at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow. It can be assumed that the academic community is hardly involved at all in creating their own or slightly involved in supporting others’ crowdfunding projects. The most proper for crowdfunding financing types of the projects are: (1) for the entire academic community: educational event and setting up and equipping the student area, (2) for students: learning foreign languages and purchase of materials for the study process, (3) for academic teachers: conducting an experiment and book publication

The use of crowdfunding in higher education

W opracowaniu przedstawiono platformy crowdfundingowe przeznaczone dla instytucji szkol nictwa wyższego. Zaprezentowano przykłady projektów zgłaszanych przez przedstawicieli środowisk akademickich. Opisano także obszary zastosowania crowdfundingu w szkolnictwie wyższym.The paper presents crowdfunding platforms dedicated to higher education institutions. Examples of projects submitted by academics are presented. The areas of application of crowdfunding in higher education are described

Dynamics of internationalization of Polish universities

The aim of the article is to present the issue of the dynamics of internationalization of Polish universities. Several indicators used in the internationalization measurement processes were selected for conducting comparative analysis (i.e. the number of foreign students and the number of students leaving and coming to Poland as part of the Erasmus program). Data for academic years 2009/2010 and 2014/2015 were analyzed. The conducted research allowed the conclusion that in the analyzed periods the development of internationalization in universities occurred

Elements of quality management of internationalization in higher education

The aim of the article is to present the possibilities of using quality management elements in the internationalization process carried out in higher education institutions. The process of the argumentation begins with defining what is the management of the quality of internationalization in higher education. Next, the quality management elements are described. The article ends with the conclusion that planning the quality of internationalization is a quality management element that occurs in selected Polish HEIs

Problems of quality culture assessment in higher education

Quality culture refers to an organisational culture that intends to enhance quality. It should be seen not as a set of procedures, but as a context in which efforts are aimed to achieve broadly understood improvement of the organization. Quality culture contains a cultural/psychological element and a structural/managerial part, which are described in this article. The purpose of the paper is to create a better understanding of quality culture in higher education, as well as to characterize the procedure of assessing quality culture and its elements. The article presents the concept of quality culture that grows out of the issues of organizational culture and quality management. It contains the definition of quality culture in higher education and the description of selected methods and instruments used for assessment of: organizational culture, quality management systems, and quality culture