Green Economy Indicators

The chapter is an attempt to answer the question: how is the actual green economy implementation process underway to be measured? The answers were given firstly by the international organizations OECD, UNEP, Word Bank, Global Green Growth Institute, as well as the consulting company Dual Citizen. Also the author of this chapter proposed the Green Economy Index. There is a growing awareness concerning the need for international unification of the indicators used to measure a green economy. Existing indicators represented slightly different approaches and methodologies, based on their own definitions of the subject to be measured. The topic of green economy indicators is going to grow in importance in upcoming years. This will be connected with locating a green economy at the centre of regional and national development strategies.Wydanie współfinansowane ze środków Miasta Łodzi w ramach zadania “Współpraca z wyższymi uczelniami” – umowa 100/03/201

Sustainability transition needs sustainable finance

Transition is a term used to describe conversion (evolution) from the existing model of economy and finance towards one based on increased social and environmental responsibility. The purpose of this study is to emphasise the role of sustainable finance in the sustainability transition process. The main thesis can be expressed as follows: the role of finance is changing from the dominant view rooted in neoclassical economic theory (to maximize profits, and shareholder wealth) towards one supporting sustainable development, green economy, low carbon economy also adaptation and mitigation of climate change. The article uses the multilevel perspective created by F.W. Geels effective in the analysis of the sustainability transition. Results of analysis: There is evidence that the old regime of finance destabilizes. Finances are slowly responding to new demand in sustainable economy to align with it.</p

INVESTORSʼ REACTIONS FOR SUSTAINABILITY INDEX INCLUSION – IS CSR A GOOD NEWS?

This article presents the problem of measuring the impact of information disclosure aboutCSR activities on stock performance. The research was performed on two indexes which representPan-European capital market and local Central and Eastern European capital market. Differentmarket characteristics could limit the application of results presented in numerous studiesperformed on well-established markets. The information with relatively strong signal for investoris the inclusion to CSR index. In order to measure the investors’ reaction the event study analysiswas performed. It was proved that the short–term reaction was very similar on each market. Thereaction to announcement of CSR index inclusion was slightly negative, but this effect was offsetby the opposite reaction in the day of inclusion. The total reaction in the seven days event windowwas close to zero. However, the long-term reaction measured in 30 trading days window wasnegative for two markets, but the local market investors show more discontent

Role of banks in sustainable and digital transition

The purpose of this study is to identify how the sustainability and digital transition influence banks. The main thesis can be expressed as follows: sustainability transition and digital transition are changing the role and function of banks, especially the products and services offered by banks. Banks are one of main actors of a broader, multi-level governance designed to support the transition to smart, efficient and low carbon economy. The framework’s structure is based upon the multi-level perspective on socio-technical transitions created by F.W. Geels. The first section of this paper presents the most popular approaches to the problem at hand, as reported in professional literature. Section two presents characteristics of the various actors involved in the anticipated transformation of the economy. The third section discusses the changing roles and frameworks of banks associated with the notion of the broader concept of sustainability and digitalization

The Environmental Responsibility of the World’s Largest Banks

Sustainability transition is changing the role and function of banks, specially their products and services also in relation to stakeholders. Banks are one of the main actors supporting the transition to sustainable economy. The purpose of this study is to emphasise the role of world’s largest banks in that process. Banks are slowly responding to the new demand of sustainability and responsibility, and they try to align with it. The paper is based on an overview of the world’s five largest banks that employ corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting standards, together with detailed enumeration of pro-environmental activities included in the reports. The first section of this paper presents the most popular approaches to the problem at hand, as reported in professional literature. Section two presents the characteristics of the CSR actions in banks. The third section discusses the environmental actions of the biggest banks in Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) reporting the most popular standard for reporting non-financial information. And the last part of the paper presents the conclusions resulting from the article. The research was conducted using a variety of sources, such as scientific articles, statistical data, CSR reports of the world’s largest banks, as well reporting principles and standard disclosures. The basic method used in the process of writing was a critical analysis of literature and reports concerning the CSR reporting standards, environmental responsibilities of different kinds of entities, as well as own observations based on special reports of banks. In the article, also the analysis of financial market data, induction method and comparison method have been used. The main conclusions of the analysis of the CSR reports disclosed by the world’s largest banks confirm all three of the theses presented in the article. The findings suggest that the banks under study can be regarded as environmentally responsible entities. Their reports and disclosures are produced according to the internationally recognized standards. There are also critical opinions about the standards for reporting environmental information, but the weaknesses of reporting these aspects do not undermine the benefits of using the GRI guidelines

The Power of Co-Creation in the Energy Transition—DART Model in Citizen Energy Communities Projects

Successful energy transformation is interconnected with greater citizenry participation as prosumers. The search for novel solutions to implement the transition to renewable energy that will neutralize the barriers to this process, e.g., the reluctance of citizens to get involved, lack of trust in decision-makers and lack of co-ownership of energy projects, is inevitable as a part of the bottom-up process. Energy communities have vast potential to scale up Renewable Energy projects. Due to the fact that in Poland, establishing citizen energy communities in the cities is not allowed, the key success factor of energy transformation is to engage housing cooperatives and other housing communities in this process. A similar legal framework prevents communities from establishing themselves in the Czech Republic and Hungary. The research problem of this paper is to identify determinants of the co-creation process in Renewable Energy project activation at the housing cooperative level. The aim is to identify key conditions that housing cooperatives should establish in order to successfully undertake Renewable Energy project implementation using a co-creation approach. The literature study shows that the term “co-creation” is not often used in energy transition projects, although many local energy transitions are indeed co-created, unfortunately not in a structured methodical manner. In the research, we apply the DART (Dialogue, Access, Risk, Transparency) model as the framework to conduct the analysis. The study has been carried out using quantitative and qualitative research methods and based on primary and secondary data. Our findings indicate that considering the different areas of the DART model, co-creation was most visible in the area of dialogue-communication between cooperative authorities and its members, while it was least visible in the area of transparency. Based on the results pertaining to the implemented project, the researchers postulate the inclusion of factors beyond the DART model that further shape the co-creation process

INVESTORSʼ REACTIONS FOR SUSTAINABILITY INDEX INCLUSION – IS CSR A GOOD NEWS?

This article presents the problem of measuring the impact of information disclosure aboutCSR activities on stock performance. The research was performed on two indexes which representPan-European capital market and local Central and Eastern European capital market. Differentmarket characteristics could limit the application of results presented in numerous studiesperformed on well-established markets. The information with relatively strong signal for investoris the inclusion to CSR index. In order to measure the investors’ reaction the event study analysiswas performed. It was proved that the short–term reaction was very similar on each market. Thereaction to announcement of CSR index inclusion was slightly negative, but this effect was offsetby the opposite reaction in the day of inclusion. The total reaction in the seven days event windowwas close to zero. However, the long-term reaction measured in 30 trading days window wasnegative for two markets, but the local market investors show more discontent

An interdisciplinary understanding of energy citizenship: Integrating psychological, legal, and economic perspectives on a citizen-centred sustainable energy transition

Energy citizenship is an emerging concept in policy and practice. Yet scientific theorising around energy citizenship is scarce, and rarely bundled in interdisciplinary discourse. In this article, we present an interdisciplinary definition of energy citizenship as people's rights to and responsibilities for a just and sustainable energy transition. Energy citizenship contains multiple aspects and allows for various approaches, of which we zoom into psychological, legal, and economic perspectives on the topic. From a psychological perspective, we construct an empirically testable sub-definition of energy citizenship based on previous psychological theorising. A legal perspective shows, exemplarily for the EU context, that energy citizenship qualifies as an EU citizenship because it consists of a bundle of rights and duties of the individual in the context of a committed, just and sustainable energy transition. An economic perspective reveals how energy citizenship already takes shape in current EU directives, and how this implies a new – more collectivist – economic model. Drawing on the three perspectives, we then sketch energy citizenship as an interdisciplinary research field. As a conclusion, we present a transdisciplinary definition of energy citizenship that is suitable for policy makers, energy communities and citizens, as it explicates a co-responsible process of people and governments