Accounting and sustainable development: Reflections and propositions

Abstract

This paper emerges from an invitation to reflect upon the achievements of social and environmental accounting as well as to identify the challenges that lie ahead as the field continues its engagement with the goal of sustainable development. Three perspectives are developed in pursuit of that aim, namely: exploring the nature of the issues and mode of academic inquiry that is 'fit for purpose' given the demands of sustainable development; considering if a de-centring of accounting and the embrace of more holistic versions of accountability would be productive for future scholarship;and an exploration of how we might conceptualise 'engagement' with practice in this context (and what is meant by practice and practitioner). Taken together, this paper seeks to provide points of provocation and encouragement to social and environmental accountants, critical accounting scholars and to those seeking to understand sustainable development scholarship and action.

Against Food Waste: CSR for the Social and Environmental Impact through a Network-Based Organizational Model

“…United Nations underline the importance to broad the stakeholder's spectrum involved in SDGs projects considering the implementation of new partnerships at a local, national, and international level (SDG 17). This is a pivotal aspect embedding also the academic audiences [32].…”

Environmental Management Accounting: The Missing Link to Sustainability?

“…A separate thread of the literature has focused on 'accounting for sustainability' (Bebbington 1997;Bebbington 2009), and now advocates for 'accounting for sustainable development' (Bebbington and Larrinaga 2014;Bebbington, Russell, and Thomson 2017). However, those two literatures have rarely crossed and we still do not fully understand the potential contribution of environmental management accounting (EMA) to a transition towards sustainability.…”

Una mirada a la contabilidad ambiental. Postulados y retos

“…Desde comienzos de siglo XXI se ha hecho especial énfasis en que la contabilidad ambiental debería estar enfocada en el desarrollo sostenible y en la dificultad que existe para evaluar los diferentes tipos de información ambiental, y es por esto, que se destaca la necesidad de una comunicación efectiva (Bennett, et al, 2000). A lo que Bebbington, Russell y Thomson (2017) afirman que las posibilidades de investigación en esta área son infinitas por lo que es de prioridad identificar las interrelaciones que existe entre el desarrollo sostenible y la disciplina con el fin de establecer los vínculos, roles y efectos.…”