Introduction to the Special Issue on the Role of Place in Sustainability: Key Trends and Agenda for Future Research

Abstract

This editorial reviews key themes, trends, and assumptions of organizational research on place and sustainability and introduces the special issue on the “Role of Place in Sustainability.” While recent theorizing has often emphasized global issues such as grand challenges, planetary boundaries, and climate change, this special issue revisits the local by focusing on the role of place in sustainability. We discuss trends and subdomains of research on place and sustainability and identify key assumptions at the interplay between global and local perspectives. Instead of advocating for universal solutions or exclusively context-specific approaches, we highlight the concept of “senses of place,” emphasizing the connections among diverse notions of place and intrinsic links to these locations. We demonstrate how the four insightful articles featured in this special issue provide a broader dialogue on place and sustainability. Finally, we outline a research agenda that identifies underexplored themes in place-based sustainability studies.