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Social Responsibility, Education and Managerial Strategies for Sustainable Development

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Economic and Business Aspects of Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 1995

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Economics and Business, University of Oradea, 410087 Oradea, Romania
Interests: CSR; sustainable business; sustainability; innovation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Economics and Business, University of Oradea, Oradea, Romania
Interests: CSR; community engagement; project management

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

CSR (corporate social responsibility), strategic management, and sustainable development are crucial for modern businesses. CSR involves incorporating social and environmental concerns into business operations and fostering positive stakeholder relationships. Strategic management aligns these efforts with core business goals, creating sustainable competitive advantages. Integrating CSR with strategic management ensures that social and environmental efforts align with core business objectives, creating sustainable competitive advantages. Meanwhile, sustainable development ensures long-term growth by balancing economic, environmental, and social needs, and finally, education enhances knowledge and skills, empowering employees and communities. Together, these qualities and associated strategies enable businesses to grow responsibly, balancing profit with social good and environmental stewardship, ensuring resilience and long-term success.

When combined, CSR, strategic management, sustainable development, and education form a comprehensive framework for responsible business growth. These qualities and associated strategies enable businesses to strike a balance between profitability, social good, and environmental stewardship. By embracing this holistic approach, companies can ensure their resilience and long-term success in an increasingly interconnected and complex world.

This Special Issue aims to delve into the intricate relationship between CSR, managerial practices, and the promotion of sustainability in both business and everyday life. It seeks to explore the various ways in which businesses can integrate these principles to drive positive change, foster innovation, and contribute to a more sustainable and equitable future. Through insightful research and case studies, this Special Issue will shed light on the best practices and emerging trends that can guide businesses in their journey towards responsible growth and sustainability.

Prof. Dr. Daniel Badulescu
Dr. Tomina Saveanu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • corporate social responsibility
  • business strategies
  • managerial strategies
  • sustainable development
  • SDGs
  • ESG
  • green economy
  • sustainable business
  • education for sustainability
  • CSR and education

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

27 pages, 724 KiB  
Article
The Impact of Skills, Competences, Knowledge and Personal Traits Acquired by Students on Standard of Living and Job Satisfaction: The Situation of Graduates of Physical Education and Sports Faculties in Romania
by Daniel Lovin and Cătălin Vasile Savu
Sustainability 2025, 17(10), 4598; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17104598 - 17 May 2025
Viewed by 536
Abstract
The development of students’ skills, abilities, competences and knowledge is the basis for sustainable socio-economic development. Today we live in a world that is in continuous change, both economically and socially, which also determines a change in the requirements on the labor market [...] Read more.
The development of students’ skills, abilities, competences and knowledge is the basis for sustainable socio-economic development. Today we live in a world that is in continuous change, both economically and socially, which also determines a change in the requirements on the labor market and therefore graduates and higher education institutions must continuously adapt to these changes. Thus, higher education institutions must adapt their teaching strategies and educational offer, while students must develop new skills and competences. The main purpose of this article is to analyze the extent to which the information, skills, attitudes and competences acquired by graduates of physical education and sports faculties during their years of study influence their standard of living, job satisfaction and confidence. To achieve this objective, we asked the following research questions: 1. To what extent do the information, skills, abilities and competences acquired by students during their years of study influence their income level, standard of living, job satisfaction and level of confidence in the workplace? 2. What is the self-perception of students regarding the information, skills, abilities and knowledge that students possess? 3. What is the perception of employers regarding the information, skills, abilities and knowledge that students possess? 4. To what extent are there differences between students’ self-perception and employers’ perception regarding the information, skills, abilities and knowledge that students possess? Thus, data were collected through two questionnaires, one distributed among 333 graduates from physical education and sports faculties in Romania and one to 11 employers working in the sports industry in Romania. The data obtained from the students were analyzed using SPSS 24, and it was found that there is a small correlation between the information, skills, competences and knowledge acquired during the years of study and the standard of living, job satisfaction and the confidence in one’s own ability to successfully perform tasks at work. Among the skills, abilities and aptitudes that students consider themselves to excel in are a passion for sports, the continuous desire for improvement, conscientiousness, teamwork, openness to new things and respect for hierarchies and regulations. At the opposite end, graduates consider that they need to improve their public speaking skills, management skills, their ability to communicate in a foreign language, their ability to sell themselves and their ability to manage a project. Full article
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24 pages, 2702 KiB  
Article
Empirical Analysis of the Impact of the Green Economy on the Spatial Diversity of Entrepreneurship at the Poviats Level in Poland: Preliminary Study
by Grzegorz Drozdowski, Paweł Dziekański, Andrzej Pawlik and Izabella Kęsy
Sustainability 2025, 17(10), 4309; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17104309 - 9 May 2025
Viewed by 439
Abstract
Sustainable development combines economic, social, and environmental aspects in pursuit of long-term stability and prosperity. Entrepreneurship plays a key role in achieving these goals, and the green economy is becoming an important part of the transformation into a more sustainable future. Companies that [...] Read more.
Sustainable development combines economic, social, and environmental aspects in pursuit of long-term stability and prosperity. Entrepreneurship plays a key role in achieving these goals, and the green economy is becoming an important part of the transformation into a more sustainable future. Companies that apply the principles of the green economy contribute to regional development and better use of territorial capital. In the process of development, the regional economy faces growing local needs, changes in the quality of life and climate, and shrinking natural resources. The answer to the problems of the region can be a green economy and entrepreneurship. This article aims to analyze and assess the spatial variation of pre-entrepreneurship in poviats in Poland in the context of the green economy. The study aims to understand how different local factors influence the development of pre-entrepreneurship in the conditions of green transformation. In addition, the paper will attempt to identify spatial disparities in the implementation of green economy initiatives. The CRITIC-TOPSIS method was used to construct the synthetic measure. The results of the analysis are presented for the years 2010, 2013, 2014, and 2021. The measure of synthetic entrepreneurship ranged from 0.24 to 0.48 in 2010 and 0.24 to 0.52 in 2021, the measure of the green economy: 0.35–0.54 and 0.34–0.57. Individual elements of the territorial capital ofthepoviats determine their ability to function. Natural resources are important factors in the process of development and the transition toward a green economy. They affect the standard of living, the social situation, public safety, and the quality of the environment. Supporting less developed regions in entrepreneurship and the green economy through dedicated infrastructure and innovation programmes should be a key action. Local governments should promote investment in green technologies and sustainable infrastructure to reduce disparities between regions. Full article
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30 pages, 1552 KiB  
Article
Management Motivation, Ethical Responsibility or Social Pressure: How Top Managers Improve Green Behaviors Through Behavioral Strategic Control?
by Chenhao Gong and Alina Badulescu
Sustainability 2025, 17(7), 3111; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17073111 - 1 Apr 2025
Viewed by 729
Abstract
Improving green behaviors has become an essential strategy for organizations due to its significant impact on organizational reputation, competitiveness, and performance. However, there is still a lack of understanding of how managers perceive green innovation practices in emerging economies. Therefore, this study examines [...] Read more.
Improving green behaviors has become an essential strategy for organizations due to its significant impact on organizational reputation, competitiveness, and performance. However, there is still a lack of understanding of how managers perceive green innovation practices in emerging economies. Therefore, this study examines whether managers are motivated, or deem it an ethical responsibility, or have social pressure, to improve green behaviors in organizations and how behavioral strategic control moderates these relationships. Based on data from 236 Chinese firms, our results indicate that top management motivation, ethical responsibility, and social pressure significantly enhance green behaviors within organizations. However, contrary to our expectations, we found that behavioral control strategies negatively moderate the relationship between top management support and green behaviors. Moreover, behavioral control strategies do not moderate the relationship between ethical responsibility and green behaviors. Interestingly, our findings reveal that behavioral control strategies significantly strengthen the relationship between social pressure and green behaviors in Chinese organizations. Based on these findings, we recommend that organizations maintain a balance between behavioral control strategies and green behaviors to ensure that managers effectively contribute to sustainable practices. Full article
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