Management for Sustainable Development [Hardcover]

Today, increasingly more, the word sustainability is present in all kinds of discussions: at home, at work, at school, in all society. Conscious of the environment where we live, everybody looks to find the best solutions to solve problems that result from Human Being evolution. Management for sustainable development is a process by which organizations try to use all of their resources, as well as improve organizational and technological development, in order to answer not only to the present but also to future human and social needs. Only in this way is it possible to improve the quality of life. Sustainable development, therefore, is understood to be people centered. We have a special concern with cultural, social and economic dimensions, where individuals can develop together as a society, whilst at the same time, individual and organizational activities can be implemented without destroying the present diversity and complexity of the ecological system where we live.

This book is about management for sustainable development in a context where organizations are continually facing challenges to re-use, recycle, reduce waste, add value, lower costs and time of production, and create sustainable behavior. Todays organizations can no longer develop their practices based on the existent paradigms. On the contrary, it is necessary to completely break from these paradigms, creating a total change of mentality in the way we manage organizational activities. Taking into account this reality, managing for sustainable development appears as a management philosophy focused in productivity improvement considering different kinds of goals, such as biological, economic and social systems goals.

This book contributes to the exchange of experiences and perspectives about the state of research related to the management for sustainable development, as well as the future direction of this research field. It looks to provide support to academics andl#˜