The Ephemeral Term “Sustainable Development” in Current EU Policies

Zavřelová, Veronika; Pelikánová, Radka MacGregor

doi:10.2478/foli-2024-0031

Abstract

Research background

The term “sustainable development” is an omnipresent expression reaching the dimension of a command in the EU under the leadership of Ursula von der Leyen. However, this is an ephemeral term with ambiguous and contradictory meanings which is employed in a particular manner by current EU policies.

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to reconcile various approaches and consolidate the understanding of sustainable development as advanced by current EU policies.

Research methodology

A historical and conceptual review creates a foundation to prepare comparative review tables to be filled with information about current EU policies and their quotes regarding “sustainable development”, as extracted from the EU Commission Websites and EurLex. This allows for a holistic, thematic and critical analysis about the teleological meaning as well as glossing and Socratic questioning.

Results

The juxtaposition of these findings suggests that the term “sustainable development” is a semantic puzzle which is perceived by current EU policies as a call for multispectral and inherently conflicting changes to be imposed by all stakeholders in the utilitarian context.

Novelty

Six pioneering propositions with controversial features emerge and are to be verified by further multidisciplinary longitudinal studies.

References

Al-Jundi, S.A., Shuhaiber, A., Augustine, R. (2019). Effect of consumer innovativeness on new product purchase intentions through learning process and perceived value. Cogent Business & Management, 6(1), 1–2. DOI: 10.1080/23311975.2019.1698849.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Allison, G.T. (1971). Essence of Decision. Boston: Little Brown and Co.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Anderson, T.L., Kosnik, L.R. (2002). Sustainable Skepticism and Sustainable Development. Case Western Reserve Law Review, 53(2), 439–475.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
André, E. (1832). Einfachste den höchsten Ertrag und die Nachhaltigkeit ganz sicher stellende Forst-wirthschafts-Methode. Prague: Borrosh und André.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Areeda, P. (1996). The Socratic method. Harvard Law Review, 109(5), 911–922.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Balcerzak, A., MacGregor Pelikánová, R. (2020). Projection of SDGs in codes of ethics – case study about lost in translation? Administrative Sciences, 10(4), 95. DOI: 10.3390/adm-sci10040095.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Barbiero, G. (2016). Francis of Assisi and the Wolf: Nonviolence as a moral value of biophilia. Visions for Sustainability, 5, 28–31. DOI: 10.13135/2384-8677/1504.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Barbiero, G. (2021). Affective ecology as development of biophilia hypothesis. In: A. L’Astorina, C. Bergami, A. De Lazzari, E. Falchetti (eds.). Special Issue “Scientists moving between narratives towards an ecological vision”. Visions for Sustainability, 16(5575), 43–78. DOI: 10.13135/2384.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Bieszk-Stolorz, B., Dmytrów, K. (2023a). Application of multivariate statistical analysis to assess the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 8 in European Union countries Wiadomości Statystyczne. The Polish Statistician, 68(3), 22–43. DOI: 10.59139/ws.2023.03.2.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Bieszk-Stolorz, B., Dmytrów K. (2023b). Decent Work and Economic Growth in EU Countries – Static and Dynamic Analyses of Sustainable Development Goal 8. Sustainability, 15(18), 13327. DOI: 10.3390/su151813327.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Bočková, N. (2022). The Role of the Green Deal in Start-ups’ Approach to Innovation. In: M. Staníčková, L. Melecký (eds.), Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on European Integration 2022. Ostrava: VSB – Technical University of Ostrava (pp. 89–101). DOI: 10.31490/9788024846057.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Borchardt, S., Barbero Vignola, G., Buscaglia, D., Maroni, M., Marelli, L. (2022). Mapping EU Policies with the 2030 Agenda and SDGs. EUR 31347 EN, JRC130904. Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg. DOI: 10.2760/87754.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Bowen, H.R. (2013). Social Responsibilities of the Businessman. University of Iowa Press. DOI: 10.2307/j.ctt20q1w8f.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Brittain, S. (2016). Justifying the Teleological Methodology of the European Court of Justice: A Rebuttal. Irish Jurist, 55, 134–165.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Carroll, A.B. (1999). Corporate Social Responsibility: Evolution of a Definitional Construct. Business & Society, 38(3), 268–295. DOI: 10.1177/000765039903800303.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Carroll, A.B. (2016). Carroll’s pyramid of CSR: taking another look. International Journal of Corporate Social Responsibility, 1(3). DOI: 10.1186/s40991-016-0004-6.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Cowling, M., Dvouletý, O. (2023). Who is brave enough to start a new business during the COVID-19 pandemic? Baltic Journal of Management, 18(3), 402–419. DOI: 10.1108/bjm-11-2022-0414.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Cristian, D., Goga, L.M., Artene, A.E., Duran V. (2015). The Components of Sustainable Development – A Possible Approach. Procedia Economics and Finance, 26, 806–811. DOI: 10.1016/S2212-5671(15)00849-7.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Čechura, J. (2020). Jakub Krčín z Jelčan. Praha: Vyšehrad.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
D’Adamo, I., Lupi, G. (2021). Sustainability and Resilience after COVID-19: A Circular Premium in the Fashion Industry. Sustainability, 13, 1861. DOI: 10.3390/su13041861.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
D’Adamo, I., Lupi, G., Morone, P., Blundo, D. (2022). Towards the circular economy in the fashion industry: the second-hand market as a best practice of sustainable responsibility for businesses and consumers. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 29, 46620–46633. DOI: 10.1007/s11356-022-19255-2.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Daly, H.E. (1991). Sustainable development: a contradiction. Desarro Base, 15(3), 39.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Daly, H.E. (2006). Sustainable Development – Definitions, Principles, Policies. In: M. Keiner, (ed.). The Future of Sustainability (pp. 39–53). Springer, Dordrecht. DOI: 10.1007/1-4020-4908-0_2.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Dixon, J.A., Fallon, L.A. (1989). The concept of sustainability: Origins, extensions, and usefulness for policy. Society & Natural Resources, 2(1), 73–84, DOI: 10.1080/08941928909380675.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Dmytrów, K, Bieszk-Stolorz, B, Landmesser-Rusek, J. (2022). Sustainable Energy in European Countries: Analysis of Sustainable Development Goal 7 Using the Dynamic Time Warping Method. Energies, 15(20), 7756. DOI: 10.3390/en15207756.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Dobrzycki, J. (1973). Nicolaus Copernicus – His Life and Work. In: B. Bieńkowska (ed.), The Scientific World of Copernicus. Dordrecht: Springer. DOI: 10.1007/978-94-010-2616-1_2.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Dobson, A. (1996). Environmental Sustainabilities: an analysis and a typology. Environmental Politics, 5, 401–428. DOI: 10.1080/09644019608414280.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Drucker, P.F. (2015). Innovation and Entrepreneurship. London and New York: Routledge Classics.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Drucker, P.F. (1973). Management: tasks, responsibilities, practices. New York: Harper & Row. European Commission (2023). Sustainable development. Retrieved from https://policy.trade.ec.europa.eu/development-and-sustainability/sustainable-development_en (3.10.2023).
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Feil, A., Schreiber, D. (2017). Sustainability and sustainable development: unraveling overlays and scope of their meanings. Cadernos, 14(3), 667–681. DOI: 10.1590/1679-39515747.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Ferraro, F., Beunza, D. (2018). Creating Common Ground: A Communicative Action Model of Dialogue in Shareholder Engagement. Organization Science, 29(6), 1187–1207. DOI: 10.1287/orsc.2018.1226.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Fitzpatrick, H. (2023). A review of worldviews beyond sustainability. Potential avenues for human-nature connectedness. Visions for Sustainability, 19, 7309, 9–57. DOI: 10.13135/2384-8677/7309.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Freeman, R.E. (2017). The New Story of Business: Towards a More Responsible Capitalism. Business and Society Review, 122(3), 449–465. DOI: 10.1111/basr.12123.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Friedman, M. (2007). The Social Responsibility of business is to Increase its Profits . In: W.C. Zimmerli, M. Holzinger, K. Richter (eds.), Corporate Ethics and Corporate Governance (pp. 173–178). Berlin, Heidelber: Springer.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Friske, W., Nikolov, A.N., Hoang, P. (2020). CSR reporting practices: an integrative model and analysis. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 28(2), 138–155. DOI: 10.1080/10696679.2019.1690397.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Gold, R.L. (1952). Roles in Sociological Field Observations. Social Forces, 36(3), 217–223.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Gomes, A.P., Pauls, R., Brink, T. (2023). Industrial policy and the creation of the electric vehicles market in China: demand structure, sectoral complementarities and policy coordination. Cambridge Journal of Economics, 47(1), 45–66. DOI: 10.1093/cje/beac056.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Grabara, J. (2019). Sustainable Development – Never Fulfilled Dream. Quality – Access to Success, 20(1), 565–570.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Hála, M., Cvik, E.D., MacGregor Pelikánová, R. (2022). Logistic Regression of Czech Luxury Fashion Purchasing Habits During the COVID-19 Pandemic – Old for Loyalty and Young for Sustainability? Folia Oeconomica Stetinensia, 22(1), 85–110. DOI: 10.2478/foli-2022-0005.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Harper, K. (2016). The Environmental Fall of the Roman Empire. Daedalus, 145(2), 101–111. DOI: 10.1162/DAED_a_00380.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Harlow, J., Golub, A., Allenby, B. (2013). A review of utopian themes in sustainable development discourse. Sustainable Development, 21(4), 270–280. DOI: 10.1002/sd.522.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Harwood, R.R. (1990). The history of sustainable agriculture. In: C.A. Edwards et al. (eds.), Sustainable Agricultural Systems (pp. 3–19). Boca Raton: CRC Press.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Heckman, J.J. (2005). The Scientific Model of Causality. Sociological Methodology, 35, 1–98. DOI: 10.1111/j.0081-1750.2006.00164.x.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Holden, E., Linnerud, K., Banister, D. (2014). Sustainable development: Our Common Future revisited. Global Environmental Change, 26, 130–139. DOI: 10.1016/j.gloenv-cha.2014.04.006.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Huttmanova, E., Valentiny, T. (2019). Assessment of the Economic Pillar and Environmental Pillar of Sustainable Development in the European Union. European Journal of Sustainable Development, 8(2), 289–298. DOI: 10.14207/ejsd. 2019.v8n2p289.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Hühn, M. (2023). Business ethics: Between Friedman and Freeman? A response to A Puzzle about Business Ethics. Business Ethics, the Environment & Responsibility, 32(2), 868–876. DOI: 10.1111/beer.12523.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Jenkins, W. (2009). Berkshire encyclopaedia of sustainability: the spirit of sustainability. Vol. 1. Berkshire: Berkshire Publishing Group.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Jermolajeva, E., Trusina, I. (2022). Is Sustainable Development Really Sustainable – Theoretical Reflections, Statistics and the Need for Changes. Journal of Teacher Education for Sustainability, 24(2), 166–179. DOI: 10.2478/jtes-2022-0023.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Johnston, D. (2011). A brief history of justice. Chapter 3: Aristotle’s Theory of Justice (pp. 63–88). John Wiley & Sons. DOI: 10.1002/9781444397550.ch3.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kelly, D. (2020). Slapper and Kelly´s The English Legal System. 19^th Edition. Oxford: Routledge, 2020.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Klarin, T. (2018). The Concept of Sustainable Development: From its Beginning to the Contemporary Issues, Zagreb International Review of Economics & Business, 21(1), 67–94. DOI: 10.2478/zireb-2018-0005.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kolk, A. (2016). The social responsibility of international business: From ethics and the environment to CSR and sustainable development. Journal of World Business, 51(1), 23–34. DOI: 10.1016/j.jwb.2015.08.010.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kosner, L. (2023). The role of Skolt Saami religious texts in language development and re-vitalization. Linguistic Portal. DOI: 10.1515/lme.20442485. Retrieved from https://www.degruyter.com/database/LME/entry/lme.20442485/html, https://blogs.helsinki.fi/linguisticsandsustainability/2023/10/03/sustainability-in-linguistics-a-mirror-image (20.12.2023)
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kowalska, A., Bieniek, M. (2022). Meeting the European green deal objective of expanding organic farming. Equilibrium, 17(3), 607–633. DOI: 10.24136/eq.2022.021.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kovoor-Misra, S. (2009). Understanding perceived organizational identity during crisis and change: A threat/opportunity framework. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 22(5), 494–510, DOI: 10.1108/09534810910983460.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kramer, M.R., Pfitzer, M.R. (2016). The ecosystem of shared value. Harvard Business Review, 94, 80–89.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Krippendorff, K. (2003). Content Analysis: An Introduction to Its Methodology. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kuckartz, U. (2014). Qualitative Text Analysis: A Guide to Methods, Practice and Using Software. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kuhn, T.S. (1970). The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. Chicago: University of Chicago Press: 92.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Lélé, S.M. (1991). Sustainable development: A critical review. World Development, 19(6), 607–621, DOI: 10.1016/0305-750X(91)90197-P.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
MacGregor Pelikánová, R. (2019). R&D expenditure and innovation in the EU and selected member states. JEMI – Journal of Entrepreneurship, Management and Innovation, 15(1), 13–33. DOI: 10.7341/20191511. WoS.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
MacGregor Pelikánová, R., Hála, M. (2021). CSR unconscious consumption by Generation Z in the COVID-19 era – Responsible heretics not paying CSR bonus? Journal of Risk and Financial Management, 14(8), 390. DOI: 10.3390/jrfm14080390.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
MacGregor Pelikánová, R., MacGregor, R.K. (2020). The EU puzzling CSR regime and the confused perception by ambassadors of luxury fashion businesses: A case study from Pařížská. Central European Business Review, 9(3), 74–108. DOI: 10.18267/j.cebr.240.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
MacGregor Pelikánová, R., MacGregor, R.K. (2021). The COVID-19 As Interpretation Instrument for the Content of Corporate Social Responsibility and its Reporting in the EU. The Lawyer Quarterly, 2, 305–322.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
MacGregor Pelikánová, R., Němečková, T., MacGregor, R.K. (2021a). CSR Statements in International and Czech Luxury Fashion Industry at the Onset and during the COVID-19 Pandemic – Slowing Down the Fast Fashion Business? Sustainability, 13(7), 3715. DOI: 10.3390/su13073715.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
MacGregor Pelikánová, R., MacGregor, R.K., Černek, M. (2021b). New trends in codes of ethics: Czech business ethics preferences by the dawn of COVID-19. Oeconomia Copernicana, 12(4), 973–1009. DOI: 10.24136/oc.2021.032.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
MacGregor Pelikánová, R., Sani, M. (2023). Luxury, Slow and Fast Fashion – A Case study on the (Un)sustainable Creating of Shared Values. Equilibrium. Quarterly Journal of Economics and Economic Policy, 18(3), 813–851. DOI: 10.24136/eq.2023.026.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Malý, M., Cvik, E.D., MacGregor Pelikánová, R. (2023). EU Sanctions Against the Russian Federation and Their Implications for the Foreign Trade of the Czech Republic. AGRIS online Papers in Economics and Informatics, 15(3), 119–130. DOI: 10.7160/aol.2023.150310.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Meadows, D.H., Meadows, D.L., Randers, J., Behrens, W.W. (1972). The limits to growth. New York: Universe Books.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Menghwar, P.S., Daood, A. (2021). Creating shared value: A systematic review, synthesis and integrative perspective. International Journal of Management Review, 23(4), 466–485. DOI: 10.1111/ijmr.12252.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
O’Riordan, T. (1996). Environmentalism on the move. In: I. Douglas, R.J. Huggett, M. Robinson (eds.), Companion encyclopaedia of geography. London: Routledge.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
O’Riordan, T., Jordan, A. (1999). Institutions, climate change and cultural theory: towards a common analytical Framework. Global Environmental Change, 9, 81–93.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Panta, N.D. (2019). Clashing Perspectives on Sustainable Development. Studies in Business and Economics, 14(1), 181–190. DOI: 10.2478/sbe-2019-0014.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Porter, M.E., Kramer, M.R. (2014). A response to Andrew Crane et al.’s article. California Management Review, 56, 149–151.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Purvis, B., Mao, Y., Robinson, D. (2019). Three pillars of sustainability: in search of conceptual origins. Sustainability Science, 14(3), 681–95. DOI: 10.1007/s11625-018-0627-5.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Rackham, H. (1997). Aristotle: The Nicomachean Ethics. Hertfordshire: Wordsworth Classics of World Literature.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Rendtorff, J.D. (2019). Sustainable Development Goals and progressive business models for economic transformation. Local Economy, 34(6), 510–524. DOI: 10.1177/0269094219882270.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Schumpeter, J.A. (1934). The Theory of Economic Development. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Schunz, S. (2022). The ‘European Green Deal’ – a paradigm shift? Transformations in the European Union’s sustainability meta-discourse. Political Research Exchange, 4(1). DOI: 10.1080/2474736X.2022.2085121.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Schüz, M. (2012). Sustainable Corporate Responsibility – The Foundation of successful Business in the New Millennium. Central European Business Review, 1(2), 7–15. DOI: 10.18267/j.cebr.12.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Sharpley, R. (2009). Tourism Development and the Environment: Beyond Sustainability? London–New York: Earthscan.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Stamper, R.K. (1991). The Role of Semantics in Legal Expert Systems and Legal Reasoning. Ratio Juris, 4(2), 219–244.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Stawicka, E. (2023). The Impact of Innovation on the Sustainable Development of Enterprises. Folia Oeconomica Stetinensia, 23(2), 370–386. DOI: 10.2478/foli-2023-0036.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Sterling, S. (2010). Learning for resilience, or the resilient learner? Towards a necessary reconciliation in a paradigm of sustainable education. Environmental Education Research, 16, 511–528. DOI: 10.1080/13504622.2010.505427.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Strand, R., Freeman, E., Hockerts, K. (2015). Corporate social responsibility and sustainability in Scandinavia: An overview. Journal of Business Ethics, 127, 1–15. DOI: 10.1007/s10551-014-2224-6.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Thomas, A. (2004). The Study of Development. London: Church House.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
van Tulder, R., Keen, N. (2018). Capturing Collaborative Challenges: Designing Complexity-Sensitive Theories of Change for Cross-Sector Partnerships. Journal of Business Ethics, 150, 315–332. DOI: 10.1007/s10551-018-3857-7.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
van Tulder, R., van Mil, E. (2023). Principles of Sustainable Business – Frameworks for Corporate Action on the SDGs. Oxon: Routledge.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
van Tulder, R., Rodrigues, H., Mirza, H., Sexsmith K. (2021). The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals: Can multinational enterprises lead the Decade of Action? Journal of Internal Business Policy, 4, 1–21. DOI: 0.1057/s42214-020-00095-1.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
von Carlowitz, H. (1713). Hans Carl von Carlowitz. Sylvicultura oeconomica. Leipzig: Braun.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
von der Leyen, U. (2019). Political Guidelines for the next European Commission 2019–2024: A Union that strives for more. My agenda for Europe. Retrieved from https://www.europarl.europa.eu/resources/library/media/20190716RES57231/20190716RES57231.pdf (15.01.2024).
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
von der Leyen, U. (2024). Political Guidelines for the next European Commission 2024–2029: Europe´s Choice, 18 July 2024. Retrieved from https://commission.europa.eu/document/e6cd4328-673c-4e7a-8683-f63ffb2cf648_en (18.09.2024).
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
von Rijswick, H.F.M.W. (2012). The Road to Sustainability: How Environmental Law Can Deal with Complexity and Flexibility. Utrecht Law Review, 8(3), 1–6. DOI: 10.18352/ulr.202.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Vourvachis, P., Woodward, T. (2015). Content analysis in social and environmental reporting research: Trends and challenges. Journal of Applied Accounting Research, 16(2), 166–195. DOI: 10.1108/JAAR-04-2013-0027.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Williams, S., Murphy, D.F. (2023). Learning from Each Other: UK Global Businesses, SMEs, CSR and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Sustainability, 15(5), 4151. DOI: 10.3390/su15054151.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Willis, G.B. (2005). Cognitive Interviewing. Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Wilson, S., Hughes, M. (2019). Why research is Reconciliation. In: Research & Reconciliation: Unsettling Ways of Knowing Through Indigenous Relationships (pp. 5–19). Canadian Scholars.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
White, M.A. (2013). Sustainability: I know it when I see it. Ecologocial Economics, 86, 213–217. DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2012.12.020.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Wójcik, P. (2016). How creating shared value differs from corporate social responsibility. Journal of Management and Business Administration Central Europe, 24(2), 32–55. DOI: 10.7206/jmba.ce.2450-7814.168.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Yin, R. (2008). Study Research. Design Methods. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Zhai, T., Chang, Y.C. (2019). Standing of Environmental Public-Interest Litigants in China: Evolution, Obstacles and Solutions. Journal of Environmental Law, 30, 369–397, DOI: 10.1093/jel/eqy011.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article