Concepts and Approaches for Sustainability Management

Nanotechnology has opened a new realm to science and technology whereby it has been developed and used in various applications with potentials to facilitate sustainable development. The applications of nanotechnology are beneficial in improving public health, enhancing the functionality and endurance of consumer products, and potentially preserving the environment; however, uncertain risks associated with nanomaterials need to be understood for a good governance of nanotechnology to ensure sustainable development of nanotechnology. Hence, public perceptions of nanotechnology are instrumental for good governance of nanotechnology to determine the acceptance and rejection of the public toward nanotechnology. In this chapter, the public benefit and risk perceptions of nanotechnology are deliberated based on a case study in Klang Valley, Malaysia, through psychological and sociological aspects. Psychologically, knowledge is not a factor affecting the benefit and risk perceptions. However, the public perceives nanotechnology to be more beneficial than risky. Public attitudes are positive for nanotechnology, giving people benefit perception and reducing risk perception of nanotechnology. Trust in government, industry, and researchers increases the public benefit perception on nanotechnology as they are the driving force of nanotechnology development. The government as the regulator of nanotechnology development affects risk perception when public trust in government declines. Therefore, the government needs to play a role in getting public trust, thereby enhancing the public benefit perception on nanotechnology. Sociologically, i.e., culture, religious belief, and social aspect influence the public benefit perception but not risk perception on nanotechnology. Policy and religion emphasizing science and technology as an economic driver for the well-being bring the culture in receiving both scientific and technological developments in general and nanotechnology in particular. Correspondingly, continuous research of nanotechnology will result in the social implication by ensuring equal distribution of nanotechnology benefit, and at the same time, its risk will be effectively managed.

The development of chemical industries in Malaysia has raised the need to strengthen the chemicals management to avoid incidents which could put the environment, health and safety at risks. Responsible Care program was launched in 1994 to promote sustainable management of chemicals throughout the product chain as a commitment to build trust in the chemical industries. Although Responsible Care program was developed to restore public’s trust toward chemical industries, there are issues debated particularly on the effectiveness of its self-regulatory program whether could achieve the objective of practicing sustainable chemical industry management. In this chapter, a concept of integrating Responsible Care through quality, environmental, health and safety management system for chemical industries is laid out, taking Malaysian chemical industries as a case study. Considering the challenges faced by the signatory chemical companies, a simplified and integrated management system for Responsible Care has been developed by incorporating ISO9001, ISO14001 and OHSAS18001 with Responsible Care program. The simplified and integrated management system for Responsible Care is expected to assist chemical companies in enhancing the implementation of Responsible Care program and promoting more participation of chemical companies in Responsible Care program for the sustainability of chemical industries.

Rapid industrial development causes industries and local communities to be inseparable and interdependent. In line with Malaysia’s aspiration to transform to be a developed and high-income nation, manufacturing industry particularly chemical industries have been one of the major contributors to the economic development. Corporate social responsibility is viewed as a model to drive sustainable development of chemical industries in Malaysia to maintain its competitiveness for economic growth, social wellbeing and environmental sustainability. There were only 208 out of 626 chemical companies in Malaysia that have disclosed their corporate social responsibility initiatives in their annual reporting. In this chapter, a list of corporate social responsibility indicators has been gathered and categorized into 12 identified corporate social responsibility components whereby these components can be adopted by chemical companies in Malaysia to further improve the performance of corporate social responsibility by having a clearer guide to protecting the environment and ensuring social progress as well as maintaining economic growth.

Urbanization has maximized the land use, causing natural rivers being concretized into urban rivers to accelerate excessive runoff as well as stabilize soil structure, which in turn expose to water pollution. Hence, urban river water is not seen as a valuable water resource. Alur Ilmu is an urban river in Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) that has been exposed to various sources of pollution in which existing management may not be effective in revitalizing and conserving the urban river. In this chapter, an integrated management framework has been proposed, consisting of structural and nonstructural approaches in revitalizing and conserving the water resource. Physical and biological treatments have been employed in structural approach to remove pollution at source, and this approach has successfully improved the water quality from Class II to Class III in less than a year, whereas initiatives in enhancing knowledge, attitude and practice as well as strengthening the participation of campus stakeholders have been employed in nonstructural approach. Combining structural and nonstructural approaches not only develops on-site treatment for the revitalization of the urban river, but also promotes social learning for the conservation of urban river. This integrated management framework is expected to shift the paradigm for the restoration and conservation of urban river to attain sustainability of water resource for the benefits of economic growth, social well-being and environmental protection.

The enculturation of sustainable development concept through education system, especially via STEM subjects, is vital in developing citizens who are able to adopt sustainability as a life principle. Although STEM agenda has been emphasized in the national education blueprint, attention is needed on the role of STEM education especially chemistry subject toward education for sustainable development. In this chapter, a framework that encompassing six main areas, namely education policy, awareness, resources, curriculum orientation, pedagogical approach and stakeholder’s engagement is proposed in guiding the enculturation of sustainable development concept through chemistry curriculum. The government and institutional policies play an important role to create awareness in understanding the concept and relevance of the sustainable development concept in chemistry subject. Training, finance and time have been identified as resources that need to be considered while integrating sustainable development concept in syllabus and contextualizing chemistry content that should be considered in the curriculum. In addition, the learning outcomes need to be revised based on the pedagogical types, learning approaches and pedagogical techniques used. Lastly, the framework will be instrumental for administrators and teachers to develop a sustainable chemistry teaching toward achieving education for sustainable development with the participation of stakeholders, including government, experts in the field of ESD, administrators and chemistry teachers, in enculturing sustainable development concepts through chemistry subject.

After the introduction of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) become a prime mover of SDGs in representing the diverse range of organizational interests and broadening the social aspects of civil society beyond the other sectors. The existence of NGOs not only represents the voice of the civil society but also fills the gaps when the constituencies of the government and industry sectors are limited. However, the capacities of NGOs are influenced by their uncertainties, especially in the transition from single-sector approach to cross-sector approach to increase trade-offs between the SDGs. Thus, mainstreaming and institutionalizing SDGs are very important in translating SDGs into NGOs’ program implementation. In this chapter, an international NGO based in Malaysia, the Global Environment Centre (GEC), is taken as a case study whereby a framework has been proposed, consisting of three strategies to streamline NGOs’ programs toward achieving the SDGs. The framework is instrumental to guide NGOs to implement SDGs through bottom-up approach by translating every SDGs into action-oriented programs, forging hybrid governance for cooperation among NGOs’ partner institutions and making social value the essence of fostering environmental citizenship. As NGOs have unmeasurable capacities, this strategy can help NGOs in mainstreaming, institutionalizing and translating SDGs into their projects as a measurement of project performance and can be standardized despite diverse project scope and eventually help to achieve the SDGs at large.