In today’s society, the protection of the natural environment, with climate change as a paramount concern, stands as the most significant challenge we face.
It is crucial to recognise that businesses, with their immense influence and resources, play a key role in addressing this pressing issues.
To act effectively, businesses must be equipped with academic insights that provide a comprehensive understanding of where to concentrate their efforts and how to successfully integrate sustainability into their various business models.
Furthermore, it is essential to educate and empower the next generation of leaders, ensuring they are well-versed in these topics, as they will shape the future trajectory of sustainable business practices. By fostering collaboration between academia and businesses, we can forge a path toward a more sustainable and resilient future for everyone.
The EBS Sustainability Management Chair is held by Professor Dr Julia Hartmann, within the EBS Impact Institute. As a former endowed chair of Dachser, the Sustainability Management Chair is currently supported by a strong and exclusive partner circle in terms of both financing as well as content. This partner circle consists of corporations with a strong sustainability focus and from different industries, such as Procter & Gamble or Tetra Pak, who engage in various contact points.
Prof. Dr. Julia Hartmann
- Professor for Sustainability Management - Chair of Sustainability Management
Learn more about the EBS Sustainability Management Chair
Corporations can change global value chains for the better through responsible sourcing practices, including traceability, ethical sourcing, and sustainable procurement. This stream of research investigates the footprint of global value chains and explores strategies to minimise negative impacts across different industries.
The programme examines the social and labour conditions within global value chains, identifying challenges and proposing solutions to improve working conditions, protect human rights, and promote social equity. Lastly, the implementation of transparency mechanisms within supply chains is studied to ensure responsible sourcing, traceability, and accountability for environmental and social impacts.
Leveraging advanced text modelling techniques, our analysis of this vast dataset yields valuable insights and recommendations for policymakers, industry leaders, and other stakeholders actively working toward the realisation of the Paris Agreement’s objectives. Julia Hartmann meticulously curated a ten-year database encompassing the largest 100 global oil and gas companies with her colleagues Andrew Inkpen and Kannan Ramaswamy from Thunderbird School of Global Management (Arizona State University, USA).
This extensive database comprises thousands of pages of text extracted from annual reports, sustainability/CSR reports, and press releases, spanning a decade. By shedding light on effective strategies and offering practical guidance, this research serves as a vital resource to drive meaningful change and shape a sustainable future in the fossil fuels sector.
This research programme focuses on understanding how and when investors and corporations incorporate environment, social and governance (ESG) factors into their financial analysis, risk assessment, and investment decision-making processes. It also examines credible disclosure practices related to ESG information that promote transparency and accountability. Additionally, the assessment of ESG-related risks and opportunities is a key aspect of this research.
Partner circle of the Sustainability Management Chair
Prof Dr Julia Hartmann and the EBS Corporate Relations team are currently developing a partner circle around her Chair of Sustainability Management. This think tank brings together business, science and students to learn from each other and work together on forward-looking solutions. In addition to dialogue and integration into teaching, the focus is also on research. This results in a significant contribution to the corporate and educational landscape, but also to society. At the annual flagship event – the EBS Sustainability Summit – EBS and its partner companies bring a select group of participants to the EBS campus to keep up to date, inspire and exchange ideas on the latest topics in this field. We are proud that renowned global players are accompanying us on this journey.
Procter & Gamble (P&G) is a global leader in consumer goods, renowned for its portfolio of trusted brands such as Tide, Gilette, Pampers, and Olay. With a legacy of over 180 years, P&G drives innovation, sustainability, and excellence in over 70 countries, delivering products that improve the lives of billions of consumers daily. Focused on cutting-edge research and a commitment to social responsibility, P&G continues to set industry standards while fostering growth and partnerships worldwide.
Tetra Pak is a global leader in food processing and packaging solutions, renowned for its innovative and sustainable approach to protecting food, people, and the planet. With state-of-the-art technology and expertise, Tetra Pak enables its partners to deliver safe, high-quality products to consumers worldwide, while driving efficiency and reducing environmental impact. Through its commitment to sustainability and continuous innovation, Tetra Pak remains at the forefront of shaping the future of the food and beverage industry.
At P&G, environmental sustainability is embedded in how we do business. We make people’s everyday lives a little better. However, while our commitment to ‘better’ has never changed, the standard we need to deliver on has. Together in partnership, we can build a better future for all.
Our approach to sustainability is embodied by our purpose. Our global presence and end-to-end solutions give us opportunities every day to collaborate with stakeholders across the value chain, from farmers and food producers, to suppliers, policymakers, consumers, and others.
Amplify your brand’s reputation as a sustainability thought leader.
The excellent research at EBS combines science and management practice and is the key to our success. It meets the highest international academic standards while addressing the practical needs of business and society. We endeavour to transfer our knowledge to the business world. Together, we can make a significant contribution by making our knowledge accessible to others.
Daniel Kusebauch
Director of Corporate Relations
Our ambition for 2030 is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across IKEA's value chain by 1.5°C, decouple our growth from resource use and strive to become a just and regenerative business. We are committed to becoming a circular business and to leading the way in this transformation.
The issue with circularity isn’t a lack of science or technology. The main challenge is mostly about transcending business boundaries and shaping a viable business case for scalable collaboration. If we’re willing to transcend artificial boundaries, there’s little we can’t do.
