Singapore University of Social Sciences

Sustainability Management

Sustainability Management (ESG501)

Synopsis

This course ESG501 Sustainability Management examines the evolution of corporate sustainability and how it has been shaped by societal contexts and expectations. Students will learn about the functional benefits of sustainability for companies, such as organisational resilience and risk management. However, there are constraints and trade-offs, such as how best to deal with environmental externalities that are not priced into market transactions. Students will deep-dive into the increasing focus on corporate ESG disclosures and compliance, scrutinise the ESG pillars and measure positive impact in a rigorous and transparent manner. Students will critically explore the need for growth in a market economy and how this could conflict with resource and ecological limits. To challenge the students’ thinking, the course will conclude with divergent perspectives on whether companies can save the world through addressing pressing environmental and social issues such as climate change and global inequality.

Level: 5
Credit Units: 5
Presentation Pattern: EVERY REGULAR SEMESTER

Topics

  • Evolution of corporate sustainability
  • Societal contexts and expectations of corporate social responsibility
  • Benefits and constraints of sustainability for companies
  • Doing good and going well—synergies and trade-offs
  • Current corporate sustainability trends and developments
  • Assessing the Environmental-Social-Governance (ESG) pillars of sustainability
  • Measuring ESG impacts effectively
  • Can companies grow indefinitely?
  • Limits to growth
  • The need for and methods of decoupling
  • The case for companies saving the world
  • The case against companies saving the world

Learning Outcome

  • Assess the value of corporate sustainability and how it is shaped by external forces such as historical and social circumstances
  • Formulate cogent arguments on how companies can benefit from developing and implementing sustainability strategies and programmes
  • Evaluate limits to growth and appraise pathways for sustainable growth
  • Plan the widely adopted ESG pillars of sustainability within an organisational context
  • Propose ways in which companies can improve their ESG initiatives and measure the impacts
  • Create and defend strategies and plans through which companies can do good and do well
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