Is business change around ecological change fundamentally different to ‘organisational change’? Organisational change, or organisational change management has been a mainstay of practitioner and academic interest for at least fifty years, but does the threat (or reality) of impending ecological crises upend our understanding of the change of organisations, or how it may be facilitated? This event is predicated on the exploration of whether ‘sustainability-change’ (that is, change in response to, in anticipation of, or as an attempt to mitigate, adapt to, or prevent significant ecological-disruptions) is a necessary new paradigm and avenue for organisational research and action. While there continues to be a focus on behavioural approaches to organisational change, there are significant trends towards practice-focused, systems-focused and action-research forms of change and development, across different scales of groups, organizations, industries and societies.

The Pentland Centre for Sustainability in Business is organising a half-day event on “Critically Exploring Different ‘Sustainability-Change’ Approaches”. The workshop will feature two sessions, beginning with a presentation by Patrick Elf from Middlesex University, followed by a panel discussion on the event topic, involving Jan Bebbington, Patrick Elf, and Alison Stowell, and chaired by Dermot O’Reilly.

The schedule of the day is:

All welcome - registration required.

NB: The seminar runs from 12:30-16:30. There will be a light lunch available for participants (present in-person) from 12:30-13:00.

Please register below - registrations close Thurs 27 Feb to allow for catering preparation. Please contact pentlandcentre@lancaster.ac.uk for queries re booking after that date.

Photo at top of page by ready made (Pexels).

Dr Alison Stowell. Alison is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Organisation, Work and Technology at Lancaster University Management School. Alison's research interests focus on societal, organisational and management responses to complex wastes (e.g. e-waste, plastics etc). She is interested in how a range of actors (companies, government, civic society, local communities and individuals) respond to waste and how these actors can develop inclusive solutions to waste generation or circular solutions. Specific areas of interest include: 1) how actors respond to waste policy; 2) how latent values are negotiated and attributed to waste; and (3) how actors respond to waste as a particular type of occupation. For all three areas, she is focused on the impact on society.

Alison co-led the ‘Plastic Packaging in People’s Lives’ (PPiPL) project working with colleagues in LUMS and Chemistry. Taking a holistic approach to rethink consumer behaviour around plastic packaging, using food plastic packaging as an exemplar, the PPiPL project examined the whole packaging supply chain (production, consumption, post-consumption, waste disposal technologies and processes).

Dr Dermot O'Reilly. Dermot is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Organisation, Work and Technology at Lancaster University Management School. His research interests revolve around interpretative and critical perspectives on social and organisational development, co-ordination, and conflict. He has a particular focus on the forms and dynamics of leadership, organizing, and learning. At the core of this intellectual endeavour is an interest in the dynamic and multiply-tendential processes, moments and relations that comprise development, co-ordination, and conflict.

Dr Patrick Elf. Patrick is an Associate Professor in Sustainable Business at Middlesex University. Patrick’s research focuses on investigating avenues for behaviour change approaches towards the adoption of more sustainable lifestyles, and mechanisms towards the adaptation of sustainable business models. He has a particular interest in sustainable and transformative consumption and questions of post-growth and degrowth. Recently funded research projects include interdisciplinary longitudinal work examining the potential of sustainable small and medium fashion enterprises to advance the circular economy, work on sustainable food systems and post-growth business models. Patrick leads major research initiatives including work with IKEA UK on co-creational behaviour change approaches, work with the National Lottery Community Fund examining support mechanisms to drive social cohesion, sustainable development and community wellbeing, and work across London’s Boroughs on implementing their Green Economy Action Plan.

Prof. Jan Bebbington. Jan is the Rubin Chair in Sustainability in Business, and the Director of the Pentland Centre for Sustainability in Business at Lancaster University Management School. She focuses on research that emerges at the intersection of sustainable development concerns and organisational operations. As an accounting scholar she focuses on the use of accounting technologies to create organisational control as well as reporting activities that might discharge accountability relationships. Her work includes a focus on the Sustainable Development Goals; how reporting norms emerge and carbon acounting/accountability. She is also involved in the Seafood Business for Ocean Stewardship (SeaBOS) initiative that has been exploring the role of a ‘keystone actor approach’ for facilitating change in the global fishing industry.

Health & Safety and access information:

• In order to safeguard everyone's health, if you test positive for Covid-19 before the event, or are feeling unwell in any way, please don't attend (and please let us know).
• The room is on the C floor with a lift available, wheelchair accessible and has an induction loop. There is a wheelchair-accessible toilet nearby.
• The nearest disabled parking spot is on George Fox Avenue or Fylde Avenue.  

Find out more about the Pentland Centre on our website