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Determinants of Carbon Emission Disclosures and UN Sustainable Development Goals: The Case of UK Higher Education Institutions

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  • Anup Kumar Saha
  • Habiba Al‐Shaer
  • Rob Dixon
  • Istemi Demirag

Abstract

In recent years, organisational sustainability has become a topical issue in many institutional fields and a number of calls have been made to improve the disclosure of carbon information as part of sustainability efforts. This paper responds to these calls, chiefly examining the determinants of (CED) in the annual reports of UK higher education institutions (HEIs). It also aims to predict the relationship between the extent of CED and UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) reporting by UK universities. We construct a disclosure index to capture the extent and type of CED in the annual reports of UK HEIs, finding that carbon reduction targets imposed by the Government, environmental audit, and the amount of actual carbon emissions are significant and positively associated with CED. However, we find no relationship between CED and the disclosure of SDGs. We argue that HEIs'. CED can be useful in developing relevant regulatory policies given the targets are carefully set. Our research has important implications for policymakers regarding carbon reduction targets and related non?mandatory guidance, as these can be utilised as an effective mechanism in increasing carbon emission disclosure voluntary CED that are integrated into SDG disclosures.

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  • Anup Kumar Saha & Habiba Al‐Shaer & Rob Dixon & Istemi Demirag, 2021. "Determinants of Carbon Emission Disclosures and UN Sustainable Development Goals: The Case of UK Higher Education Institutions," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 31(2), pages 79-107, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:ausact:v:31:y:2021:i:2:p:79-107
    DOI: 10.1111/auar.12324
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    Cited by:

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    3. Ebiyon Idundun & Andrew S. Hursthouse & Iain McLellan, 2021. "Carbon Management in UK Higher Education Institutions: An Overview," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-16, September.
    4. Fabio Caputo & Lorenzo Ligorio & Simone Pizzi, 2021. "The Contribution of Higher Education Institutions to the SDGs—An Evaluation of Sustainability Reporting Practices," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-13, September.
    5. Deli Wang & Ke Peng & Kaiye Tang & Yewei Wu, 2022. "Does Fintech Development Enhance Corporate ESG Performance? Evidence from an Emerging Market," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-21, December.
    6. Henry Kuswantoro & Mahfud Sholihin & Hadrian Geri Djajadikerta, 2023. "Exploring the implementation of sustainable development goals: a comparison between private and state-owned enterprises in Indonesia," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 25(10), pages 10799-10819, October.
    7. Yan Yu & Yi-Tsung Lee, 2022. "Do Inquiry Letters Curb Corporate Catering Motives of High Sustainable R&D Investment? Empirical Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-17, June.

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