IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v17y2025i8p3499-d1634318.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

How Sustainable Leadership Can Leverage Sustainable Development

Author

Listed:
  • Albérico Travassos Rosário

    (GOVCOPP–Governance, Competitiveness and Public Policies, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
    IADE–Faculdade de Design, Tecnologia e Comunicação, Universidade Europeia, 1500-210 Lisboa, Portugal)

  • Anna Carolina Boechat

    (IADE–Faculdade de Design, Tecnologia e Comunicação, Universidade Europeia, 1500-210 Lisboa, Portugal
    UNIDCOM–IADE, Research Unit in Design and Communication, 1500-210 Lisboa, Portugal)

Abstract

Sustainable leadership plays a pivotal role in fostering long-term economic, social, and environmental development. As businesses increasingly integrate sustainability into their core strategies, leaders must adopt approaches that align profitability with ethical responsibility. This paper explores how sustainable leadership contributes to sustainable development by examining key leadership principles, decision-making frameworks, and corporate strategies. The discussion highlights the shift from short-term financial goals to long-term value creation, emphasising stakeholder engagement, ethical governance, and innovation. By integrating environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles, leaders can enhance resilience, drive corporate sustainability initiatives, and positively impact communities. The study also underscores the importance of knowledge sharing, organisational culture, and adaptability in embedding sustainability into business practices. Through a systematic bibliometric literature review, this research provides insights for executives, policymakers, and academics seeking to navigate the evolving landscape of sustainability-driven leadership. The findings underscore the necessity of aligning leadership strategies with global sustainability imperatives.

Suggested Citation

  • Albérico Travassos Rosário & Anna Carolina Boechat, 2025. "How Sustainable Leadership Can Leverage Sustainable Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(8), pages 1-27, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:8:p:3499-:d:1634318
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/8/3499/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/8/3499/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Riikka Hofmann & Claudia Pik Ki Chu & Alison Twiner & Jan D. Vermunt, 2024. "Patterns in Clinical Leadership Learning: Understanding the Quality of Learning about Leadership to Support Sustainable Transformation in Healthcare Education," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-20, May.
    2. Wei Xuecheng & Qaisar Iqbal, 2022. "Ethical Leadership, Bricolage, and Eco-Innovation in the Chinese Manufacturing Industry: A Multi-Theory Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-15, June.
    3. Suparak Suriyankietkaew & Krittawit Krittayaruangroj & Nacharee Iamsawan, 2022. "Sustainable Leadership Practices and Competencies of SMEs for Sustainability and Resilience: A Community-Based Social Enterprise Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-36, May.
    4. Albérico Travassos Rosário & Joana Carmo Dias, 2024. "Exploring the Landscape of Smart Tourism: A Systematic Bibliometric Review of the Literature of the Internet of Things," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-26, January.
    5. Ling Hu & Tai-Wei Chang & Yue-Shi Lee & Show-Jane Yen & Chih-Wen Ting, 2023. "How Does Sustainable Leadership Affect Environmental Innovation Strategy Adoption? The Mediating Role of Environmental Identity," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(1), pages 1-12, January.
    6. Sooksan Kantabutra & Nuttasorn Ketprapakorn, 2024. "Understanding Resilience and Sustainability in Organizations: A Cutting-Edge Framework and the Research Agenda," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(19), pages 1-26, September.
    7. Jungin Kim, 2018. "Collaborative leadership and financial sustainability in local government," Local Government Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 44(6), pages 874-893, November.
    8. Eun-Jung Woo & Eungoo Kang, 2020. "Environmental Issues As an Indispensable Aspect of Sustainable Leadership," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-22, August.
    9. Andrea Bencsik, 2022. "Background on the Sustainability of Knowledge," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-17, August.
    10. Qaisar Iqbal & Katarzyna Piwowar-Sulej, 2023. "Frugal innovation embedded in business and political ties: transformational versus sustainable leadership," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 22(5), pages 2225-2248, November.
    11. Jane Boeske, 2023. "Leadership towards Sustainability: A Review of Sustainable, Sustainability, and Environmental Leadership," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-18, August.
    12. Sooksan Kantabutra, 2021. "Exploring Relationships among Sustainability Organizational Culture Components at a Leading Asian Industrial Conglomerate," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-32, February.
    13. Klarin Tomislav, 2018. "The Concept of Sustainable Development: From its Beginning to the Contemporary Issues," Zagreb International Review of Economics and Business, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Zagreb, vol. 21(1), pages 67-94, May.
    14. Mónica Segovia-Pérez & Pilar Laguna-Sánchez & Concepción de la Fuente-Cabrero, 2019. "Education for Sustainable Leadership: Fostering Women’s Empowerment at the University Level," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(20), pages 1-14, October.
    15. Suparak Suriyankietkaew & Gayle Avery, 2016. "Sustainable Leadership Practices Driving Financial Performance: Empirical Evidence from Thai SMEs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(4), pages 1-14, April.
    16. Iryna Bashynska & Yuliia Malynovska & Nataliia Kolinko & Taliat Bielialov & Marina Järvis & Krystyna Kovalska & Mariia Saiensus, 2024. "Performance Assessment of Sustainable Leadership of Enterprise’s Circular Economy-Driven Innovative Activities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(2), pages 1-26, January.
    17. Michael Christofi & Erasmia Leonidou & Demetris Vrontis, 2015. "Cause-related marketing, product innovation and extraordinary sustainable leadership: the root towards sustainability," Global Business and Economics Review, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 17(1), pages 93-111.
    18. Akanksha Bedi & Can M. Alpaslan & Sandy Green, 2016. "A Meta-analytic Review of Ethical Leadership Outcomes and Moderators," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 139(3), pages 517-536, December.
    19. Urszula Słupska & Zbigniew Drewniak & Rafał Drewniak & Robert Karaszewski, 2022. "Building Relations between the Company and Employees: The Moderating Role of Leadership," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-14, July.
    20. Wei Xuecheng & Noor Hazlina Ahmad & Qaisar Iqbal & Bai Saina, 2022. "Responsible Leadership and Sustainable Development in East Asia Economic Group: Application of Social Exchange Theory," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-16, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Andrea Bencsik & Sylwia Pangsy-Kania, 2023. "Sustainable Leadership Practices Based on the Logic of the Honeybee Pyramid—Comparison of Hungarian and Polish SMEs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-27, August.
    2. Mou Lin & Azura Abdullah Effendi & Qaisar Iqbal, 2022. "The Mechanism Underlying the Sustainable Performance of Transformational Leadership: Organizational Identification as Moderator," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-19, November.
    3. Kevin Baird & Sophia Su & Rahat Munir, 2023. "The mediating role of levers of controls on the association between sustainable leadership and organisational resilience," Journal of Management Control: Zeitschrift für Planung und Unternehmenssteuerung, Springer, vol. 34(2), pages 167-200, June.
    4. Phallapa Petison & Sooksan Kantabutra, 2022. "A Quest for a Sustainable Social Enterprise Model: The Case of Amphawa Chaipattananurak, the Kingdom of Thailand," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-31, December.
    5. Byung-Jik Kim & Min-Jik Kim & Julak Lee, 2024. "Code green: ethical leadership’s role in reconciling AI-induced job insecurity with pro-environmental behavior in the digital workplace," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-16, December.
    6. Mehmet Yildiz & Nicola Pless & Semih Ceyhan & Rob Hallak, 2023. "Responsible Leadership and Innovation during COVID-19: Evidence from the Australian Tourism and Hospitality Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-21, March.
    7. Sooksan Kantabutra, 2023. "What do We Know about Vision? A Sustainability Lens," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-27, May.
    8. Jane Boeske, 2023. "Leadership towards Sustainability: A Review of Sustainable, Sustainability, and Environmental Leadership," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-18, August.
    9. Sooksan Kantabutra, 2022. "Toward a System Theory of Corporate Sustainability: An Interim Struggle," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-27, November.
    10. Anne Sebastian & Matthias P. Hühn, 2024. "Sustainable Leadership and Hegelian Self-Awareness," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-15, January.
    11. Sherry E. Moss & Meng Song & Sean T. Hannah & Zhen Wang & John J. Sumanth, 2020. "The Duty to Improve Oneself: How Duty Orientation Mediates the Relationship Between Ethical Leadership and Followers’ Feedback-Seeking and Feedback-Avoiding Behavior," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 165(4), pages 615-631, September.
    12. Kurt T. Dirks & Patrick J. Sweeney & Nikolaos Dimotakis & Todd Woodruff, 2022. "Understanding the Change and Development of Trust and the Implications for New Leaders," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 180(2), pages 711-730, October.
    13. Mihaela Brindusa Tudose & Valentina Diana Rusu & Silvia Avasilcai, 2021. "Performance Management for Growth: A Framework Based on EVA," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-19, March.
    14. Wunhong Su & Liuzhen Zhang & Chao Ge & Shuai Chen, 2022. "Association between Internal Control and Sustainability: A Literature Review Based on the SOX Act Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-30, August.
    15. Gladys Merma-Molina & Mayra Urrea-Solano & Salvador Baena-Morales & Diego Gavilán-Martín, 2022. "The Satisfactions, Contributions, and Opportunities of Women Academics in the Framework of Sustainable Leadership: A Case Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-23, July.
    16. S. Aqeel Tirmizi & Ken Williams & S. Noor Tirmizi, 2023. "More Human, Not Less: Global Relevance of Values-Based Leadership," Humanistic Management Journal, Springer, vol. 8(1), pages 13-28, April.
    17. Kaili Zhang & Bin Zhao & Kui Yin, 2024. "When Leaders Acknowledge Their Own Errors, Will Employees Follow Suit? A Social Learning Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 189(2), pages 403-421, January.
    18. Junshuai Cheng & Qaisar Iqbal & Guangmeng Ji & Weichun Li, 2022. "A Sustainable and Comprehensive Framework for Knowledge Transfer in MNCs: An Empirical Examination Based on Country, Company and Individual Levels of Chinese MNCs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-17, October.
    19. Xuan Liu & Xuexi Huo, 2024. "Green Finance, Land Transfer and China’s Agricultural Green Total Factor Productivity," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-18, December.
    20. Yue Li & Muhammad Tayyab Sohail & Yanan Zhang & Sana Ullah, 2024. "Bioenergy for Sustainable Rural Development: Elevating Government Governance with Environmental Policy in China," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-18, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:8:p:3499-:d:1634318. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.