Inaugural Issue of ‘Journal of Environmental Sustainability’ Published

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Rochester Institute of Technology recently launched the Journal for Environmental Sustainability, a new publication with editorial staff from around the globe and informational articles about current understandings and trends within the field of environmental sustainability.

The journal includes a broad selection of theoretical papers, applied research, case studies and commentaries by professionals in the field of environmental management.

According to Editor-in-Chief John Morelli, sustainability has many meanings and has been applied to areas such as economic growth, the protection of the natural environment and social progress. Morelli, who also serves as department head of the civil engineering technology and environmental sustainability, health and safety programs in RIT’s College of Applied Science and Technology, says the journal is a means to better define the concept and the broad role he sees environmental professionals playing within the growing sustainability field.

“We have been struggling with the definition of ‘sustainability’ for more than a decade. The problem is simply too broad to describe in a single breath,” Morelli explains, adding that it is the responsibility of the professionals to contribute to defining the concept, identifying what it means to them and describing what their respective roles should be in moving toward a more sustainable and socially responsible future.

“The aim of this journal is to advance our understanding of the concept of ‘environmental sustainability’ and help define our roles in bringing it about,” he says.

Morelli has been instrumental in bringing together environmental managers to establish industry standards and to reinforce the role these managers can play in advancing sustainability within the industry. In 2008, he established the International Environmental Management Leadership Symposium. The symposia series was designed for environmental professionals from around the world to better define and elevate the profession and provides workshops on influencing supply-chain management, fostering organizational excellence as a strategy for improving environmental performance, engaging in sustainability and social responsibility.

“It follows that environmental professionals hold a key position and should take significant responsibility for maintaining the flow,” he says.

The Journal for Environmental Sustainability will be published biannually through the RIT Scholarship Publishing Studio. Editorial board members include Morelli; Lisa Greenwood, lecturer in RIT’s environmental sustainability, health and safety program; and Joseph Sarkis, Graduate School of Management, Clark University (Massachusetts). International representatives on the editorial board are Sándor Kerekes, Department of Environmental Economics, Corvinus University of Budapest (Hungary); Stefano Pogutz, Boccini School of Management, Boccini University SDA (Italy); and Stefan Schaltegger, Centre for Sustainability Management, Leuphana University (Germany).

The first issue is available online.

RIT In the News
Rochester Business Journal — Jan. 16, 2012
RIT journal focuses on environmental sustainability

John Morelli