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Although listed firms in Africa are increasingly establishing board sustainability committees, their impact on corporate outcomes in the region remains relatively understudied. This study investigates the effect of executive compensation (EC) and board sustainability committee initiatives (BSCIs) on both self-reported greenhouse gas emission reduction initiatives (SRGI) and actual greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE).

Through the lens of resource-based view and legitimacy and stakeholder theoretical perspectives, the study conducts a fixed-effects model over a dataset of 2,310 firm-year observations from African countries between 2002 and 2022.

The findings show that while EC has a negative impact on SRGI, it does not have a similar effect on outcome-based GHGE reduction. The study observes that SRGI has no effect on actual GHG emissions. We add a fresh dimension to the literature by documenting that BSCIs are associated with greater outcome-based GHGE but do not seem to improve symbolic SRGI. The evidence shows that BSCIs have no moderating impact on the association between symbolic SRGI and outcome-based GHGE. Finally, the study establishes that the predicted associations vary across different periods.

This study helps unpack the role of the board sustainability committee, which Orazalin et al. (2024) show has key economic implications. The findings help stakeholders including corporate boards, executives and regulators to understand how board sustainability committee characteristics and EC are associated with GHG emissions. The results are particularly essential as this study demonstrates the need for specific standards for disclosing GHG emission-related information, notably in the non-existence of mandatory GHG reporting.

This paper aims to investigate the impact of board characteristics on corporate social responsibility (CSR)/sustainability reporting quality in Saudi Arabia, with a particular emphasis on how CSR committees moderate this relationship.

This study analyzes data from 75 firms listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange from 2013 to 2020. The CSR/sustainability reporting quality is assessed using a scoring system ranging from 0 to 2. An interaction analysis is conducted using Panel Ordered Logit Regression to examine the moderating effect of CSR committees on the relationship between board attributes and CSR/sustainability reporting quality.

The analysis reveals significant positive impacts of board expertise and attendance on CSR/sustainability reporting quality. The presence of a CSR committee significantly enhances reporting practices. However, board size has a nonsignificant impact on its own. In the presence of a CSR committee, board size becomes positively associated with reporting quality, but this effect is moderated by a negative interaction. Furthermore, the presence of a CSR committee attenuates the positive impact of board attendance. Despite this moderating role, the effect of board attendance remains positive and significant. Conversely, the CSR committee has a nonsignificant moderating effect on board expertise.

The findings emphasize the importance for Saudi Arabian companies to strategically develop boards with strong CSR expertise and actively involve CSR committees in overseeing CSR activities. This strategic integration is crucial for enhancing the quality of CSR/sustainability reporting, fostering transparency and accountability and facilitating informed decision-making.

By implementing these governance practices, Saudi Arabian companies can strengthen stakeholder trust and contribute to sustainable economic and societal progress within the country.

This study contributes to the literature on corporate governance and CSR practices by providing empirical evidence of the direct impact of board characteristics and the moderating effect of CSR committees in the Saudi context, offering a nuanced understanding of the complex dynamics between governance mechanisms and CSR/sustainability reporting quality.

This study aims to explore the mediating role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) committees in the relationship between board characteristics and environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance, specifically within the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

Based on a panel of 178 firms spanning 2015–2022, the analysis uses Baron and Kenny’s (1986) mediation approach, supplemented by structural equation modeling (SEM) path analysis for robustness.

The findings demonstrate that CSR committees play a significant mediating role in the impact of board size, expertise and gender diversity on ESG performance. Furthermore, the study confirms the direct, positive influence of both board characteristics and the presence of CSR committees on ESG performance, underscoring their strategic importance in fostering sustainability in this regional context.

The findings highlight the strategic importance of diversifying and enhancing board skills to improve ESG performance. Companies are encouraged to recalibrate their governance frameworks to leverage the mediating influence of CSR committees and promote sustainable business practices.

By demonstrating the positive effect of CSR committees on ESG performance, this study aligns with global trends in responsible business conduct and highlights the importance of corporate governance in addressing environmental and social challenges. This alignment is critical for achieving sustainable development goals and reinforcing stakeholder trust in the region.

This research provides novel empirical insights into the mediating effect of CSR committees within the MENA region, offering a unique contribution to the discourse on corporate governance and sustainability. By highlighting region-specific governance dynamics that shape ESG outcomes, it deepens the understanding of effective governance practices.

The intensity of carbon emissions has led to the serious problem of global warming, and the consequences in terms of climatic disasters are gaining increasing attention worldwide. As the energy sector is responsible for most global emissions, developing clean energy is crucial to combat climate change. This study aims to examine the relationship between corporate governance and renewable energy (RE) consumption and explore the interaction between RE production and RE use.

The study adopts an econometric framework of a panel model, followed by the robustness check using alternative methods, including logit regressions. The bivariate probit model is used to analyze the interaction between the decision to use and the decision to produce RE. The analysis is based on a sample of 3,896 firms covering 45 countries worldwide.

The results reveal that appropriate governance mechanisms positively impact RE consumption. These include the existence of a sustainability committee; environmental, social and governance-based compensation policy; financial performance-based compensation; sustainability external audit; transparency; board gender diversity; and board independence. Firms with appropriate governance mechanisms are more likely to produce and use RE than others. Finally, while RE use positively impacts firm value and environmental performance, the authors find no significant effect on current profitability.

This study goes beyond previous research by exploring the impact of multiple governance mechanisms. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is also the first study examining the relationship between RE use and firm value. Overall, the findings suggest that RE transition requires, first of all, establishing appropriate governance mechanisms within companies.

This study aims to examine the association between corporate governance and sustainability reporting quality of listed firms in Nigeria.

The authors measure corporate governance using board governance variables (board size, board independence, board gender diversity and board expertise) and audit committee attributes (audit committee size, audit expertise and audit meeting). The authors measured sustainability reporting quality using a scoring system, which ranges between 0 and 4. The highest score is achieved when sustainability reporting is independently assured by an audit firm. The lowest score refers to the absence of sustainability reporting. The study emphasizes 120 listed firms on Nigeria Stock Exchange using the ordered logistic regression technique.

The results indicate that board governance variables (board size, board gender diversity and board expertise) and audit committee attributes (audit committee size, audit expertise and audit meeting) are significantly associated with sustainability reporting quality. Additional analysis reveals that external assurance contributes to the quality of sustainability reporting through corporate governance characteristics.

This study is restricted to a single country. Future studies should consider a cross-country study, which may help to establish a comparative analysis. Likewise, the future study could consider other regression techniques using a continuous measurement of the global reporting initiative in measuring sustainability reporting quality.

This study’s findings have important implications for policymakers and practitioners, especially the corporate executives and top management. Companies are encouraged to restructure their board to enhance better monitoring and support towards better sustainability reporting.

Disclosure on sustainability reporting helps corporate organizations advance the issues of sustainability both nationally and globally.

This current study adds to accounting literature by examining how corporate governance contributes to sustainability reporting practices within the Nigerian context. Drawing from the result, the study provides strong interconnectivity between the corporate board and audit committee in driving sustainability reporting quality within an organizational context.

This paper aims to analyze the impact that sustainable board governance has on corporate social responsibility (CSR) on the European capital market because of the current debate of future European regulations on the topic.

Based on a legitimacy and stakeholder theoretical framework, the author conducts a structured literature review and includes 86 quantitative peer-reviewed empirical (archival) studies on board gender diversity, sustainability board expertise and sustainability-related executive compensation and their impact on CSR variables.

Gender board diversity represents the most important variable in this literature review. The included categories of sustainable board governance positively influence both the total CSR and environmental outputs.

A detailed analysis of sustainable board governance proxies is needed in future archival research to differentiate between symbolic and substantive use of CSR. In view of the current European reform initiatives on sustainable corporate governance in line with the EU Green Deal project, future research should also analyze the interactions between the included sustainable board governance variables and their contributions to CSR.

As both stakeholder demands’ on CSR outputs and CSR washing have increased since the financial crisis of 2008–2009, firms should be aware of a substantive integration of sustainability within their boards of directors (e.g. because of composition and compensation) to increase their CSR efforts and long-term firm reputation.

This analysis makes useful contributions to prior research by focusing on sustainable board governance as a key determinant of CSR outputs on the European capital market. The European Commission’s future evidence-based regulations [e.g. the corporate sustainability reporting directive (CSRD) and the corporate sustainability due diligence directive (CSDD)] should be promoted.

Towns and cities across Canada face rapidly changing economic circumstances and many are turning to a variety of strategies, including tourism, to provide stability in their communities. Community Economic Development (CED) has become an accepted form of economic development, with recognition that such planning benefits from a more holistic approach and community participation. However, much of why particular strategies are chosen, what process the community undertakes to implement those choices and how success is measured is not fully understood. Furthermore, CED lacks a developed theoretical basis from which to examine these questions. By investigating communities that have chosen to develop their tourism potential through the use of murals, these various themes can be explored. There are three purposes to this research: (1) to acquire an understanding of the “how” and the “why” behind the adoption and diffusion of mural-based tourism as a CED strategy in rural communities; (2) to contribute to the emerging theory of CED by linking together theories of rural geography, rural change and sustainability, and rural tourism; and (3) to contribute to the development of a framework for evaluating the potential and success of tourism development within a CED process.

Two levels of data collection and analysis were employed in this research. Initially, a survey of Canadian provincial tourism guides was conducted to determine the number of communities in Canada that market themselves as having a mural-based tourism attraction (N=32). A survey was sent to these communities, resulting in 31 responses suitable for descriptive statistical analysis, using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). A case study analysis of the 6 Saskatchewan communities was conducted through in-depth, in person interviews with 40 participants. These interviews were subsequently analyzed utilizing a combined Grounded Theory (GT) and Content Analysis approach.

The surveys indicated that mural development spread within a relatively short time period across Canada from Chemainus, British Columbia. Although tourism is often the reason behind mural development, increasing community spirit and beautification were also cited. This research demonstrates that the reasons this choice is made and the successful outcome of that choice is often dependent upon factors related to community size, proximity to larger populations and the economic (re)stability of existing industry. Analysis also determined that theories of institutional thickness, governance, embeddedness and conceptualizations of leadership provide a body of literature that offers an opportunity to theorize the process and outcomes of CED in rural places while at the same time aiding our understanding of the relationship between tourism and its possible contribution to rural sustainability within a Canadian context. Finally, this research revealed that both the CED process undertaken and the measurement of success are dependent upon the desired outcomes of mural development. Furthermore, particular attributes of rural places play a critical role in how CED is understood, defined and carried out, and how successes, both tangible and intangible, are measured.

In recent times, stakeholders have called on corporate organizations especially those charged with governance to embrace full disclosure on non-financial issues, especially sustainability reporting. Based on this premise, this study aims to examine the influence of corporate board and assurance on sustainability reporting practices (SRP) of selected 80 firms from 8 countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

To measure the corporate board, the authors use both board variables and audit committee variables. Also, the authors adapted the sustainability score model as used by previous authors in the field of sustainability disclosure to measure SRPs. The analysis was done using both ordered logistic regression and probit regression models.

The results show that the combination of board corporate and assurance has a positive and significant impact on the sustainability reporting practice of selected firms in sub-Saharan Africa.

The study places emphasis on the need for strong collaboration between the corporate board and external assurance in evaluating and enhancing the quality of sustainability disclosure.

The study bridged the gap in the literature in the area of corporate board, assurance and SRP of corporate firms which has received little attention within sub-Saharan Africa.

This study aims to explore whether firms that have a sustainability committee operating on the board, publish separate sustainability reports that are externally assured by an independent external audit and have large and active boards are more likely to be engaged in environmental practices and have better environmental performance.

Based on a sample of firms listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange, covering the period 2014–2021, this study applies panel data models to examine the research hypotheses.

The findings show significant positive associations between the existence of a sustainability committee, the publication of separate sustainability reports and the independent external assurance of these reports and environmental performance. This study also finds that the composite internal governance index is significant and positively associated with environmental performance.

Policymakers should support the creation of a sustainability committee on the boards of Saudi firms and review its role and responsibilities. The findings of this study inform regulators of the importance of the existence of independent external assurance of the sustainability reports of Saudi firms to enhance the credibility and reliability of these reports. Managers need to establish devoted committees committed to sustainability-related tasks that help coordinate communications between the firm and stakeholders.

The Saudi Arabian Government has implemented a range of policies and initiatives aimed at improving environmental performance, which is a main focus of Saudi Vision 2030 to achieve environmental sustainability. Therefore, this study provides unique evidence and new insights on the impact of internal governance on corporate environmental performance in the Saudi context.

This paper aims to investigate the impact of sustainable board governance, based on (1) sustainability board committees, (2) critical mass of female board members and (3) sustainability-related executive compensation, on sustainable supply chain reporting (SSCR).

Based on stakeholder and critical mass theories, a sample of 1,577 firm-year observations for firms listed at the EuroSTOXX600 for the period 2017–2021 is used. Sustainable board governance and SSCR proxies are collected from the Refinitiv database. Correlation and logit regression analyses are conducted to measure the impact of sustainable board governance on SSCR.

Sustainable board governance significantly improves SSCR. The findings are robust to various robustness checks, based on the modification of dependent and independent variables.

Due to massive regulations on sustainability reporting, finance and corporate governance, firms listed on the EuroSTOXX 600 are focused in this analysis. The European capital market represents a unique setting for archival research.

European standard setters should connect the relationship between sustainable board governance and SSCR in future regulations, for example, due to the recent corporate sustainability reporting directive (CSRD) and corporate sustainability due diligence directive (CSDDD).

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this paper provides the first analysis on the impact of sustainable board governance on SSCR.