The construction and real estate industry represents a significant part of Sweden's total impact on the environment and mainly affects the following national environmental objectives: reduced climate impact, a good built environment and a non-toxic environment. By establishing internal rules, companies within the industry can reduce their environmental impact. SMT (AB Sandvik Materials Technology), a part of the industrial group Sandvik AB, has set a target that during 2014 develop a guiding document with special consider to the environmental impact during construction of office buildings, that they establish at the Swedish regional capital Sandviken, for both internal and external tenants. This study therefore aims to clarify which environmental aspects that the construction and real estate sector mainly are responsible for, and therefore should be part of a guiding document for a company for establishing office buildings, and to present arguments regarding the use of such a document. The study is based on literature studies and personal contact with other companies, in the form of e-mail conversations and a telephone interview.

Abstract In order to make the modern agriculture less dependent on non-renewable external inputs, it has to rely more on ecosystem services. The agricultural system produce not only food, fiber and fuel, it also generates other ecosystem services such as e.g. photosynthesis, recycling of nutrients, influencing local microclimate, pollination, biological control and detoxification of noxious chemicals. This study is an attempt to get a better understanding about the interaction among different ecosystem services and different habitats capacity to generate them. An evaluation of eight different methods is done. The ecosystem services studied are the ability to absorb solar energy, biomass production, botanical diversity, decomposition and natural predation of aphids.

This master thesis is about sustainable city planning and its debate. It is also concerned with networking, communication and web-based communication. Theories of sustainable development are discussed, along with the importance of communication for sustainable development. The report is directed towards landscape architects, architects, town planners, other designers and other interested readers.MotivationI believe that there is a need for an increased discussion concerning sustainability. Sustainable development is an important issue for city planners.

Near Field Communication, NFC, is a short-range wireless communication technology that enables data exchange between devices in a secure way. A NFC phone has the potential to enable the convergence of wallet, phone and keys, but as many other technological innovations, the launch is struggling. We have discovered that technological innovation is only the first step. For an innovation to be adapted, there need to be business model innovation too. Many actors form the ecosystem of NFC and the business model for each service is still an unsolved problem.

This paper aims to deepen the understanding of how the European Council frames the climate crisis and its implications for political legitimacy and policymaking. The climate crisis is one of the most pressing challenges of our time, influencing not only environmental systems but also societal structures and governance. By analyzing the European Council?s framings during the 2019?2024 strategic agenda, this research investigates how political actors shape narratives to justify actions and policies in response to the climate crisis. Through a discourse analysis of official Council conclusions, using a framework drawing on six typologies of framing, the research examines the Council's evolving narrative in the context of multiple crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

Cultivable land is a limited resource and agriculture contributes to some of the most serious environmental problems facing the planet like, global warming, eutrophication and loss of biodiversity. The specialized, industrial agriculture with monoculture and extensive input of external energy, commercial fertilizer, and chemical pesticides are all essentially unsustainable. An adaptation to other methods of production is necessary to preserve the environment for future generations. The aim of this study is to describe the factors that distinguish sustainable from unsustainable agriculture. The results will be used to examine if and how the European Union (EU) works in order to create a more sustainable agricultural industry and to analyze the preconditions for such development.

In June 2006 the Council of the European Union agreed on the review of the EU sustainable development strategy. This renewed strategy voices a commitment to sustainable development that includes a diverse list of safeguarded interests. Sustainability is to be attained in the spheres of democracy, solidarity, the rule of law, gender equality and at the same time it should promote a dynamic economy. Given this multifunctional application of sustainable development, curiosity may soon give rise to questions such as; What is the legal significance of the concept? Is it to be considered a general principle of Community law? And can it be used as an instrument in adjudication and legal reasoning? Anyone who looks deeper into the concept of sustainable development is soon to find a labyrinthine complex of ideas, expressions and opinions.

Following essay discusses the possibilities of using a gender perspective when studying local governance within a Swedish context. Governance is an international concept used to describe a more lose, informal and network based way of doing politics The main purpose for conducting this essay is that traditional theoretical frameworks used in the study of local politics are not enough to fully conceptualize the complexity of our changing political environment.After a broad summing up of what had been done in the recent decades within Swedish political science on the topic of local politics and gender I came to the conclusion that so far nothing had been written on governance. The next step was therefore to conduct a pilot study to cover the subject matter of governance and gender. The study was based upon interviews with five female politicians in Malmoe city.Results showed that governance, in terms of informal networks did exist, and had influence over the local politics. Some of the networks were male dominated.

This case study has been conducted within the Swedish fitness chain World Class to explore the opportunities for knowledge development and transfers within franchise networks. We have interviewed the product manager at the World Class headquarter, the owner of a franchise club and a local product manager from the same facility. Our finding indicates that various forms of knowledge transfer occur within the World Class network, particularly in product development and sales. The transfer occurs within the framework set by World Class with regularly scheduled meetings. In addition informal networks provide other means of knowledge exchange between some units.

The value of an organization?s availability and transparency towards the public whenever and wherever it is necessary has increased. Internet and the social networks have become essential to most of the citizens of Sweden but for organizations social networking still is an area that is relatively unexplored. As the Internet and social media progresses it becomes a greater part of people?s lives, which leads to more demands but also a great amount of possibilities for the organizations that participate in this technical revolution.The purpose of this quantitative study is to examine if and how the people receiving the information published on the Växjö and Alvesta police department?s Facebook-page are considering Facebook as a channel of communication.

The study intends to find easily recognizable indicator species for water quality in the constructed wetland of Flemingsbergsviken. The study is relevant since indicator species can be difficult to determine for common people. Easily recognizable indicator species could improve dialogue between the scientific community, administrative authorities and the general public. Such species could be used in education systems, associations or in information campaigns. Therefore, I have chosen to refer to these species as didactical species.

I studien studeras hur komplexiteten kring sociala medier kan studeras, samt pa? vilket sa?tt sociala na?tverk a?r relaterade till na?tverken i sociala medier och hur det pa?verkar konsumenterna. Syftet med studien a?r att underso?ka de sociala medierna i fo?rha?llande till de sociala na?tverken med fokus pa? konsumentbeteende och da?rigenom skapa en generell modell som fo?rklarar problematiken. Studien bygger pa? en litteraturstudie som i fo?rsta hand sammansta?llts av artiklar med fokus pa? a?mnesomra?dena sociala na?tverk, elektroniska sociala na?tverk och sociala medier. En enka?tunderso?kning gjordes fo?r att sammansta?lla konsumenters a?sikter om a?mnesomra?dena, i syfte att tillslut utmynna i en analys och diskussion. Det ga?r att konstatera att sociala medier har vidgat det sociala na?tverket fo?r den enskilde konsumenten. Detta resulterar i att den enskilde konsumenten nu kan komma i kontakt med fler akto?rer och andra konsumenter som i ma?nga fall kan vara oka?nda.

The existence of social networks on the Internet is today seen as broad, and the number of users of the network is increasing. There seems to be many reasons to which people are using the social networks. Within the network, users can for various reasons create groups with different objectives. One of the reasons is that groups are created in order to influence a company. With a perceived feeling that companies handle the problem differently, we assume the source is the uncertainty about what the groups really are.

Abstract In my work, I have tried to define and clarify the conception of sustainability seen from my perspective as a landscape architect. With a basis in literature studies, I have analysed and commented on different applications, contents and meanings of sustainability and endurance. This compilation is based on how a number of writers, researchers and authorities consider the importance of integrating ecological, social and economic aspects of sustainability in city planning. My perspective has mainly been founded on the anthologies and compilations from the 80´s and 90´s where Per G. Berg and Björn Malbert acted as editors.

To curb greenhouse gases and mitigate climate change is one of the biggest challenges human society face today. Carbon dioxide (CO2) has accumulated rapidly in the atmosphere as a consequence of burning of fossil fuels and deforestation. The aim of this study is to explore two methods to store carbon dioxide in geological formations and biological sinks. The aim is also to discuss the two mitigation options from a sustainable perspective and whether it can lead to a better environment and benefits for local and global societies. The research questions are: Which method to store carbon dioxide, geological or biological, is the most effective? Which method to store carbon dioxide, geological or biological, has the greatest potential to promote sustainable development for local communities?The method used is a comparative case study and presents four case studies that explore the potential for CO2 storage offshore in Norway and Brazil; and in tropical forests in Mexico and Brazil.