Page 20 - Sustainability Communication Interdisciplinary Perspectives and Theoritical Foundations

Chapter 1
Sustainability Communication – An

Introduction

Jasmin Godemann and Gerd Michelsen

Abstract The development of the term sustainability communication is accompanied
by the call for responsible human interaction with the natural and social environment.
This entails a process of social understanding that deals with the causes and with
possible solutions. The task of sustainability communication is to critically evaluate
and introduce an understanding of the human-environment relationship into social
discourse. Alongside defining and providing a theoretical framework for mutual
understanding, this chapter will describe issues, concepts and methods relating to
sustainability communication.

Keywords Theoretical framework • Sustainability communication • Sustainability
research • Systemic-constructivist perspective • Methods of sustainability
communication

History of the Term

If the 1970s and the 1980s were above all characterised by debates about
environmental problems, the 1990s were defined by political and economic discus-
sions about so-called non-sustainable developments, globalisation and the concept of
sustainable development. Triggered by the 1972 report of the Club of Rome,

J. Godemann (*)
International Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility (ICCSR), Nottingham University
Business School, Jubilee Campus, Wollaton Road, Nottingham, NG8 1BB, UK
e-mail: jasmin.godemann@nottingham.ac.uk
G. Michelsen
Institute for Environmental and Sustainability Communication (INFU), Leuphana University,
Scharnhorststraße 1, 21335 Lüneburg, Germany

J. Godemann and G. Michelsen (eds.), Sustainability Communication: Interdisciplinary 3
Perspectives and Theoretical Foundations, DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-1697-1_1,
© Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2011