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Anyone seeking to influence another is a potential leader. Within higher education, determining what an institution should undertake on sustainability can be daunting. Sustainability leaders face labyrinthine, multifaceted sub-cultures, influencers and viewpoints across staff, students, government, business and alumni all with an opinion on whether, how and in what order of priority sustainability should be taken forward. In this paper we take on this challenge by synthesising and critically evaluating core principles and working models for influencing and leading for sustainability in higher education. We identify a series of eight challenges affecting delivery of sustainability and seek to understand how conceptual models and principles in sustainability decision-making and leadership could address these. We draw on the experience of both authors, in tandem with comments from workshop and leadership training programme participants who attended the Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges (EAUC) Leadership Lab training in the UK, as well as reflections arising in a detailed case study from the University of Edinburgh. We bring key insights from theory and practice for the benefits of individuals or teams seeking to influence and persuade key decision-makers to embrace the sustainability agenda.

The purpose of this paper is to establish implicit consumer attitudes towards whole grain foods, following criticisms of explicit enquiries revealing an attitude-behaviour gap. For products considered to have social desirability (e.g. ethical and “health” products) bias may be observed, as respondents may provide responses that present them in a positive light, rather than those reflecting their actual attitudes, intentions or behaviours.

The research employed an indirect measure, the shopping list method, analysed quantitatively in this case using factor analysis and regression, to examine the impression respondents form of whole grain consumers, using three discrete shopping lists and two discrete cover letters. Following a pilot survey to 79 people using Snowball sampling, the survey instrument was distributed to 3,000 UK households using a purchased mailing list.

The findings demonstrated that respondents considered whole grain consumers to exhibit positive attributes of respectability and self-efficacy compared to their counterparts. These findings countered the negative, product attribute-based views of respondents when queried explicitly about their attitudes to whole grain foods.

The research provides an original perspective on whole grain consumer attitudes, using a methodology which – whilst well-established – has been used less frequently in a quantitative manner. It provides particular value to food retailers and manufacturers looking to promote whole grain products, but also to policy makers seeking to change consumption habits towards whole grains – which have established health benefits compared to refined alternatives.

The interdependencies of people and planet have never been as stark as they are currently, with human-induced global issues prominent, not least climate change, the Covid-19 pandemic and issues of social justice and security. In parallel, institutions, academics and governments are moving towards greater understanding and appreciation of the interdependencies between human and physical systems to drive forward positive change. This chapter focuses on, within the miasmic complexity presented above, how the wider sustainability agenda interacts with the workforce (employees) for the benefit of themselves and their welfare and well-being, as well as that of their employer, the planet and wider society. In particular, the chapter explores two Frameworks – (1) the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (and particularly Goal 8, Decent Work and Economic Development); (2) the International Integrated Reporting Framework (I<IR>F) and particularly how human capital is represented.

The purpose of this paper is to address the question of why world major supermarket chains have been unsuccessful so far in the Japanese market. The paper considers arguments from the literature that differences in consumer attitudes and behaviour between the two markets may be the determinants of the success, or otherwise, of the large US and European supermarkets.

A review of literature about Western and Japanese retailing is followed by an account of exploratory empirical research into Japanese consumer grocery purchasing and consumption behaviour.

The results support an argument that the large store “one‐stop shopping” supermarket format popular in the UK/EU is not and will not be the preferred format in Japan. Convenience, matters, but it is not the same concept as in the UK, for example.

The sample survey is purposively biased towards younger female shoppers from the working population who will have a significant impact on future consumer behaviour patterns. Results are more inferential than statistically validated hypotheses.

Supermarket chains should open a larger number of smaller stores, concentrating on frequently delivered and high quality products, above all in the fresh foods categories. Moreover, the growth of the small “convenience” store format in markets such as the UK and California suggests that “western” consumers' desires for convenience are becoming more like those of Japanese consumers.

The paper shows that there has been little effort, to date, to demonstrate through primary research whether unique characteristics and buying behaviour do exist in the Japanese marketplace.

‘Decent work’. The very phrase conjures up a range of images and interpretations. But what does it mean for practitioners? What does it mean for academics? Much has been spoken, and even more has been written, but there is still little consensus as to how these questions can be answered. This book aims to offer some answers by exploring the increasingly relevant topic of Decent Work from a range of perspectives. This initial chapter introduces readers to the purpose, rationale and structure of the book. It offers a description of the concept of Decent Work and introduces readers to the work of the Decent Work and Productivity Research Centre of Manchester Metropolitan University.