PurposeTo examine the extent of sustainability reporting and the relationship between reputation, government ownership, foreign ownership, board size, board gender diversity and the extent of sustainability reporting by financial institutions in Ghana using the concept of Africapitalism and stakeholder theory.Design/methodology/approachAnnual and sustainability-related reports of 67 financial institutions in Ghana from 2019 to 2021 were analysed using content analysis and robust panel data analysis.FindingsThe extent of sustainability reporting by financial institutions in Ghana is very low. The environmental and energy-related items are the least disclosed. Reputation, government ownership, and foreign ownership have a significant positive relationship with the extent of sustainability reporting. Board size and board gender diversity did not show any significant relationship with the extent of sustainability reporting. Furthermore, the impacts of the determinants vary across the respective dimensions of the sustainability index.Research limitations/implicationsMany financial institutions were excluded from the study due to unpublished annual reports and inactive websites.Practical implicationsCorporate governance tools and firm features alone cannot improve sustainability reporting. Strong regulations are needed to improve the level of reporting.Originality/valueTo the best of our knowledge, the study is the first to apply the Africapitalism concept to examine African firms' sustainability reporting. It thus contributes to developing this theory and the decolonisation of sustainability research. It also extends the literature on sustainability reporting of unlisted financial institutions, especially in emerging economies.
What enables market-driving behaviour, and is it a worthwhile business strategy? This fundamental question intrigues both managers in firms and researchers in marketing and strategic management, yet surprisingly, it remains underexplored. To this end, we assess the antecedents and consequences of market-driving capability. Using the resource-based view as our theoretical underpinning, we develop a conceptual model and empirically test the hypotheses with a sample of 416 managers via partial least squares structural equation modelling. We find that learning capability and big data analytics capability significantly influence market-driving capability in contemporary, data-intensive contexts, resulting in firms not only having a competitive advantage but also achieving improved financial and market performance. A follow-up study, conducted 4 years after the original study, provides exploratory evidence that market-driving capability can contribute to changes in market structure over time. Overall, this paper enhances our understanding of capabilities that enable firms to drive markets and highlights the implications for individual firm performance and overall market structure.
Sea-level reconstructions are critical benchmarks for testing models of ice-sheet stability and climate change. Their interpretation, however, is complicated by sea-level changes driven by different processes, among which include the solid Earth's response to sediment loading. Here we show that incorporating sediment isostastic adjustment reduces long-standing discrepancies among Marine Isotopic Stage (MIS) 5a and 5e records from the Rio de la Plata estuary by up to an order of magnitude, indicating that regional sedimentary histories can shift relative sea-level estimates by several meters compared to traditional glacial isostatic adjustment-based approaches. We further emphasize how sediment loading may play an important role in influencing relative sea level throughout the Holocene and may continue to affect regional modern tide-gauge records. These findings underscore the importance of regionally resolved sedimentation histories, in contrast to approaches based solely on global compilations, and highlight the need for expanded shelf coring and seismic surveys.
Climate change poses increasing transition risks for the banking sector, as financial institutions remain exposed to fossil fuel activities despite growing sustainability commitments. This study examines whether corporate governance influences banks' decisions to adopt fossil fuel divestment policies. Using a global panel of banks observed between 2014 and 2023, the analysis investigates the relationship between governance quality and the probability of adopting divestment commitments. The results show that stronger corporate governance is positively associated with fossil fuel divestment. In particular, higher scores in overall governance quality, management practices, shareholder protection, and CSR strategy are linked to a greater likelihood of adopting divestment policies. Financial strength also plays a role, as larger and better capitalized banks are more likely to commit to divestment. By contrast, a negative relationship between ESG controversies and divestment suggests that divestment commitments may, in some cases, reflect reputational considerations rather than purely sustainability-driven decisions. These findings highlight the importance of governance structures in shaping banks' strategic responses to climate-related risks and contribute to the literature on sustainable finance by identifying governance as a key driver of fossil fuel divestment decisions in the banking sector.
Abstract Background Glucosylated-sterols can be synthetized endogenously, absorbed through the diet or derive from bacterial infection. Their clinical relevance is currently underestimated, even though their imbalance has been associated with an increased risk of neurodegeneration over the lifespan. We studied the detrimental effects elicited by dietary consumption of the plant-derived β-sitosterol β-d-glucoside (BSSG), known to be associated with the occurrence of ALS-PDC, to elucidate its potential mechanism of action. Methods Zebrafish larvae and adults, as well as mice, were treated with BSSG administered directly in the water or via customized food pellet, respectively. Since the intestine was identified as the primary target tissue, its morphological and functional characteristics were assessed, together with transcriptional profiling and gut microbiota sequencing. Ex vivo analysis of zebrafish gut contractility was applied to evaluate intestinal neuromuscular responses. Mutant and transgenic zebrafish lines were used to explore a potential BSSG mechanism of action. Results BSSG induced intestinal inflammation in both zebrafish and mouse models. This previously unknown effect was evidenced by gut dysmotility and inflammatory response. Transcriptomic analyses revealed increased expression of inflammation-related genes in the intestine of both zebrafish and mice, while preliminary gut microbiota analyses suggested the onset of dysbiosis. Transgenic and mutant zebrafish lines, depleted of genes involved in glucocorticoids synthesis and activity, evidenced that BSSG likely interacts with the glucocorticoid receptor, potentially impairing its canonical anti-inflammatory activity. Conclusions We identified novel pathways altered by dietary BSSG exposure. This molecule appears to initially induce gut inflammation, leading to changes in intestinal morphology and function, and may contribute to neurodegeneration through disruption of the well-known gut–brain axis.
