Centre for Social and Sustainable Innovation
Inspiring change
The Centre for Social and Sustainable Innovation (CSSI) is powered by the constantly charging battery of action, ideas and research housed at the Peter B. Gustavson School of Business.
Our goal is to open a door to the array of resources that help students, faculty and staff incorporate all kinds of sustainability into their studies, careers and lives.
Business leaders can learn how our research affects their industries, enlist students for creative sustainability solutions, speak to our classes about their experiences in the field….
How can we help you?
Monika
Winn
Monika Winn is a professor of business strategy and sustainability, Francis G. Winspear Scholar, and director of the Centre for Social and Sustainable Innovation.
Her research focuses on organizational change as it relates to the challenges of sustainability in business. In her courses, she addresses the new imperative to manage sustainably and teaches students to identify opportunities for business innovation from a platform of strategic sustainability and corporate social responsibility.
“Sustainable business creates value at the junction of financial, social and natural capital,” she says. “My role as a teacher is to show students how the theory comes to life in real boardrooms and factories so they can wield the tools, or invent new ones, to build their own futures.”
Reach Dr. Winn at miwinn@uvic.ca
The Peter B. Gustavson School of Business faculty page has more information on Dr. Winn's expertise.
Heather
Ranson
Heather Ranson instructs in the service management specialization in the BCom and MBA programs and teaches business communications to Gustavson exchange students.
She's also the associate director and education chair of the Centre for Social and Sustainable Innovation, helping professors develop additional expertise in sustainability so it becomes a strong theme throughout Gustavson’s course offerings. As well, she oversees Gustavson’s sustainability commitments to the UN Global Compact as part of the Principles for Responsible Management Education.
Heather Ranson is available at hranson@uvic.ca and 250-721-6112
The Peter B. Gustavson School of Business faculty page has more information about Heather Ranson's work.
Basma
Majerbi
Basma Majerbi is assistant professor of finance at Gustavson School of Business and the operations chair of the Centre for Social and Sustainable Innovation.
At Gustavson, she specializes in teaching international finance and corporate finance in the MBA and BCom programs - and underlying it all is a foundation of organizational and functional sustainability. Her research interests are mainly in international finance and emerging markets with a recent focus on the role of financial markets and institutions in economic development and growth.
For the past two years, Basma has calculated the carbon footprint of Gustavson faculty, staff and students, inspiring ongoing efforts to reduce our carbon footprint. With her leadership, the Business and Economics and David Strong buildings used by Gustavson won the spring 2011 energy-reduction challenge held amongst six buildings on campus. Her coaching and weekly updates on our progress created significant behavioral changes amongst users throughout the building.
She is also a member of the university’s Revolving Sustainability Loan Fund project-review committee and a founder of Gustavson’s Blue-Green Fund.
Contact Dr. Majerbi at majerbi@uvic.ca or 250-472-4281
Learn more about Dr. Majerbi's expertise at the Peter B. Gustavson School of Business faculty page.
Joshua
Ault
Joshua Ault is assistant professor in international business at Gustavson and research chair of the Centre for Social and Sustainable Innovation.
His research examines the financial and social challenges to conducting business in the world’s poorest countries. His current projects examine trends in the global growth of microfinance lending, one of the few business models to successfully penetrate these markets on a large scale.
Josh’s research on microfinancing to alleviate global poverty has taken him to Africa and India, but it is here at Gustavson that he can share his knowledge with students and give them the tools to make a world of difference.
“My objective is to extend what we learn from microfinance to other industries,” he says. “Those lessons could make it possible – and profitable - to provide essential goods and services to the poor in less-developed countries.”
You can reach Dr. Ault at jault@uvic.ca and 250-472-5349
Learn more about his expertise at the Peter B. Gustavson School of Business faculty page.
Rachel
Goldsworthy
Co-ordinator Rachel Goldsworthy wheels her background in science, journalism and sustainable lifestyles to the Centre for Social and Sustainable Innovation.
She's written a host of articles for publications like Canadian Geographic, Journal of Commerce, and Gustavson's Business Class about the people and practices that bring sustainability and social responsibility to life.
Through CSSI, she tells stories of the myriad inspiring events and people at Gustavson in order to share the model with business learners and teachers around the world. She also helps the CSSI team organize resources so they're accessible to everyone at the school.
Rachel Goldsworthy is available at cssi@uvic.ca and 250-853-3721