This paper investigates the attributes of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programmes in sport and their potential for sustainable community development. The gap between sport-related CSR and community development needs to be filled by shifting attention to the capacity building of communities. While the neoliberal foundations of CSR are recognized, it is essential to understand the ideological varieties driving CSR that can enable inclusiveness and collaboration in fostering community benefits of CSR programmes. The paper contributes to the literature on CSR in sport advancing the discourse, and sets the stage for a community-based framework for research: (1) related to sport as a tool for social change; (2) exploring the relationship of organizational motives, stakeholder engagement and CSR programme design/implementation; and (3) evaluating the perceived benefits of CSR programmes, and the extent to which these can help achieve sustainable community development.

Sport organizations across North America promote and claim deep commitments to environmental issues through sustainability performance signaling. These signals are conveyed through external associations or memberships (e.g., Green Sports Alliance) or internally (e.g., environmental reports and communications). However, researchers have not explored this communication strategy as it relates to environmental initiatives in sport nor compared environmental communications of sport organizations from the major professional sport leagues in North America. We analyzed the websites of 147 North American sport organizations and their associated venue websites for environmental performance signaling communications. We found that only one sport organization featured an environmental report on its website, and 42 sport organizations highlighted environmental initiatives through dedicated webpages on the respective team or venue’s website. Predominately, these communications focused on fan engagement initiatives (i.e., awareness, participation) but lacked goal setting, measurement metrics, or performance summaries. We discuss these themes, the implications, and recommendations for how sustainability performance signaling can be better leveraged in the North American sport sector.

This paper focuses on the social features of participation in outdoor sports that play a significant role in the lived experience of participants, and in their interactions with the environment. These embodied interactions can bridge nature and culture, and inform interventions for more sustainable ecosystems. Conceptual methods were used to explain the sport-nature-culture nexus and postulate an interdisciplinary framework of social sport ecology, incorporating management, nature sports, neo-tribalism, and non-representation theoretical perspectives. The proposed framework suggests that multi-sensory stimuli, embodied sport practices and neo-tribal cultural values shape the “sports ecosphere,” which needs to be attuned with the affective/cognitive dimensions of experience in ways that build caring cultures for the environment. The significance of this work lies in its comprehensive perspective to the environmental management of outdoor sports by demonstrating the critical role of politics, culture, experience and movement in contemporary sport. It suggests a holistic approach of social sport ecology to better understand and reimagine the environmental practices and character of outdoor sports.

The purpose of this study was to explore the role of sport in Detroit as a tool for shaping the image of the downtown area as a tourist destination. We utilized two different sources of data collection: we interviewed a panel of local experts representing sport and tourism stakeholders in Detroit, and we also examined local and national media reports published during the World Series in 2002. Results indicated that efforts are placed on broadening the scope of events the city hosts to attract more visitors and improve the image of the downtown area, but at the same time, the major problems the city is currently experiencing send a rather dual message of the role sport plays in this city's image. Additionally, results from the media analysis produced three key themes: (1) Recovery of the city; (2) Negative image of the city; and (3) Financial woes. Overall, our findings provide mixed evidence about the role of sport as a vehicle for building a positive image of Detroit. Sport could be an image-booster for Detroit, yet any image increase is superseded by the city's other major problems (e.g. economics, population decrease).

Increasing environmental challenges are prompting sport managers to act to minimize negative ecological impacts. Educational opportunities for sport management students are critical for developing awareness and understanding of environmental sustainability across the sport industry. In 2012, Casper and Pfahl examined the personal environmental actions of sport administration and recreation students. The purpose of our current research is to expand on Casper and Pfahl’s work by assessing the predictive relationships of values, beliefs, and norms on behaviors related to environmental sustainability using the Value–Belief–Norm (VBN) framework. Sport management students (N = 510) representing 23 higher education institutions completed the online survey. Structural equation modeling showed minimal changes over ten years. Norms were the strongest predictors of pro-environmental behaviors, and results indicated that students hold sport management organizations to a higher environmental standard than traditional businesses. The authors provide discussion and recommendations on bridging the gap between academia and industry to better prepare students for their professional futures in the sport industry.