Yanyan Huang successfully defended her PhD thesis at Wageningen University and Research on 19 December 2023

This thesis presents an in-depth exploration to unravel the roles/potential of the externalization of shared values in facilitating sustainability transformation. Although the need for sustainability transformation is increasing globally and the profound influence of values for sustainability transformation is already established, there is still not sufficient understanding in how to purposefully navigate values for sustainability transformation. This thesis strives to fill this gap by introducing a new perspective: conceptualizing values as tacit knowledge and leveraging the SECI model from the Knowledge Creation Theory.

Synthesizing results from empirical data collected from cases conducted in Shanghai, China, this thesis identifies the roles of externalization of shared values with respect to its outcome (shared values) and the procedure (externalization) for sustainability transformation. Further, this thesis presents discussions of the underlying mechanism through which shared values, when externalized, facilitate substantial sustainability transformations, and reflections on the implication for researchers from the field of sustainability science.

For those who aim to promote sustainability transformation, this thesis not only enhances the understanding of the dynamic interplay between shared values and sustainability transformation, but also provides a specific roadmap to unleash the potential of the externalization of shared values for sustainability transformation to respond to the above-mentioned gap. With its new perspective, this thesis also underscores the necessity of considering the procedures through which values/shared values are involved.

If you have questions about the research or want to read more in the dissertation or plan to do further research (or collaboration) on this topic, please kindly contact the researcher via yanyanhuang12@gmail.com.