Equity-based sustainability and ecocentric management: Creating more ecologically just sport organization practices

Highlights

•	A conceptual work advocating for ecocentric management is proposed.
•	Systems thinking provides a deeper understanding of sport organization practices.
•	Sport organizations can better recognize their relationship with the natural environment.
•	Sport organizations can adopt principles of ecocentric management.

Abstract

Recognizing the shared responsibility all entities with a vested interest in keeping the Earth habitable possess, the authors propose ways in which sport organizations can take action by incorporating ecocentric management principles within their organizational practices and thus become more ecologically just. First, by drawing upon the tenets of the systems thinking paradigm and the four levels of thinking model, the underlying beliefs and values guiding current practices within sport organizations are identified. Next, the authors offer a series of propositions to suggest that by adopting an equity-based perspective, recognizing the interdependent relationships between humans and the natural environment, and acknowledging the manner in which sport organizations hinder the opportunities of the natural environment to thrive, sport organizations can contribute to the health of the planet and all of its inhabitants through their own organizational practices. Additionally, sport organizations can also serve as ecologically just exemplars for organizations in other industries to emulate.

Keywords:

• Shared responsibility
• Systems thinking
• Equity
• Sustainability
• Ecocentrism