The concept of pro-environmental organisation vs. environmental virtue theory

Global climate threats require changes in behaviour and lifestyles to promote sustainable consumption and production. This is particularly true for business organisations and may involve the adoption of practices based on environmental virtues. While the literature on environmental virtues is extensive, there is a general lack of studies on the application of virtues in management and business. One of the main objectives of this article is to identify environmental virtues that can be linked to the activities of organisations. The main research methods were diagnostic and comparative analysis, as well as a review of relevant literature. The reviewed studies show that the main virtues that define a person's emotional attitude towards the natural environment are an open-ended curiosity that generates intellectual capital (knowledge), persistence and perseverance, courage, humility, friendship, respect, justice, care, gratitude, compassion and mercy, and trust and confidence. These virtues should constitute the organisational values of sustainable organisations, serve as the axiological basis of their flourishing and functional strategies (e.g. ESG), and be evident in systems, methods and processes, as well as in management tools such as codes of ethics.