King's College London

How can businesses truly transition toward a low-carbon future?

This question drives my research, and during my stay at the Centre for Sustainable Business (CSB) at King’s Business School, I had the opportunity to explore it from new perspectives.

Investigating how businesses respond to the climate crisis

As a research associate and PhD candidate in the Cluster of Excellence ‘Climate, Climatic Change, and Society’ at the University of Hamburg, my ambition is to contribute to conversation on the plausibility of transforming business practices towards a decarbonised future.

My current research investigates deep decarbonisation of the economy, with a strong focus on corporate responses to climate change. In particular, I aim to explore how companies are enabled and constrained in their sustainability strategy implementation efforts. I analyse organisations and corporate actors across various sectors, but also consider the influence of key stakeholders in either facilitating or hindering corporate decarbonisation.

Given the Centre’s strong focus on how businesses can transition to socially and environmentally sustainable practices, I immediately saw the potential for enriching discussions and collaborative insights. During my stay, I sought to understand how investors who had joined net zero alliances had started decarbonising their portfolios.

Gaining new perspectives through collaboration

While I primarily work with qualitative methods, these discussions introduced me to new quantitative perspectives that challenged and expanded my understanding. Taking a step back to reconsider my methodology was an invaluable part of the process, leading to fresh ideas for the further development of my research.

Collaboration was a key aspect of my stay. Together with my co-authors, I worked on a paper exploring employee engagement in sustainability strategy implementation.

Conversations with colleagues at the Centre not only provided critical feedback on our work, but also opened broader discussions about leadership, employee participation, and the challenges of publishing sustainability research.

The co-working space at CSB proved to be an excellent setting for these interactions – not just with Centre members, but also with researchers from other centers, fostering a truly multidisciplinary exchange of ideas.

The power of events and networking

Beyond these focused research activities, I highly valued the opportunities to engage in the Centre’s various events. Some had a strong focus on bringing together academia and practitioners, such as at the workshop ‘Accelerating to Net Zero: Engaging Communities & Business’, which focused on creating joint efforts for positive transformations. The workshop helped me to recognise potential avenues for fostering this collaboration back in Hamburg.

Another particularly inspiring experience was attending the Sustainable Business Salons. These sessions provided an engaging platform to interact with senior researchers and peers offering valuable insights into research projects beyond my immediate field of study. Each session left me with new perspectives and ideas to apply to my own work.

What I particularly appreciated was the diverse range of discussion formats – sometimes based on research papers, other times sparked by thought-provoking theses that encouraged lively debates. This experience reinforced my belief that scientific discourse thrives on dynamic and open-ended discussions, not just formal presentations of findings.

Doing things differently

A more unexpected but equally enriching aspect of my stay was discovering new methods of teamwork and creative problem-solving – and yes, sometimes this also included working with rather unconventional tools like LEGO bricks to facilitate problem-solving and collaboration.

This approach highlighted the importance of taking time to reflect on research aims, but also exchange thoughts about potential achievements as a research group. This experience underscored the importance of integrating creativity into academic work, highlighting how unconventional approaches can enhance both individual and collective innovation.

Final reflections

Reflecting on my time at CSB, I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to engage in such a stimulating environment. The combination of insightful discussions, exposure to new methodologies, and a truly collaborative atmosphere has significantly contributed to my professional and personal growth.

A heartfelt thank you to Jonatan Pinkse and Catherine Tilley for hosting me, and to the entire CSB team for making me feel welcome from day one. I look forward to continuing the conversation on business transitions towards a sustainable future!

 

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Theresa Rötzel is a Research Associate and PhD Candidate in the Cluster of Excellence Climate, Climatic Change, and Society (CLICCS) at the University of Hamburg, where she forms part of the research group D°GREES (Decarbonization: Global Research on Effects in Enterprises and Societies).

Theresa was a visiting researcher at the Centre for Sustainable Business from September 2024 – December 2025.

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