Etzion, D., Gehman, J., Ferraro, F., and Avidan, M. (2017) Unleashing Sustainability Transformations Through Robust Action. Journal of Cleaner Production, 140, 167-178.

Shifting to dramatically more sustainable systems is an unconventional or wicked problem, encompassing
multiple actors, disciplines, and values. Yet to date, sustainability initiatives have been tackled
primarily by means of conventional managerial approaches. We contend that these approaches are ill suited
for achieving sustainability transformations. We propose an alternative approach founded upon
the sociological concept of robust action. In robust action, leaders embrace ambiguity (rather than
striving for clarity), focus on short-term accomplishments (rather than long-term goals), and are satisfied
with oblique movement (rather than linear progress). We elaborate on three robust strategies: participatory
architecture, multi-vocal inscription and distributed experimentation and investigate
their effectiveness in three sustainability related contexts: wind power, sustainability reporting and
microcredit. We conclude by discussing the applicability of robust action to other contexts, and the
complementarities between robust action and other forms of leadership towards sustainability.